City Council

City of Hopewell Zoning & Subdivision Ordinance Update Worksession #1 – Meeting Summary February 27, 2025 Berkley Group (BG) met with City of Hopewell staff, Planning Commission, and City Council on Thursday, February 27, 2025, to discuss the findings of community engagement and introduce the proposed structure of the updated Zoning and Subdivision Ordinance. A summary of the worksession discussion is included below. Topic Discussion Summary BG presented the overall purpose and intent of the Zoning and Project Purpose Subdivision update. No questions or discussion. BG provided a brief overview of the Diagnostic that was completed Diagnostic Refresh in January 2024. No questions or discussion. BG provided an overview of this Ordinance update and the Project Overview and associated schedule. No questions or discussion. Schedule Community Engagement: BG provided an overview of the six predominant themes that were 6 Key Engagement identified from community engagement. No questions or discussion. Themes Hopewell’s population is approximately 20,000 and there are clearly not many responses. Planning Commissioner asked if that was Community typical. BG explained that Zoning is a hard topic to get feedback on. Engagement: Overview We try to reach the community as best we can, but it is typical to see this type of turnout in other communities as well. Planning Commissioner asked about the median age of engagement participants. City staff explained that it was a good mix Community of age groups in the pop-up events. BG stated that the workshop Engagement: Pop Ups and focus group participants were mostly older, and the survey did not ask demographic questions, so we are unaware of the median age of participants in that form of engagement. Community BG provided a brief overview of the public workshop conducted, and Engagement: Public its key themes. No questions or discussion. Workshops Worksession #1 Meeting Summary | 1 City of Hopewell Zoning & Subdivision Ordinance Update Worksession #1 – Meeting Summary February 27, 2025 Topic Discussion Summary Community BG provided an overview of the focus groups conducted, feedback Engagement: Focus received, and a general overview about the participants. No questions Groups or discussion. Question from Commissioner: Hopewell’s existing Comprehensive Plan says a high percentage of people were dissatisfied with commercial opportunities available (they work here but don’t live, eat, or shop here) – is the survey reinforcing this? Berkley Group explained that we heard a lot about not having enough hospitality uses, such as stores and restaurants, in Hopewell. This theme was fairly prevalent in the Survey. Council and Commission want to make sure they understand what the people want; feels like they may have very specific developments in mind. Tiny homes are becoming more affordable than traditional housing, and residents are wanting to see more of those options. This Community was expressed through Questions 4 and 5 in the Community Survey. Engagement: The tiny home movement is getting a lot of attention; there are Community-Wide different types of manufacturers. The purpose of tiny homes on wheels Survey is to make it affordable. This trend is also growing in popularity with the older generation too because it's cheaper and requires less maintenance than a traditional home. To prevent the abuse of recreational vehicles (RVs), the Ordinance needs to clearly define tiny homes/cottage communities versus RVs. Need to be sure that decisions about these “trends” will be substantial for the City long-term. Berkely Group explained that community engagement provides a snapshot in time of what the community desires, but as we draft, we can determine if the community’s desires are appropriate for the City, and how the Ordinance can be used to guide that development properly. BG informed the Commission and Council of the primary elements of Elements of a Strong a strong Zoning and Subdivision Ordinance. No questions or Ordinance discussion. Proposed Ordinance BG gave a brief overview of Hopewell’s proposed ZO+SO structure. Structure No questions or discussion. General If the Planning Commission considered a small area plan, how does Comments/Questions that integrate with the Ordinance’s development standards? BG explained that this would be best applied through creating new Worksession #1 Meeting Summary | 2 City of Hopewell Zoning & Subdivision Ordinance Update Worksession #1 – Meeting Summary February 27, 2025 Topic Discussion Summary overlay districts; these can correspond to the small area plan and codify additional standards for development. City Staff Question for Council/Commission: New single-family dwellings on nonconforming lot – is there any appetite for this to be codified in the Ordinance to allow nonconforming lots to be built on, or do you like process as is? General consensus was support for this process. The group noted they did not take issue with things like eaves, driveway, etc., but still want to see houses come through for review. Commissioner expressed that some undersized lots need to be combined with adjacent lots. Automatic approval process for undersize lots is dangerous. City Staff mentioned that another option is to allow BZA to review nonconformities through the Variance process. Colonial Heights allows some by-right development, but only after some complicated calculations. BG also noted that current development standards are not lining up with historic development patterns on the ground (e.g., City Point area) so when we assess the zoning districts, we will look at minimum lot size and setbacks, which could improve the nonconforming process as well. Next Steps Task Responsible Party Date Planning Commission Drafting City Staff Thursday, March 6, 2025 Worksession #1 of 4 Berkley Group Worksession #1 Meeting Summary | 3