The Middle Peninsula Planning District Commission (MPPDC) and VHB will host a public meeting on December 4 at the Rappahannock Community College in Saluda, Virginia, to capture community feedback on their region-wide planning project, Designing Multimodal Working Waterfronts. This project aims to enhance infrastructure and amenities across 11 publicly owned working waterfront locations, supporting the commercial seafood and maritime industries that play a vital role in the local economy while also benefiting the wider community. For those unable to attend in person, a virtual meeting room is available to provide more information and collect community feedback.
Designing Multimodal Working Waterfronts seeks to identify, design, and engineer resilient, efficient infrastructure to meet 21st-century needs that will stimulate economic growth, generate employment opportunities, and provide public access to modern facilities. VHB is supporting MPPDC in developing a needs assessment to determine and address the needs between current conditions and desired outcomes. This data-informed assessment has influenced the site selection process, which included reviewing site details such as climate resilience, environment and ecology, conservation and wildlife, transportation, and travel times. An equity analysis was also conducted to confirm the fair distribution of transportation benefits, promoting social and economic inclusiveness.
The needs assessment considered many key stakeholders who have a vested interest in the protection and development of working waterfronts on the Middle Peninsula. Through a survey, social media engagement, and in-person meetings, VHB has been successful at capturing key data and feedback from predominate stakeholders, including watermen, buyers and distributors, relevant localities of the Middle Peninsula, the Virginia Waterman’s Association, and the Virginia Marine Resources Commission (VMRC).
“Direct input from local watermen, buyers, and distributors has been integral in shaping the direction of the project,” said Ricky Wiatt, VHB’s Project Manager. “Those who live and work in this region possess invaluable, firsthand knowledge of its unique challenges and opportunities, making their input crucial for the project’s success. We are looking forward to expanding the feedback to include the wider community during December’s public meeting.”
MPPDC received a 2021 United States Department of Transportation (USDOT) Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) grant in support of the project and will continue to apply for future RAISE dollars for implementation.
To learn more about this project, contact Ricky Wiatt.
