Waterside (Norfolk, Virginia)

The Waterside, is a festival marketplace on the Elizabeth River in downtown Norfolk, Virginia, opened June 1, 1983.

The concept combined to varying degrees major restaurants, specialty retail shops, food courts and nightlife activities.

A second phase was added to the complex in the 1980s, while the mid-1990s saw a decline in business, exacerbated by the opening of nearby MacArthur Center.

The Norfolk Redevelopment and Housing Authority purchased the Waterside from its private owner, Enterprise Real Estate Services, in 1999,[1] at the time considered a temporary arrangement.

[2] A critical component of Norfolk's ongoing post-World War II revitalization, the complex connects via a cross-street pedestrian bridge to a parking garage, sits at the foot of the Portsmouth Ferry terminal, and connects via a waterfront promenade to the downtown, the nearby baseball stadium (Harbor Park), naval museum (Nauticus) and waterfront neighborhood of Freemason Harbor.