The Eastern Shore of Virginia consists of two counties - Accomack
and Northampton - located between the Atlantic Ocean and the Chesapeake Bay. They are
rural areas, despite having been settled continuously by Europeans longer than nearly any other
area in North America.
Accomack and Northampton rely upon agriculture, but are encouraging tourism as well. The shipping on the Eastern Shore is mostly for recreational boaters and small commercial fishing boats, with no deep water port. Industries are reluctant to build manufacturing facilities on the Eastern Shore because transportation to market is slow and costly. In 1994, the President's Council on Sustainable Development sponsored development of the Cape Charles Sustainable Technologies Industrial Park. The Governor's Opportunity Fund helped finance a manufacturing company for desalinization plant equipment, but internal company squabbles have limited its economic impact in the community.
Nonetheless, as the song goes, "the times they are a-changing." Watch Northampton County in particular. The land rush around Cape Charles has started; urbanization is close behind.
In 2000, the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel charged the highest toll in the nation - $10 each way. That deterred commuters from living in Northampton and working in Hampton Roads. Now a return trip within 24 hours is just $4, for a total toll of $14 rather than $20. That has created a 20% discount for commuters going back and forth between Virginia Beach and Northampton County.
The bridge-tunnel capacity is being increased in stages, first by building parallel bridge spans and next by building parallel tunnels. Virginia Beach developers are now building golf courses and housing developments in Northampton, and advocating a reduced fare across the bridge-tunnel. With a faster, cheaper commute, Northampton could experience the same sprawl as Stafford, Fluvanna, Hanover, and Gloucester in the last decade. Land prices are low, but the Northampton boom could be constrained by a lack of fresh drinking water even if commuter transportation to Hampton Roads becomes "cheap."
