Rudee Park multi-million redesign gets green light, attracts national interest

Yahoo

7 hours ago

VIRGINIA BEACH — The City Council agreed Tuesday to finally move forward with the design plan for Rudee Park and start a capital fundraising campaign for the multi-million project set to transform the south end of the resort area.
It was the final approval needed to bring the project to fruition.
The council has already set aside $50 million to build the park, with the money coming from a tourism tax fund. But council members hope to offset that cost by obtaining at least $20 million in sponsorships, which could include naming rights on elements of the park or programs and events held there.
'We are getting national sponsors who are very interested in this,' said Vice Mayor Rosemary Wilson, who represents the district. 'The exposure is going to be phenomenal.'
Rudee Park will be built on 8 waterfront acres at the southernmost end of the Oceanfront's resort area where city-owned parking lots currently exist. It will feature a walking path on top of the 1st Street jetty, a water plaza and splash pad, a fishing ledge, elevated walkways with an ocean overlook and a grassy sunset lawn cascading toward Rudee Inlet.
It's expected to attract more than 3 million people a year, according to the city. The next step — completing construction drawings — will take about a year-and-a-half and cost $4 million, said Michael Kirschman, director of Parks and Recreation. The city has already spent $2.5 million on the park design.
The council opted for a new surface parking lot with 360 spaces, instead of a parking garage, which would have cost an additional nearly $30 million.
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Council members had previously asked how the park will affect festival logistics at the Oceanfront. Currently, Rudee Loop is used as a staging area for event equipment. Kirschman said the park can be used as a festival entrance and the new surface parking lot can become an operations area.
He also addressed questions raised about flooding in the area. Rudee Loop sits about 4 feet lower than the Boardwalk, which serves as a flood wall. The park design calls for elevating the site to be level with the flood wall, Kirschman said. Also, new plants and trees will reduce the area's impervious surfaces by more than half, which will relieve flooding issues and cool down the space in the summer, he said.
'We really green up the site' Kirschman said.
The park is expected to generate $2.5 to $3.5 million in annual revenue from events, sponsorships, retail and rentals. It will cost $2 to $3 million a year to operate and maintain.
Part of the city's next steps will be creating a nonprofit organization with a board of directors and an operations team to run the park.
'They would plan the programs,' Kirschman said. 'They run the whole site.'
Stacy Parker, 757-222-5125, [e-mail]
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