Town Point Park — Attraction in Norfolk

This event is classically sold out every year. I was thrilled to get delayed entry 5pm tickets for $15. Well...the event closes at 7pm. I had to stand in line when I got there at 5pm to get in. I brought $24 in cash with me. Special event parking is $10. That left me with $14 dollars for tacos. Yeah...not really. Even though advertised as tacos available "for just $3 (sold separately)," in actuality-there was a $15 food ticket minimum. That calculates out to 5 tacos, not my usual taco consumption at any one sitting. The lines at the taco trucks were long. The festival ticket included a free beer or margarita. After mulling around the taco trucks, trying to decide if I should pull money from the bank truck set up, I decided no tacos and started to head towards the margarita stands where I waited in the heat for 1.5 hours. The margarita was delicious, made to order in front of me. On the way out of the festival, I noticed that the taco ticket sellers were still holding out for the minimum purchase even though no one was buying. So I went to the 2018 Norfolk Taco Festival and left without tasting the duck taco I was craving, but I got the margarita which was already sweated out before I left through the gates. It was one expensive margarita. My lemonade resolution? I bought 3 authentic tacos from Nico's Taqueria on Holland Road in Virginia Beach for $2.50 each-one fish, one chicken and one steak. Later in the week, I went to Striper's in Waterside, Norfolk and purchased their duck tacos as an appetizer. Moral of the story: 1)Go early to festivals. The lines are shorter. 2) Food truck selections are not cheap. Bring at least $15 cash per person to cover the cost of one of their lower priced menu items or a festival's minimum purchase requirements that were a surprise. 3) Skip the late entry option, consider it a lesson learned about getting tickets early. It was 6:30pm by the time I was able to get...

I love Town Point Park in Norfolk VA. Right on the water, you can see it across to Portsmouth, Newport News Shipbuilding and everything else including the bridges connecting a few of these cities. Always great events in the summer from concerts to wine tastings. The park is well kept and has great hotels in walking distance. Marriott and Sheraton just to name a few. And they are so nice inside. You can see the tall ships on different occasions during the year and we have our Spirit of Norfolk for your dinner cruises. We also doc the Carnival Cruise Line on occasion. We host the harborfest every year at Waterside in June . We have our Jazz Fest annually also and this year will be the 35th year believe . We have retired naval ship Nautilus there for tourism. There are parking garages that are very reasonable I believe about $5 for all day. There is MacArthur mall a few blocks from Town Point Park with several high end stores for those with high-end taste and also the regular Mall store f a r e. There is public transportation there also and I think we have bike rentals 2. There is every Walk of Life coming through there and it just warms my heart to see that. Everyone's having a good time and and you don't have to worry about food, drink, activities, or safety. Plenty of police presence to ensure things go smoothly. Happy to see that because there can be thousands of people coming through there a day. Folks just need to feel safe and I thank them for that. I just love my Seven Cities of Tidewater!...

I hope this message finds you well. I’m reaching out to report an unsettling experience I had at the Town Point building today, Saturday [insert date]. As the owner of TMB Debt Solutions, I work closely with Tod upstairs at the Hampton Roads Chamber of Commerce and have previously been a member at Town Point.

Today, I was delivering flowers for a friend and was let into the building by a male security guard I hadn’t seen before — an African gentleman. I asked him how long he had been at the desk, not out of disrespect, but simply because I’m accustomed to seeing a female guard who is usually stationed there.

He responded quietly, and I didn’t catch what he said, so I casually remarked, “Black people,” not meaning anything offensive — just commenting in passing. Unexpectedly, the guard began speaking very negatively about Black women, expressing strong personal biases that made me extremely uncomfortable. His remarks were unprofessional and inappropriate for someone in a front-facing security role.

I ultimately felt the need to leave the building because of how uncomfortable the interaction became. As a Black woman and a professional who regularly engages in this space, I found his comments deeply disturbing and unacceptable.

I’m bringing this to your attention in the hope that it will be addressed appropriately. I would also appreciate not having to engage with this individual during future visits or meetings in the building.

Thank you for your time and attention to...