HAMPTON, Va. — In the Merimac Shores neighborhood in Hampton, there's no shortage of signs of aging infrastructure. Just ask Robin McCormick.
“This neighborhood is 75-80 years old and we still have the original sewer pipes and wastewater and water pipes.”
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Robin McCormick is a long-time Merimac Shores resident and well aware of what’s going on underground. For this story, she showed News 3 some of the problem areas in the neighborhood, including a collapsing stormwater pipe.
Aging infrastructure is a big problem nationwide.
In 2025, the American Society of Civil Engineers gave the country’s infrastructure, which is broken down into seven categories, an overall grade of C. Stormwater infrastructure specifically, though, got a D. Wastewater was given a D+.
Watch: Spanberger announces $1.5M to repair aging infrastructure across Hampton Roads
The society said as of 2025 there was a nearly $4 trillion gap between what was being spent on infrastructure and what was needed.
On May 6, McCormick went before Hampton City Council to advocate for the proposed wastewater rate increase in the city’s proposed budget for the upcoming fiscal year so the city will have more money for projects like the ones needed in her neighborhood.
May 13 the budget passed, but whether that will mean relief for McCormick and her neighbors remained to be seen.
"There’s holes all up and down the middle of this street, all the way, literally miles down there," McCormick explained, standing next to one of the holes.
She said the city has been good about patching holes created by collapsing stormwater pipes, but for her that’s not enough anymore.
Watch: Aging infrastructure comes with price tag for Hampton Roads' cities
“We need that long-term fix," said McCormick.
The city acknowledges the pipe problems in Merimac Shores and other neighborhoods and said work is being done.
“Part of the problem is that these were installed a long time ago in areas that had limited access and that makes it more complicated and more costly to get to them and replace them," said Hampton Public Information Officer Mike Holtzclaw. "In all honesty, we have it planned out for more than a decade in different neighborhoods."
Holtzclaw explained repairs are prioritized based on condition, with the worst getting repaired first, and “Public Works continually monitors areas of need and can reassess the schedule if conditions worsen.”
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