NEWPORT NEWS, Va. — A planned seafood market in Newport News is moving closer to reality as part of a years-long effort to revitalize the city's East End neighborhood.
The 7,600-square-foot facility will be located off Jefferson Avenue and 12th Street near the Seafood Industrial Park. It will include sales areas, a commercial kitchen, public eating areas and more than 3,000 square feet of outdoor seating, as well as a boardwalk overlooking the harbor.
Yugonda Sample-Jones, CEO of the East End Civic Association, said she has been waiting for this moment for years.
"I'm excited for all of it, but definitely cutting that ribbon — it's been a combination of 10 years to get here," Sample-Jones said.
Construction was previously expected to be completed by the end of this fall, but a city spokesperson now says construction is expected to start either later this year or early next year and take about 15 months to complete.
The city is also completing a dock and dredging project that will bring in new docks, which could allow people to arrive at the market by boat.
Sample-Jones said the market is intended to serve as an economic engine for the neighborhood.
"We recognize that we need an economic driver in the East End, so this seafood market is just that," Sample-Jones said.
She said the project connects directly to the broader seafood industry already anchored in the area.
"We are benefitting from this multi-million dollar seafood industry that's at the East End of Newport News at the end of Jefferson Avenue," Sample-Jones said.
She also expressed hope that the market will create entrepreneurial opportunities for community members.
"I have some people right now that are wonderful cooks and I'm looking forward to helping them become franchisees or actually get a spot in the seafood market to sell their goods," Sample-Jones said.
The seafood market is part of the Neighborhood Choice Initiative, a broader revitalization effort that has also brought improvements to housing and other public spaces in the community. Sample-Jones said the market will be one of the last components of the initiative.
"It's not going to gentrify our community — it's empowering us to be entrepreneurs," Sample-Jones said.
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