WASHINGTON — Today, U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) applauded $10,000,000 in federal funding for St. Paul’s Blue Greenway, a multipurpose park that will be located in St. Paul’s Redevelopment Project in Norfolk. Specifically, this funding will be used for the park’s development, which includes uncovering a buried creek and creating a resilient creek area, which will provide the neighborhood with a green space that will also help prevent future flooding. Once finished, St. Paul’s Blue Greenway will feature two playgrounds, a 10-station fitness area, splashpad, overlook deck, channel pier, outdoor stage, game tables, bike racks, grills, and an outdoor public gathering area and pavilion. 

“We’re thrilled to see this federal funding go towards building an inventive green space that will serve families in the St. Paul’s community while addressing the complex flooding challenges facing the region,” the Senators said. “We will be following the development of this project and look forward to seeing Norfolk lead the way with innovative solutions that strengthen our climate resilience.”

This funding was awarded by the Department of the Interior’s Outdoor Recreation Legacy Partnership (ORLP) program – a nationally competitive program targeting grant assistance to help economically disadvantaged urban communities with no, or almost no, access to publicly available, close-by, outdoor recreation.

The ORLP program is funded by the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF), which was permanently authorized by Congress in 2020 as part of the Great American Outdoors Act – a once-in-a-generation law Sens. Warner and Kaine helped pass. The LWCF supports increased public access to and protection for federal public lands and waters — including national parks, forests, wildlife refuges, and recreation areas — and provides matching grants to state governments for the acquisition and development of public parks and other outdoor recreation sites. Sens. Warner and Kaine have for years helped to deliver millions of dollars in federal support for resilience efforts in the St. Paul’s area, including through the Department of Transportation’s Reconnecting Communities Pilot and BUILDS Programs; Housing and Urban Developments’ Choice Neighborhoods and Natural Disaster Resilience Programs; the Environmental Protection Agency’s Brownfields Program; the Norfolk Coastal Storm Risk Management Project; and through the Fiscal Year 2022 budget and the draft Fiscal Year 2024 budget.

This funding helps advance the Biden-Harris administration's America the Beautiful initiative, a locally led, voluntary conservation and restoration effort that aims to address the nature and climate crises, improve equitable access to the outdoors, and strengthen the economy

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