Governor’s proposed budget includes nearly $74 million for Norfolk coastal storm resiliency

NORFOLK, VA – The City of Norfolk was notified today that Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s forthcoming budget proposal will include $73.85 million in support of the city’s Coastal Storm Risk Management Project, or CSRM. These funds demonstrate the Commonwealth’s strong commitment and support for Norfolk’s ongoing efforts to reduce its risk from coastal flooding and damage caused by nor’easters, hurricanes and other significant storm events.  

The City of Norfolk and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers are now collaborating on the CSRM, a 10-year-long development to include natural storm mitigation techniques, structural barriers and property-specific, nonstructural improvements across multiple areas within the city. Using a combination of levees, living shorelines, pump stations and sea walls, among other measures, the CSRM will safeguard Norfolk’s residents and infrastructure from flooding for years to come.

“Norfolk is bordered to its north, south and west by the Chesapeake Bay and Elizabeth River, giving us one of the highest rates of relative sea level rise among Atlantic coastal communities,” said Dr. Kenneth C. Alexander, Mayor of the City of Norfolk. “We recognize the challenges of living alongside these waters, yet we are proactively stepping up to face those challenges head on. I am grateful to Governor Youngkin and his administration for its dedication to this cause. We look forward to working with the General Assembly in 2024 to strengthen our Commonwealth’s resiliency moving forward.” 

The CSRM was authorized in January 2022 under President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which included $400 million in federal support to kickstart development thanks to the efforts of Sens. Mark Warner and Tim Kaine, as well as Rep. Bobby Scott. With Gov. Youngkin’s support, earlier this year the CSRM was also awarded more than $24.6 million from the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation’s Community Flood Preparedness Fund. The CSRM is expected to cost $2.6 billion, with 35 percent of that total to be paid using a combination of state and local funding. 

Virginia Secretary of Natural and Historic Resources Travis Voyles advocated to include the CSRM in the 2024 budget, stating conservation and the protection of natural resources aid in job creation and economic growth within the Commonwealth. City leaders will also continue to work closely with members of the General Assembly representing municipalities throughout Hampton Roads to build support for these critical infrastructure improvements in the region. 

Learn more about the CSRM by visiting: ResilientNorfolk.com