Monthly Archives: June 2016

Another Editorial From Goldman On Utility Reform

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Paul Goldman has yet another Washington Post editorial that follows up on the long-running water utility reform campaign by neighborhood residents. In this one, he gets down to numbers and compares to food tax.

From editorial:

The food tax bill is now about $80 dollars a year for the average low-income family – and it’s still considered too high by such groups as the NAACP and Democratic liberals. We agree.

But in Richmond, the average poor family is paying $150 to $200 a year for regressive, non-existent taxes embedded within their utility bills.

City leaders, aware of these facts, refuse to take action.

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Based on Richmond’s new budget, DPU will likely collect between about $30 million of such revenue. Of that, roughly $7 million will be fleeced from the poor.

And again, the real question is how will Council and Mayoral candidates acknowledge and confront this and other financial issues?

Drum Lessons

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From announcement:

Hey Oregon Hill! I’m offering drum lessons to beginners of all ages, whether you want to learn academically or just for fun.
I’ve been playing drums and percussion for 13 years. I studied percussion from middle school through to getting my bachelor of music from JMU in 2014. I’ve also played in a progressive rock band called Fight Cloud since 2008 (fightcloud.bandcamp.com).
I’ll focus instruction on technique, rhythm, notation, and learning by ear. Having solid fundamentals will allow you to more freely play whatever you like, whether it be rock drum set, jazz, classical percussion, or drum line.
I would prefer to teach at the student’s home as mine is not ideal for teaching lessons. This also adds the benefit of being able to focus on your needs on your drums in your space.
If you’re interested, I’d love to hear from you, and we can negotiate time and price.
Thank you!
Miles Blunt

Scotty Moore On The Mosque (Altria Theater)

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Remembering Scotty Moore, Elvis’ first guitar slinger who just passed away.

From his website:

On May 16, 1955 Elvis, Scotty, and Bill made their first appearance at the Mosque with the Hank Snow Jamboree. Martha Carson was the headliner and the show also featured Slim Whitman, the Davis Sisters, Onie Wheeler and Jimmie Rodgers Snow. All of the shows in Richmond were apparently sponsored by Bill Railey of Railey’s Appliance Center.

Girls of Summer Book Party Tonight

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From Radio IQ report:

The city’s main public library hosted almost 300 kids and their families last year, as local authors Meg Medina and Gigi Amateau unveiled the books they had carefully curated for a not-your-average summer reading list.

Beth Morris is the city’s chief children’s librarian.
“Every year they get together and they come up with these 18 books, anywhere from picture book up through Young Adult, to really show girls strong characters and that we can just do anything the guys can do,” says Morris.
This year, the event will also feature New York Times best-selling author Carole Boston Weatherfood.
“It’s just giving everybody a chance to meet some authors, to ask questions – especially those kids that are interested in writing,” says Morris.

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The unveiling happens Wednesday from 7 to 9 p.m. at the main branch of the Richmond Public Library. And whether you’re in Richmond or not, you can access the list at girlsofsummerlist.com.

Blue Mountain Tap Takeover at Mojo’s Thursday

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From the FaceBook event page:

Thursday June 30th Blue Moutain Brewery is taking over the taps at Mojo’s. Event starts at 8pm after Happy Hour. Free pint glasses while supplies last. See ya there!

Draft Selection:
Drink a Peach – peach infused gose – 6.2%
Kolsch 151 – german style kolschbier – 5.0%
A Hopwork Orange – orange infused IPA – 7.0%
Rockfish Wheat – bavarian style hefeweizen – 5.3%

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“A Puppet Barn for ALL THE SAINTS!!”

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If you like the annual All The Saints Halloween Parade that rolls through our neighborhood then you might want to consider a donation to help All The Saints build a puppet barn.

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From the gofundme.com page:

“Dearest friends and supporters of All the Saints Theater Company,

Although we are losing the present location of the Puppet Library, the show must go on! The puppet lending and puppet organizing and collaborating, parade making, spaghetti dinner hosting, and Lily performances will continue until the end of time..because it is just what we do.

But the way we do it needs to change in order to sustain Richmond’s raising cost of living and real estate. Sooo we have mastered a plan!

Our plan? To raise $$$ for a Puppet Barn in Lily’s backyard in Southside Forest Hill where the community can continue to have access to the puppets and workshops that she offers without the stress of month to month rent and the reality behind a gentrified Richmond.

Our goal is $7, 000 to…

-raise a barn big enough, dry enough, and warm enough that Lily can continue her work in a peaceful and productive way!

Please help us in the crucial time of transition to create a space that can always be the bastion of radical puppet theater in RVA!

Donations of $100 + can have an option of taking home your own puppet from the library current collection.

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Brick Sidewalk Work Celebrated

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Many neighbors along S. Laurel Street are very excited and appreciative about the brick sidewalk work that is being done.

Neighbor Kathy Talley had this to day:

I am especially pleased at how the handicapped accessible corners were done at Laurel and Spring: as much brick as possible was preserved. It is a huge improvement over what was done at Pine and Spring a couple of years ago: just using all concrete. The new method should become the city standard.

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Still to be done:
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(I think we can cross off #7 off the old list.)