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Skip to main content Toggle navigation menu home -- Search DHCD Access CAMS About Housing Businesses Communities Codes Resources GO Virginia Commission on Local Government Landlord Tenant Handbook Careers at DHCD 2018 Code Development Opportunity Zones VMS Application for Designation Now Open! Partners for Better Communities Partners for Better Housing Partners for Better Buildings Partners for Better Businesses Previous Next Recent News 02.05.2020 Governor Northam Launches Virginia Local Government Exchange Program RICHMOND—Governor Ralph Northam today launched the Virginia Local Government Exchange Program, designed to bridge cultural and geographic divides across Virginia. The pilot program will begin with two partnerships: Wise County and the City of Norton will team up with the City of Alexandria, and the City of Danville will connect with Loudoun County. The program is modeled after the successful Sister Cities International program, which provides a forum to exchange information and build stronger relationships around the world. President Dwight Eisenhower created Sister Cities International in 1956 to promote better understanding, respect, and cooperation across international boundaries. “The Virginia Local Government Exchange Program will create opportunities for leaders to experience just how diverse our Commonwealth is,” said Governor Northam. “The idea is simple—it’s much easier to understand a distant place when you see it, talk to the people who live there, get to know one another, and exchange ideas. This a way to move beyond politics that too often pits communities against each other. This program is designed to help localities learn about each other’s challenges and opportunities, and view other regions of the state as partners, not competitors.” The program is a partnership between the Governor’s Office, Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development, Virginia Association of Counties, and Virginia Municipal League. These communities will develop delegations that will visit their partner communities to highlight assets and opportunities and familiarize themselves with another community. Each participating community will assemble a delegation of local elected and appointed officials, state legislators, and other key stakeholders to participate in the exchange program. The members of the delegation, who will travel and visit their partner once over the next year, will serve as hosts to their paired community. The hosting communities will develop an itinerary that highlights tourism, natural and cultural assets, and economic development strategies. “We look forward to learning from our new partners across the Commonwealth to help us better serve the residents of our community,” said City of Alexandria Mayor Justin M. Wilson. “We look forward to the opportunity to learn more about other communities in Virginia and for them to learn about Danville,” said City of Danville Mayor Alonzo Jones. “We feel like we’ve got a great story to tell, and I am certain the others do as well.” “On behalf of Loudoun County, we are looking forward to sharing our story and successes with the city of Danville, and we are pleased to participate in the Commonwealth’s effort to advance local government exchange opportunities through this new program,” said Chair of the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors Phyllis J. Randall. “The City of Norton is supportive of efforts to connect communities across the Commonwealth as a means for gaining a better understanding of the similarities and differences our communities face,” said City of Norton Mayor Joseph Fawbush. “A collaborative partnership between Wise County and the City of Alexandria provides the opportunity to share cultural and economic stories and successes that will help each of us grow and prosper through this new program developed by the Commonwealth,” said Chairman of the Wise County Board of Supervisors John Schoolcraft. Virginia has more than 8.5 million people living in 38 cities, 95 counties and 190 towns covering over 42,000 square miles. The pilot localities are geographically very distant, but all have a strong local vision for advancing opportunity and promoting partnerships and mutual understanding across the Commonwealth. Tomorrow, the Governor will host leaders from the five pilot localities at the Executive Mansion in Richmond to kick off the program. 02.04.2020 Governor Northam Announces Grants to Grow Oyster Industry in Newport News, Revitalize Norfolk Railyard at Lambert’s Point and Former Coal Plant in Portsmouth New fund dedicates $1 million to support port host community improvements RICHMOND—Governor Ralph Northam today announced that new state “port host community” grants will help Virginia’s oyster industry upgrade the Menchville Marina in Newport News, complete a pedestrian-friendly mixed-use development around Lambert’s Point in Norfolk, and redevelop the derelict site of the decommissioned former Cogentrix coal-fired power plant in Portsmouth. The City of Newport News owns Menchville Marina and will lease it to a consortium of four Virginia oyster companies, which have a combined 200 years of experience. They have committed to make needed improvements to the marina. The Mariner’s Museum and Christopher Newport University also will use the facility for hands-on educational programming about clean water, conservation, and the oyster industry. “A huge number of the country’s oysters flow through Menchville Marina, but the marina itself needs work,” said Governor Northam. “So we’re investing in it just like we’re investing to restore oyster reefs in the Chesapeake Bay. I grew up on the water, and it’s important to me to invest in the communities that depend on the water.” In Norfolk, “The Railyard at Lambert’s Point” is an 8.8-acre parcel where a new mixed-use development will connect the Norfolk Naval Base, Old Dominion University, Children’s Hospital of the King’s Daughters, Eastern Virginia Medical School, Sentara, and downtown Norfolk. The neighborhood will be fully accessible by bikes, pedestrians, and cars. “I used to work and go to school near Lambert’s Point in Norfolk, and this community means a lot to me,” said Governor Northam. “I’m glad the Commonwealth can help support a new pedestrian-friendly mixed-use neighborhood along Hampton Boulevard. It’s an important addition to downtown Norfolk.” The City of Portsmouth plans to demolish and remove structures from the site of a decommissioned Cogentrix coal-fired power plant. This property has sat vacant since 2015 and can no longer function as a coal plant due to new emissions regulations. Industrial Realty Group, with the assistance of the grant, will market the property to warehouse, distribution and logistics, cold storage, and manufacturing sectors, which are growing target industries for the area. “Demolishing the derelict structures of the decommissioned Cogentrix coal-fired plant will allow Portsmouth to bring new life to the shuttered facility,” said Governor Northam. “Once the site is ready for development by a new industrial end user, the project could restore many of the jobs that were lost when Cogentrix closed and spur over $16.5 million in additional private investment to the redevelopment of the site.” The General Assembly allocated $1 million in Port Host Communities Revitalization Fund (PHCRF) grants for the current fiscal year to assist with removing, renovating, or modernizing port-related buildings and facilities in Virginia’s five port host communities, which are Front Royal, Newport News, Norfolk, Portsmouth, and Richmond. The Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development administers the funding under the new PHCRF grant program. The grants are intended to leverage local and private resources for the redevelopment of derelict structures, spurring long-term employment opportunities and ongoing physical and economic revitalization. This is the first time PHCRF grants are being awarded, an...