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Planners table rezoning of East River Boat Yard

The Mathews County Planning Commission on Tuesday night unanimously tabled a decision on rezoning the East River Boat Yard from residential waterfront to business waterfront, a request that has been made by the Mathews County Board of Supervisors.

The decision came after the two boards held a joint public hearing, during which adjacent property owners and neighbors of the Mill Lane Road property expressed skepticism about the viability of an aquaculture project proposed for the site and its potential impact on their neighborhood.

Mathews County Planning and Zoning Director Thomas Jenkins made the case that the East River Boat Yard, a one-acre site that currently has an 1,800-square-foot building, a small boat ramp and dock, and a deteriorating bulkhead, was a commercial site long before it was sold to Mathews County in 2004.

He said the boat yard had most recently housed a marina with fuel sales and marine electronic services and that it continues to be used by commercial and reside...

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