Dear City Council,

As a concerned citizen of Suffolk, I implore you to vote against the rezoning of Ellis Farm (RZN2024-00013), from agricultural to residential. This rezoning, if approved by City Council, will allow the developer to build 300 single-family homes on land that is adjacent to Speight’s Run Reservoir. This rezoning would drastically and negatively impact the citizens on Manning Road and the surrounding area, the students and personnel at Kilby Shores Elementary School, and the broader Suffolk community. 

These additional homes will create 40% impervious surfaces, where currently there is only farmland and forest. This will negatively impact both the water quality of the reservoir and the streams that run through the property and feed into the reservoir, which provides drinking water for the citizens of both Suffolk and Portsmouth. Additionally, adding this much impervious surface will significantly impact the way that water flows on this very wet piece of land. This could cause flooding on adjacent neighbors’ properties as well add to the flooding on Manning Road. 

Kilby Shores Elementary School is already overcrowded. This development will increase the number of students to 126% of capacity, and that isn’t even including the other developments in the pipeline that have already been rezoned and will be impacting the number of students. This additional development puts a strain on the school’s resources and negatively impacts the students and school personnel. 

Additionally, Manning Road is a dangerous rural road. The projected additional traffic will almost triple the traffic on Manning Rd. This traffic volume wouldn’t be an issue on a collector road if the road met the minimum city and state codes. Manning Road does not even meet the standard for an alley. The lanes on on Manning Road are only 8 feet wide with no shoulders. The causeway just north of the planned development is a narrow, winding road, with limited visibility, and no city lights. It floods in heavy rain. On either side of this road, which measure about 16 feet wide, is a guardrail, some trees and the water of the Speights Run Reservoir. There have already been multiple accidents in recent years on this stretch of road, including a fatality and a car flip. Improving this section of the road to meet the City of Suffolk’s UDO standard of 36 feet would be a costly endeavor that would require the cooperation of the Army Corps of Engineers and the City of Portsmouth.

There is also the dangerous intersection of Manning Road and Wilkins Drive which lies south of Holland Road and north of the causeway. This roads enters into a residential development which has had recent traffic increases do to the increased traffic on RT. 58. Wilkins Drive T-junctions with Manning Road at a curve in the road, with limited visibility as well as narrow lanes, no shoulders and ditches along the side of the road.

The developer is not offering any proffers to fix the causeway or the Wilkins Drive intersection, only the part of the road directly in front of the development.  Intentionally tripling the traffic of Manning Road, with these hazards, would be putting the lives of residents at risk. Until the City of Suffolk has widened that dangerous stretch of road, Suffolk is not ready to adequately support this type of development on Manning Road. If the city has to pay to make these improvements, then the taxpayers will be subsidizing this irresponsible development. Either solution is not fair to the citizens of Suffolk. 

I respectfully ask that you please consider these impacts mentioned above and render a sound decision to deny the Ellis Farm rezoning.

Respectfully Yours,

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