From Craigslist ad:
An indoor cat got out on Thursday in the 400 block of Laurel St. in Oregon Hill. Black with white spots on chest and stomach. Red collar (may be gone) with tag with name “Oscar.” He has not come back and we have not found him. The sooner the cat is located and returned the more substantial the reward. If they have found this cat. Call me at 703-431-7778 or 202-450-7863.
From press release:
Discussion of War as Entertainment and the Militarization of Culture
Next Wednesday, March 31, join us for a forum on War as Entertainment and
the Militarization of Culture at 7p.m. in the Commons Forum Room, in the
VCU Student Commons building (907 Floyd Ave.). The showing and discussion
is free and open to the public.The forum will include excerpts from the film Militainment, Inc., from the
Media Education Foundation, which offers a thought-provoking and timely
glimpse into the militarization of American popular culture. It examines
how U.S. news coverage has come to resemble Hollywood film, video games,
and “reality” television in its glamorization of war.The film will be introduced by Dr. Paul Achter, Associate Professor of
Rhetoric, University of Richmond. Following the showing, audience members
will be invited to discuss the presentation with an informal panel
including Adria Scharf, director of the Peace Center, VCU professor Mark
Wood, and Jonny Cecka of the Network of Spiritual Progressives at VCU.This event is co-sponsored by the Richmond Peace Education Center, the
Network of Spiritual Progressives at VCU, Bon Air Presbyterian Church
Peace Study/Action Group, and the VCU Religious Studies Program. For
more information, contact RPEC at 232-1002 or rpec at rpec.org,
or NSP-VCU at nspvcu at gmail.com.
RICHMOND, VA—Richmond Crop Mob will hold its first “mob” event Sunday, March 28, at the William Byrd Community House’s (WBCH) new urban Farmlet. The event will begin at 12pm and continue all afternoon, followed by a casual dinner hosted by WBCH and Crop Mob coordinators.
Richmond Crop Mob is an initiative of Richmond Ground Up, a network established by VCU graduate students to utilize social media in addressing community needs. Through media such as Facebook and Twitter, Richmond Crop Mob will alert all of its participants and followers to urban gardening volunteering opportunities, including dates, times and locations. Followers can choose to attend these “mob” events, spend time working outdoors, learn tips and tricks from other urban farmers, and help build a sustainable urban agriculture movement here in Richmond. The Richmond Crop Mob is based on the original Crop Mob initiative based in the Triangle region of North Carolina.
Richmond Crop Mob’s first “mob” will take place March 28 at WBCH’s Byrd House Farmlet. The Byrd House Farmlet is an urban farm intended both to feed the WBCH community and to educate youth enrolled in WBCH’s Early Childhood and After School Programs about “the cycle from seed to plant to market to plate by gardening and growing their own food and selling it at the Byrd House Market.” Please visit www.wbch.org for more information. Participants, called “mobbers,” at this event can anticipate planting, building a hoop house, spreading wood chips, clearing brush and building compost bins.
Those who wish to join the Richmond Crop Mob initiative should email richmondgroundup at gmail.com, or visit our website richmondgroundup.blogspot.com.
Some citizens are getting together to help clean up Belle Island this Sunday, March 28th.
Here’s a blog post with details and here’s a Facebook Cause site for this.
From City’s press release:
The Ukrop’s Monument Avenue 10K celebrates its 10th anniversary this year. The 10K events begin 8 a.m. Saturday, March 27, with the First Market Mile Kids Run. The first wave of the 10K steps off 8:30 a.m. near Broad and Harrison streets. The 10K’s finish line is on Franklin Street next to Monroe Park.
Logistics of the 10K will require numerous street closings and traffic pattern changes throughout the city. Following are the Richmond Police closings and changes scheduled from 4 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday:
· Broad Street from Belvidere Street to Lombardy Street will be closed from 4 a.m. to noon. The recommended detour for westbound traffic on Broad is right on Belvidere, left on Leigh Street and left on Allen Avenue. The recommended detour for eastbound traffic on Broad is left on Allen, right on Leigh and right on Belividere.
· Laurel Street will be closed from Main to Grace streets from 4 a.m. to 2 p.m.
· Franklin Street will be closed from Shafer to Belvidere streets from 4 a.m. to
2 p.m. and from Lombardy to Shafer from 7:30 a.m. to noon.
· Lombardy Street will be closed from Broad to Park Avenue from 7:30 to 11 a.m.
· Grace Street will be closed from Belvidere to Allen from 7:45 to 11 a.m.
· Monument Avenue and Franklin Street will be closed from Staples Mill Road to Stuart Circle (Lombardy Street) from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. The recommended detour for eastbound traffic is left on Staples Mill, right on Broad, left on Allen, right on Leigh and right on Belvidere. The recommended detour for westbound traffic is right on Belvidere, left on Leigh, left on Allen and right on Broad.
· The Boulevard will be closed at Monument Avenue from 8:30 a.m. to noon. The recommended detour for northbound traffic is left on Park Avenue, right on Thompson Street to I-195. The recommended detour for southbound traffic is right on Grace Street, right on Thompson Street, left on Broad Street, left on Hamilton Street to I-195.
· Park Avenue will be close from Cherry Street to Lombardy from 7:45 to 8:15 a.m.There will be many street closings for all north and south streets intersecting Monument Avenue and Franklin Street from Staples Mill Road to Belvidere Street. Motorists are strongly encouraged to use I-95 and I-195 to travel around the city.
In addition to the street closings, parking will be prohibited prior to and during the 10K on the following streets:
3 p.m. Friday, March 26, to noon Saturday
· Both sides of Broad Street from Belvidere to Lombardy
· Both sides of Franklin Street from Belvidere to Shafer
· Both sides of Laurel Street from Grace to Cathedral4 a.m. to noon Saturday
· Both sides of Monument Avenue from Stuart Circle to Staples Mill
· Both sides of Franklin Street from Stuart Circle to Shafer
· Both sides of Laurel Street from Cathedral to Main
· Both sides of Park Avenue from Harrison to Linden
· Both sides of Lombardy from Park to Monument4 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday
· Both sides of Chantilly Street from Monument to Monumental
· Both sides of Kent Street from Wythe to MonumentIn addition, parking will be prohibited on both sides of Lombardy from Broad to Stuart Circle from 4 to 10 a.m. Saturday and both sides of Grace from Belvidere to Allen from 4 to 10:30 a.m.
Richmond Police reminds all 10K event participants and attendees to take advantage of parking in the decks near the start and finish lines and to not leave any items that may tempt would-be thieves in plain view in your vehicle, regardless of where you park.
~James Mercante
Richmond Police Department
Public Affairs
Hopefully, the traffic situation will be an improvement from last year. On a more positive note, there must be some Oregon Hill residents who are taking part in this fantastic, family-friendly, fitness event for the whole region.
According to Times Dispatch article, there will be a public meeting on Monday of next week at the Richmond Main Public Library, 101 East Franklin Street.
Citizens will get a chance to find out more about the proposed City budget. And they are encouraged to attend, for there’s a lot to look over….
For example, officials proposing to switch from an annual to a semi-annual collection of real-estate taxes.
Here’s a quick reminder that there will be an Oregon Hill Neighborhood Association meeting Tuesday, March 23, 2010 at the William Byrd Community House (WBCH) at 7 PM.
Among other things, there will be a presentation on the upcoming May Day Parade as well as a meet and greet with Maurice Henderson, our Interim 5th District Richmond Public School Representative.
Announcement:
Shop the WILD BUNCH at BHM’s RENEGADE Market!
While you’re marvelling at Saucer magnolias in full bloom and forsythia’s brilliant yellow flower showers, we have a calendar that is filling up just for you!
3.19.10 through 5.3.10 is the S. L . Brown Byrd House Farmlet fundraising challenge. Visit the blog to learn more about this great way to support the Farmlet and feed our families!
3.27.10: Cooking as a Second Language – “This sounds wonderful! I was taught how to make tortillas and huevos rancheros in Spanish (which I do not speak) by Anthony Quinn’s mom in the the 1980’s. I will be there! Thank you for doing this.” If you don’t know who Anthony Quinn is then you need to rent a few old movies (Viva Zapata!, Lawrence of Arabia, Guns of Navaronne, Requiem for a Heavyweight…) so where were we?? Sat. March 27, 9:30-12noon: Vietnamese cuisine is prepared with you by Hung Minh Le in Vietnamese.3.28.10: Crop Mob Sunday – A VCU social networking project is calling on YOU to join the CROP MOB on Sunday March 28 from 12noon-4pm – Learn more about Crop Mobs at http://richmondgroundup.blogspot.com/2010/03/richmond-crop-mob.html and then RSVP to do the Crop Mob thing at Byrd House Farmlet (you’ll be fed, too!)
Deer Run Farm is back – Formerly known as Pleasant Field Farm, they’ve got a new name and a great batch of spring greens to keep you green (in the best possible way!).
See you at the market!
Ana Edwards
Market Manager—
Byrd House Market
William Byrd Community House
224 South Cherry Street
Richmond, VA 23220
ByrdHouseMarket@gmail.com
(804) 643-2717
While parking is still of concern, VCU is taking steps to become more of a residential university. Recent articles contain announcements of new developments and feedback.
There is also news on VCU’s recycling front.
And if that was not enough, there is also this email from Oregon Hill resident and Monroe Park Advisory Council member Todd Woodson, which expresses concern over the way VCU crime is reported, and can be seen in the context of the latest (2008) postings of crime in Virginia colleges by FBI:
Friends-
I left our last meeting with more questions than answers regarding safety statistics and in particular, enforcement statistics for Monroe Park. Please find below a link for VCU’s 2009 Safety Report. It is odd that although VCU includes statistics for Cumberland ave, 100 block Pine St and 100 block Cherry St which are all part of the Historic Oregon Hill Neighborhood and not campus, there is no mention of statistics within Monroe Park itself:
http://www.vcu.edu/police/campussafetyreport2009.pdf
Of interest are the statistics for non-student liquor and drug offenses on unspecified public property which essentially doubled from 2007 to 2008 (block by block figures for public property provided by RPD) :
2008: non student liquor offenses on public property: 168
” ” ” drug ” ” ” ” ” 151
2007: non student liquor offenses on public property: 80
” ” ” drug ” ” ” ” ” 78It would be most helpful to address safety issues in Monroe Park if offenses in the Park could be logged and consequently tracked by the Council and/or a Richmond Police entity. I know we have asked for these statistics many times in the past and as was discussed, we really havent had any consistent presence at meetings from either RPD or VCU Police during our tenure.
In addition, I have included an eye opening report from the Commonwealth Times October 2008 issue regarding VCU crime statistics:
http://eblackstock.wordpress.com/2008/10/09/campus-crime-statistics-subject-to-interpretation/
I think that considering the amount of money hopefully being directed toward the park, the safety issues are something we as a group really need to focus on- especially the ever present substance abuse and collateral safety issues. As we’ve said before, there seems to be an absence as well as major confusion over day to day law enforcement in Monroe park. I believe we should address this at our next meeting and of course invite RPD and VCU police. Hopefully someone from higher up in those respective organizations will attend.
thanks,
Todd.
In response to the earlier, mysterious disappearance of one of its international student…well, the Times Dispatch has the story:
Virginia Commonwealth University yesterday offered a $5,000 reward for information leading to the location of Jonathan S. Dorey, a foreign-exchange student who has been missing more than a week.