On Norfolk in 1855

"It had a harbor so calm and naturally deep that, upon looking over it, President Millard Fillmore once had expressed surprise that East Coast trade was dominated by New York. The London correspondent of a New York paper proclaimed that Norfolk should be one of the great ports of the United States."

"In spite of itself, Norfolk had been in the doldrums for decades. The city’s potential had been strangled by a state legislature dominated by rural slaveholders not keen on costly improvements for urban dwellers. Most local businessmen were not big thinkers and seemed satisfied to wait their turn for greatness. As Norfolk slumbered, Northern cities locked in their futures by improving and expanding railroad connections."

This was written years ago, regarding a yellow fever outbreak in Norfolk...replace "slaveholders" with "sprawlers" and looks like not much has changed. Go Light Rail!!