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Council urges federal help after Sandbridge Road outage highlights Sandbridge access vulnerability
Summary
A utility-pole failure that took out power and communications and closed Sandbridge Road for about 20 hours prompted council discussion about the long-delayed NEMO 7B project, environmental permitting, and short-term emergency measures including use of Dam Neck gates.
A major outage that downed utility poles and closed Sandbridge Road prompted the Virginia Beach City Council to press for faster federal action on a long-delayed access project and to ask staff to prepare correspondence to the city’s delegation.
City Manager Doheny described the incident: utility poles owned by Dominion were knocked down, Verizon and other communications infrastructure were affected, and the closure left Sandbridge Road impassable for about 20 hours. Doheny said the city had to open the Dam Neck gates to preserve mobility during the emergency and that police resources were heavily engaged. “Sandbridge Road is the only road in and out of that area,” Doheny said.
Council members and staff said the closure highlights longstanding vulnerabilities in Sandbridge and urged higher-level intervention. Council members noted that the NEMO 7B (referred to in discussion as NEMO 7 b) project to improve access is fully funded but remains delayed because federal regulators—through comments to the city’s environmental assessment—pushed the city to conduct a full Environmental Impact Statement (EIS), adding several years to the schedule. The city said comments came from federal regulatory agencies including the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; the Southern Environmental Law Center also submitted comments, according to staff.
Manager Doheny said the city had been following regulatory guidance and that the shift from an Environmental Assessment (EA) to a full EIS was made to avoid future legal challenges that could stall the project further. Councilmembers argued the disruption represents a public-safety risk and urged a “full‑court press” to obtain federal assistance and regulatory acceleration. Councilmember remarks included a request to coordinate with the city’s federal lobbyists and delegation and to prepare a letter from the mayor and council to highlight the incident and ask for expedited handling.
Staff reported there is an existing memorandum of agreement with Dam Neck that allows emergency vehicles through the base in crisis situations, but council members said that solution is imperfect because the Navy’s permission can vary with operational circumstances and that, on past occasions, the base had not granted passage.
Council directed staff to prepare correspondence to the city’s federal delegation and to work with the city’s lobbyists to highlight the emergency and seek expedited regulatory action. Councilmembers said they also intend to consider a delegation trip to Washington, D.C., if necessary.
