Five Points Civic Plaza Park sits in Norfolk's Norview district, between Bland Street, Chesapeake Boulevard, Sewells Point Road and Norview Avenue. On Friday, Oct. 30, 2026, that corner turns into a Halloween block party. Beats & Treats runs from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m., with house music from DJ Amarosa of Music Theory Studios, games and giveaways. It is free.
The event is one of five seasonal gatherings that Norfolk Festevents, Ltd. is producing at Five Points this year in collaboration with the City of Norfolk's Department of Parks & Recreation. The series runs from late spring through fall, and Festevents describes the whole slate as pedestrian-friendly, free and alcohol-free, built to give residents a safe and comfortable place to spend an evening. Live music, food trucks and family-friendly activities are the through-line.
The park itself is young, and its story explains why a block party there reads as something more than a routine festival listing. Five Points Civic Plaza Park was planned over several years with input from neighborhood residents and multiple city departments, and the city broke ground on it with a ceremony hosted by Councilwoman Mamie B. Johnson at the intersection of Norview Avenue and Sewells Point Road. Johnson framed the project in terms of health and family. "I am excited to officially break ground on Five Points Civic Plaza Park," she said at the time. "This project is the result of several years of planning and partnership with residents and many city departments and adds to my vision of building healthy communities and healthy families."
The plans called for a green space for residents to gather, a tot lot for youth, a community garden, and intersection improvements by the Department of Public Works, with construction expected to begin in early winter 2021. The groundbreaking itself was a neighborhood affair: remarks from Parks & Recreation Director Darrell Crittendon and elected representatives, outdoor games afterward, the Norfolk Public Library Treasure Truck, the Norfolk Police Department's "Copsicle" truck, and free trees from Keep Norfolk Beautiful on a first-come, first-served basis. COVID-19 protocols were in force, with face coverings and social distancing required of guests.
What exists now is a compact public space with shaded structures, picnic tables, a playground and an open lawn, at the junction that gives the place its name. It functions as a hub for a working, water-adjacent part of the city: Norview runs up against Naval Station Norfolk, the largest naval base in the world, and the surrounding blocks are home to the families and service members who make that geography part of daily life. A free, alcohol-free, pedestrian-scale evening at the center of that neighborhood is a different proposition from a downtown waterfront festival, and Festevents' framing of the series suggests the city knows it.
For anyone planning to attend, Festevents lists a few practical notes. Personal tents and speakers are not permitted. Parking is available at the Norview Baptist Church lot at 1127 Norview Ave., Norfolk, VA 23513, which puts attendees a short walk from the plaza rather than circling the intersection. The address for the park itself is 6123 Sewells Point Rd., Norfolk, VA 23513.
The date is worth noting on the calendar for a second reason: Oct. 30, 2026 is the Friday before Halloween, which means the block party lands on the evening when families are most likely to be out and looking for something to do that does not involve a ticket or a crowded indoor venue. The lineup is deliberately simple. A DJ playing house music, games, giveaways, and a park that did not exist a few years ago, standing in for a neighborhood's front yard.
Norfolk Festevents is a private not-for-profit organization that produces concerts, festivals, ship visits, special events and city celebrations for residents and guests of Hampton Roads. The Five Points series is a smaller-scale extension of that mission into a residential district, and Beats & Treats is its Halloween edition. Admission is free. The event runs 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 30, 2026, at Five Points Civic Plaza Park, 6123 Sewells Point Rd., Norfolk, VA 23513.