Larchmont-Edgewater, a Norfolk, Va., neighborhood frequently plagued by floods. The house in the center has been raised above flood levels; the one at left has not.
Credit: Benjamin Lowy /The New York Times
In 1909, a group of Virginia developers placed an ad in The Norfolk Ledger-Dispatch announcing the creation of a subdivision that — because it was built on a pair of peninsulas where the Lafayette and Elizabeth Rivers poured into Chesapeake Bay — came to be known as Larchmont-Edgewater. The developers set up private jitney service to downtown and advertised the area as “Norfolk’s only high-class suburb.” People flocked to live by the water’s edge.
Today the neighborhood is known for the venerable crepe myrtles that line its streets, for its fine houses and schools and water views and for the frequency with which it is not just edged by, but inundated with, water. Melting ice and warming water are raising sea levels everywhere. But because the land in the Hampton Roads […]
Sobering article. We were thinking of moving to Florida. Will check flood insurance rates as a result of this item. Thanks so much for the heads up! (Thinking northern Florida, inland, but still…!)
Fresh water or salt water floods? If it’s fresh water it’s not sea level rise that’s causing the floods, but rather atmospheric compression due to the Grand Solar Minimum. Living at the water’s edge has never been a smart idea.