The City of Norfolk Planning Department staff has put together the results from the visioning exercise completed on October 19, 2015 at the Denby Park Charrette.
Staff will followup with the participants in the near future with suggested approaches to address issues raised as well as recommendations for changes to the comprehensive plan, PlaNorfolk2030.
The visioning exercise results are here (PDF).
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Posted by Martin Thomas Jr.
Rajiv Chandrasekaran
To celebrate the paperback release of For Love of Country: What
Our Veterans Can Teach Us About Citizenship, Heroism, and Sacrifice
Join us for a conversation on November 5, at 11am, at the Starbucks Military Family Store, Wards Corner
7550 Granby Street Norfolk, VA 23505
Rajiv Chandrasekaran was a senior correspondent and associate editor, and national editor of The Washington Post. During his newspaper career, he reported from more than three dozen countries and was a bureau chief in Baghdad, Cairo and Southeast Asia.
In 2014, he wrote the bestselling book For Love of Country: What Our Veterans Can Teach Us About Citizenship, Heroism and Sacrifice with Starbucks chairman and CEO Howard Schultz.
Rajiv is also the author of two other bestselling books: Little America and Inside
Iraq’s Green Zone, which was named one of the ten best books of 2007 by The New
York Times and inspired the movie Green Zone.
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Posted by Martin Thomas Jr.
Andria McClellan is running for Norfolk City Council’s superward 6 seat. On Tuesday, October 27 from 5:30 – 7:30pm she will hold a Meet & Greet at Guads. Please attend and tell Andria what she can do for Wards Corner!
The full invitation is below:
Andria McClellan will have a Meet & Greet on October 27 at 5:30pm at Guads. Andria is running for the superward 6 Norfolk City Council seat.
Earlier this month, I announced that I am running for Norfolk City Council’s Superward 6 seat. My reason to run is quite simple – I love Norfolk. It is an amazing place to live, work and raise a family. I love our history, our diversity, our unique neighborhoods and our urban core. Mike and I chose to move our young family to Norfolk more than a decade ago, and I can’t imagine living anywhere else. But I am concerned that more families, individuals and companies aren’t making the choice to call Norfolk home.
On the City Council, I will work to enhance our parks, bike paths and walking trails; activate our waterways; and, support our great cultural offerings. I want to return our Norfolk public schools to the nationally-recognized education system it once was, so that more families move to Norfolk – and not leave it — to raise their children. I will work to ensure that Norfolk is the best city in Hampton Roads in which to do business by supporting local business and attracting new ones – bringing both jobs and economic prosperity to our community. I want to create regional and actionable strategies to better address our flooding, so we can enjoy living with the water instead of being threatened by it.
Ultimately, I want to help create a city in which my three sons will want to raise their own families someday. And I want to work with you, my fellow citizens, community leaders, and supporters, to make this a reality.
I’d like to invite members of the community to join me at a Meet & Greet event on Tuesday, October 27th from 5:30pm-7:30pm at Guad’s on Granby. [This is free and open to the public, and it is not a fundraiser.]
I will share my vision for Norfolk, and I want to hear what issues matter most to you, your families and your businesses.
You can learn more about me and my campaign on my website, www.andriafornorfolk.com. You can sign up under the “News & Events” section of the website or via our Facebook event page.
I hope to see you on October 27th!
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Posted by Martin Thomas Jr.
Denby Park properties purchased by the City of Norfolk. YELLOW highlighted properties were purchased in 2014. RED highlighted properties were purchased in 2013. BLUE highlighted properties were purchased in 2011.
A Charrette is planned for October 19, 2015 at Wesley Memorial Methodist Church, 288 E. Little Creek Road, from 5:30 – 8pm. The entire Greater Wards Community is invited.
The Charrette is designed to get input from the community on the future of Denby Park.
The City of Norfolk, with significant input from Wards Corner residents, has made it a priority over the last 5 years to decrease the substandard housing in the “Texas Streets” portions of Denby Park. During that time the City has spent more than 6 million dollars purchasing and demolishing 193 of those substandard housing units. This has resulted in a drop in crime both in Denby Park and in the Wards Corner business district.
Now that the City is such a large landowner in Denby Park, they are looking for citizen input on what the future should hold for that portion of our City.
Come to the meeting and help decide what should be built in Denby Park – a park? residential? commercial? mixed use?
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Posted by Martin Thomas Jr.
Our friends at the Suburban Acres Civic League have extended the below invitation to their candidates forum:
Folks, I wanted to let our neighboring civic leagues know about our campaign forum this Monday evening October 12th (Columbus Day).
I haven’t seen much in the way of election info or forums so anticipate there might be some ‘pent up demand’.
We will have as our guests both candidates for the 100th District House of Delegates race, Delegate Robert Bloxom Jr. (R) and Willie Randall (D), as well as candidates for the 6th Senate District, Senator Lynwood Lewis (D) and challenger Richard Ottinger (R).
We are also having our fall “Crock Pot Cook-off” so please invite folks to bring a snack to share, or a crock pot dish to compete for prizes.
Due to the cook-off, and a flu-shot clinic by Farm Fresh Pharmacy, we have a special doors-open time of 5:30 pm instead of our normal 6 pm. The meeting and forum begins at 6:30 pm.
We meet at Suburban Park Elementary School, 310 Thole Street.
Thanks,
KEVIN
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Posted by Martin Thomas Jr.
October 13th is the last day to register to vote in the November 3, 2015 state elections. If you are new to Virginia, have moved within the State or City, or have never voted before, you can register on-line at www.elections.virginia.gov. At the website, you can also find your polling place and see a sample ballot. You can also register through the Norfolk General Registrar in City Hall. Call the Registrar’s office for further information on how to register at 757-664-4353. Voter registration forms are usually available at libraries and Department of Motor Vehicle offices.
Polls will be open November 3, 2015, 6:00 am until 7:00 pm. Voters who are disable, age 65 or older, or pregnant may vote in their car if brought by an assistant. Voters must present a valid picture identification card. Acceptable forms are a valid Virginia driver’s license, a Department of Motor Vehicles-issued photo ID card, a U.S. passport, other government-issued photo ID card, and college or university student photo ID card issued by an institution of higher education located in Virginia.
-Karen Mayne
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Posted by Martin Thomas Jr.
Thanks to Karen Mayne for the following notes:
The Greater Wards Corner Task Force Meeting
September 10, 2015
Council Members Barclay Winn and Terry Whibley were present.
Department of Development
Kotarides Development expects to close in mid-late September on the purchase of the 10+ acre property where Kroger/Workforce Development Center is located. No plans for future redevelopment have been announced. Both Kroger and the City have leases that Kotarides plans to honor.
Sam’s Club has a tentative opening date of November 5.
The parcel behind Wendy’s is available for redevelopment.
The City has two new business loan programs of up to $50,000 for small to medium businesses. The Citywide Partnership Fund will provide loans to new and expanding businesses to stimulate economic development and private investment that will create permanent employment opportunities for low to moderate income residents. The Global Initiatives Fund is a first of its kind program to support local exporters. For more information, contact Leslie Osborn, Chief Credit Officer, at 757-664-4333 orleslie.osborn@norfolk.gov.
Denby Park – James Rogers, Director of Neighborhood Development, reported that the latest group of apartments has been torn down and the City will maintain the area in grass. Mr. Rogers said that the City will host a charrette with citizen groups to discuss the future of the area. A tentative date was set on October 19, 5:00 – 7:30 pm, location to be determined. It was suggested that the City invite all civic league presidents and include a link to the 2004 development study of the Wards Corner area commissioned by the City.
Community Reports
Parking on the grass along West Little Creek Road is still occurring and expanding. The proposed ordinance change that was discussed by the task force in May was approved by the Planning Commission but has not been placed on the City Council agenda.
The medians along Granby Street where Virginia Natural Gas conducted gas line replacement have still not been repaired – the irrigation system and plantings have not been replaced. Public Works will look into this.
A concern was raised that the medians along Thole Street and throughout the City have not been maintained due to lack of staffing in the Department of Recreation, Parks and Open Space. Council reps said the City is considering contracting out the landscaping maintenance of public spaces. Councilwoman Whibley requested that Darrell Crittendon, director of that department, be asked to speak to the task force at the next meeting.
School Board rep Brad Robinson said that a new superintendent of schools will be selected by November 1.
Alyce Kalfus, Wards Corner Business Association, announced that there will be a large family-friendly event at Ward’s Corner called “Ward’s Corner Salutes Our Military” on Saturday, September 19, 10AM – 7PM. Food, entertainment, prizes and giveaways, military discounts, and more will be part of the fun.
Next meeting will be November 12, 2015, 8:30 am at the Norfolk Fitness and Wellness Center.
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Posted by Martin Thomas Jr.
Art Collins and his development company are almost complete with the demolition of the old Riverside Terrace apartments on Newport Ave. He is replacing the old apartments with a mixture of apartments, townhouses, and condos.
The Watermark Apartments are currently under construction on Newport Ave and the designs were approved some months ago with significant civic league involvement.
Already approved Watermark Apartment elevations
Collins is now moving forward with the design and construction of the first three townhouse buildings. As a requirement of the zoning, the design and architecture of these buildings must be reviewed by the Architectural Review Board and the Norfolk Planning Commission.
On September 3, 2015 the Norfolk Architectural Review Board reviewed the plans and architecture of the first three townhouse buildings to be built at Westport Commons. They recommended approval of the designs with a condition that the windows be double hung rather than single hung. The Planning Commission will review the designs on September 8, 2015.
Townhouse buildings 1, 2, and 3 towards the upper right are currently being designed and almost ready for construction
Front elevation of the proposed townhouses. The exterior materials are mostly brick and fiber cement. No vinyl siding is proposed or allowed.
Rear elevation of the proposed Westport Commons Townhouses.
First floor plan of the proposed Westport Commons Townhomes.
Second floor plan of the proposed Westport Commons Townhomes.
Third floor plan of the proposed Westport Commons Townhomes.
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Posted by Martin Thomas Jr.
Park Place at City Center at Oyster Point is a mixed used development by Kotarides Developers. Something similar could come to Wards Corner.
Kotarides Developers is set to close on the purchase of the Kroger anchored shopping center at Wards Corner. The purchase includes approximately 10 acres of land where the Kroger grocery store and the City of Norfolk’s Workforce Development Center are currently located.
The purchase does not include any of the out-parcels.
The current shopping center was developed in 1971 and has 105,471 of total building area.
Kotarides indicates that they have no firm plans for the property at this time. Both Kroger and the City of Norfolk have multi-year leases. Their options include continuing the current use by Kroger and the City, re-using the current retail buildings, constructing brand new retail buildings, or a mixed use concept with both retail and residential.
Kotarides did state that they have no plans to put in low income housing. None of their current projects include low income housing and they have no desire to begin doing low income housing projects.
According to tax records the property is currently owned by Meritage-Little Creek, Llc. The closing on the sale of the property is scheduled for the middle of September.
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Posted by Martin Thomas Jr.
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Posted by Wards Corner
The following is a message from the Wards Corner Business Association:
Now is the time to see our progress as,
“Wards Corner SALUTES Our MILITARY”
Join us to be a part of this awesome event!
Look for the sign announcing this event this on Monday.
In order to be involved in this exciting event, Members and non-members are encouraged to attend this meeting Tuesday, August 18, @ 8:30 a.m. Doors open @ 8:00 a.m. and the meeting will adjourn promptly at 9:30 a.m. It will take place at Farm Fresh, 230 E. Little Creek Road, Norfolk in the Marine Room on the second floor.
R.S.V.P. WOULD BE APPRECIATED at gwcaba@cox.net or leave message at 587-7975
Like us on Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/wardscornernorfolk, and, please share us with your friends. We are featuring Wards Corner past and present so come back often for updates.
Thank you for your time and energy. Our long term growth depends on your continued efforts, participation and commitment. Your support will make the Wards Corner Area Business Association stronger and more attractive as a destination $hopping Center.
Mark your calendar for August 18th and engage with your business partners!
Elyse Kalfus, President
Greater Wards Corner Area Business Association
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Posted by Martin Thomas Jr.
Thanks to Dr. Brad Robinson for providing the following school board update:
Norfolk Public Schools (NPS) administrators project that more schools will earn full state accreditation this year, and that Booker T. Washington High School will earn full accreditation status with double-digit gains in the percentages of students who met or exceeded state benchmarks in math, social studies, and science.
The projection, to be shared with the City of Norfolk School Board during a live-streamed work session on Wednesday, August 5, 2015, is based upon preliminary results of the annual Virginia Standards of Learning (SOL) tests. The Virginia Department of Education is scheduled to release official SOL pass rates on August 11, 2015, and to release official accreditation ratings in September 2015. (Click here to see the full presentation.)
Preliminary results indicate that division-wide, Norfolk’s students significantly improved their academic performance. NPS experienced double-digit growth in every core content area, compared to the prior school year.
Nearly 82% of NPS schools demonstrated an increase in the percentage of students meeting and exceeding state benchmarks in English and social studies, according to the preliminary results; nearly 89% of schools increased the percentage of students meeting and exceeding state standards in math; and 68% of schools increased student performance in science.
According to preliminary results, math and social studies were areas of strength division-wide, with 77% of schools meeting the state benchmark in math, and 86% of schools meeting the benchmark in social studies.
“We are proud of our students, teachers, principals, and support team for the growth and improvements demonstrated,” said Michael E Thornton, Ph.D., acting superintendent. “We will continue to strengthen our effort and resolve toward achieving full accreditation for all schools, while focusing on the individual needs and aspirations of our students.”
At the high school level, all schools met or exceeded state benchmarks for English, and four schools exceeded state benchmarks in math, history and science. At the middle school level, students performed better in English, math and social studies compared with the prior year. Preliminary results indicate that five middle schools realized double-digit gains in social studies.
The division projects that a total of four additional schools will earn full accreditation this year: Booker T. Washington High School, Camp Allen Elementary School, Larrymore Elementary School, and Willard Elementary School. Four of five high schools are expected to be fully accredited.
While emphasizing the division’s growth, Dr. Thornton and Chief Academic Officer Kipp D. Rogers, Ph.D., said the preliminary results also clearly indicate the areas of continued challenge for Norfolk Public Schools. The division must focus on ensuring that all schools earn full accreditation, and also that achievement gaps between subgroups of students are closed.
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Posted by Martin Thomas Jr.
Mark your calendars!
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Posted by Martin Thomas Jr.
COMMUNITY INPUT OPPORTUNITY
At this meeting, city staff will:
Church of the Good Shepherd
Tuesday,August 18th
6:00 p.m.
7400 Hampton Boulevard
For more information, contact Pamela Marino:
pamela.marino@norfolk
757-664-4007
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Posted by Martin Thomas Jr.
Wards Corner Business Owners & Associates:
Join the Greater Wards Corner Area Business Association.
We meet: Tuesday, July 21, @ 8:30 a.m. and end at 9:30 a.m. Doors open @ 8:00 a.m. Farm Fresh, 230 E. Little Creek Road, Norfolk in the Marine Room on the second floor.
Topic: Greater Wards Corner Area Business Association’s Event: “Wards Corner SALUTES the MILITARY”.
We will be joined by representatives from the City Managers office, along with representatives who will be working with us from the Military.
A light breakfast will be served.
Please RSVP qwcaba@cox.net or call and leave a message at 587-7975 by July 17.
The continued growth and improvement of our business area is crucial and depends on you and your involvement and the effort you are willing to commit. There is strength in numbers and that is why it is important to have a strong Business Association. Mark your calendar. Come and join our business partners.
Elyse Kalfus, President
Greater Wards Corner Area Business Association
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Posted by Martin Thomas Jr.
Wards Corner Now - Wards Corner, Norfolk, Virginia 