NFK2050

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What is NFK2050?NFK2050 logo

NFK2050 (or Norfolk2050) is the process to create a new Comprehensive Plan for Norfolk, replacing the existing Comprehensive Plan, plaNorfolk2030. NFK2050 will create a framework for how our city will grow and evolve over the next 25 years and will include numerous opportunities for residents and stakeholders to provide input on the future of our city. 

The Comprehensive Plan relies heavily on public input to ensure the vision, goals, strategies, and actions contained in the plan represent a unified direction from the community. That’s why we need you to help us identify challenges and opportunities and set a path to improve the quality of life for all who call this great city home. NFK2050 is nothing without the voices of all Norfolkians, so help us shape this city together! 

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Sign-up for updates on NFK2050.

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We want to hear from you! Join the NFK2050 Team on the road to share YOUR vision for Norfolk.

NFK2050, Norfolk’s Comprehensive Plan update, launched publicly in October, and now we’re taking our Listening Workshops on the road! How should Norfolk grow across the next 25 years? There will be five additional opportunities to give YOUR input during Phase 1: Listening. All will be open-house style with a drop-in, drop-out format for your convenience: 

These workshops are designed to engage Norfolk’s residents and stakeholders around the NFK2050 Comprehensive Plan and are intended to help understand Norfolkians’ needs and their ideas for making the city better. For those who are unable to attend these events in person, there will also be an online version of the workshop posted on the website soon. Please help us spread the word about these open houses to your friends, family, neighborhoods, colleagues, and other networks – we hope to see you there!

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Project Timeline

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We want to thank all the Norfolk residents and community stakeholders that participated in our launch event at Harbor Park on October 7. More than 60 people provided over 600 touchpoints in the Kickoff Workshop!

During the first Public Workshop, the NFK2050 Team laid the foundation for NFK2050, a collaborative and inclusive planning process. The Planning Team listened, observed, and learned about Norfolk through the eyes of the community. This first workshop introduced NFK2050 to residents and stakeholders and invited early concerns and ideas for inclusion in the Plan update and subsequent phases of the planning process.

The Public Workshop included diverse tools to engage with the community, including the following fun interactive tools:

  • An info station introducing NFK2050, the project timeline and scope, and ways to stay engaged;
  • A large-scale interactive map of the city where residents could tell us where they live, a place that they love, and a place with some challenges, as well as ideas for making their neighborhoods better;
  • A vision station where participants could voice their aspirations for Norfolk by the year 2050;
  • A storytelling video station where participants could tell us their Norfolk story; and
  • Six Plan Topic stations facilitating discussion of Cultural and Historic Resources, Economic Development, Housing, Placemaking & Walkability, Parks & the Environment, and Mobility & Transportation, where participants were asked what challenges and opportunities the city will face around these topics.

What have we heard so far?

Norfolkians want an equitable, resilient, and well-connected city by 2050, defined by the following:

  • Inclusive decision-making and fair development policies;
  • Preparedness towards sea level rise and flooding that protects residents of all backgrounds;
  • Multi-modal transportation options within the city and connected to the larger region;
  • Affordable housing for all income levels and family needs;
  • Improved connections between neighborhoods and across the city;
  • Better opportunities for well-paying jobs;
  • Pride of place, with Norfolk’s rich identity, culture, arts, and history woven throughout its streets and neighborhoods;

…and more! What do YOU want for the future of Norfolk?

Join us for additional opportunities to give input this season!

Stay tuned and sign up to learn about more opportunities to weigh in throughout the planning process!

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What is a Comprehensive Plan, and why does it matter to me? 

The Comprehensive Plan is, at its core, a guide that captures the vision of what a community wants to be in the future. Sometimes also referred to as a master plan or a general plan, it is the foundational document of long-term planning, land use planning, zoning, and growth management in the United States and enables local government officials and citizens to anticipate and deal constructively with changes occurring within the community. It is a broad effort to address a wide range of community issues and concerns, and to understand the important relationships between each part of a community.   

There is great value to a community in developing a Comprehensive Plan and the process itself can be as valuable as the final document. The planning process allows a community to be proactive (vs. reactive) to issues and changes that arise over time, provides guidance for orderly growth and development, provides an opportunity to think regionally, serves as a guide from which to base all decision-making in the present and over time (regardless of turnover in leadership), and can set up the community for grant funding success. 

Once adopted, NFK2050 will be used to guide the City’s decisions on many topics that affect the daily lives of residents and stakeholders, including (but not limited to): 

  • Housing
  • Arts and Culture
  • Transportation & Mobility
  • Economic Development
  • Natural/Built Environment
  • Land Use Policies
  • Capital Improvement Program (CIP) projects
  • Historic Preservation
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Contact us: 

If you have any questions or comments regarding NFK2050, please email nfk2050@norfolk.gov. 

Any civic league, civic organization, etc. may request an update on the NFK2050 process at any time.  We will do our best to accommodate your desired meeting date; if we are unable to do so, due to the timing of the event or staff availability, we will work with you to schedule an alternative date.  To request an update on NFK2050 from City Planning staff, please email us at nfk2050@norfolk.gov.

Project Manager

Chris Whitney, AICP, CZA, CFM 
Chief Planner 

Julee Martin 
City Planner I 

Click here for more information about Norfolk’s Comprehensive Planning program. 

Consultant team:  

WRT, with WPA, Urban3, Arup, ONE, and HR&A 

Kristen Zeiber, AICP, RA 
Associate | Planner & Urban Designer, WRT