Category Archives: calendar

TransformRVA on Thursday

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To commemorate the Better Housing Coalition’s 25th Anniversary and inspire community partners to work together for the Greater-Richmond region’s advancement, the Better Housing Coalition (BHC) is presenting TransformRVA: A Day of Celebration, Education & Transformation this Thursday at the Omni Hotel:

a full-day event to engage community residents, leaders and corporate and government partners in presentations and dialogues on what needs to be done to make our region a more vibrant, inclusive community in which to live, work and play. The event starts with an awards luncheon with keynote speaker Henry Cisneros, former Mayor of San Antonio and former Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary, on ‘Leadership for 21st Century Cities’. Golden Hammer Awards for excellence in neighborhood revitalization projects over the past year will be awarded (and there are some finalists from some of our neighborhoods). After the luncheon, six concurrent workshops will be given by local and national experts on components of vibrant, inclusive communities where all can thrive, such as housing, education, transportation, civic engagement, placemaking and age-wave planning. Finally, we wind down at the end with a cocktail reception featuring Desiree Roots Centaio and friends (great jazz music), good food and conversation.
Tickets are $100 for the full day, $50 for the luncheon only. Thanks to a sponsor, there are a limited number of event scholarships for resident/community leaders, college/university students, and nonprofit professionals, based on need.

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Virginia Nuclear Authority Meets Nearby Wednesday

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Received this forwarded email in regard to the Virginia Nuclear Energy Consortium Authority (VNECA)‘ upcoming meeting, which the public is allowed to attend:

VNECA Board Members:

I hope all is well with you. Just wanted to send a quick reminder about Wednesday’s VNECA Board meeting.

The meeting will be held on Wednesday, May 20th at 10am at the VCU East Engineering Hall, 401 West Main Street, Room E3229 (daVinci classroom on third floor). (Ed. note: I redacted the parking code info) The map is attached, but this is the same lot as previous meetings.

If you haven’t RSVP’d already, please let me know if you will be able to attend.

Attached are the draft minutes from the last meeting, draft agenda for this meeting and map for parking.

Please let me know if you have any questions and I look forward to seeing you on Wednesday.

Thanks.

Randy Marcus
Senior Advisor for Policy
Office of Governor Terry McAuliffe
randy.marcus@governor.virginia.gov

Community Movie Night TOMORROW

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The summer long movie series known as Oregon Hill Community Movie Night will begin TOMORROW, May 8, at Dusk in Pleasants Park. The first movie of the season will not be Scarface. Instead it will be Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day.
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The series operates every 2nd and 4th Friday of the month, May thru October (though rainy weather can mess with that). Free refreshments served: hot dogs, chip, and beverage.

Monroe Park Woes

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The state of Monroe Park continues to create consternation.

From neighbor and Monroe Park defender Todd Woodson:

Last Monday evening, I spoke during citizen comment period at city council regarding the fact that the city currently has over 3/4 of a million dollars and hundreds of hours of planning in the Monroe Park Master Plan and that the plan has been approved by both the planning commission and city council and is prominently displayed on the richmondgov.com website and that they were currently replacing the entire north side of the park (600 and 700 blocks w Franklin) with new concrete sidewalks which do not comply with the specified brick with planting strip sidewalks in the master plan. I emailed the interim director at DPW before any concrete was poured and he responded that he would consult his engineers and get back to me. He never did. I subsequently requested the budget for the project under the freedom of information act but haven’t received it yet. They have now completed the northern perimeter and have started on the eastern side (Belvidere). It is now apparent that the city is going to complete the entire perimeter with inappropriate material in anticipation of the UCI races. This unfortunate waste of funds could reach up to 200 to 300 thousand dollars by my estimate. Should the master plan be implemented, all this concrete will need to be demolished, transported to a landfill, the site re-prepared and correct brick sidewalks installed.
I request that you do anything you can to bring this to the attention of the public. If they stopped and began the right plan, much money could still be saved.
This blatant and willful waste of taxpayer dollars and stress to the environment through all of the landfill waste is appalling and unconscionable. The administration of our city is out of control.

These Monroe Park sidewalks has been reported on before on this website.

Some Richmonders have also been wondering about this plaque, now without a corresponding tree:

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Perhaps we will learn more at this upcoming Monday (May 4, 5pm)’s City Council Organizational Development Standing Committee Meeting being held in the Council Chamber, 2nd Floor, City Hall. Alice Massie, the President of the Monroe Park Conservancy, is scheduled to give an update. She has missed previous meetings. Also, Lucy Meade of Venture Richmond is scheduled to speak on “City Beautification Projects”. This standing committee meeting often has little public participation, despite the important matters that are discussed there.

Friends Of Hollywood Picnic This Sunday

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From Hollywood Cemetery (don’t forget to RSVP!):

Join us for an annual tradition that dates back to the 1800s! We will be hosting our Fourth Annual Sunday Picnic at Hollywood Cemetery on Sunday, May 3rd from 1:00pm – 3:30pm. Pack a picnic basket, bring a blanket, and relax to sounds of great entertainment at Hollywood Cemetery. Guided trolley tours are available throughout the cemetery that day. Cupcakes from Pearl’s Cupcake Shoppe, an ice cream truck and hotdogs will be on site. Live music will be provided by the Oak Lane Band and Capitol Opera Richmond.

The picnic is free to attend, but we do ask that you RSVP in advance. Please email nshepherd@hollywoodcemetery.org or call 648-8501 to make reservations. Rain Date – Sunday, September 20th, 2015 at 1:00pm.

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Oregon Hill Neighborhood Association Meeting Tomorrow Night

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From email announcement:

Hello all

Here is your monthly reminder that OHNA is meeting tomorrow night, Tuesday, April 28th, at 7 pm at WBCH.

On the agenda:

An update on the Tredegar Green rezoning.

Erin Stanforth. She is VCU’s Director of Sustainability and has about a 15-20 minute interactive presentation seeking input on VCU’s Sustainability Plan.

Thanks
Jennifer
OHNA

Public Square On Segregation This Thursday

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The Times Dispatch Public Square events are sometimes good and sometimes very weak, depending on how topics are presented and moderated. But this one sounds like it it could be a better one (and maybe of particular interest to Oregon Hill, which is often described as a “traditionally white neighborhood”):

Public Square 56: Why is Richmond still segregated? Thursday, April 23, 12-1:30 p.m., Richmond Times-Dispatch 1st Floor Auditorium (300 E. Franklin Street)
At the Richmond Times-Dispatch’s next Public Square, we’ll explore the issue of segregation in the region. We’ll include presentations from Heather Mullins Crislip, president and CEO of Richmond’s Housing Opportunities Made Equal, and John V. Moeser, senior fellow in the Bonner Center for Civic Engagement at the University of Richmond and professor emeritus of urban studies and planning at Virginia Commonwealth University. We’ll also hear from Victor K. Branch, Richmond market president for Bank of America and a HOME board member, and longtime Times-Dispatch columnist Michael Paul Williams. As always, the audience will be invited to ask questions and make comments.

Also:

Richmond Public Schools (RPS) State of the Schools Address Tuesday, April 28, 6 p.m., 1500 N. Lombardy St., RVA 23220
Come join the members of RPS and the Richmond community to discuss the current state and future of the schools in Richmond. The event will be held at the Claude G. Perkins Living and Learning Center (on the campus of Virginia Union University).

Richmond Urban Land Institute Meeting On Wednesday: “Progress on Richmond’s Riverfront: Cultivating Connections with the James River”

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It’s not free to attend, but there is a meeting this Wednesday by the Urban Land Institute that is focusing on riverfront connections.

How should Richmond take advantage of the opportunities that the James River offers? What types of infrastructure is necessary to encourage interaction with the James? What progress has already been made?

Join ULI and it’s Young Leader’s Group for a panel-led discussion that will highlight projects that encourage Richmond to engage with the James River. Our distinguished panel will provide commentary on the progress that has been made along Richmond’s Riverfront and will discuss the vision for the future.

Note that it is being moderated by Lucy Meade of Venture Richmond. Can we really expect the public interests to be adequately represented at this meeting?