In 2013, a two-day event transformed a neglected stretch of Norfolk, Virginia, into a pop-up arts district. It wasn’t a city plan—it was a vision. Volunteers opened temporary galleries in boarded-up storefronts. Food trucks rolled in. Sidewalks were painted with makeshift crosswalks. Musicians played under murals that hadn’t been there the day before. It was messy, beautiful, and alive.
That weekend, organized by Team Better Block, local firm Work Program Architects and a small group of civic dreamers, marked the beginning of what would become NEON—short for New Energy of Norfolk. A decade later, NEON is a framework for how cities can center the arts not just in marketing materials, but in real, policy-backed investment. And it didn’t take a billion-dollar bond or a corporate sponsor. It took vision, artists, and a city willing to trust them.
With turmoil across the country, failing infrastructure here in Richmond, and politics being what they are, it never feels like a good time to ask. But maybe that’s exactly why we should. As a longtime publisher and arts advocate in Richmond—just two hours west—I have to ask: Why haven’t we done the same?
A Community Before a Brand
NEON didn’t begin with consultants. It began with an alt-weekly.
In 2010, AltDaily.com launched The Canvas Project, teaming up with nonprofits, educators, and artists to bring murals to shuttered buildings across Hampton Roads. One of the first projects? Zedd’s Auction House in downtown Norfolk—now the site of The Plot, NEON’s central public art space.
By 2012, AltDaily’s founders submitted a proposal to City Hall: The NEAD Project (Norfolk Emerging Arts District). It wasn’t a demand—it was a provocation: what if the city’s future wasn’t built by developers, but by the people already creating in its shadows?
In a 2014 interview with RVA Magazine, Jesse Scaccia—co-founder of NEON—put it plainly: “The fabric of our American society is melting into this mass-produced, lowest-common-denominator everywhere-is-anywhere sameness. We need artists to remind us that there are ways to think differently.”
For Scaccia and co-founder Hannah Serrano, NEON was a last-ditch effort to stay in a city they loved. They created a 100-page vision document, lobbied City Council, and aligned with artists, planners, and educators. When the City invited Team Better Block in 2013, the project shifted from idea to lived experience. In two days, they showed what Norfolk could be.
Ironically, Scaccia credited Richmond’s own art scene as an inspiration. “What’s happening in RVA is definitely a major source of inspiration. It paved the way.”
Today, it’s fair to ask: Can Richmond look back to Norfolk to finish what we started?
Real Artists, Real Work
In 2012, a small gallery and event space called Alchemy opened on a forgotten edge of Norfolk. It wasn’t in a “district” yet—just a pass-through, a dividing line in the city with little engagement. But the people behind it saw something different. Instead of looking to displace, they focused on including.
That stretch of blocks eventually became the NEON District. It wasn’t chosen by city planners or branding consultants—it was claimed by artists.
One of the early, defining moves was how the space embraced graffiti and youth art—not as a nuisance, but as a sign of life. The walls weren’t buffed clean. They were offered up. Young artists got a canvas. The neighborhood got energy.
And people noticed. For once, the space felt like it was actually for them—because it was.
ed. note: A plan is already in circulation to help address the graffiti issue. Read our interview with a local artist and art supply business owner about his proposal for a public art park HERE.
A System That Backs Its Artists
Since its official formation, NEON has developed a structural framework that allows creative workers to thrive—not just participate.
The Downtown Norfolk Council (DNC), a nonprofit supported by a special services tax district, facilitates public art installations, events, and marketing. In 2019, Norfolk City Council approved an economic incentive program targeted at arts-based businesses operating inside NEON’s boundaries. Eligible organizations—including visual and performing arts groups, culinary startups, and more—receive:
- A 100% BPOL tax exemption (business license) for three years
- Permit fee waivers for up to 10 years for redeveloping creative spaces
Last year, DNC took a step further by decentralizing programming control.
“Instead of tightly controlling the programming, we started giving grants directly to artists and producers to run their own projects,” said Paul Stetson Rice, Director of Marketing & Communications at the Downtown Norfolk Council. “And what we saw was greater engagement than ever before. We just got out of their way. They brought their own flyers, their own people, and they brought more people in.”
The program offers substantial support through grants and stipends, including $500–$2,500 for producer grants and $1,000 per muralist for the NEON Festival. Artists can apply for funding HERE. And a different application for mural funding HERE.
This isn’t just about murals and festivals. NEON succeeded because Norfolk trusted its artists enough to fund them directly and step aside.
Richmond Has the Talent. What It Doesn’t Have Is the Framework.
Richmond isn’t lacking creative firepower. The Broad Street Arts District—stretching through Jackson Ward and downtown—has been home to murals, galleries, and First Fridays for decades. We have Venture Richmond, a nonprofit similar to Norfolk’s DNC. We’ve had the Richmond Mural Project, which I was part of, along with Mending Walls, the RVA Street Art Festival, and Broad Appetit Food Festival, all downtown. All of these have struggled to get consistent support.
But what we don’t have is funding for the arts as infrastructure.
Richmond collects significant tax revenue from its cultural economy:
- A 7.5% meals tax brought in $46 million in 2022
- A 7% admissions tax applies to every concert ticket, DJ night, or theater performance—including the newly opened 7,500-capacity Allianz Amphitheater, which could alone generate over a million dollars per year
This isn’t a call for new taxes—it’s a call to rethink how we use what we’re already collecting. Richmond’s admissions tax, which is likely to double or even triple with the new amphitheater, comes directly from arts audiences. So why not reinvest a small portion back into the artists? The meals tax supports schools—that’s a political no-go. But the admissions tax? That’s our clearest path to funding the city’s creative future.
Imagine $100,000 to 250,000 a year—less than 3-5% of projected admissions tax revenue—being reinvested into:
- A city-run mural program
- Pop-up venue grants for collectives
- Tax relief for creative entrepreneurs in legacy corridors like Broad Street
It wouldn’t cost the schools a dime. It wouldn’t burden the general fund. But it would send a message to every artist and venue operator in Richmond: You matter. We see you. We’re building with you.
A Better Block, Again
Richmond once inspired Norfolk. We already have the talent, the infrastructure, and the revenue. We just need to make the decision to support the arts as more than an accessory.
NEON is a great framework: with the right alignment—city support, grassroots leadership, and financial scaffolding—creative districts aren’t just possible. They’re transformational. Let’s stop waiting. Let’s build.
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