It's a harbor town
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7/18/2018
I was born in Norfolk, and lived in Norfolk and Virginia Beach until my early 20s. Here are 10 things that are 100% true about Norfolk you may have heard before: 1) It's a Navy town. A very large percentage of people are either active duty, veterans, or defense contractors. Most people are, at a minimum, related to someone who falls into one of those categories. It's neither a pro or a con, in my opinion, but it is part of the fabric of Norfolk. Its culture, history, and economy are centered around the Navy. 2) If it's not the Navy, it's the private shipyards. Norfolk's biggest economical asset is its harbor, so there are also large amounts of commercial shipyard activity such as Lambert's Point and Norfolk International Terminals. 3) It has a blue-collar, working class vibe, but city officials are working around the clock to attract more young professionals and artists. I know this to be true because my first job out of college was with the City's Community Engagement division, and I worked on campaigns to promote what is now referred to as the "Arts District." Don't be fooled - Norfolk is not as artsy as City Hall wishes it to be, but who knows...maybe one day. 4) Norfolk has inner-city crime and inner-city schools, but it's not a crime infested dump like some pretend it is (namely folks from Virginia Beach) Norfolk is the most urban and oldest part of Hampton Roads though, so some areas could labeled as "gritty" or "city." 5) Norfolk has a wide variety of socioeconomic classes. It has some of the poorest neighborhoods in the region, some of the richest, and lots of neighborhoods in between. However, Norfolk is relatively small geographically, so in some cases the richest and the poorest live quite near each other. 6) The Ocean View neighborhood is not the prostitution haven it was in the 80s and 90s. It's cleaned up a lot, but there is still work to be done. Ocean View is a good example of how the rich and the poor are often cheek-by-jowl in Norfolk. 7) While I wouldn't say Norfolk is artsy, it does have some cool, hip neighborhoods that younger people or trendy people enjoy (see: Ghent). 8) Traffic is like any other region with ~2 million+ people - sometimes it sucks. Expect to find it at any tunnel, and, given that it's a coastal region, there are lots of tunnels. 9) Being a Navy town, some of Norfolk's population is transient and doesn't stay for more than 4 years or so. This means many people in Norfolk are not originally from the area. In my experience, if someone wasn't from VA, they were from NY, NJ, PA, NC, OH, or MI. Again, it's neither a pro or a con. It's just the way it is. 10) It's not pronounced Nor-folk. Correct pronunciation comes in three choices: Nor-fik, Nor-fuk, or, if you're an old timer, Naw-fuk. In the end, I left Norfolk and never returned because I couldn't find a job in my field (environmental sciences), I hate humid summers, and I prefer mountains over the beach. It's not a terrible place, and the rest of the Hampton Roads region is your typical suburban region offering your typical suburban flair. If you enjoy a coastal lifestyle, quasi-Southern culture, a humid climate, and mostly suburban living, Norfolk and the Hampton Roads region might suit you.
K. | Bloomfield, NJ