Reconnecting Communities Project

Project News

The Department of Transportation is collaborating with stakeholders to create engaging and interactive outreach initiatives that encourage resident participation.

Project Location

Project Information

The City of Norfolk, VA is currently working to identify and plan solutions to the "spaghetti bowl," a 14-lane-wide jumble of I-264 ramps and interchanges that cuts a low-income and vast majority Black neighborhood off from the core downtown area. A planning study will look at the feasibility of various reconfigurations to find the best options, including through traffic studies, surveys, an Interchange Access Report, a feasibility analysis, preliminary engineering design, a permitting analysis, and cost estimation, all of which will be informed by community engagement.

The disadvantaged St. Paul’s, Elizabeth River waterfront, and historically Black Norfolk State University neighborhoods bore the brunt of impacts from past infrastructure projects, particularly from this massive segment of the 14-lane wide interstate. Upon completion, I-264's retroactive placement in downtown Norfolk cut off Black neighborhoods, public housing communities, and anchor institutions from downtown opportunities that include job centers, educational hubs, transportation resources, and cultural institutions. The legacy impacts of this are still felt today in the form of high unemployment, high poverty levels, and low educational attainment.

This project seeks to mitigate the social, racial, and economic disparities caused by the I-264 freeway construction, addressing current connectivity issues and inequalities in Norfolk's economically distressed neighborhood. Highway infrastructure, along with historic redlining, means the St. Paul neighborhood lacks affordable/quality food markets, has poor access to health resources, and high poverty that segregates this community from opportunities afforded to higher resourced areas of Norfolk.

Project Information Sheet

Click here to view the Norfolk Reconnecting Communities Project Sheet

Public Outreach

Project Schedule

Fall 2025-Spring 2026 – Public Engagement

Links

Reconnecting Communities

Norfolk Thrive Brownfields Study 2018

Norfolk Reconnecting Communities: Engagement Map

How this works:

Share your insights, concerns, and ideas about transportation, access, land use, flooding, and other topics that affect daily life in Norfolk.

Explore the Map Area

  • Explore by dragging the map, or zoom in/out using the + / – buttons (or scroll wheel).
  • Use the Search field (magnifying glass icon) to jump to a specific address, intersection, or place name.

Add Your Contribution

  • Click the “Add Marker” button  to start a new marker.
  • Choose the category that best matches your comment.
  • Click on the map at the location where your comment applies.

Fill in the Details

After placing the marker, a form will appear. Please provide:

  • Your name (optional).
  • Today's date.
  • A comment describing your issue, experience, idea, or suggestion.

Interact with Others’ Comments

  • Browse existing markers and click on them to read what others have shared.
  • You can “Like” or “Dislike” a comment (thumbs up / thumbs down) to indicate agreement or concern.

Thank you for sharing your voice and helping shape Norfolk’s future!