Water Damage Restoration in Virginia Beach, VA

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — Virginia Beach public high school students will be allowed access to their cell phones during lunch, following a school board policy vote Tuesday night.

The policy, agreed on unanimously by the board, differs slightly from the Virginia Department of Education's final guidance recommending no cell phones "from bell to bell."

High school students will not be allowed to use their phones or smart watches during instructional time, keeping them in backpacks, lockers, or cars.

This policy in Virginia Beach Public Schools goes into effect on January 6, 2025.

Watch related coverage: Mental health expert talks cell phones in school

This comes a week after the city of Norfolk announced it was adopting the state recommended policy of "no cell from bell to bell." This guidance, based on Gov. Glenn Youngkin's Executive Order 33 aimed at addressing mental health issues in kids due to phones and social media, prohibits the use of any device capable of sending or receiving messages, pictures or video during school hours.

Norfolk's policy goes into effect on Jan. 1, 2025.

Youngkin’s office says the order was issued to remove classroom distractions. It also aims to improve the mental health of students across the commonwealth, as spending more than three hours a day on social media doubles the risk of poor mental health for adolescents, according to a study the governor cited. The order calls for school divisions to have cell phone policies in place by the new year, and VDOE is allowing districts to decide some of the limits.

Watch related coverage: Norfolk Public Schools to adopt no cell phones 'from bell to bell' policy

News 3 previously reported that VBCPS saw an increase in violations this year with regards to their current cell phone policy. Officials had hoped to fine-tune the policy so it can be more effectively implemented.

The new policy varies depending on which level of schooling the student is in:

Elementary School: Students are not allowed to have phone at all on school grounds.

Middle School: Students must store phones in lockers from the first bell to the final bell of the day.

High School: Students must store phones in lockers from the first bell to the final bell of the day, but are permitted to use them during lunch.

Under this policy, students would also be able to access and use phones in the case of a medical or safety emergency.

Parents spoke at the board meeting Tuesday in favor of allowing phones during lunch.

"Lunch breaks are meant for recharging," said one parent. "It also gives them the chance to check-in with parents, work or after school activity."

School districts across the commonwealth have until Jan. 1, 2025, to implement Youngkin's executive order.

Watch related coverage: How does cell phone policy work in school emergencies?

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WAVY) — Vada Carawan was scared, but focused.

The 11-year-old’s father had just suffered a heart attack, and she was about to put her recent CPR training into practice.

Vada’s Virginia Beach Girl Scout troop had just learned CPR 11 days earlier, and in that moment last Saturday, with her father unresponsive and her dog upset, she channeled her energies into saving him.

“Just put your mind to anything that you would want to do,” Vada said. “First, I was like, I don’t know if I can do CPR, but apparently I can.”

And she did.

“Of course, it was scary,” Vada said. “And I started tearing up and I was like, ‘What do I do?’ Like, for a minute there? I was in complete shock. And then I was like, ‘Heart attack … heart attack, 911.”

At that point, it was all hands on deck to save his life.

“Maggie, my dog, was freaking out,” said Vada, who had just celebrated a birthday four days earlier. “She was trying to wake him up, like, put her paw on there, like trying to wake him up.”

It was in that moment that Vada knew she had to step in to help save her dad. It was an almost indescribable experience as she gave chest compressions to her dad while on the phone with the dispatcher. And with the help of paramedics who arrived, they were all able to revive her dad and get his heart beating again before he was taken to the hospital. Now, while her dad is still in the hospital, he is on the road to recovery.

“It’s kind of hard to put into words because it was so scary,” Vada said. “I think I was a little weaker because it’s not the same doing it on a dummy because it’s not your dad.”

The CPR training came during her Girl Scout meeting, and it’s training that all Girl Scouts receive.

“I was actually the only person in my whole class to successfully save our dummy because when you do CPR, the dummy has lights, and if it’s green, you’re doing it correctly,” Vada said, “going deep enough and all that, and you have the right amount of strength.”

Vada’s mom is proud of her daughter for her heroic actions.

“She got to be his hero,” said Vada’s mom, Amanda Carawan. “I was like, he’s her hero everyday, but you know, she got to be his hero this time.”

Vada’s father is in the hospital recovering, and the family is raising money for his medical bills. Click here to donate.

And for all the other young kids out there, Vada said age is nothing but a number. Shoot for the stars.

“I definitely don’t think you’re too young for anything,” Vada said. “I think you can accomplish anything you put your mind to.”

And she proved that her actions could help save a life.

Not just any life.

Her dad’s.

The Dome is just one part of the Atlantic Park project, which covers multiple blocks on Pacific Avenue and will also include a surf park.

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — The latest addition to the Virginia Beach community's entertainment landscape is progressing to final stages of construction as part of the greater Atlantic Park project. And it has a name that may be familiar to many long-time residents and visitors: The Dome.

The live performance venue is owned by the City of Virginia Beach and operated in partnership with Live Nation. To support the venue, Live Nation says it will create more than 200 jobs with base pay starting at $20 an hour for all staff. It's also expected to host over 3,000 people for events.

"When big acts are booked, hopefully, these big acts want to eat here. So, how can you not feel excited about it," said Kip Poole, a well-known local restaurateur who just opened Yorkies Modern Deli in the ViBe Creative District, two blocks away from the Dome site.

After the city said The Dome is nearing completion on Friday, Live Nation announced Papa Roach and Rise Against will be coming to it in September of 2025. The venue is expected to open in the spring of 2025, so additional live acts are expected to be announced in the coming months. Other portions of the Atlantic Park project, including the large wave pool anchoring the complex, will not be completed at the same time as the Dome portion of the project.

The Dome is just one part of the Atlantic Park project, which has seen gradual progress but has also required additional financing from the city to account for rising construction costs from the COVID-19 pandemic. As recently as 2021 and 2023, the city council has voted to financially allocate resources to the project.

"The money to fund this project is not coming out of the general fund, it's the tip fund from amusement taxes. But once again, once we get it open this thing will be an iconic game changer at the Oceanfront," Virginia Beach Mayor Bobby Dyer told media on Friday.

The site started as the Virginia Beach Civic Center, better known as "The Dome" in the 1950s, but was torn down in 1994. The site had remained vacant until work on the Atlantic Park project began last year.

"The Dome will quickly become a go-to destination for music, comedy, and special events, all while paying homage to the legacy of the original Dome, a celebrated home for jazz, soul and rock ‘n’ roll," Dyer added.

As of December 2024, the average solar panel system costs $2.85/W including installation in Virginia Beach, VA. For a 5 kW installation, this comes out to about $14,243 before incentives, though prices range from $12,107 to $16,379. After the federal tax credit, the average price drops by 30%.

You'll probably pay even less than what we show here. It doesn't include the federal ITC or Virginia Beach, VA state incentives, which will lower this price by at least a few thousand dollars.

It may seem obvious but larger solar panel systems cost more money. We use cost per watt ($/W) so you can easily compare quotes, controlling for slight variations in system size.

While a 5 kW system will only cost you $14,243 in Virginia Beach, VA, doubling the system size effectively doubles the price, so you'll pay about twice that for a 10 kW system. The higher the price tag, though, the more you'll get back as a credit towards your federal tax bill.

Average solar cost by system size in Virginia Beach, VA

If you can't shell out $14,243 in cash to pay for solar, don't sweat it. You can choose to finance your system with a loan instead. Some companies even offer $0-down loans so you can start saving on day one if your loan payments are less than your current electric bills. Just keep in mind that your long-term savings will be lower with a loan due to interest rates.

The numbers we're showing are averages. The price you'll pay for solar depends on many factors unique to you and your home:

If you're looking for solar companies in VA, here are some popular suggestions:

Solar is a major purchase, but you can get the price tag to come down a bit by being an educated shopper. Taking advantage of incentives and rebates and shopping around for quotes can bring down your cost of solar in Virginia Beach, VA.

As long as your federal tax bill is high enough, you can take advantage of the federal tax credit in Virginia Beach, VA. This incentive allows you to apply 30% of your solar installation and equipment costs toward your federal tax bill. If the amount exceeds your tax bill, you can roll over the remaining credit to the following year. Many states also offer great local incentives and rebates.

Comparing multiple solar quotes can save you money through competition and transparency. Each additional quote you receive for solar will help you find the right solar panel system at the right price.

This is where EnergySage can help. With funding from the Department of Energy’s SunShot Prize, EnergySage opened the country’s first (and now the largest) marketplace for home solar panel installations. We gather custom solar quotes from local installers on your behalf and put them in an easy-to-compare format. When you compare quotes for solar panels on the EnergySage Marketplace, you can expect to see prices up to 20% lower than if you work with a single solar company.