The Woodstock Park Improvement Project is a comprehensive park renovation project between Hampton Roads Sanitation District (HRSD) and Virginia Beach Parks & Recreation (VBPR), along with their project consultants. The project is reconstructing a new Woodstock skate park on top of a partially buried, 5.2 million gallon offline storage tank and making several improvements to the park as a whole for a renewed and refreshed recreational amenity.

HRSD needs a new storage tank in this area of Virginia Beach in order to meet regulatory requirements. HRSD and VBPR identified Woodstock Park as a location that fulfills the technical needs of the project and would allow for significant improvements made to Woodstock Park. A partially buried storage tank temporarily holds the wastewater and rain/groundwater until the elevated volume in the HRSD pipeline subsides. This tank is designed for 50+ years of service.

No. While this storage tank is being designed and built to handle increased flow during routine heavy rain events, its primary role is not intended to collect or treat stormwater.  This tank is not sized to prevent all sanitary sewer overflows (SSOs) when named storm events
(tropical depressions, tropical storms, hurricanes) or lengthy nor’easters occur.
HRSD’s sanitary sewer treatment system operates separately from the City of Virginia Beach’s stormwater collection and treatment system.

Yes, the entire park is closed for renovations. This is to ensure safety standards are met. During the park closure, temporary amenities have been set up at the following locations:

Dog Park – Providence Park, 952 Reon Drive

Tennis courts – Lark Downs Park at Kempsville Recreation Center, 800 Monmouth Lane

Playgrounds – Woodstock Cove Park, 609 Woodstock Road

Skate Parks – Williams Farm and Mount Trashmore

The completion of the storage tank and improvements to Woodstock Park are jointly planned for summer 2021. This includes 18–24 months of construction during which time the park will be closed for the safety of the community.

Park amenities, including pavilions, playground equipment and park restrooms, including a family restroom, will all receive upgrades during the improvement project. A tennis court will be converted to two pickleball courts as well. The park’s parking will also be improved and provide park-goers higher visibility to increase access and safety.

HRSD, the design team, and the selected contractor will be coordinating closely with VBPR as well as the Department of Public Works to minimize impacts on traffic and pedestrians in areas near construction. City noise ordinances will be followed by identifying and dampening excessive noise-generating activities as well as vibration from equipment during construction activities.

Regular project updates and a comprehensive list of FAQs are posted at:
www.hrsd.com/woodstock-park

The public input portion of the project has concluded. There were two design workshops held in Nov 2019 and Feb 2020 to garner input on the skate park features. The project consultant team and skate park design specialists from Team Pain took the feedback and drawings submitted by the participants (both in-person and online) and compiled them to create the final design. The final design images can be found on the Skate Park Info tab of VBgov.com/woodstockpark. Reopening of the skate park is tentatively scheduled for summer 2021.

HRSD regularly visits their facilities, weekly at a minimum. During these regular visits, park closures are not expected. Park-goers can expect infrequent, short-term closures of the skate park on top of the tank during planned tank maintenance, which will be communicated in advance to the community. HRSD will work with VBPR to minimize disruption to park use.

The tank will be monitored and controlled remotely to observe levels within it and to make sure that it is functioning as designed. HRSD will perform routine internal inspections of this tank to verify its condition, and maintenance will be scheduled based upon these inspections. This tank is expected to fill only during major rain events and remain near-empty most other times, so routine inspections and maintenance can be performed on the storage tank and supporting facilities (odor control system, tank pumping system) during dry weather periods. A barrier will separate park-goers from the access doors to the inside of the tank and support facilities. When HRSD is not inspecting the tank, all access doors will remain closed and locked.

HRSD will install an odor collection and abatement system to handle the air in the tank. Similar technologies have been proven effective with other HRSD pump stations, wastewater treatment plants, and other odor generating facilities.

Yes. Underground and partially buried wastewater storage tanks with added multi-use amenities such as sporting fields have been constructed in other communities. Alexandria Renew Enterprises, the wastewater utility in Alexandria, VA has such a tank with a multipurpose athletic field built over a nutrient management facility and adjacent environmental center.