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CNU, task force outline multi-phase accounting of Shoe Lane property acquisitions; outreach, website planned
Summary
Christopher Newport University researchers and a city-led task force presented a timeline and database of property acquisitions tied to campus expansion, described limited use of eminent domain, and called for more community participation and an interactive public map.
Vice Mayor Curtis Bethany and researchers from Christopher Newport University (CNU) briefed the Newport News City Council Feb. 25 on the Shoe Lane Task Force’s work documenting property acquisitions tied to the university’s long-term campus expansion and on plans to solicit more community involvement.
The task force, established in 2024 by Mayor Philip Jones and CNU President Bill Kelly, has compiled a parcel-level database and mapping timeline that the presenters said will become an interactive public website. The presenters described phases of acquisition since the 1960s, identified specific instances where the university or its Real Estate Foundation pursued condemnation, and asked residents with family histories tied to Shoe Lane to participate in interviews and the forthcoming online materials.
The update matters because the work centers on the history of land transfers and the displacement of families as the college expanded, and the task force expects to return recommendations to the city once the factual record and community outreach are more complete.
CNU’s Dr. Johnny Finn, an associate professor of geography, said the task force focused its review on campus expansion from…
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