Your neighborhood needs you in the room.

Dear [Council Member / Planning Commission Chair], My name is [Your Name], and I live at [Your Address] in the Ghent HC-G2 historic district. I am writing to express my support for the proposed text amendment to Table 3.6.11 of the Norfolk Zoning Ordinance that would permit neighborhood-scale retail uses by right on ground-floor street-facing parcels in HC-G2. Ghent has exceptional bones — dense, walkable, beautifully maintained — but our sidewalks are dead. The current zoning code requires a Conditional Use Permit for any ground-floor retail use, which means a $1,080 city application fee plus legal and planning consultants — totaling $3,000–$8,000 in typical process costs — a six-month wait, and a public hearing. No small operator can afford that process. The result is what we have now: two nonconforming corporate stores, vacant storefronts, and no neighborhood retail by right anywhere in the district. Norfolk already knows how to solve this. The Pedestrian Commercial Overlay on Colley Avenue and 21st Street uses performance standards instead of CUPs to permit small-scale retail while maintaining neighborhood character. It works. We're asking that the same model be applied to HC-G2. This is not a request to override historic preservation standards. ARB design review for physical alterations would remain in place. We are asking only that the use table be updated to reflect what our neighborhood actually needs. I urge your support for this amendment. Sincerely, [Your Name] [Your Address] [Your Email]