NORFOLK, Va. — Walking from Chrysler Hall south on Bank Street to MacArthur Memorial in downtown Norfolk means walking around the former MacArthur Center mall. A city redevelopment plan aims to change that.
Deputy City Manager Ron Williams said reconnecting the urban street grid is central to the vision for the property.
"Establish an urban grid again downtown to connect all of our great public amenities and to have a better transportation network," Williams said. "It was first envisioned in the adopted downtown 2020 plan and reconfirmed in our comprehensive plan for 2050."
The mall closed just over two weeks ago. Tenants have been told they must be completely out on Tuesday. Williams said it is cheaper for the city to leave the building closed while officials work out exactly what the property will become.
A major part of the plan involves reconnecting streets that currently dead-end at the 27-year-old structure. Bank Street, for example, would ideally run through the redevelopment, according to the city's plan.
Beyond street connectivity, Williams said the site could support a mix of uses.
"It can sustain hotels, so probably two hotels, multi-family housing, another opportunity for multi-family housing, and definitely a grocery store," Williams said. "All the brands you can think of, we're talking to."
A downtown grocery store has been a long-standing need since a Farm Fresh location closed in 2011. Williams said the city now has the population to support one, pointing to more than 1,000 new residents added to the area in recent years.
Krystal Smith is one of those residents. She moved into the new Kindred development — across the street from MacArthur Center in the city's St. Paul's neighborhood — two years ago. It was a homecoming of sorts: Smith had spent 30 years in the area when it was Tidewater Gardens public housing.
She said the lack of a nearby grocery store is a burden on the community.
"If you don't drive, you have to catch a bus or find a ride," Smith said.
Smith currently drives to the grocery store — about an eight-minute trip — but said a nearby option would benefit far more than just her building.
"I think it'll be great, not just for Kindred, but for the whole downtown area," Smith said. "People be able to access groceries right in this area."
She said she is eager to see what comes next for the site.
"Now, I'm just like what are they gonna do next? It's gone. We can't do nothing about. What's next?" Smith said.
Whatever the redevelopment looks like, it will be years in the making. The city says demolition at MacArthur Center is expected to begin in late 2027 at the earliest.
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