At our meeting on March 14th, we received an update on the Choice Neighborhood Initiative for the Marshall-Ridley Choice Neighborhood. The project update was given by Derek Perry, Assistant Director of the Newport News Department of Development.

The Choice Neighborhoods Initiative is focused on three core goals:

  1. Housing: Replace distressed public and assisted housing with high-quality mixed-income housing that is well-managed and responsive to the needs of the surrounding neighborhood;
  2. People: Improve educational outcomes and intergenerational mobility for youth with services and supports delivered directly to youth and their families; and
  3. Neighborhood: Create the conditions necessary for public and private reinvestment in distressed neighborhoods to offer the kinds of amenities and assets, including safety, good schools, and commercial activity, that are important to families’ choices about their community.

The presentation then focused on three key areas: How the City is engaging in redevelopment work in the Southeast Community of Newport News to achieve the three core goals, information about the strategic investments being made by the City and partners in the redevelopment of Ridley Place, and information about related ancillary projects supporting broader neighborhood redevelopments goals. For example, we received updated information about the City’s Seafood Industrial Park and how they plan to increase and support entrepreneurship while allowing our residents to enjoy fresh seafood caught in our local waters.

Joining Derek Perry was Florence Kingston, the Director of Newport News Development.

If you want to get more involved with your community, we invite you to join us next Tuesday from 12:00 – 1:00 pm at the James River Country Club. Each week we host a community leader to share their involvement in the community.