Our Projects: Broad Creek Renaissance

Images: Man, Central Grammar Development

Community Initiatives



In the years following Word War II, new federal legislation made the creation of public housing authorities possible and Norfolk, Virginia was one of the first cities to take advantage of this opportunity. The City's worst neighborhoods were replaced with new public housing complexes, like Roberts Village and Bowling Green, and residents were eager to live in them. Over the next 50 years, though, these complexes steadily deteriorated and eventually were overrun by crime and violence. In 2000, Norfolk obtained a $35 million HOPE VI grant and enlisted The Community Builders, Inc. (TCB) to implement its vision of a revitalized neighborhood where the public housing communities of Roberts Village and Bowling Green stood. The new neighborhood is named “Broad Creek Renaissance”, after a nearby body of water. TCB's roles include master developer of three rental phases, coordination of the demolition, infrastructure engineering and property management. The HOPE VI plan is ambitious—over 600 units of replacement housing on the site of the two former public housing communities, including market rate rental housing, senior apartments, homeownership and commercial uses all woven into a New Urbanist Plan. The buildings are designed in regional styles—modest four-square bungalows, shingle style two-story homes and some transitional designs with traditional porches, brick and hardi-plank siding. Attractive landscaping and rear loaded parking areas contribute to the New Urbanist aesthetic of the property. The first phase of rental housing was a senior project of 100 units developed by a local Norfolk company. The second, third, and fourth phases of Broad Creek comprise TCB's work, totaling 300 units. Completed in 2006, the Broad Creek Renaissance redevelopment boasts over 280 affordable units and 19 market-rate units. Broad Creek's future phases will include various types of homeownership products, including rowhouses, condo flats and single family detached homes. The City of Norfolk, the Salvation Army and the Joan Kroc Foundation have also collaborated on a proposed $50 million community center for the Broad Creek neighborhood, an amenity that would lie immediately adjacent to the rental phases constructed by TCB. Commercial space is slated for development near the proposed community center.

Project Highlights


300 family and senior rental units, 300 homeownership units, commercial space, and all new infrastructure. TCB Role: Master Planner, Owner, Developer, Community Support and Services Provider, Management Agent Sponsor: Norfolk Redevelopment and Housing Authority (NRHA) Financial Participants: HUD HOPE VI, Federal Home Loan Bank (FHLB), private debt, equity Total Development Cost: $40 million Total Units: 300 rental; 300 homeownership Type of Construction: New Construction Type of Housing: Family and Senior Rental and Homeownership

	Comprehensive Neighborhood Revitalization

	Community Builders and HOPE VI




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