Norfolk Raises the Bar in Zoning for Resiliency: Webinar
Tagged: Webinar
Norfolk, Virginia harbors some of the nation’s most important shipbuilding and naval assets, but it also has the highest rate of measured sea level rise of any east coast city in the United States. Norfolk’s response to this challenge has been bold and innovative. Over the past three years, initially through plaNorfolk2030, the city’s comprehensive plan, then Vision 2100, a 100-year vision for living in a rising water environment, and most recently through the adoption of a new zoning ordinance project – Building a Better Norfolk – the city has dramatically strengthened its commitment to coastal resilience, vibrant neighborhoods, and economic diversity. Speakers will briefly provide context and background for the City decision to restructure its development code and practices in a rising water environment, and then discuss the key zoning tools and other actions taken to strengthen its commitment to coastal resilience. Norfolk’s new zoning ordinance can serve as a model for many communities throughout the nation facing a rising water environment, as well as other challenges to long-term economic and physical resilience.
Wednesday, September 5
1:00-2:00 PM ET
Approved for 1.0 APA CM Credit
Craig Richardson, Esq. is a Director with Clarion Associates in the Chapel Hill office. A planner and attorney, he works principally in the areas of zoning, growth strategies, infrastructure finance, and affordable housing mitigation. In his 30-year career, he has successfully led numerous award-winning comprehensive development code updates for dozens of large and small cities and counties around the country; designed and drafted over 100 impact fee regulations in 12 states; designed and implemented comprehensive affordable housing mitigation programs for some of the nation’s premier destination resort communities; and successfully led award-winning regional growth strategies. He is a frequent speaker at national, regional, and state planning conferences.
George M. Homewood, FAICP, CFM, currently serves as Interim Director of Development, City of Norfolk; he previously served as the Norfolk’s Director of City Planning. He has been a national leader in promoting a long-term vision of resilience to strengthen physical, economic, and social resilience in a rising water environment. During his tenure, Norfolk adopted Vision 2100, a unique very long-range vision for a city in a rising water environment, plaNorfolk2030, and Building a Better Norfolk, an entirely new zoning ordinance that is the most resilience-focused zoning approach in the nation. Mr. Homewood was appointed the city’s Interim Development Director in March 2018, with a specific mission to create a resilience-focused economic development office organized around creating an economic ecosystem supportive of inclusive growth and equitable development.