A plan to restore marshland in a cove in Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge and ease flooding nearby is in doubt, and the only path forward may go through the General Assembly.
Virginia Beach cannot get a needed permit for a $46.5 million “marsh terrace” project that would build 41 small islands in a 47-acre area of Bonney Cove, creating habitat and fostering the growth of seagrasses that can ease a form of flooding unique to southern Virginia Beach.
The project would be the first of its kind on the East Coast, but it’s on hold until at least after the 2026 General Assembly session.
The Virginia Marine Resources Commission indicated it couldn’t recommend approval of the permit after regulators found an abundance of submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV) during a survey of the Bonney Cove project area late last year, according to the city. There had been little vegetation there a few years earlier.
“A project that disturbs SAV to create SAV would not be recommended for approval,” Kristina Searles, the project manager, said during a recent meeting with residents in the southern part of the city.
Several residents attended the meeting at rural Creeds Elementary School, with some expressing concerns about potential impacts of the project on streets, traffic, nearby properties and in the bay itself. Some said the vegetation clearly is abundant now, though others noted that’s something that tends to change.
“Predicting where SAV is going to grow the next year is nearly impossible,” said Jared Brandwein, executive director of Back Bay Restoration Foundation. He added that an argument for marsh terraces is that they could provide a permanent, less cyclical environment for SAV to grow.
“It seems so strange that it’s having SAV that’s holding up the work going forward when trying to get SAV back into the bay is sort of the purpose of the whole project,” said Barbara Henley, the city council member who represents the area.
SAV has been in decline in the bay for generations. About half the open water in Bonney Cove used to be marsh, according to a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers summary of the project, and it’s a “restoration priority” location for habitat and SAV. The city estimates about 70% of underwater plants have been lost over time.
In 2021, City voters supported the Bonney Cove project among the many included in a $567.5 million flood protection bond referendum. Approximately $31.4 million in local funding was set aside for the project, and the city has about $5.1 million in grant funding.
Another $9.9 million in grant funding for the project was canceled due to the delay, according to the presentation at the recent community meeting.
“It’s a killer that it’s fully funded, and it was promised in our bond referendum,” City Councilmember Joash Schulman said at the time, adding that it’s an “awesome” effort that demonstrates green infrastructure approaches to flooding.
Sea grasses can slow “wind-tide” flooding that occurs in the southern city when southerly winds push water from areas of North Carolina into the bay. Such flooding can occur while the sun shines. SAV might have been restored between the terraces built by the project.
“This is important because submerged aquatic vegetation does not like open water,” Toni Utterback, the city’s engineer, said in May. “So, by planting any vegetation between the terraces, it is better protected from those wind tides.”
Andrew Dietrich, an environmental scientist consulting the city, said other regulatory processes with federal and state officials are paused. According to the city, federal and state permits are needed, but a permit from the Virginia Marine Resources Commission is the one at issue.
The city may ask the General Assembly for an exemption to the permit as part of Virginia Beach’s upcoming legislative agenda process.
In May, staff briefed the City Council about taking this approach.
“It’s certainly not a guarantee,” Public Works Director L.J. Hansen told them. “It’s a longshot, but … it represents our best opportunity to move forward as fast as we can.”