July 4th Parade & Picnic

Events, KGCL, , ,

The King’s Grant Community League (KGCL) will host an Independence Day parade and picnic on Monday, July 4th.  Last year’s event was fantastic with several hundred neighborhood residents involved.

Based on comments from last year’s participants, we’ve extended the parade route this year.  The route will begin and end at Witt Park on Kings Grant Rd (the KGCL-owned property at the waters’ edge at the intersection of Kings Grant Rd and Blue Ridge Ct).  This year we will circle the lake.  We will gather our participants in the Blue Ridge Ct cul-de-sac, and proceed north to Watergate Ln.  We will turn right onto Watergate Ln and follow it to Smiths Ln.  From there, we go one block south and turn right onto Edinburgh Dr.  We will parade along Edinburgh Dr to Kings Grant Rd and return to Witt Park.  Start time is 11am.  Please be present by 10:45 so our volunteers can get everyone lined up.  If you are not walking or biking with us, please come out and cheer on the marchers.  We hope you will bring your flag.  After the parade, we will have contests, music and a picnic at the park.

This is an opportunity to involve adults and children in something fun that brings the community together and recognizes the significance of the date.  We welcome just about anything in the parade that walks or rolls… that means bikes, strollers, wagons, vintage vehicles, motorcycles, lawn mowers, scooters, etc.

We can use more volunteers to assist with the event and as traffic safety monitors along our route. We would particularly appreciate homeowners near road intersections being available to place the traffic barriers (that will be delivered in advance) in the road as the parade approaches and remove them after we pass.  Please email the KGCL Board if you will help (board@kgcl.org) with a small piece.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FLYER

Watch the KGCL webs site for more info.

May Farm Garden Club Pine Straw Sale

Grounds & Maintenance, KGCL, PSA

May Farm Garden Club has pine straw!

Each year the May Farm Garden Club of Kingston hosts an annual pine straw sale. Proceeds from this sale are used for beautification in several locations of our community. This year’s sale, on March 19th, landed on a cold, wet day that severely curtailed the neighborhood turnout. As a result, 221 bales of pine straw remain for sale. The Garden Club needs your support. Please give them a call. Your garden and the Garden Club will both appreciate it! The cost is $7.00 per bale, plus $10.00 delivery fee if you would like them to deliver.

Please call 486-7680 or 306-8597.

Traffic Detours This Weekend

KGCL, PSA, Public Works, Transportation

Detour signN. Lynnhaven Road will be closed at the Kings Grant Road intersection from Friday night through Sunday night (March 4-6) to complete the sewer pipe installation below the road. Northbound traffic on N. Lynnhaven and Kings Grant Roads must use alternate routes during this period. Southbound Kings Grant and N. Lynnhaven Roads will remain partially open with traffic directed to Virginia Beach Blvd. The intersection will be reopened when work completes.

Open Meeting Thursday

KGCL

There is general membership meeting this Thursday, February 18, 7:30 PM at King’s Grant Elementary School.

The King’s Grant Community League (KGCL) is pleased to host a presentation by Mr. Kyle Finerfrock, Environmental Scientist with Solitude Lake Management, at our general meeting on Thursday, February 18th at 7:30pm. High among the concerns of our neighborhood residents is the growing problem in some areas of our lakes with aquatic weeds that are spreading across the waters. Mr. Finerfrock will discuss the issues that promote this growth, the decisions that homeowners make that contribute to or mitigate the problem, and options available to manage water quality. He will also briefly discuss his experience with methods of deterring uninvited geese that may invade your lawn. At the conclusion of his presentation, he will answer questions.

About Mr. Finerfrock:

Kyle Finerfrock

Kyle Finerfrock is an Environmental Scientist at SOLitude Lake Management with over ten years of experience with aquatic-related projects, encompassing sustainable lake and pond maintenance, treating invasive wetland plants, performing GPS mapping, and supporting water quality and plant monitoring programs in some of the largest lakes in Virginia. Kyle has a Bachelor of Science Degree in Environmental Science, with a concentration in Marine Biology from Christopher Newport University in Newport News, VA and is a certified aquatic applicator in eight states.

Update: King’s Grant Road Sanitary Pump Station

City of Virginia Beach, Public Works

As everyone who travels Kings Grant Road between Virginia Beach Blvd and Little Neck Road has seen,the construction work for replacement of the sanitary sewer pump station on Kings Grant Road is finally underway. So is the work to install a new sewer line beneath Kings Grant Road. There are two separate work crews involved, so the contractor changed the sequence of road work in order to avoid interferences between them in the early stages of the project. Road work began near Virginia Beach Blvd and will move north to the pump station. This is a reversal of the original plan which started at the pump station and worked south to Virginia Beach Blvd.

An assortment of issues delayed the start of the project (wet weather, interfering utility lines, and trees), so the contractor is behind schedule at the pump station site. Temporary pump equipment is housed in the large orange containers at the corner of Kings Grant Road and Sunnybrook Lane. These are now on-line and serve to bypass the pump station so that it may be demolished and rebuilt. The large crane will be used to demolish the pump house and the concrete wet well beneath it. The crane will then drive steel sheet piles to create a cofferdam so that a new wet well can be constructed. While the work at this site continues, the sewer line work beneath the road will continue to work its way north.

The portion of the road now being worked is closed to through traffic. Once construction reaches the intersection of Kings Grant Road and North Lynnhaven Road, the contractor will work around the clock during one weekend to get through that area at quickly as possible. You can expect this portion to be the most disruptive to neighborhood traffic flow. Once road work gets north of that intersection, then one lane will remain open on Kings Grant Road the rest of the way. No disruption of school bus routes is expected.

The updated plan for the major chunks of work are:

  • Pump Station Demolition: February ’16 – March ‘16
  • Below Grade Construction: March ’16 – August ‘16
  • Pump Station Construction: July ’16 – January ‘17
  • Sewer Line Installation: January ’16 – April ‘16

The city’s Public Utilities Engineering Division agreed to provide more details (projected dates for each phase of the work) on road closures. That info will be provided when received.

King's Grant Road Sanitary Pump Station Project    King's Grant Road Sanitary Pump Station Project

 

Update: Kingston Road Sanitary Pump Station

KGCL, Public Works

The Public Utilities Engineering Division of the City of Virginia Beach provided the KGCL with an update on the progress of construction at the Kingston Drive pump station. The wet weather has been a challenge to overcome, but construction is moving along very well. The contractor set up the temporary pumping equipment, demolished the old pump station building, and is preparing to remove the old sewage wet well. A large crane has been set up at the work site. This will be used to remove the below-grade concrete wet well and drive the sheet piles to create a cofferdam that will allow construction of the new wet well. Neighbors should expect noise when the steel sheet piles are driven into the ground to create the cofferdam. The project is still scheduled to complete in November.

Kingston Road Project Kingston Road Project Kingston Road Pump Station Project

 

PLEASE DON’T FEED THE BIRDS IN WITT PARK

Grounds & Maintenance, KGCL, ,

gran-torino-clint-eastwood

From time to time we need to send out a reminder that FEEDING WILDLIFE IN WITT PARK IS PROHIBITED.

We don’t mean to be grumps about it. It’s just not good for us or the animals.

Feeding waterfowl increases their permanent population without any checks or balances. Bird feces pollute the lake with excessive nitrates and pose a health risk to people.

You know what isn’t prohibited in Witt Park? FISHING!

PASS IT ON!

Kingston Drive Sanitary Pump Station Project Begins

Public Works

The contractor chosen by the City to replace the sanitary pump station on Kingston Drive has started work.  Work site perimeter protection (the orange silt barrier) is installed and obvious to residents of the area.  The City provided the following schedule:

Activity                                             Start                                     Complete

Pump Station Demolition             December 15, 2015           January 16, 2016

Below Grade Construction           January 15, 2016                July 16, 1026

Pump Station Construction          July 16, 2016                       November 16, 2016

The contractor will not require an off-site storage area for equipment and materials.  Updates will be provided as available.

Kingston Drive Public Works

Site preparation underway

Update: Kings Grant Road Sanitary Pump Station Replacement Project

Grounds & Maintenance, KGCL, Public Works

Travelers in and out of Kings Grant along Kings Grant Road will have noted the construction fence and equipment now staged in the Triangle property. The City of Virginia Beach gave the contractor its authorization to proceed with the work earlier this month. During December, the contractor will move utilities at the site of the pump station (which is near the intersection of Kings Grant Road and Sunnybrook Lane). This will be followed by installation of temporary services and demolition of the existing building and driveway. Work in the roadway will also begin in December. The big picture looks like this:

Activity Start End
Pump Station Demolition December 15, 2015 February 16, 2016
Below Grade Construction February 15, 2016 June 16, 2016
Pump Station Construction June 16, 2016 December 16, 2016
Construction of New Sewer Main December 15, 2015 April 16, 2016

(Road Work)

Installation of the new sewer main will begin near the pump station and proceed in phases to its tie in to the HRSD main near Virginia Beach Blvd. Please take care while driving near construction area, and pay attention to the presence of heavy equipment, construction workers and temporary road signs.

Click here for the contractor’s master schedule