Weigh In: Resident Input Helps Drive Virginia Beach Decision-making

This is the first in a series of blog posts, titled “Weigh In,” that will highlight the many ways in which residents can engage with the City and its leadership to provide input into policy development and decision-making. 

The Virginia Beach City Council is prioritizing public input. The FY24-25 Focused Action Plan includes several specific initiatives to increase the opportunities for residents to provide input and feedback. The Public Engagement Unit in the City's Communications Office supports this effort by creating more opportunities for all residents to share their input; reaching out to stakeholders to ensure that all segments of the population are heard; and gathering, analyzing and providing input for City leaders. So far in 2024, the community has had opportunities to provide input on the master transportation plan; a plan for making homelessness rare, brief and nonrecurring; the City’s FY24-25 budget; and more. 

City leaders use public input — in addition to other information sources and factors — to help make decisions and form policies on important issues. Residents can provide their ideas by contacting their City Council member; speaking at City Council meetings; attending community meetings; and completing surveys and providing comments online at SpeakUpVB.com.  

SpeakUpVB.com is the official public engagement portal for the City of Virginia Beach to educate the community on important issues facing the city and to capture the public’s opinions, suggestions and comments. Users are encouraged to create a SpeakUpVB.com profile to complete multiple surveys without having to re-enter personal information. Staff can more easily troubleshoot any issues for users with profiles as well. Read the Frequently Asked Questions about SpeakUpVB.com for more information. 

You can learn about the results of resident input on specific issues at SpeakUpVB.com and through resources on the City Council webpage, including agendas, documents and live-streamed and archived videos of the meetings. 

Here are two highlights of recent decisions that were driven by resident feedback provided on SpeakUpVB.com and through other methods: 

Reimagining Rudee Loop

In May 2022, the City of Virginia Beach and the Virginia Beach Development Authority issued a request for information and ideas for redevelopment of Rudee Loop. City Council requested that residents have opportunities to provide input on the conceptual proposals received and partnered with Work Program Architects (WPA) on open house events, outreach to selected stakeholders, one-on-one meetings and a survey. Because engagement showed that residents prioritized green space, a Request for Qualifications was released and closed in early 2024 for solicitation of a consultant team with qualified national or international experience developing iconic park spaces. The budget approved by City Council on May 14 included $60 million for the development of a park at Rudee Loop. Learn more.

The State of Recycling

In August 2023, the City launched a wide-ranging campaign to educate residents about the recycling program in Virginia Beach, including how worldwide and nationwide factors are causing the costs to rise. A survey available on SpeakUpVB.com from Oct. 2 to Nov. 17, 2023, gathered input from a record-setting nearly 10,000 respondents. Of those respondents who ranked the options, 87% selected the option to keep curbside recycling with an increased fee to cover the additional expenses. On May 14, City Council passed the FY24-25 budget with an increase of $3.05 in the Waste Management fee to cover recycling. Learn more.

City leaders appreciate and take into consideration all feedback from residents. Although competing factors could take precedence at times, the City is committed to offering opportunities for residents to have their voices heard on key projects before major decisions are made. 

If you have questions about public engagement, please contact Nancy Bloom, public engagement manager, at nbloom@vbgov.com or 757-385-6279. To be notified of future public input opportunities, sign up for the City’s weekly Be in the Know email newsletter. 

The Public Engagement unit in the Communications Office creates opportunities for all residents to share their input; reaches out to stakeholders to ensure that all segments of the population are heard; and gathers, analyzes and provides community input for City leaders.