75 Years of Bay Island and Broad Bay Island
You don’t have to cross the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel — or even leave Virginia Beach — to find a little island life.
Bay Island and Broad Bay Island neighborhoods somehow manage to feel both connected to everything and wonderfully removed from it. Surrounded by the waters of Broad Bay, Long Creek and the Lynnhaven, the area is known today for beautiful homes, boating, spectacular sunsets and a strong sense of community.
I thought it would be fun to share a little of the story behind how it got here. This year marks the 75th anniversary of Broad Bay Island and Bay Island, a milestone recently acknowledged by the city of Virginia Beach with an official proclamation from Mayor Bobby Dyer.
While 75 years is certainly worth celebrating, human history on this little piece of land goes back much, much further. Archaeologists have found evidence of four distinct civilizations at what is now Great Neck, with the earliest dating back more than 11,000 years.
Fast-forward a few millennia to 1943, when Clyde Absalom asked engineer Alonzo Cherry to plan a 25-lot community called Broad Bay Point. At the time, Broad Bay Road was mostly sand and clay, and the surrounding area looked much different from the neighborhood we know today.
Submitted photo
By 1951, additional land had been platted as Broad Bay Colony. Then, in 1959, A.M. Whitehurst began developing what would become Bay Island, marketed as the “Venice of Virginia Beach” because every home had direct water access. By 1962, 33 homes existed on the island, and getting there was an adventure. Residents once crossed wooden bridges at ground level. The original Long Creek Bridge was a hand-operated drawbridge, operated by one of the island’s early residents. Imagine having that commute. Residents did not have the high-rise bridge for access until 1960.
So which is it, Bay Island or Broad Bay Island? Broad Bay Island is the western portion closer to the Great Neck Bridge, and Bay Island is the eastern portion, beyond Lone Pine Road.
No matter what part of the island, the water is the reason people fall in love with this community. For boaters, kayakers and paddleboarders, the location proves hard to beat. For everyone else, the views, wildlife, breezes and those gorgeous Virginia Beach sunsets make you remember how lucky we are to live where we do. Unlike some newer developments, the neighborhoods have evolved over decades, creating an eclectic mix of original houses, renovated homes and newer waterfront properties.
Perhaps the best part, though, is the community itself. Today more than 400 homes sit on the island with an active civic league, a thriving garden club and a new generation of families discovering this little corner of Virginia Beach.
The neighborhood motto may say it best: “Broad Bay Island is a Great Place to Live.” After 75 years, apparently quite a few people agree.
Here’s to another 75 years of neighbors, boats, sunsets and island living.
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