VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WAVY) — An important piece for Westminster Canterbury has fallen into place as they look to move forward with a new 22-story senior living tower on Shore Drive.

On Tuesday night, Virginia Beach City Council saw the supermajority 9-1 vote, with Councilman Chris Taylor the lone no vote, to approve the relocation of preferred public beach access for the project at the request of the retirement community.

The controversial now $450-million project, an expansion to Westminster Canterbury’s existing property on Starfish Road, was already approved back in 2020 by city council and an appeal by neighbors to block it was denied by the Virginia Supreme Court. However opponents were hoping a vote against the beach access relocation could have put a wrench in plans, despite Westminster Canterbury’s insistence it would move forward regardless of Tuesday’s decision (which required a supermajority vote that the project didn’t have back in 2020).

Westminster Canterbury CEO Ben Unkle said the current public beach access would have had to run through a parking garage and wouldn’t have been safe or ideal for residents. The new public access will now be about 140 feet to the east, to the edge of Westminster’s property at the site of the famed Lynnhaven Fish House, which was closed six years ago and sold to Westminster.

Westminster is putting $100,000 toward the new ramp, will be wider, have lighting and be ADA compliant.

“This is a much better location and it’s much safe because it’s going to be ADA compliant … it’s going to be much more obviously a public access way,” said Councilwoman Barbara Henley, who said she held off on approving the relocation in 2020 due to confusion over the distance of relocation.

Unkle says the new tower project will bring $1 million in new tax revenue each year for the city.