Hampton Roads, Technology

Virginia Beach Tech & Research Timeline

Stay up to date with the latest.

Jamelia Todd
January 13, 2020

-Finish 6 w’s: WHO WHAT WHEN WHERE WHY HOW WHYUSHOULDCARE
-Why reader should care, why story is topical.
-Important causes/potential consequences of news

OUTLINE > Lede/Nut > med/tech/research workers in vb > where vb fits in in east coast >

Virginia Beach is poised to become one of the country’s major tech and research hubs thanks to city leaders who took advantage of the city’s resources and location.

Favorable business climate and cost of living combined with access to undersea cables and academia in Hampton Roads and the Research Triangle make it an idea location for research and data centers.

2002 Town Center

First block of Town Center, the center of the city’s new central business district, completed at the intersection of Virginia Beach Boulevard and Independence Boulevard.

2014 Mayor Announces Biomedical Park Plans

In the spring of 2014 in his state of the city address, Mayor Will Sessoms announces plans for a biomedical park to help diversify the city’s economy. The project’s objectives:

Establish the City and region as a center for advanced bio‐tech and healthcare research and industry
Become an economic driver for the regional economy
Drive substantial high‐wage job growth in the region
Leverage existing regional assets to develop the hub
Harness the collaborative power of regional institutions of higher education, non‐profit research institutes, hospitals, and healthcare‐related enterprises
Will require that local and regional governments work together to advance the initiative

2016 Princess Anne Commons Biomedical Park

City council approves the creation of the Biomedical Park on Princess Anne Road.

2016 Telxius Cable Landing Station Data Center

Construction of the landing station for both MAREA and BRUSA undersea cables. Telxius’ landing station currently offers 25,000 square feet of data center space, and could potentially add an additional 115,000 square feet.

2017 VABeachBio Innovation Challenge

Text

Caption

2018 Globalinx Data Center

Located just half a mile from the Telxius landing station, this data center owned by Globalinx Data Center LLC will have direct access to MAREA and BRUSA. It will grow to at least 186,000 square feet of colocation and data center space.

2018 MAREA

The international, subterranean data cable begins operating, connecting the city to Bilbao, Portugal.

2018 BRUSA

The BRUSA undersea cable connects Virginia Beach with Brazil and Puerto Rico.

2018 Regional Connectivity Ring

Hampton Roads wins the Smart Infrastructure Challenge. Five South Hampton Roads cities win funding and support for their plan to connect residents, businesses, and institutions with high-speed cable—and connect them all to the high-speed cables at the Virginia Beach cable landing station.

2020 Dunant

Dunant is an undersea data cable expected to be turned on in 2020, and will connect Virginia Beach and France.

2021 SAEx1

The South Atlantic Express is yet another undersea data cable and will connect South Africa, Brazil, And Virginia Beach. First traffic is expected in 2021.

(Future) NxtVn Data Center Campus

NxtVn has proposed building an immense data center campus off Dam Neck Road at a cost of up to 2 billion dollars, that will sport over 1.4 million square feet of space.

(Future) Intertstate 87 to the Research Triangle

Interstate 87 is a future interstate that will swing down to North Carolina’s Research Triangle and better facilitate tech and research collaboration between the two regions. Completion is unknown.

YNOT Innovation Park

First

2019? Midgardsormen

First block of Town Center, the city’s new central business district, completed at the intersection of Virginia Beach Boulevard and Independence Boulevard.