Norfolk neighborhood moves forward

Vince Graham, whose credits include the acclaimed traditional neighborhood developments I’On and Newpoint, has tentatively agreed to codevelop a bayfront property. After years of land acquisition, land clearing, and political wrangling, the 90-acre East Beach project in Norfolk, Virginia, is moving forward with a new urbanist developer. East Beach is a prime development opportunity with a town center fronting a heavily traveled road and about 20 neighborhood general blocks surrounded by the Chesapeake Bay and a small inlet. If the outcome of the120-day due diligence process is positive, East Beach will be the next project by Charleston, South Carolina, developer Vince Graham, who was responsible for Newpoint and Broad Street in Beaufort, South Carolina, and I’On in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina. Graham’s company, Civitas, will partner with a local development firm, East Beach Renaissance LLC. Civitas was the top choice of the Norfolk Redevelopment and Housing Authority and the city administration, but city councilman W. Randy Wright pushed hard for East Beach Renaissance, a local firm headed by Wright’s supporter and friend, according to the Virginia Pilot, a daily newspaper covering the region. According to the paper, the “turf battle” threatened the involvement of Graham, who reported in March that his original financing partners had backed out because of “creeping political influence.” Graham found another partner and agreed to move forward as codeveloper “because it is a great site with so much potential,” he says. The Duany Plater-Zyberk & Company (DPZ) plan includes a mixed-use town center circumventing a semicircular green along Shore Drive, which has a significant amount of traffic to support retail. Branching off of that town center is one street leading to a green on the beach, and another street leading through the neighborhood. The neighborhood general blocks include homes on alleys with many small greens and a few civic buildings. Cross-streets terminate at the beach. The entire project will be within an easy walk of the town center. The intent is to follow the DPZ plan as closely as possible, according to Joseph Barnes of Civitas. Civitas and East Beach Renaissance LLC plan to be partners in the entire project — rather than splitting up the project into sections.