Va. Beach surf park project again misses financial deadline
VIRGINIA BEACH — The developers of a planned surf park at the Oceanfront missed a second deadline last week for securing financing for the project, which the city says is still moving forward.
Last fall, the City Council gave the developers more time to secure loans for the $325 million project, which includes an entertainment center, surf park, retail and restaurant space, apartments and offices on several city blocks along 18th and 19th streets. The original deadline was Dec. 31.
This time, the developers failed to secure financing by the most recent deadline, June 1.
Mike Culpepper and Donna MacMillan-Whitaker of Virginia Beach-based Venture Realty Group, which is heading up the project, wrote in an email Tuesday afternoon that they are finalizing the plans before “locking in financing.” Music icon Pharrell Williams also is a partner in the project.
The city struck a deal with Venture Realty in 2018 to build Atlantic Park and has committed more than $100 million for the parking, street improvements and the entertainment venue. The money will come from a tourism tax fund.
City leaders and the developers anticipated construction would have begun by now. But last fall, Culpepper said pandemic-related material shortages set back the timeline.
Meanwhile, Councilman Linwood Branch said last week that he’s expecting the developers to break ground this fall but declined to elaborate on any specifics.
Once that happens, a plan is under way to park construction workers’ vehicles in the Convention Center parking lot, Kathy Warren, deputy director of the city’s economic development department, said last week.
The City Council discussed Atlantic Park in closed session at the end of May, according to two councilmembers.
“I think it’s moving along,” said Vice Mayor Rosemary Wilson.