Author Archives: Scott

Trash/Recycling Pickup Tomorrow

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This Wednesday is a red Wednesday, which means trash and recycling pickup. Please make sure you pick up containers after pickup tomorrow night. They do not belong on the sidewalk after tomorrow night. In recycling news, Colonial Heights doubles recycling, saves $250,000 with cart changes.

Officials in Colonial Heights, Va., say they made the right choice when they switched to smaller 68-gallon trash carts and gave every household a 96-gallon recycling cart to begin using July 1, 2012, instead of the standard bin.

A year later, the city’s 17,000 residents recycled an additional 540 tons of materials, and conversely, sent 506 fewer tons of waste to the landfill. At the same time, participation in curbside recycling doubled to 61% of the estimated 6,700 households.

In addition, Colonial Heights saved $250,000 in operating costs that now will be spent to restore a unique old baseball stadium, upgrade the public safety communication system and buy new playground equipment. Bigger savings are expected in future years because there won’t be any start-up costs.

Residents and businesses also benefited from a recycling rewards program. Every time residents put out their recycling cart, they earn points that can be redeemed for coupons, free appetizers and the like at 32 shops and restaurants. The commercial partners reported an extra $18,000 in new business.

“It was a perfect storm of things,” City Manager Tom Mattis said, adding that it all began at contract renewal time for waste hauling. “We were looking for ways to do more, to do better. We wondered what’s possible to save money. That was the core of it early on but in the end that quickly married up with recognizing an opportunity to enhance recycling and be a leader.”

Dueling Maps of the Towpath

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Venture Richmond Director Jack Berry gave a presentation on the proposed amphitheater at the July meeting of the Oregon Hill Neighborhood Association. One the main assertions Berry made was that the tow path on the south bank of the canal was only 12 feet wide until it was enlarged in the 1880s to make way for the railroad. He wants to remove over half of the tow path on the south bank of the canal, from 25 to 12 feet to improve the sight lines of the the proposed amphitheater.

Disproving Berry’s assertion is the 1848 plat of Lewis Harvie’s property on file at the Henrico Courthouse (Plat 3-417), which is far more detailed than the Morgan map cited by Berry. This plat is of such detail that it actually gives the dimension of the tow path as being 30 ft. wide at the location of what is now Venture Richmond’s proposed amphitheater. (See measurement on the attached Henrico Plat below the word “Path” to the left of the “House.”) The east-west street above the canal is the same width as the tow path and is also labeled “30 feet wide.”

Henrico Plat 3-417, 1848

This 1848 Henrico plat establishes that the towpath was at least as wide as it is today during the canal’s primary period of significance, and long before the railroad purchased the right-of-way on the canal bank. This canal was carefully engineered with an impermeable “puddled” clay layer that would be irreparably damaged if half of the south canal bank is removed.

First Tuesday at Byrd House Market!

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From email announcement:

It’s National Farmers Market Week!
August 4 – 10, 2013
Visit one! Visit Ours! Did you know that Virginia is in the top ten states for number of farmers markets? We are tied with Missouri with 246 markets listed in the USDA Farmers Market Database for 2013. Click here to read the USDA press release. Byrd House Market and all the other wonderful markets in the Richmond area only work because you shop them! Thank all the farmers, gardeners, growers, food makers and their families for bringing you such amazing things! Tell them what you love about what they do for you and Your Neighborhood Farmers Market!

Demo: “What’s In a Ham?” by Salt Pork

“the OTHER white meat” ” Find out what makes ham taste so good, especially when in the hands of someone who knows. How do you eat yours? Bill will share the wheres and whyfores of delicious ham making and eating. At the Salt Pork tent at 4pm and 5pm.

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Live Music courtesy of the Blue Lotus Collective

Artmaking with VACLAA, 3:30 – 5 pm (See their current exhibit by artist Helene Ruiz)

Storytelling by Caroline, 4:00 – 5 pm

Facepainting by Madeline, 4:30 – 6:30 pm

Bike Rack located by the Square Byrd House Market Sign all market day!

Water for Pets available too!

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Chair Massage

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William Byrd community House is enrolling 4-year-olds for the fall Head Start and Early Childhood Education programs. Must be potty trained! Call 804-643-2717 for details.
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Ana Edwards, Manager
Byrd House Market & Library Programs
Grace Arents Library & Education Center
William Byrd Community House
www.wbch.org / 804.643.2717 ext.306

JIMMY’S SIDEWALK SALE SUNDAY

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From FaceBook event page:

I’m Not Selling Any of the Brick Sidewalk.
I Will Be Putting Things On the Brick Sidewalk to Sell.

JIMMY’S SIDEWALK SALE STARTS 10AM THIS SUNDAY

10am-3pm (Sunday Aug 4)
310 S. Cherry St. (Richmond, VA 23220)
(Just South of VCU Campus) CASH or CHECK ONLY – NO PLASTIC

JUST BACK FROM MIAMI w/ a HUGE NUMBER OF LPs

*30 crates of Rock, Soul, Jazz, Blues, Reggae, Folk & more*

(Start @ 50 cents.Best Ones are Market Priced ($4 up to $20)

(Wide range of Great Artists From The Fall to Art Ensemble of Chicago to rare New Wave Picture Sleeves to Yazoo & Pacific Jazz label in great shape)

Several Boxes of 45RPM Singles

10 Boxes of CDs (Many are 10 cents ea.)

200 Old Music Mags (Mojo, Option, NME, Guitar Player, Paste)

(Held in the shade out of the sun!)

*** I’ll also have LPs next Sat. at the Wonderful
<>
all day on Strawberry St.

– Kitschy Printed Matter
– Old Posters
– McIntosh 1700 Stereo Receiver $600.00 (in excellent working condition)
– Klipsch Speakers
– Dual Turntable with Wooden Base $80.00 (in excellent working condition)
– A Few CD Players
– An Accordion That Got Left in the Basement So Now It’s Ruined
– Rolex Watch From the First Lady
– Many Other Hard-To-Find Items

Councilperson Agelasto Takes On Illegal Dumping

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WTVR recently had a report on illegal dumping in City neighborhoods.

Excerpt:

Farmer claims this year is the worst yet. She claims as renters move out, their belongings move out to the curb or the alley. Sometimes the items remain in public right of ways for weeks.
“This one has been out here over two weeks,” said Farmer as she points to several old mattresses left in the alley behind her home.
It sometimes takes weeks before someone calls the city for a bulk pick up. Farmer believes it’s wrong to create such a poor reflection of the neighborhood and to assume someone else is supposed to pick up after you.
“I think its people who are used to their parents taking care them,” said Farmer.
City councilman Parker Agelasto recently captured video of an illegal dump near his home.
“it’s out of control essentially,” said Agelasto, who claims he sees similar messes all the time all across Richmond.
He was so appalled by the recent dump however that he called Richmond’s Department of Public Works and the Richmond Police.
“We’re talking huge amounts of garbage that’s not their primary function, that’s cleaning up an illegal activity,” said Agelasto.
Agelasto then stuck around to capture images of the DPW clean- up. He claims DPW is backlogged with calls to pick up what’s been illegally dumped and it’s putting strain on them and the police to have to correct other people’s mistakes. He says it’s time for the city to crack down on those who do it.
“Wherever you’ve moved, we’re going to find you and you’re going to be held accountable for what you’ve done, you can’t do this,” said Agelasto.
Richmond Police also acknowledge a huge problem with illegal dumping in the city, mainly in area where there is a high density of student housing.

From Councilperson Parker Agelasto’s FaceBook page:

Thank you Catie Beck for featuring the issue about illegal dumping in Richmond. Many people are concerned about the timeliness of bulk pick-ups; however, I believe we need to turn attention to the problems that are taxing City resources such that they impeded our regular response times. This includes the illegal dumping that occurs when rental properties turn over near the beginning and end of the school semester.

I ask that all City residents that witness such activity 1) explain that such activity is illegal and request that the individuals correct the issue, 2) document it with your cellphone, and 3) report it to the Richmond Police prior to requesting a bulk pick-up.

As a reminder, garbage must be properly bagged and in placed trash cans. If it is more than can be reasonably accommodated in the trash can, it is the resident’s responsibility to take it to the City dump. You may call for a bulk pick-up; however, there is generally a fee for this service.

If the illegal dumping persists, a lot of “personally identifiable information” can be obtained by simply looking at the garbage. The Richmond Police Department will use this information to investigate and make an arrest for a Class 1 Misdemeanor.

Certainly, this site has reported on on this problem in the past (here, here, here, here, and here) and it is exciting to have our new Councilperson address it. Hopefully his activism will spur more parties (landlords, VCU, THE RENTERS THEMSELVES, etc.) to take some responsibility.

Lanie Kruszewski Memorial Ride Set For Sunday

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From WRIC:

RICHMOND, VA—A group bicycle ride in memory of Lanie Kruszewski is set for this Sunday.

Monday marks the one year anniversary of the night the 24-year-old was struck and killed while riding her bicycle along River Road.

Elias Webb, the Richmond man convicted of felony hit-and-run in connection with the July 29th wreck, was sentenced in July to three years behind bars. In February, it took a jury of four men and 10 women just less than three hours to reach the verdict.

A group bike ride to remember Kruszewski is set for the evening of Sunday, August 4.

The 14-mile ride will go to the corner of River Road and Bridgeway Road, where a memorial for Kruszweski has been set up.

Riders are asked to meet Sunday at 7 p.m. at the Oregon Hill Outlook where Laurel Street meets the river.

Laurel Street Closure This Saturday

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From City press release:

For Immediate Release
July 31, 2013
For more information, contact:
Sharon North – (804) 646-5607

Street Closure – North Laurel Street
WHO: City of Richmond Department of Public Works

WHAT: Street Closure

WHEN: Saturday, August 3, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

WHERE: North Laurel Street between Main Street and South Cathedral Place

BACKGROUND: The aforementioned area will be closed to allow for installation of an HVAC unit using a rubber tire crane.

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Jack Berry Presentation to OHNA

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Last Tuesday, Jack Berry of Venture Richmond made the following presentation to the Oregon Hill Neighborhood Association (OHNA) (Thanks to neighbor Silver Persinger for filming!):

2013 July 23 - Jack Berry Presentation to Oregon Hill on Venture Richmond's Riverfront Amphitheater - Richmond, VA from Silver Persinger on Vimeo.

Also, last Friday, WRIR’s RVA Open Source show featured an interviews with Councilperson Parker Agelasto and Venture Richmond’s Jack Berry (This follows the previous show’s interviews with Charles Pool and your truly). Follow the links there to listen.

Richmond’s Kanawha Canal was conceived by George Washington and bulldozed by … who? Venture Richmond? Newmarket Corp? A free-spirited construction contractor following his bliss? We may never know.

This Tuesday At Byrd House Market

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From email announcement:

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Welcome new vendors!
Decadence Gourmet Cheesecakes joins us this week with locally made savory cheesecakes in amazing flavor combos in JARS. Jim Mead, Mount Airy Studio, is a Richmond area painter bringing limited edition prints from a new inspirational series, It’s All About Love – great gifts. Thinking of You Creations returns with YumTarts, Cookies and Granola!

See our complete vendor list for July 30 by clicking here.

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Herb Tea Making & Herb Drying Demo
At 4 pm and 6 pm Learn how to make tasty herbals tisanes (teas) from from fresh herbs from the garden and learn about the healing properties of several common garden herbs. Learn also how to effectively dry and store herbs for future use. Taught by Gananathamritananda Swami from Shakambhari Devi Herbs. Manager’s Note: Gananatha regularly offers samples of his tisanes.

Teens Learn at the Byrd House
WBCH is really pleased to partner once again with HandsOn Greater Richmond to provide one of the 5 days of site-specific activities for their TeenImpact summer program. 10 kids will spend Tuesday morning in our Library with Stacy Luks of SloFood RVA and then help set up the market, visit with vendors, tour the farmlet with Matthew and learn about WBCH Food Pantry and Farmlet processes. Later they’ll do a scavenger hunt and shop the market!

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Featured Vendor: Heath Farm
Bill and Joyce Heath have provided a wide variety of sustainably-, locally-, and family-grown vegetables and plants since Byrd House Market began in 2007. I must be in pepper mode because following the Padron Pepper sear of the week before this last week I took the bag of green, yellow and orange bell peppers and decided that every meal would incorporate one or more of the colors and sweet, crunchy goodness from these peppers. So far
– a salad of greens, sweet orange peppers with shaved sharp cheddar cheese and a simple olive oil, squeeze of fresh lime, salt & pepper dressing, and
– a saute of green peppers, crimini mushrooms, onions, garlic laid over fried eggs and garnished with cherry tomatoes!

Acoustic Music by Blue Lotus Collective Face Painting by Madeline Making it Bilingual with VACLAA will bring art activities to make and use bright, colorful signage for the garden, farmlet and market in English and Spanish. Art, Literacy and Food! For all you kids!

Stuff the Bus!
at The Diamond this Sunday, August 4 at 2pm. Learn more at WBCH.org!

_____________________

Ana Edwards, Manager
Byrd House Market & Library Programs
Grace Arents Library & Education Center
William Byrd Community House
www.wbch.org / 804.643.2717 ext.306