Enterprise Zone #2 (Downtown) Expansion

November 12, 2008.

Following a November 11th public hearing, City Council approved a resolution in support of amending Virginia Enterprise Zone # 2 (Downtown). The amended zone now goes to the Commonwealth of Virginia, Department of Housing and Community Development for approval prior to being submitted to the General Assembly for adoption.

For sometime there has been an interest in amending the boundaries of Enterprise Zone #2 to take in more of the midtown area and, in particular, the Plaza and properties along Oakley Avenue. Because the enterprise zone is limited to seven percent of the City's total size, taking in new areas requires that the zone designation be lifted from other areas where it is of little utility. The areas proposed for deletion from the zone were primarily residential where zone designation provides no benefit.

Property owners in the areas to be deleted by the proposed amendment were notified. Enterprise zone designation has no impact on land use regulation.

The Virginia Enterprise Zone program is committed to encouraging economic growth and revitalization throughout the commonwealth by supporting businesses and investors.

Established by the General Assembly in 1982, the Virginia Enterprise Zone program is a partnership between state and local government that stimulates job creation and private investment within designated areas throughout the state.