Crossroads Civic League

Norfolk Animal Care Center is breaking ground on the new dog kennels today! Friends of Norfolk Animal Care Center is proud to support this renovation by providing a $25,000 donation!

While under construction, the shelter urgently needs foster homes for dogs in their care.

Fostering is FREE, and NACC provides all the supplies, including food and vet care. You just provide the home! Visit Norfolk Animal Care Center during the hours listed below to get started.

The new dog kennels feature a divided design that allows staff to clean one side while dogs stay safely on the other side. This update saves hours of work each day and will allow staff more time for dog socialization, activities, enrichment and adoption support. The upgraded layout also improves sanitation and disease control, with each kennel positioned over a drain and designed to be moved if the shelter’s layout changes.

The project is funded through the City’s capital improvement plan, along with a $40,000 Petco Love grant and a $25,000 donation from Friends of Norfolk Animal Care Center.

Public Works – The annual spring Pothole Blitz is underway. Report potholes to Norfolk CARES at (https://www.norfolk.gov/392/Norfolk-Cares-Center or 757-664-6510); City staff rely on resident reports to identify where the potholes are located.

Connect Norfolk is a new public safety program enabling the people of Norfolk to help keep their community safe.
Your participation will greatly enhance emergency preparedness by enabling police, fire, and public safety professionals to better assess and rapidly respond to criminal activity and emergency situations. It will also enable investigators to gather evidence in case of an incident easily.

LEVEL 1: Register Your Cameras
Let's work together to fight crime! Register your security cameras with Connect Norfolk today to help identify area cameras in case of an incident.

An investigator from the Norfolk Police Department will contact you via email if they need your assistance solving a crime near you.

Camera registration takes less than one minute via our secure online portal. Registering your cameras does not allow the Norfolk Police Department access to your live video stream - it only enables investigators to know a camera is present at your location and easily request video evidence should an incident occur.

Community Camera Registry
We are building an interactive map of security cameras in Norfolk that will:

Be accessible only to the Norfolk Police Department
Increase the efficiency of direct video evidence collection
Provide immediate contact information to investigators for camera owners
Enable communities to work together to create a safer Norfolk

Camera registration takes less than one minute via our secure online portal. Registering your cameras does not allow the Norfolk Police Department access to your live video stream - it only enables investigators to know a camera is present at your location and easily request video evidence should an incident occur.

LEVEL 2: Integrate Your Cameras
Businesses and residents can take community security one step further by giving the Norfolk Police Department direct access to your camera feed in case of a nearby emergency.

All you need is a small CORE device that you plug into your camera system.

Home - Connect Norfolk Your participation will greatly enhance emergency preparedness by enabling police, fire, and public safety professionals to better assess and rapidly respond to criminal activity and emergency situations. It will also enable investigators to easily gather evidence in case of an incident.

The message below was forwarded to us from City Council representative, Jeremy McGee. Jeremy provides this information after questions were raised at the civic league's April meeting about the coyotes in Suburban Acres. The response is from the Animal Protection Unit (APU) of the Norfolk Police Department.


From: Karpovich, Albert

Subject: RE: Coyotes

All,



The Animal Protection Unit (APU) only responds to wildlife that are posing an active threat to public safety or if the animal is sick/injured.



APU does not respond to sightings of wildlife or manage the population of specific types of wild animals such as coyotes. APU does not trap or relocate coyotes or other wildlife. State law governs how this is handled by the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources' (VDWR) trained and permited private pest control companies.



If wildlife is a becoming a nuisance on someone's property outdoors, or if it is on their roof, in a tree, in their walls, in their crawlspace, in their attic, in their ventilation system, or if the animal is inside or under a structure that is separate from their main house, as the homeowner, they can choose to hire a wildlife removal service/licensed trapper of their choice to remove the animal(s).



For public safety reasons, if wildlife is actively loose in the living space/common areas of someone's home, APU will respond to remove the animal. APU will not respond if the house is dilapidated or not structurally sound or the animal is under large piles of trash and debris or inside any type of mechanical device/appliance where we cannot easily access the animal.



If wildlife concerns are occurring on City-owned property, we suggest that the civic leagues engage other City departments that have contracts already in place with pest control companies such as “ACME” or another wildlife removal company/licensed trapper to assist. Unless things have changed, ACME has a contract with General Services, Parks, etc., and with Norfolk Public Schools (NPS) for wildlife. If the sightings are in open City-owned spaces or near NPS facilities they may be leveraged or used to include other areas of concern within the city as needed via General Services or NPS.



For all other questions and concerns regarding wildlife, people can contact the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources. For convenience, we attached a brochure from VDWR with information and tips regarding coyotes. Please share this brochure with all civic leagues affected. I suggest we also share this brochure via all the City's social media platforms/applications and communications.



Captain A.J. Karpovich

Commanding Officer

Norfolk Police Department

Special Enforcement Division

757-823-4455

Delegate Hernandez will be holding his annual post-General Assembly Session town hall on June 2 at 6pm at Mary D. Pretlow Library (111 W Ocean View Avenue, Norfolk, VA, 23503). I've attached two images for you to share with your communities. If you would please circulate this event amongst your residents, we would greatly appreciate it. This town hall will focus on affordability, and just like last year, we will have resources for residents to save on monthly costs. We will also be joined by the Unclaimed Property division of the Treasury, who will be returning funds to residents if they preregister here by May 19th. If residents are planning to attend, we ask that they RSVP by emailing [email protected].

Please reach out with any questions you may have. We look forward to seeing you all soon!

Dan Harner (he, him, él)
Chief of Staff
Office of Delegate Phil Hernandez

Virginia House of Delegates | District 94

[email protected]

Phone: (804) 698-1094

This Saturday is Clean the Bay Day! 🦀

Join us on May 2 for the 37th annual Clean the Bay Day, a tradition, hosted by dedicated to protecting and preserving our coastal environment. This year, Norfolk is hosting 16 different cleanup sites city-wide, with hundreds of volunteers working to protect our environment!🌎

Meet us at one of our Walk-up Cleanup Sites from 9 a.m. - 12 p.m. on Saturday, May 2.
Lafayette Park (3500-A Granby St.)
Northside Park (8400 Tidewater Dr.)

Contact us at [email protected] with any questions about volunteering.

Keep Norfolk Beautiful is excited to announce the return of Live Green Norfolk, a vibrant and interactive community event dedicated to promoting sustainability and fostering environmental awareness on Saturday, April 18, 2026, at Lafayette Park (3500 Granby Street).

About Live Green Norfolk
This free and family-friendly festival will feature a dynamic lineup of activities, workshops, and entertainment designed to inspire attendees of all ages to embrace eco-friendly practices and sustainable living.

Live Green Norfolk is more than just an event; it’s a movement to build a stronger, more connected community. By bringing together individuals, families, City departments, and local organizations, the festival aims to create lasting bonds to inspire collective action toward a more sustainable future. Join us for a day of fun, learning, and community spirit as we work together to protect our City and planet for future generations.

Interactive Workshops
Kids' Eco-Zone
Community Art
Green Marketplace
Eco-Tours
Sustainability Panels and Discussions

Live Green Norfolk 2026 Participants

Norfolk Community Services Board
Norfolk Department of Human Services
Norfolk Animal Care Center
Norfolk Department of Neighborhood Services
Norfolk Office of Resilience
Norfolk Botanical Garden
The Virginia Zoo
Norfolk Environmental Commission
Hampton Roads Planning District Commission (HRPDC)
Hampton Roads Transit
SPSA Waste Solutions
TFC Recycling
Chesapeake Bay Foundation
Chesapeake Climate Action Network
Climate Action VA (VALCV)
Drive Safe Hampton Roads
Elizabeth River Project
Fred Heutte Garden
Ghent Neighborhood League
Tidewater Compost
Virginia State University SFOP
Tidewater Master Naturalist
PopFlorist
Rain Harvesting Works
Peace Cycle (Church of the Holy Family)
https://www.norfolk.gov/6488/Live-Green-Norfolk
https://www.norfolk.gov/6488/Live-Green-Norfolk

Live Green Norfolk | City of Norfolk, Virginia - Official Website Keep Norfolk Beautiful is excited to announce the return of Live Green Norfolk, a vibrant and interactive community event dedicated to promoting sustainability and fostering environmental awareness on Saturday, April 18, 2026 at Lafayette Park (3500 Granby Street).

Bluma Zeigarnik published her findings in 1927, but the effect wasn't taken seriously until the 1960s when cognitive psychology proved she was right: incomplete tasks occupy 90% more mental space than completed ones. Here's What She Didn't Know (But We Do Now): The effect works because of how your brain allocates attention. When you start a task, your brain creates a "tension state" – essentially a reminder loop that keeps firing until the task is complete. Finishing it releases dopamine and closes the loop. Not finishing it? The loop stays open, draining cognitive resources. 📊 The Dark Side: This is why you can't relax when you have unfinished work. Your brain literally won't let you. Studies show people with multiple incomplete tasks report 32% higher stress levels and worse sleep quality. 💡 But Here's the Exploit: Zeigarnik's effect isn't just about memory – it's about compulsion. Marketing teams realized if they can get you to start something (a show, a game, a course), your brain will obsess until you finish it. That's why: Free trials work better than discounts (you've already started) "Chapter 1 FREE" hooks readers harder than reviews Duolingo's streak counter is more addictive than the lessons 🎯 The Counterintuitive Truth: Zeigarnik herself struggled with this discovery. She couldn't turn off her own research. Knowing about the effect doesn't make you immune – it makes you more aware of how easily you're manipulated. The waiters in that café weren't superhuman. They were trapped in cognitive loops. Just like you are right now, wondering how this caption ends... 🔄 . #marketing #psychology #businessgrowth #business #fact