Work to Begin on Hampton Roads Redevelopment Project

Marshall-Ridley Choice Neighborhood. Image courtesy of Breeden Construction

Construction is set to begin this month on the Marshall-Ridley Choice Neighborhood redevelopment project in Newport News, Va. The local Redevelopment and Housing Authority has selected Breeden Construction as the general contractor for the first two phases of the mixed-use project.

The Marshall-Ridley Choice Neighborhood Housing Plan shows that the mixed-income housing community will encompass a total of 520 units, with only 23 percent of them set aside as market-rate apartments. Most units will serve low- and middle-income residents.

MRCN will be bordered by 39th Street to the north, Hampton Roads harbor to the south, Interstate 664 to the west, and Marshall Avenue to the east. The development will be built in four phases and will include the total rehabilitation of Ridley Place, a 1954-built public housing development located at 811c Taylor Ave., in the heart of the neighborhood.

HUD Support

Two years ago, the City and its Redevelopment and Housing Authority received a $30 million Choice Neighborhoods grant from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development for creating new housing options, community services, recreational opportunities and parks in the Marshall-Ridley area. Last week, a 306-unit redevelopment project in Camden, N.J., was awarded $35 million through the same program.

While multifamily construction has generally slowed down in the region during the pandemic-induced downturn, things have certainly not come to a standstill. A total of 12 properties adding up to 1,954 multifamily units broke ground across Greater Richmond and the Hampton Roads area this year through late June, Yardi Matrix data shows. During the same interval last year, developers had started work on 17 properties encompassing 3,121 apartments.