Like many coastal communities, Virginia Beach is experiencing more frequent flooding due to sea level rise, increased storm intensity, and aging infrastructure. These issues coupled with tidal impacts and low elevations has resulted in severe flooding in portions of the City. Hurricane Matthew (2016) resulted in the worst structural flooding ever experienced. As a result, the City embarked upon an extensive, multi-year flood protection program with the goal to increase resiliency to future storms, mitigate structural flooding, and improve roadway accessibility.

One of the proposed solutions of the overall watershed plan is to utilize a City-owned golf course to serve as a workhorse to provide stormwater/flood storage. Design for the park was initialized in 2019, working to balance storage with park uses. To achieve this, the golf course will be excavated to create an approximate 25-acre ponding area. The upland park area of the park, including the land between the permanent water surface elevation and the 100-year storm event will double as flood storage during extreme events, ultimately providing nearly 300-acre feet of stormwater storage.

Due to construction sequencing constraints, the park was divided into two phases. Design for Phase I was completed in Spring of 2023. Construction was started in the fall of 2023 and is scheduled to be complete in 2026. During construction of Phase I, Phase II will undergo design, and construction for Phase II is scheduled to be started in the Spring of 2026, with a completion date (of the overall park) in 2029.

Phase I will provide a 13-acre water body with a kayak dock and include recreational amenities such as fully accessible shared use paths, nature trails, wildlife viewing blinds, an Event Center with plaza, almost ½-acre event lawn, an overlook platform, restrooms, parking, and bridges connecting the trail networks. The entire facility is intended to be used for public education with interpretive signage to highlight improvements and function for the site, including the treatment of water quality, use of native plant material, and restoration of ecological functions, as well as area history.

This is an exciting and collaborative project between the City of Virginia Beach Public Works and Parks and Recreation to create a multi-faceted park to provide flood mitigation storage, and double as a park for the entire community to enjoy!

Presentation will cover design process, construction, and next steps.