A Richmond, Virginia, nonprofit organization that promotes swimming for both children and adults ramped up its ability to handle regional and even national competitions when it added 1,000 seats last year to its location in a former mall anchor store.
NOVA of Virginia Aquatics also expanded retail amenities and built a new multipurpose community room at its space in the Regency Mall on Parham Road in Henrico County, just west of Richmond proper.
The expansion, which amounted to 29,000 square feet of new space, builds on the group’s initial development at the mall in 2021. It was NOVA’s second Richmond-area pool facility, giving area swimmers access to an eight-lane, 50-meter pool and two 25-yard warm-water pools. In addition to general community use, the pools are used for Henrico County varsity high school swim events.
For its impact on the local economy and community services, a group of judges with knowledge of the area honored the latest expansion with a CoStar Impact Award.
What the judges said: "This is a wonderful continuation of the adaptive reuse of the mall and well-executed,” said Scott Keeton, managing director of sales and leasing at Commonwealth Commercial Partners in Richmond.
They made it happen: Drew Hirth, director of operations, and Leigh Peterson, chief executive officer of NOVA of Virginia Aquatics; Anthony Romanello, executive director of the Henrico Economic Development Authority, and Matt Raggi, principal of Thalhimer Realty Partners facilitated the deal.