LAST WEEK, the Albemarle Board of Zoning Appeals (BZA) voted 3-1 against Charlottesville-area residents concerned about the location of the new Planned Parenthood of the Blue Ridge (PPBR) facility in a residential neighborhood on Hydraulic Road, near Albemarle High School and neighboring elementary and middle schools. Not only was this ruling unfair, but Planned Parenthood of the Blue Ridge also tried to impede Charlottesville residents' participation in the development decisions of their community.
Planned Parenthood of the Blue Ridge is located in a "Residential-10" zoned area. Special-use permits may be granted in R-10 areas for several non-residential uses, such as parking structures, daycares and cemeteries -- if the public can testify before decisions are made. Under R-10 regulations, no special permits are available for a medical center, which Planned Parenthood now claims its new facility is. They may be granted for hospitals or professional offices.
Planned Parenthood evaded the law by purchasing a facility under construction on Hydraulic Road with a special-use permit for a building mixing apartments with professional office spaces. Residents approved this use during a public comment period. Planned Parenthood bought the office building and constructed an "outpatient hospital" to meet any structural specifications for performing abortions that the state of Virginia might pass in the future (PPBR, Blue Ridge Briefings, Spring 2004). Although this use of the special permit is entirely different from the original application and blatantly violates zoning law, no new public comment period was ever held. The single BZA member who voted against Planned Parenthood cited these facts in explaining his vote.
The three BZA members who supported Planned Parenthood did not explain their votes. The PPBR representatives they supported ignored the zoning issue and instead focused on the non-abortion services they provide, which are irrelevant in this discussion. PPBR could operate within R-10 zoning by providing educational services as long as it does not perform abortions or other medical functions. Both Planned Parenthood and the BZA members who voted in their favor refused to acknowledge this reality.
Perhaps these board members were influenced by an international corporation that makes over three-quarters of a billion dollars annually, whose local affiliates continually thwart democratic deliberation over community development and abortion. Planned Parenthood turned a hearing for residents to voice their opinions into a Mid-Atlantic regional pro-choice rally. Though the hearing dealt with the need for public input in local zoning decisions, they bused in activists from Richmond, Washington, D.C., and even New York City. They arrived hours before the hearing began to occupy all the seats in the auditorium and deny local citizens concerned about the location of the new facility the opportunity to participate in or even witness the hearing. Then, in direct contravention of BZA rules established to ensure impartial hearings free from intimidation, they heckled opposing speakers throughout the four-hour-long proceedings. PPBR simultaneously held a rally for their supporters outside the building where speakers with microphones, constant slogan shouting and jeering of pro-life citizens drowned out the deliberations.
Throughout the development of this new abortion hospital, PPBR has undermined the efforts of Charlottesville-area residents to air their grievances through democratic media. This tactic of silence did not surprise members of First Right, The University's pro-life CIO. We have encountered it in our many attempts to get VOX, Planned Parenthood's student affiliate, to discuss the issues with us either through structured mediation or through public debate. They have consistently turned us down.
Ultimately, this debate is not about the legality of abortion. This debate is about a fundamental right guaranteed to every citizen by the First Amendment -- freedom of speech. We want the opportunity to talk about abortion with our opponents -- in person, in public forums and in political institutions. If Planned Parenthood fails to allow responsible dialogue during a local zoning hearing, how can they be expected to talk honestly about the "why, how, where and to whom" of America's 1.3 million abortions each year? This issue is much too important for Planned Parenthood and its supporters to evade dialogue or resort to heckling. Whatever value one affords the lives of the unborn, their fate should not be decided by shouts or silence.
Kia Lam is president of First Right. Christy Elliot is vice president of First Right.
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