The Empty Restaurant at the Great Bridge Locks Is Finally Getting Its Next Chapter

"She asked me out on a date there," Jeff LeRoy told The Virginian-Pilot in August, talking about the building just north of the Great Bridge Bridge. "And I asked her to marry me in the old atrium room at Locks Pointe."

LeRoy was a bartender at Locks Pointe in 1987. Today he owns Woody's Raw Bar & Grill, and he has signed a lease to move his restaurant across Battlefield Boulevard into that same building at 136 Battlefield Blvd. North. The Pilot's report described a vacant freestanding building on a strip of land between the Intracoastal Waterway and the Elizabeth River. It said locals had been waiting for years for the building to turn into something again.

That waiting has been noticeable because everything around the building kept going. The lock park, the Sunday market and the battlefield museum all sit on the same water. This stretch of water in Great Bridge has had a busy public life the whole time. What it hasn't had for most of a decade is a working restaurant at its center.

Four Decades in One Building

Most people driving over the bridge know the building as an empty one. Its history is longer than that, and the Pilot laid it out:

• 1985: Opens as Locks Pointe Restaurant, one of the few fine-dining spots in Chesapeake at the time. Hodad's Bar & Grill also operates inside.
• 1987: Jeff LeRoy is tending bar at Locks Pointe, where he meets his future wife. They marry in 1992.
• April 2008: After 23 years, Locks Pointe and Hodad's close.
• 2009: Kelly's Tavern takes over the building.
• 2017: Kelly's Tavern closes.
• The years after 2017: Off the Hook, a seafood restaurant that opened its first Chesapeake location in 2014, renovates the building for years but never moves in. That business has since closed.
• August 2026: Woody's confirms its lease and plans to relocate before the end of the year.

The building has been without a tenant since 2017, which makes 2026 its ninth year empty. Before that, it had been open almost without a break for more than three decades.

Two Restaurants Under One Roof

The new tenant has already spent a long time on this stretch of the river. LeRoy opened the restaurant in 2009 as Big Woody's, in one of the storefronts at the Island Warf Center. Over the years it became known for its raw bar, wings, nightly drink specials, live entertainment and waterfront deck. So the move is a short one, across the boulevard, from a spot overlooking the Southern Branch of the Elizabeth River to a building surrounded by water.

The new space will hold two restaurants in one. Woody's Raw Bar & Grill will move over, and a second concept called Legacy at the Locks will open next to it. Kayla LeRoy Holton, LeRoy's daughter and the regional director of operations for Woody's, is managing the build-out. She described Legacy this way: "It's not fine dining; it's just more upscale atmosphere with some elevated menu items, a good wine list and more craft cocktails." A small stage for entertainment is also planned.

That upscale side brings the building partway back to how it started. Locks Pointe opened as a fine-dining room in 1985. Its newest tenant is planning a dressed-up dining room under the same roof as a raw bar serving oysters, clams, crab legs and mussels.

The move also makes Woody's a lot bigger. According to LeRoy, the current location is about 5,700 square feet and the new one is roughly 10,000 square feet, and the business will need more staff to run it.

Where the Build-Out Stood

The timeline is still open. In August, LeRoy said the business was holding off on an official announcement because it didn't have an exact opening date. "We hope to be in there within 2-4 months," he said. "That's our goal."

When the article ran on August 10, the plumbing was complete. Electrical work was next, followed by heating, air conditioning and ventilation. "There are no walls up in there yet," LeRoy Holton said. Two to four months from mid-August runs from about now to mid-December. As of this writing, no public update has confirmed an opening date.

In the meantime, Woody's stays open where it is. LeRoy explained that the business leases its current space and can keep operating there until it's ready to cross the street, and the old location will close at that point. He also owns a second Woody's Raw Bar & Grill on Portsmouth Boulevard in Western Branch, which opened about 15 years ago and isn't part of the move.

The Water Around It Never Went Quiet

While the building stood empty, the city and the foundation behind the Great Bridge Battlefield & Waterways Museum kept the rest of this waterfront busy.

Great Bridge Lock Park sits where the Albemarle and Chesapeake Canal meets the Southern Branch of the Elizabeth River, right along the Intracoastal Waterway. The city lists a two-lane boat ramp, fishing and crabbing areas, a kayak and canoe launch, trails, picnic shelters, a playground and restrooms. It's a park built for watching boats and for getting your own boat into the water.

Down the road, Battlefield Park South at 120 Reservation Road hosts the Waterway Market @ Great Bridge Village every Sunday from May 17 through November 22. The city describes local vendors selling produce, artisan goods, food truck fare and prepared foods along the Intracoastal Waterway. Its June listing gave hours of 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

The Great Bridge Battlefield & Waterways Museum gives the area its history. According to the Foundation's visitor page, the museum is open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday from noon to 5 p.m. The Battlefield Park trails are open daily from sunrise to sunset, and admission is free.

Put together, that's a lock park, a Sunday market and a museum with trails, all on the same water. A two-restaurant building on the point between the waterway and the river would join them.

The Calendar From Now Through December

The next ten weeks on this stretch of water are busy, and the biggest weekend lands in early December. These dates come from the Foundation's calendar, the City of Chesapeake and Visit Chesapeake:

The first weekend of December carries the most. The city's event listing for the Battle of Great Bridge puts it at Battlefield Park South on December 5 and 6. It includes reenactments both days, encampments, demonstrations and other historical activities. On that same Saturday, the Chesapeake Rotary Christmas Parade starts at Mount Pleasant Road and Battlefield Boulevard. It's a street parade presented by the Chesapeake Rotary Club and the city, not a boat parade on the canal.

What to Watch for at 136 Battlefield Blvd. North

When Woody's announces its opening date, a few things will show how the move is going. Watch for the old Woody's at the Island Warf Center to close, since LeRoy said that location will shut down once the new one is ready. Watch for the Legacy at the Locks menu, which was still being written in August. And watch for the stage, which would put live entertainment back in a building that has been dark since 2017.

Until then, the plan LeRoy described keeps Woody's open at its current location across the boulevard, and the Waterway Market runs every Sunday through November 22.

If you live near the locks and have questions about how Great Bridge's waterfront is changing, or what a quick move across the water like this one could mean for the area around it, I'm always happy to talk it through. You can reach me through Michelle Stanek. Let's Connect.