Norfolk Botanical Garden’s new $30 million project: Welcome to the ‘Garden of Tomorrow’
Norfolk Botanical Garden recently started work on its Garden of Tomorrow, which will add facilities, attractions and more parking.
The $30 million project includes exhibits with some of the world’s most threatened plants. The garden will have more educational opportunities for school groups and shorter wait times.
The project is the garden’s biggest expansion in its 85-year history and is needed: NBG has exceeded attendance records with more than 500,000 visitors total during the past five years.
The ticket counter will be moved to the new Brock Entry Pavilion, so people will no longer need to wait in line in their cars at the toll booth. People will park in the new Brock Parking Garden, an expansion of the current lot by the Margaret Moore Hall Rose Garden. The parking area will have 100 new trees and more vegetation.
“It is like the best of both worlds because there will be more parking and more greenery,” said Kelly Welsh, communications director for the garden.
The new visitor center will have an open layout with a retention pond as well as a cafe, rooftop garden and green area. Some of the vegetables from the roof will be used in the cafe.
The center will also have an elevated pathway that takes people among the trees and into a tropical biome, which will be part of the new Perry Conservatory. The pathway will allow views of the rose garden.
The 26,000-square-foot conservatory will have two main sections, a tropical and a desert biome. It will house some of the most threatened plants from around the world, including the alula, a tree native to Hawaii, which is thought to be extinct in the wild because of the extinction of its only pollinator. The conservatory will house rotating displays and exhibits including plants reclaimed from smugglers.
“This is really going to be amazing once it is done,” Welsh said.
Construction, expected to take about two years, started last month when Dominion Energy began installing power lines and water pipes. Parking will be limited until the project is complete, so visitors will need to reserve a timed entry ticket. Reservations are free for members.
The rose garden entrance is temporarily closed, but the building can be accessed from a side door. The main entrance is expected to open in a few months after the parking lot has been extended.
The rest of the garden will be open during construction.
For more information and tickets, visit norfolkbotanicalgarden.org.
Everett Eaton, 262-902-7896, everett.eaton@virginiamedia.com
