The building on the water just north of the Great Bridge Bridge has been empty since 2017, and it finally has a tenant. Jeff LeRoy, owner of Woody's Raw Bar & Grill, told The Virginian-Pilot in August that he had signed a lease to move Woody's from its spot of 17 years into 136 Battlefield Blvd. North, the old Locks Pointe building across the boulevard. On its own, that is a restaurant moving across the street. Put it next to what the same landlords own and plan on both sides of the canal, and next to a city ordinance that already sets how new buildings there must look, and it becomes the first visible step in rebuilding the whole entrance to Great Bridge.
A building that kept waiting for its next act
The waterfront building at 136 Battlefield Blvd. North has more history than most commercial addresses in Chesapeake.
| Years | What occupied 136 Battlefield Blvd. North |
|---|---|
| 1985 to April 2008 | Locks Pointe Restaurant, one of the city's few fine-dining rooms at the time, with Hodad's Bar & Grill inside |
| 2009 to 2017 | Kelly's Tavern |
| After 2017 | Years of renovation for a seafood restaurant that never opened there |
| 2026 | Leased to Woody's Raw Bar & Grill and a second concept, Legacy at the Locks |
LeRoy has his own link to the place. He tended bar at Locks Pointe in 1987, and that is where he met his wife, Darcus, according to the Pilot's August report. He opened his own restaurant in 2009 as Big Woody's in a storefront at Island Warf Center, across the boulevard, and has run it there ever since. A second Woody's on Portsmouth Boulevard in Western Branch opened 15 years ago.
Two restaurants in the old Locks Pointe building
The plan LeRoy laid out to the Pilot puts two restaurants under one roof. Woody's Raw Bar & Grill keeps its name and its raw bar. "We are going to have a raw bar where you can get oysters, clams, crab legs, mussels, etc.," he said. The second restaurant, Legacy at the Locks, is the new idea. Kayla LeRoy Holton, Woody's regional director of operations and project manager for the build-out, told the Pilot it will be "not fine dining; it's just more upscale atmosphere with some elevated menu items, a good wine list and more craft cocktails." The plans also include a small stage for entertainment.
The new space is roughly 10,000 square feet, compared with about 5,700 at the current Woody's. That is close to double the room, and LeRoy said the staff will grow with it. He set a target of "within 2-4 months" of the August interview and said the current restaurant will keep operating under its lease until the move is ready, then close. Woody's Great Bridge page lists the address as 123 Battlefield Blvd., Suite H, along with hours and a phone number, so you can check there before you go.
One owner on both banks
Jennifer and Derrick Carpinelli, through GH Wharf LLC, bought Island Warf Center for $2 million in September 2022, according to a follow-up from the Pilot in October that cited city property records. The Carpinellis are also Woody's landlords at the new building. LeRoy told the paper, "Our experience with the property owners has been positive."
Their holdings now sit on both sides of the bridge.
- North of the bridge: the new Woody's building at 136 Battlefield Blvd. North and Island Warf Center at 123 Battlefield Blvd. North, a 1.24-acre property built in 1986. It was always officially Island Wharf Center. At some point the "h" fell off the sign out front.
- South of the bridge: the Great Bridge Village shopping center and the former Vino Italian Bistro building at 138 Battlefield Blvd. South.
Jennifer Carpinelli described the goal to the Pilot in terms of the whole approach to the neighborhood. "We hope that by owning all the property from the new Woody's building all the way down to the Dollar Bank that we can really make a new and much needed update to the entrance of Great Bridge something substantial that residents can be proud of," she said. She said the intent had always been a new building at 123 Battlefield, with redevelopment depending on planning, engineering, permitting, financing and market conditions. "It would be premature to announce a development plan or timetable until that process is further along," she said. City spokesperson Kristin Mauer told the paper no demolition or other permits had been filed for Island Warf as of Sept. 30.
The south side is further along. Mauer said the old Vino site has a site plan in review to demolish the existing building and build a new building and parking lot. Several former Island Warf businesses have already moved elsewhere along the boulevard. Legacy Estate Liquidations is now at 300 Battlefield Blvd. North, When Skies are Grey Photography Media & Designs Studio at 450 Battlefield Blvd. South, and the Xpressions hair salon at 927 Battlefield Blvd. North.
The design rules were written six years ago
The new buildings are not a blank slate. On June 16, 2020, Chesapeake City Council approved the Great Bridge Historic Gateway Overlay District as an amendment to the zoning ordinance. Its stated purposes include using Great Bridge's position on the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway "to create a water-based gateway to the City." The overlay grew out of the 2008 Great Bridge Village Design Guidelines and divides the area into four character districts: Causeway, Historic Battlefield, Great Bridge Business and South Gateway.
The standards apply to new principal buildings and to major exterior renovations on commercially zoned land, meaning projects that cost more than 50% of the building's assessed value. Routine maintenance is exempt, but exterior paint must come from the Benjamin Moore Historical Collection, with bright trademark colors allowed only as accents. In the Causeway Character District, the city describes the intended character as "an urban, mixed-use, water-focused community." The standards there call for:
- At least two land uses from office, hotel, residential and retail. Residential is not required.
- Colonial, Southern Colonial or Coastal Colonial architecture, with limited building heights.
- Buildings that face the street, with parking placed inward and away from the waterways.
- Shallow front setbacks that leave room for outdoor dining, public plazas, landscaping and sidewalks.
- Driveways that follow the Great Bridge Village Access Management Plan, which is meant to improve traffic flow on Battlefield Boulevard.
Carpinelli has said publicly that the owners support the city's Village Plan "and hope to help make it a reality for Chesapeake." The overlay's interactive map lets anyone look up whether a given parcel falls inside it. Nearby, the city has a separate project in the regional transportation plan. The Great Bridge Boulevard Sidewalk is a 0.15-mile connection on the south side of Great Bridge Boulevard between River Walk Parkway and Oscar Smith High School, scheduled for construction from late 2027 into 2028.
What the corridor already holds this season
While the Vino site plan sits in review and Island Warf waits on a plan of its own, the public spaces around the bridge carry a full late-fall calendar.
- Sundays through November 22: The Waterway Market at Great Bridge Village runs at Battlefield Park South, 120 Reservation Road, with produce, artisan goods, food trucks and prepared food.
- November 26 through January 2: Deck the Hall turns Chesapeake City Hall, 306 Cedar Road, into a free drive-through light display. Fa La La Land walk-around nights are December 12 and 19, from 5 to 9 p.m.
- December 5 and 6: The Battle of Great Bridge event returns to Battlefield Park South, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday.
- December 5, evening: The 43rd annual Chesapeake Rotary Christmas Parade has the theme "America250: A Christmas Celebration." The one-mile Holly Jolly Jog starts at 5:30 p.m. and the parade at 6 p.m. The route runs from Mt. Pleasant Road and Battlefield Boulevard to City Hall on Cedar Road.
On parade night, the Chesapeake Rotary lists road closures in stages. The eastbound lanes of Mt. Pleasant Road close at 4 p.m., Cedar Road from Battlefield Boulevard to Holt Drive closes at 4:45 p.m., and Battlefield Boulevard from Mt. Pleasant Road to Cedar Road closes at 5 p.m. Most closures last until about 9 p.m. Southbound drivers between the canal and Cedar Road can still reach Great Bridge Plaza and Kroger through the signalized shopping center entrance. Businesses on Battlefield Boulevard north of Cedar Road stay reachable from the boulevard. General parking is in the City Hall and Municipal Center lots behind the Central Library.
Everything on that list happens a few minutes south of the bridge, and none of it depends on the construction schedule. For a waterfront break between events, the city's 19-acre Great Bridge Lock Park has fishing and crabbing areas, a kayak and canoe launch, and a trail along the water.
If you want to talk through what a remade gateway could mean for your own plans in Great Bridge, Thompson and Partners can walk through it with you. Schedule a consultation with our team.
