VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — Work is underway to reduce flooding in one portion of Virginia Beach. Crews are making way for the Bow Creek Stormwater Park.
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Virginia Beach officials propose plans to help flood-prone neighborhoods
The project is still in its early stages, but one neighbor told News 3's Jay Greene the stormwater storage is desperately needed.
The Bow Creek has been the home to Charle Hubbard for the last several years, and he's no stranger to flooding. Hurricane Matthew flooded his home in 2016.
"I had 19 inches of water in my garage," he said. In the rooms next to the garage, I had 10 inches of water in that."
He said it wasn't so much the hurricane that damaged his home; it was the tide that followed.
It's why the city is turning the old, now-closed Bow Creek Golf Course into an 87-acre mixed-use facility. Construction has been underway.
Project details show the area is one of the low-lying, flood-prone parts of the city.
Voters approved the project in 2021 referendum, and it comes with a nearly price tag of $60 to $80 million, according to the plan posted online.
There will be flood barriers and stormwater drains in addition to a public park area with several amenities including piers, overlooks, a mountain bike structure, a stormwater playground and more.
Overall stormwater storage capacity will be around 300-acre feet, according to remarks made during a groundbreaking ceremony at the end of the July.
"It's one of the things they're trying to help to keep this from happening to you," Charle Hubbard told Greene. "So I think it's a good idea to try. If it doesn't work, fill the lakes back in and bring back the golf course."
The project has a completion date in about 10 years, though some phases and sections of the projects will be reopened to the public once they are finished.
