Maritime festival, a supercharged Harborfest, planned in Norfolk for America's 250th birthday
NORFOLK — Surrounded by tugboats blaring their horns, sprays of water and the tall ship American Rover, Gov. Glenn Youngkin on Friday kicked off a one-year countdown to a massive maritime festival.
During a news conference at the Waterside dock, Youngkin and city and state officials announced plans for the Sail250 festival to celebrate the United States' 250th anniversary.
Addressing the City Council this week, Karen Scherberger, Sail250 executive director, described the event as a supercharged version of Norfolk's annual Harborfest festival. Scheduled for the Juneteenth weekend in 2026, it will feature more than 60 tall ships and military vessels from at least 20 countries that are expected to dock in Norfolk as the city and country celebrates the United States' sesquicentennial.
Youngkin highlighted Virginia's historic role in American independence during his remarks Friday, noting iconic Revolutionary War scenes in Virginia such as Hanover County's Patrick Henry proclaiming, 'Give me liberty, or give me death.'
'America was really founded by Virginians,' Youngkin said. 'This story is one that we have to remind ourselves is not just part of our national narrative, but Virginia's.'
Events during the weekend will include a June 19 boat parade, fireworks and ship tours, among others. Scherberger said Tuesday that 22 tall ships confirmed they will be at the event, and another 24 have been invited.
Scherberger said the last big maritime celebration of this scope was OpSail 2012, when vessels paraded and docked in Norfolk to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the War of 1812.
She said the event could draw more than 3 million visitors to Virginia over a 10-day period in 11 cities, as well as $150 million in visitor spending. Alexandria, Cape Charles, Chesapeake, Hampton, Onancock, Portsmouth, Richmond, Smithfield, Virginia Beach and Yorktown also will be participate.
Across the country, Sail250 events also are planned for New Orleans, Baltimore, New York and Boston.
On Tuesday, after hearing a presentation from Scherberger, Norfolk City Council members debated the logistics of holding the event along with a Juneteenth celebration. Council member Mamie Johnson, who is co-chairing a city planning committee for a celebration in Town Point Park, said she and co-chair Jeremy McGee were navigating how the events could be celebrated at the same time.
However, council member John 'JP' Page said he thought mixing Juneteenth celebrations with the maritime event was a horrible idea. Mayor Kenny Alexander said he was concerned Juneteenth would be lost amid the Sail250 celebrations. He hoped members of the Juneteenth committee would sign off on coordinating with the Sail250 event.
Trevor Metcalfe, 757-222-5345, trevor.metcalfe@pilotonline.com
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