Greater Wards Corner Comprehensive Plan

In November and December of 2002, the City of Norfolk issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) from qualified firms to undertake a comprehensive planning process and prepare a comprehensive plan for the Greater Wards Corner Area.  The nationally recognized firm of Wallace Roberts & Todd, LLC (WRT) and their team have been selected for this project.  The study area includes commercial and neighborhood areas north and south of Little Creek Road, which is depicted on the map in gray with areas of particular interest highlighted in red.

Although a previous study of the core commercial area has been conducted, this would be the first comprehensive, neighborhood and commercial, plan developed for the entire area. The process for establishing the vision for the Greater Wards Corner Area would necessarily address land use conflicts, social concerns, key corridor issues, enhancing community gateways, market analysis, financial feasibility, and improving the major traffic corridors on the Greater Wards Corner Area.  A comprehensive assessment of conditions and trends on the Greater Wards Corner Area would be an integral part of the tasks to be performed. Particular emphases is also expected on the following items during the course of the study:

• Commercial development or re-use on Little Creek Road from Hampton Boulevard to Tidewater Drive and on Granby Street from Thole Street to I-64. This is an intersection of two linear belts of predominantly retail uses located along Little Creek Road and Granby Street that abut stable residential areas, or residential areas in need of revitalization efforts.  Many of the retail uses are underutilized, while others operate in a manner detrimental to the residential areas.  There may also be retail areas that would more appropriately transition to some other use. Evaluating the opportunities for change or improvement along the commercial corridor is a major element of the planning process.
  
  
• Land uses. The study should establish an appropriate range of land uses along with recommendations for zoning district changes in the area. Particular attention should be paid to supportive land uses along major roadways.
  
  
• Opportunities for economic development. The possibility for additional retail and other economic development possibilities for the community should be evaluated, including access to jobs and job training.
  
  
• Residential development and redevelopment issues. Each neighborhood in the study area has key issues or perceived issues related to density, home ownership vs. rental, property maintenance, crime, or encroachment of incompatible uses etc.  The study should validate those actual issues and recommend strategies to ameliorate them.
  
  
• Traffic and transportation.  Major traffic patterns and modes of transportation in and out of the study area should be reviewed and recommendations provided to improve the traffic flow and accessibility to the area.
  
  
• Creating community gateways and other beautification initiatives.  An assessment of urban design deficiencies and opportunities particularly the creation of gateways and streetscape treatment at major community entrance points is needed. This assessment should also include recommendations for pedestrian access to the commercial area.
  
  
• Improving the quality of life for residents.  Consideration of potential programs and partnerships that would enable more families to achieve greater economic and social stability should be a key part of the planning effort.
  
  
• Opportunities for recreational and open space development.
  
  
• Outlying institutional uses.  The study should take into account outlying institutional uses, DePaul Hospital, the Jewish Community Center, several educational facilities, etc. when making recommendations.
  
  
• Financial analysis and feasibility of all recommendations.

The first public meeting was held on October 7, 2003 where a visioning exercise was held after information was presented to the community by the consulting firm.  Meeting participants broke into discussion groups according to the following topics:  Retailing at Wards Corner, Neighborhood Stabilization, and Traffic and Transportation.  The various groups reported back to the entire group at the end of the meeting so that everyone could hear what was discussed.  WRT has synthesized this information to reflect a cohesive set of guiding principles or vision for the plan.

A second community meeting was held on Saturday, January 17 at 9:00 a.m. at Granby High School.  At that time, the guiding principals developed at the first meeting were confirmed with the community.  The consultants also presented area-wide development concepts for the commercial and neighborhood areas including the "Texas Streets," Granby Street and Little Creek Road, and Titustown.  The product of the public meeting and discussions was an agreement on the policy and urban design concepts.

A third and final presentation took place on Saturday, June 19th at Granby High School.  The purpose of this meeting was to update residents on the final plan elements.  New information, such as perspective sketches of the area in the future and recommendations for future transportation improvements, was also be presented.  

The Greater Wards Corner Comprehensive Plan (  5,641 KB click here) was reviewed by the City Planning Commission and City Council and was adopted on December 21, 2004.

Contact:  Department of Neighborhood Preservation
 664-6770