Joe’s Fence

A few weeks ago, there was a car accident at S.Laurel and Idlewood that took out neighbor Joe Pyrek’s metal front fence. He gave permission to post this account, since several neighbors have asked what happened.

…wanted to give you a little bit of follow up to the incident that occurred at the Laurel/Idlewood intersection in the early morning hours of 7/25. Apparently there was a vehicle with about 3-4 individuals driving at high speed around the neighborhood around 2:15 in the morning. They were circling blocks and were coming eastbound on Idlewood and made a right hand turn onto Laurel but overshot the turn and took out my fire hydrant and several sections of my fence. My neighbors across the street were awoken by the noise and looked outside and called the police. They witnessed the individuals get out of the vehicle and push it off of my property back onto the road and they proceeded to drive off before the police arrived. However, they didn’t made it very far as about ½ way down the block on Laurel headed towards Albemarle, they crashed into two parked cars. According to the police report, two cars were towed and the driver was arrested. He had been drinking and was 19 or 20. Luckily for me, the individual’s parents had insurance on the vehicle, so my property will be taken care of. I notified the city of the fire hydrant on 7/26, however, no work has been done to get that replaced. I’ve called the city a few times about it as it worries me in regards to fire safety.

That’s really all I know on the situation, but just thought you might like to know!

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Idlewood Roundabout Plan Update

One of the topics covered at Councilperson Parker Agelasto’s meeting on Wednesday night was an update on the Idlewood roundabout project.

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City Transportation Engineer Tom Flynn gave a quick background and overview, and then presented the “first, final draft” from engineering/design firm Kimley Horn. Due to some unforeseen costs, the plan right now is to NOT remove the stretch of Grayland at the time of roundabout construction, but leave it with a dead end. Expect this and other points to be covered at a future community meeting.

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VCU Students Arrive (Note Traffic Restrictions)

From VCU press release:

RICHMOND, Va. (Aug. 13, 2014) – Virginia Commonwealth University’s incoming freshman class will begin to arrive on campus this weekend and move into student residence halls as the university launches its annual Welcome Week schedule of activities.

Reuban Rodriguez, Ed.D., associate vice provost and dean of student affairs at VCU, will be available for media interviews about move-in days and the opening of the academic year from 10 a.m. until 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, Aug. 16, in front of Brandt Hall, at the corner of Laurel and Franklin streets.

VCU will enroll an estimated 31,000 students this fall. This year’s freshman class is expected to be approximately 3,600 students.

About 88 percent of VCU’s freshman class is from Virginia, including 23 percent from Northern Virginia, 20 percent from the Richmond Metro area, 20 percent from north central Virginia and 20 percent from the Tidewater area.

Minority students represent 47 percent of the freshman class, with another 2 percent of the class being international students.

VCU will enroll about 2,200 transfer students, which includes about 1,400 students from the Virginia Community College System.

Freshmen will move in on Saturday and Sunday, beginning at 8:30 a.m. each day. Traffic congestion is expected in the areas near VCU’s student residence halls on both Saturday and Sunday and nearby street parking will be blocked.

In order to ensure safety and order as students move into residence halls, the following streets will have travel restrictions or will be closed:

· Franklin Street: Traffic will be reduced to one travel lane between Harrison and Belvidere streets
· Main Street: Traffic will be reduced to one travel lane between Belvidere and Laurel streets
· Laurel Street: The street will be closed to through traffic between W. Franklin and W. Grace streets
· Pine Street: The street will be closed to through traffic between W. Cary and W. Main streets

Traffic restrictions and closures will be in effect on Friday, Aug. 15 from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., Saturday, Aug. 16 from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Sunday, Aug. 17 from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m.

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VCU Police to Unveil New Noise Suppression Unit

From VCU press release:

RICHMOND, Virginia (Aug.13, 2014) – The Virginia Commonwealth University Police Department is unveiling a new tool to help control noise levels from parties and other events hosted by students living near VCU’s Monroe Park Campus.

This afternoon, VCU Police Chief John Venuti will give local media the first look at the department’s new noise suppression unit. Throughout the academic year, the unit will be used in the neighborhoods surrounding VCU as both a noise deterrent and noise monitor.

The new unit is the department’s way of adding another step in the routine process of handling noise complaints. During the most recent academic year, VCU Police visited 186 residences after receiving complaints about loud parties. VCU Police has a dedicated external relations officer who verifies complaints, educates students on their responsibilities as renters, notifies landlords of ongoing issues and, in some cases, assists landlords with evictions.

“The quality of life for our neighbors has been a high priority for VCU administrators,” Venuti said. “The noise suppression unit shows the community that we are taking every possible step to ensure our students are following laws and the university’s code of conduct.”

An unveiling is scheduled for 2 p.m. today, Aug. 13, at the Compass Plaza on VCU’s Monroe Park Campus. The plaza is located between Shafer Court Dining Center (801 Cathedral Place) and James Branch Cabell Library (901 Park Ave).

Additional details about this initiative will not be released until the media event this afternoon. Reporters interested in attending should email byersc@vcu.edu.

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5th District Meeting Tonight

From email announcement:

Dear Neighbors:

Please join us tomorrow Wednesday, August 13th for our 5th District Meeting at Randolph Community Center-1415 Grayland Ave. Meeting topics include an update on the Idlewood roundabout project, remarks from City Council President Charles Samuels, back to school updates from Richmond Public Schools administrators and Councilman Agelasto’s legislative updates. We will also be collecting school supplies for needy families within the 5th District, please see the attached flyer for requested items. We look forward to seeing you tomorrow.

Sincerely,

Ida Jones
5th District Council Liaison

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VCU Welcome Week Events (August 18-23)

From VCU officials:

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To: Neighborhood Association Presidents, VCU Liaisons

Greetings,

Please find attached a flier to VCU’s neighbors from the VCU’s Student Commons and Activities. I appreciate your sharing this information with residents.

As you will see, the Monday event at the Cary Street Field (Student Playfair) is from 8-10:30. I inquired about specifics and was told that the event is a huge icebreaker for incoming freshmen to meet other students. It will likely be over closer to 9:30. There will be someone on a microphone and music will be played intermittently. I have been told that any sound associated with all three events will be directed away from residential areas.

If you have any questions leading up to the events, there is an email address and contact number on the flier. VCU Police will be on hand. As a reminder, their non-emergency number is 828-1196.

Finally, we look forward to the community joining VCU on Saturday, August 23 for First Ram Saturday: Food Truck A Palooza!

Thank you.

Rash of Graffiti

From a neighbor:

There was a rash of graffiti around the neighborhood Sunday night. It was found at 710 Holly, corner of China/Cherry, Mamma Zu, and the corner of China/Pine. One of the neighbors filed a police report and the sheriff’s deputy was around taking pictures.

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Here’s the police report:

DESTRUCTION PROPERTY/PRIVATE/GRAFFITI
8XX CHINA ST
Aug 10, 2014 at 10:30 am

Data provided by Richmond Police Department