NORFOLK, Va. — After years of living with streets that regularly flood during high tides, residents in Norfolk's Larchmont neighborhood could soon see another major investment aimed at keeping them moving.
The City of Norfolk is moving ahead with a $7 million shoreline resilience project along Richmond and Surrey Crescent that will replace an aging bulkhead on the Lafayette River while adding new flood protection designed to reduce the nuisance flooding neighbors have grown accustomed to.
The project is currently about 65% through the design phase, with construction targeted for next summer if permitting stays on schedule.
For Michael Crockett, president of the Larchmont-Edgewater Civic League, the project addresses a challenge residents have learned to live with for decades.
"Flooding is sadly our normal around here," Crockett said.The shoreline improvements are the latest in a series of resilience projects the city has brought to the neighborhood.
Last fall, Norfolk completed an $800,000 berm project at Sylvan Street and Walnut Hill Street that was designed to prevent the moderate high-tide flooding that once cut off an entire block of homes roughly 20 times a year. The city said the berm had already prevented multiple inundation events, and residents called it a noticeable improvement to everyday life.
Crockett said projects like that have given neighbors confidence that larger flood mitigation efforts can make a difference.
"We can't stop these king tides," Crockett said during last year's berm project. "We can try our best, like the city is, to try to mitigate that flooding in the streets."
Now, attention has shifted to Richmond and Surrey Crescent, where the city says the existing bulkhead has reached the end of its useful life.
Rather than simply replacing it, officials are taking a broader approach.
"We're combining the need to replace a bulkhead with the opportunity to install a small knee wall and also install a living shoreline and oyster reef structure, so really a multi-benefit project for the community," said Justin Shafer with Norfolk's Office of Resilience.The project includes replacing the deteriorating bulkhead, installing a low-profile flood protection wall, restoring a living shoreline and adding oyster reefs designed to help stabilize the shoreline while improving the area's natural habitat.
One concern city leaders heard from residents was whether additional flood protection would block views of the Lafayette River.
Shafer said preserving the neighborhood's waterfront character became a key part of the design.
"When you're walking or driving along Richmond Crescent and Surrey Crescent, you won't have an obstructed view," Shafer said. "But you'll gain many more days throughout the year where you can drive and walk around the neighborhood without it being flooded."The project will be funded through a combination of city, state and federal dollars.
For Crockett, the project represents another step in a long-term strategy to make the neighborhood more resilient without changing what residents love about living there.
"The big deal here is that we get a lot of tidal flooding and a lot of nuisance flooding," Crockett said. "We're excited about it because it's going to change out the failing bulkheads along the water and replace that with living shoreline and rock shorelines."
He said residents have been closely following the project's progress through civic league meetings.
"We're hearing a lot from our neighbors at our civic league meetings," Crockett said. "They're excited about really getting this project rolling, and we are too."Crockett said the project is also an example of what can happen when residents, city leaders and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers work together.
"I think this is one of those great things where you're seeing the Army Corps of Engineers come together, the neighbors coming together, and our city leaders trying to figure out a solution," Crockett said. "I'm excited about it. I think it's going to be a really good thing for the neighborhood."If permitting remains on schedule, construction is expected to begin next summer, marking another milestone in Norfolk's broader effort to help neighborhoods like Larchmont adapt to rising water while preserving the character that makes them unique.
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