mistermetaj

Unfortunately I think it's relocating from Norfolk to Va Beach. Maybe there are a some extra jobs in the expansion hopefully.

I don't think you need to reduce Waterside down to 2 lanes. Considering the limited public transit options into Norfolk (no lightrail) and the fact it's the entry off of 264 to enter the city, it would really make arrival inconvenient for anyone outside of Norfolk. However, there are ways to make it a little slower and more pedestrian friendly (It's really not that bad). Some options: - Building out the sidewalk by Dominion Tower (BoA now) and add a second cross walk on St Paul across Waterside - Add a traffic light (make sure it's synchronized appropriately with the rest of the lights on Waterside) and add double crosswalks at Commercial St across Waterside - Add a second crosswalk on Atlantic st across Waterside - Add a second crosswalk on Martins Ln across Waterside - Beautify the median on Waterside with commissioned art, more trees, and flowers (give a strong civic and cultural feel to Norfolk, and if room widen it. Waterside had the cache as the entry point of Norfolk to be a premier avenue, rather than just a thoroughfare In terms of Gravity 400, while I don't love these building types, it is excellent landfill, filling another gap in Norfolk streetscape and bringing people back downtown. Norfolk is still recovering from the 60s destruction, and now COVID. This is another wound healed. There are plenty of spots in the city that could use more of this.

As long as the parking is centered in the block and hidden behind the buildings, then it will have a good urban character. I'm not calling it a perfect development but we should at least be happy with what it is replacing.

I agree, it's mostly negativity these days, but St Paul has a chance to become a Ghent like neighborhood next to downtown. It's a significant, and mostly urban upgrade over Tidewater Gardens. It's not the mass development we all wanted when it was first proposed years ago, but it's a net addition overall, and shouldn't be listed with failures like McArthur and the casino.

The first thing Norfolk needs to do to revitalize downtown is bring in a grocery store. Walkable and accessible groceries is table stakes for any urban area that wants to attract and maintain people, and it's been lacking downtown for far too long.

I've never seen a company put so much effort into a video for such a generic building. This is as milk toast an apartment complex as it gets.

I'm not a planner so I don't know what advocacy planning is. Where does urban planning end and advocacy begin? If you're advocacy planning, is your goal for the betterment of the whole community, or only the groups by which you view as disenfranchised and protected? How does the role of an advocacy planner change once the guidelines for a plot of land or area is set? I understand goals to remove segregation barriers like highways that split socioeconomic and racial groups, fight the effect of redlining, and build low income or affordable housing requirements into zoning guidelines. But I fail to see how any of those apply to this plot where developers made a pitch in compliance with the RFP. Yes, Bruce Thompson's plan is a disappointment. I hope it's not picked. But some of what you wrote makes me think it's less you hope IT (the proposal) is not picked and more you hope HE isn't picked. Id be careful building an us vs them viewpoint based on immutable characteristics of a group of people. Usually those groups are not nearly as monolithic as you think they are and you risk becoming (or at least sounding like) that which you are working against.

In my view, planners are most effective when focusing on zoning (residential, commercial, mixed use, etc), transportation, architectural guidelines, and laying out the vision for the city. If a developer meets all the city requirements for the land they want to develop, then I don't care what an "old white man" or a "black lesbian" resident thinks. City officials were elected to take care of that and represent the people who elected them. Every development can't/won't cater to the oldest, youngest, or most diverse. Developers, by their very nature, will build what they think will generate profits. In the case of this redevelopment, the city needs to come to the table with a vision. If that vision includes city investment and a stadium or creating a landmark for Norfolk, then show Bruce Thompson the door. But if the goal is minimal city investment and quick tax gains, then he is probably the right choice. But at the end of the day, it's not about residential input, but electing leaders to represent your needs and push your vision of the city.

Your accusation of anyone on here being "obsessed" with the grid is completely out of left field. You derived your conclusion of this board based off of one photoshopped image over a gigantic parking lot? I think you just read an article about an alternative to the grid and got so excited that you just had to proselytize, and decided this was your moment. You sound borderline manic, creating conflict that isn't there between your views and the board. As I said previously, you are overreaching to make a point no one is arguing against. New York is definitely having a crime problem. We were talking about it being scary crossing the street. Nice, "nay" terrible straw man. I guess you've never watched Monday Night Football or had a casual conversation with a friend if you think "come on man" was a nod to Biden. But duly noted for future use and how it might be taken. I've got no interest in expressing any politics, even tacitly, on a message board.

I'm really confused how the desire for a more connected Pembroke to Town Center, with the example of an overlayed street grid, turned into an - at this point diatribe - accusation of posters being grid zealots and conformists. You hate grids, we get it. But how you're conveying your message is an overreach. No one on here would protest a street overlay that resembles the medieval European streets you are advocating for, or the planned mesh design that the article you linked proposes. What people want is walkability, connectivity, and a cohesive downtown that links Town Center and Pembroke. How you get there can take many forms. If that were to include plazas, fountains, sculptures, ponds, parks. Great. Who's arguing to the contrary? As for your New York assessment of being "scary"..come on man...

It's an interesting article that you posted. Whether it's a grid as I superimposed over the site or a sort of "mesh" design as the article seems to be advocating for, the elements of walkability, connectivity, and density are still there. It's a tomAto - tomato kind of thing. My issue with the Pembroke development as it is currently isn't the lack of an orthogonal grid as it is a lack of connectivity to town center. It feels wholly separated by both a large boulevard followed by a large amount of parking. A well connected midtown of any kind will need streets, sidewalks, cross walks, etc, so going to the Pembroke Mall area is more a visit to midtown Va Beach and less a visit to a faux urban Disneyland. Regardless, I am beyond happy something is going on there with this kind of vision, I just hope the city is able to facilitate a broader more cohesive buildout over time.

I like the idea of bringing a more urban atmosphere and replacing the mall, but I don't see how this is going to integrate with Town Center and complete a cohesive urban fabric. We need roads and crosswalks across VA Beach blvd to connect this area. Right now, it feels like a town center next to Town Center. The city would have to make a large investment in this gridding, but I think it's as worth while an investment as a garage.

Hey all, apologies for the bump in this thread, but does anyone/could take some progress photos for block 19 and 20?

The more renderings I see, the less of the details I actually like, but that doesn't take away from the fact that it's filling in a massive parking lot and helping to push downtown Norfolk's urban footprint more north. This is one of the most important infill developments in the city.

This can't be built fast enough. Really healing the wound of a massive parking and setting the stage for redevelopment across Brambleton in the future.