Last week, we were superstars. Whitney Metzger, the City, the volunteers, the participants, the local bars and restaurants, the surrounding community, and even little old us, AltDaily. Superstars all of us.

Community, Zombie Style | photo: John Cachero

Watching the Survive Norfolk crowd from the bed of a pickup truck in the Trinity Presbyterian parking lot,  it felt like that cliche moment in romantic comedies, when the two characters who’ve spent the entire picture having unnecessary and ridiculous miscommunications, arguments, missed opportunities while exuding chemistry and secret glances finally kiss. They finally admit they love one another and want to work together on building a happy life and existence.

Norfolk, we love you…and, well, you love us too!

Jesse wrote this in last week’s Reasons to Leave Your House, “With a little bit of help from us–AltDaily is partners on Survive Norfolk now–it feels like we’re on track for one of the most fun nights in the history of Norfolk tomorrow. That sentence reads more hyperbolic than a chamber, but really… This could be one of those turning point nights… Where everyone has a blast… The City is on board in a helpful and positive and progressive way… More local leaders emerge among us… All of a sudden events like these are happening on the regular…”

He was right. So, the question, “how to survive Norfolk?” now has an answer: engage.

Coming off the overwhelming response to Survive Norfolk, we got all excited and proud of everyone, and wanted to recap some of the amazing moments we’ve all shared this last year or so (including links and comments about Survive Norfolk’s impact); to introduce AltDaily and its community building practices to new readers and reconnect with our regular audience. We appreciate all of you!

AltDaily is just getting started when it comes to community building.

On the civic end, we helped created Art|Everywhere, a project that brought art to all the empty storefronts on Granby Street, providing residents taking summer strolls an enjoyable experience, instead of a recession reminder. We’ve been deeply involved with Bike Norfolk, a group dedicated to making Norfolk a safer–and more fun–place to be a cyclist. We regularly support local farms and farmer’s markets. We’ve held two Chalking of Ghent events, family-friendly days on Colley where families can have fun with sidewalk chalk, balloon animals, etc., but more importantly, meeting their neighbors in a new, simple, creative way. Our sister company, AltMarketing, brought Norfology to town (a City campaign to keep our existing creative class, while recruiting more to Norfolk).We recently began Hampton Roads, The Canvas, an initiative with the immodest goal of getting every boarded-up building in the area painted something beautiful. A great aspect of some of these events have been the ability to raise a little money for local charities, something else we wholeheartedly support and encourage.

SPIN hits Norfolk at Art|Everywhere | pic: Anne Kabaitan

On the arts and entertainment end, we’ve also been busy bees. We created SPIN (Street Performing in Norfolk), a grassroots movement to make playing music (and other types of entertainment) in the streets a regular occurrence around here. People who had never heard of buskers before are more and more often enjoying outdoor performances on their walks to restaurants or movies. We have spearheaded regular movie nights at the Naro, complete with costume contests and partnerships with local restaurants–one more way for our neighbors to get outside, have some fun, and meet one another. We’ve also, from a pure journalistic end, tried to up our coverage of local entertainment by including columns like Groove Advisory (specific to local shows), Reasons to Leave Your House This Weekend (the list of all awesome in the 757), and Friday Featured Artist (profiles and interviews with local artists).

This next year will be big. We are engaging more and more with the gay community, with the hope of making this the most friendly GLBT environment you’ll ever find in a Southern military town. We plan on continuing our support local farms and farmer’s markets, and the slow food movement in general. Art|Everywhere will return, now as part of Virginia Arts Festival (!!!). We plan on getting more involved with local economic development, with the goal of facilitating new business development in Norfolk and throughout the region. We are going to throw a local music showcase in December, the first of what we hope is many occasions for Hampton Roads’ citizens to come out and embrace the talent our area has to display. There are innovative and productive private/public partnerships dealing with homelessness issues, recycling, early childhood education, and doing a better job of welcoming our soldiers back after war.

Ultimately, our mission is the make this community feel as small, intimate, and connected as if we were a little country town, but with all the benefits of big city living. We want to foster community leadership and political engagement. We want this place to be so kick ass none of us would ever consider leaving.

From Hannah Serrano, Publisher and Creative Director of AltDaily

When I founded AltDaily, my sole purpose was to provide the area with an alternative news and arts publication that is sustainable and ahead of the curve in media. I say sustainable and ahead of the curve because having come from a print journalism background, I was ready to see a magazine that utilizes all of the best qualities of the emerging digital media world. Print just wasn’t cutting it, and the closure of Port Folio Weekly as a tabloid, where I left as the Arts & Culture Editor, was a perfect case in point. AltDaily, I hoped, would follow in the footsteps of HuffingtonPost, Slate, and Salon, all of which have proven to provide high-quality news and culture journalism online.

Was Hampton Roads ready for that kind of a publication? Honestly, at first I really wasn’t sure. But in the last year, we’ve had the kind of success that tells me, yes, we’re ready. We’ve proven to be a true alternative that readers trust and come back to. We reach over 25,000 unique readers, and our Facebook has attracted over 6,000 fans–more than Pilotonline, HamptonRoads.com, Daily Press, and even ODU.

The business community has also responded. We’ve developed relationships with dozens of local advertisers. And we’ve even launched a separate marketing company to serve clients in avenues beyond AltDaily.

In my opinion there are two major reasons why we’ve had that success. One, we’ve pushed to have consistently great editorial, updating our site with roughly 4 to 5 stories a day and developing a unique voice that speaks to not just our generation of young creatives, but the entire zeitgeist of Hampton Roads. Two, we’ve organized and supported events that have helped take Norfolk and Hampton Roads to the next level; events like Art|Everywhere and Survive Norfolk that have received national attention and are truly putting us on the map.

It’s been a whirlwind year, and AltDaily has carved out a role in this community that’s more complex than I’d ever imagined. But we’ve loved every minute of it. And I, along with everyone else who is watching us grow, can’t wait to see what happens for us next.

Responses to Survive Norfolk:

WVEC 1

WVEC 2

WVEC 3

WTKR 1

WTKR 2

WAVY

KXAN (Austin TX)

USA TODAY

CHICAGO TRIBUNE

PILOTONLINE 1

PILOTONLINE 2

FAVORITE FACEBOOK COMMENTS (be our friend, please. like us. we like you):

Bj Abadam: I think the event was a positive mark on the city’s report card. We should thank all of the city officials for fast tracking permits and the like in such a last minute situation. This should be proof that citizens do make a difference. Let this be an example to the rest of Norfolk and the neighboring cities that people can come together and bring positive change and awareness to their communities.

Katherine Byrd: no doubt I don’t think red tape ever moved so fast. When this is over, see what you can do about Waterside. Congrats. Have a great event.

Robbyn Gayer: I wanted to thank you folks at Altdaily for helping out with Survive Norfolk. Personally, I think it may have been the coolest thing that has ever happened in Hampton Roads. Activities like this build a better community. I know I’m preaching to the choir. Wanted to say thanks for helping make Norfolk the awesomeness it can be!!

So, thanks again Norfolk/Hampton Roads for being great neighbors!

Hannah, Jesse, & jESiO