VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — Virginia Beach is paving the way for growth at the Oceanfront.
Whether it’s by the boardwalk or on Pacific Avenue, you’ll find some infrastructure work being done.
“We haven’t had any problems with it,” Jim Carroll, who is visiting the Oceanfront, said.
“It’s okay but sometimes it slows traffic up," Melvin Bailey, who works at the Oceanfront, said. "But after it’s done, everything will look much better.”
Bailey said he noticed crews working on Pacific Avenue a couple of weeks ago. Phillip Koetter, the operations engineer for Virginia Beach Department of Public Works, said staff is working on several projects.
“There’s some ongoing maintenance that we do to try to catch up on during the off-season,” Koetter said.
Repairs to the boardwalk, stormwater pumps, sidewalks, and roads are part of the plan to beautify the area and make way for larger-scale projects still under wraps.
"The major projects will require some infrastructure relocation, if you will,” Koetter said. "A lot of that work will be done either during off-hours or back shift.”
Although crews are already working on some projects, Koetter said it won’t impact big festivals coming to the Oceanfront soon, such as Something in the Water.
“Most of the construction you will see paused so that it doesn’t interrupt or interfere with traffic during those events,” he said.
He said all of this work is to help grow the area, attracting more people and business.
“I think that’s a great idea," Carroll said. "If it’s going to help bring people in, I’m all for it.”
Koetter expects roadwork on Pacific Avenue to wrap up before Memorial Day. Other projects may continue into 2024.
More than 500 parking spaces will be lost due to construction at the 19th Street surface lot. This is part of the city’s 2023-2028 capital improvement program. There are plans to build additional parking garages to replace parking spaces lost due to construction in the resort area.