From press release earlier today:

The City of Richmond and Venture Richmond renege on promised Section 106 review of the future Tredegar Green amphitheater
Doubts raised that the city will follow through on promised Section 106 review for the proposed Baseball stadium

The Oregon Hill Home Improvement Council (OHHIC) has learned that just days after receiving a final approval of the Richmond Planning Commission, the city and Venture Richmond have withdrawn the amphitheater project from the promised state and federal Section 106 review. Venture Richmond repeatedly promised the Oregon Hill Neighborhood Association, the city’s Urban Design Committee, and the City Planning Commission that the amphitheater’s impact on the historic James River and Kanawha Canal would receive a thorough and impartial review by the Va. Dept. of Historic Resources and the Corps of Engineers through the Section 106 process. Alternatives to damaging historic resources are carefully assessed with community input through a Section 106 review.

The James River and Kanawha Canal was built in 1785 at a great cost in human lives lost.. George Washington was president of the James River Company that built the canal. It may be the first transportation canal built in the United States with locks. The future amphitheater will damage the 18th century structure by lowering and removing half of the original canal tow path. This may be the first time in the United States that a structure on the National Register of Historic Places is damaged because it might block a spectator’s view of a band stage.

OHHIC Director Todd Woodson said, “It is outrageous that Venture Richmond is breaking its repeated promises to submit the amphitheater plan to an impartial state and federal review through the Section 106 process. We have spent a year researching the canal, and we have documentation that the current tow path and and embankment are authentic and will be greatly damaged by the amphitheater plan. We call on the Mayor, who is President of Venture Richmond, to honor the repeated promises to submit the amphitheater plan for a state and federal Section 106 review.”

The city has also promised a “voluntary” Section 106 review of the potential future site of the Shockoe Stadium. The city’s broken promise to submit the amphitheater for a Section 106 review should be a cause for concern by all city residents. Said Woodson, “We certainly cannot trust the city to follow through on promised historical reviews.” The amphitheater is to be built on city and on Venture Richmond property. Venture Richmond receives $2.87 million in public funding annually.