Here’s a message from Mary Ellen Faust: “ I am always amazed at the people who come out to volunteer for the OPCL cleanups for OUR Adopt-A-Spot, Pleasure House Point Natural Area. Especially on a day like today with temperatures in the 30’s! Today more than 200 pounds of refuse were removed with the help of 18 volunteers! Ashley and Levy, her lovely lab, were first out! Our civic league president, Danny Murphy, didn’t just show up, he was out there for the full three hours, wading out in the water and in the reeds, making drops and going back out for more!! Tetsuo O. and Debbie Cohen (pictured below) came early, too! Thanks to Liz Janney, Joshua, Anita and Savannah Montgomery, Merle Younkin, Michael Pearman (dragged out a pickup truck tailgate!), Dave Fortier (working the creeks!), Kevin and Sayer Davis brought more car parts and “stuff” (overachievers!), Laura Hugings and Christina Miller (came for a walk and joined right in!), Chrissy Mason and Georgia Pitrone!! If I left anyone off, apologies, however, considering that I had little hope that ANYONE would even show, I was truly overwhelmed by the support!! Thanks again you lovely people!!”

The Bayfront Advisory Commission met on Thursday, February 16th at the Ocean Park Volunteer Rescue Squad. At the meeting Mr. Dan Adams gave several updates on sand replenishment along the bay and about the dune grass planting: “A contract is being prepared for dune grass and sand fence installation as follow on to compliment the beach restoration work completed last spring. This work will occur in March. The next placement and source of sand for Ocean Park will most likely be the next cycle of dredging of the Lynnhaven Federal channel in 3-4 years. Method of sand transport is hydraulic(pipeline).”

Highlights from the January BAC meeting:
“CHAIR’S REPORT:
Mr. Davenport also welcomed Councilman Chris Taylor of District 8 and Councilman Joash Schulman of District 9. After the introductions, Mr. Davenport reviewed the BAC Strategic Priorities document for FY 2021 and 2022. Mr. Schulman added that he will push for funding in the budget for the Shore Drive Corridor Plan update and will stress the implementation of the Shore Drive Phase III & IV CIP projects. Mr. Taylor discussed the possibility of using TIP funds on improvements to Shore Drive. Other priorities discussed included the regulation of density in the Shore Drive Corridor, sand replenishment, crosswalks and other pedestrian safety measures on Shore Drive, and affordable housing.“

From President Danny Murphy: A huge thank you to everyone who attended and especially to the gang of cooks! You are all winners! We’d also like to thank Branan and the Ocean Park Volunteer Rescue Squad staff, for offering their space and their help with the event! Big thanks to Jim Andersen and all the Tidewater Bluegrass Music Association musicians who gave us awesome music for the evening! Thank you to Officer Wroblewski for his update on recent events in the neighborhood and to Councilman Joash Schulman for coming out to visit with us. A big thanks is owed to the members of the OPCL Board: Shane Abell, Christy Allen, Jill Doczi, Andrea Lindemann, Blake Norris, and Brian Snyder and to the Social Committee: Jenny Snyder, Natalie McIntyre, Jay Montgomery, Christy Allen, Joanne Lapin Parker et al for making the event such a success! Bravo! Thank you to all the volunteers who helped set up and clean up! Thanks also to Tim Lindemann , the fire pit captain and to Betty Dierstein, former secretary and prize fabricator-the aprons are great!

Everything is a go for Chill-i Out Night! The weather looks to be cooperating! One thing: looking for more fire pits. If you have a fire pit (even an old nasty one!) that we could use- that would help out! Go to: signupgenius.com/firepit or email: president@opcl or communication:opcl.org.

We are pleased to welcome the Tidewater Bluegrass Association for a live jam session at the Chill-i Out night on Feb. 9th from 6:00 – 7:30 pm at the Ocean Park Volunteer Rescue Squad on Shore Dr. Everyone is welcome- come enjoy the food and vote for your favorites! You don’t have to bring chili to participate. Hey there chili cooks and corn bread bakers! Sign up to bring a pot of chili, a pan of cornbread or a dessert. Sign up here: SignUpGenius.com/chilli. Prizes will be awarded for : Traditional Chili, Non-Traditional Chili and Best Cornbread! There will be adult beverages and pizza for the kids too!

Also on Chill-i Out Night: The Big Reveal! New long sleeve t-shirts ($25) and hoodies ($40) in new colors will be for sale at Chili Night!

What Should Happen to Rudee Loop?

Take the online survey: publicinput.com/rudeeloop. Residents can also weigh in at the last in person meeting: Tuesday, January 31, 2023 from 6:30-8 p.m. at the Kempsville Recreation Center, 800 Monmouth Lane.

Filling City Council Seats: Appoint or Elect?

Another eventful year in Ocean Park! It’s hard to believe that in January and February, we were not yet back to in person meetings amid concerns about virus resurgence. The Marlin Bay developers expressed interest in working with the civic league in their development of a new plan for the Marlin Bay property project. OPCL formed a committee and met with Jon Peterson in February for an open discussion about what the community would like to see. We have not been contacted again for input or meetings. We did have our Chili Cook Off in March in the (a little drafty) ambulance bay at OPVRS due to continuing concerns about the corona virus but the weather did not cooperate!

In June our George and Louise Lyon Four Year Scholarship was awarded to Carly Lundgren.

In August the issue of private use of the Lynnhaven Transfer Station came up when the city introduced an Ordinance change without input from the OP community. President Danny Murphy worked with Council members Moss and Miles and Public Works Director Hanson to generate protocols ensuring safe operation for the neighborhood.

During the 2022 election season, OPCL hosted School Board and City Council candidates for District 9 at our meetings in August-October. We thank John Moss for his strong support of Ocean Park and his many years of dedicated service to the city. Also we thank Delceno Miles, interim City Council member replacing Louis Jones, for her active support of our community. We welcome incoming City Council member for District 9 Joash Schulman and look forward to working with him!

We look forward to another great year for Ocean Park in 2023!

At the City Council Meeting on December 6th, the Ordinance to “AUTHORIZE temporary encroachments into a portion of City right-of-way” was deferred indefinitely by the City Council.

A number of speakers spoke to make the point that this is a larger issue than one particular case. Clay Bernik, President of the Friends of the Live Oaks, noted that there is no current policy on encroachment into dune areas which are vulnerable to flooding and sea level rise and asked the city to develop guidelines which would address how the city can protect these sensitive areas. (And noted that there is no mechanism to preserve our city tree-live oaks ). Steve Gibson, Vice President of the North Virginia Beach Civic League, described how these activities are becoming more common and described 4 cases in the North End where residents are building large areas into the dunes. He also requested a change in process since currently these requests go directly from Public Works to City Council. Todd Solomon, Cape Story Civic League, also noted the lack of civic process since these requests are addressed piecemeal allowing little or no notice to the public. President Danny Murphy requested a postponement saying that the issue is that the short notice allows no time to for community input on issues like this one and others like the Lynnhaven Dredge Transfer Station. Robert O’Neal spoke to clarify the timeline and points about the right of way and echoed objections about short notice and lack of transparency.

Council member Henley said she recognized that there were a number of issues concerning waterways and encroachment and she would support a holistic approach. Council member Wilson suggested that the Beach and Waterways Commission be reactivated to help clarify these issues including a lack of process and oversight. City Manager Duhaney suggested a moratorium which Mayor Dyer supported and was agreed to by the Council. District 9 Council member Moss suggested that the City leverage the digital infrastructure that has been paid for in terms of extensive data on the beaches to see the whole picture and adopt a comprehensive policy because “just because it’s been there forever doesn’t mean it gets to stay there.” He asked that City Manager Duhaney be tasked with coming back to council in the new year with recommendations on organization and timeline. Bayside Council member Delceno Miles noted that these requests do not go through advisory boards so a more comprehensive plan is called for. She made a motion to defer the ordinance indefinitely which was carried unanimously by the Council.

The North Virginia Beach Civic League has identified encroachment into the dunes as a problem in their October Newsletter and has taken the step of advocating the prevention of encroachment activities.

This is the article from the North Virginia Beach Civic League Newsletter: October-2022-Newsletter.

Warm (!) wishes to everyone for a happy and peaceful holiday season! Good health to all our families and friends in Ocean Park and all places near and far!

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