‘Iron Blossom Music Festival’ Announcement = Neoliberal Privatization of Public Park

Posted on by
Reply

Local corporate media gushed over the announcement of a new festival to be held in late August at, of all places, Monroe Park.

But did not tackle one bit logistical questions, ticket prices, or what is essentially the neoliberal privatization of a PUBLIC park. No questions about where the money is coming from to hold the concert or where the proceeds are going.

For some older residents, this announcement recalls wistful days of (free) Bruce Springsteen concerts under the trees in the park, but this is no longer the wooded, historic, PUBLIC park that they remember. The City and VCU have made sure of that over the last ten years or so– taking down many trees, kicking out poor people, and turning it into a VCU quad.

Many Oregon Hill residents love and take part in music, but many are also beginning to realize what is happening to the City as poor people and wildlife are deliberately driven out. The great African musician Fela Kuti famously said that “Music is the weapon of the future”. Sadly, locally, it is increasingly being wielded by powerful interests against those who can’t readily defend themselves.

Trash/Recycling Pickup Tomorrow

Posted on by
Reply

This Wednesday is a “Red Wednesday”, which means trash and recycling pickup.

Please go over what can be recycled. Ideally, rolling recycling containers are stored and deployed in the back alleys along with trash cans. Please make sure you pick up containers after pickup tomorrow night.

If it seems like pickup did not happen, use this online form:
https://cvwma.com/programs/residential-recycling/recycling-service-request-form/

If you have not done so already, don’t forget to sign up for your Recycling Perks.
In order to take your recycling to the next level, read this: 10 ways to improve your recycling.

Also, don’t forget the City of RIchmond’s E-Cycling, Paper Shredding and Household Hazardous Waste Collection event on May 13th.

James River History: Lecture II on Wednesday

Posted on by
Reply

From event description:

The Department of Historic Resources’ Underwater Archaeology Program is leading presentations about the history of the James River and its impacts on the City of Richmond. We hope you’ll join us for these talks, and then go on guided walks and river cleanups.
The second public lecture in this series will take place on Wednesday, May 3, 6 pm at St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church. The presentation will focus on the cultural history of Richmond as a port and center around Richmond’s maritime landscape below the Fall Line, highlighting the events and places that have influenced the founding and growth of the city.
Attendees at this lecture will be given details and a chance to sign up for a guided walking tour and cleanup, scheduled for Saturday, May 6, at Ancarrow’s Landing in Richmond’s Manchester neighborhood.
DHR is hosting this event in partnership with the City of Richmond Department of Parks, Recreation and Community Facilities’ James River Park System and the Current Culture Fly Shop. The event is part of a series that satisfies the outreach component of a larger DHR program supported by grants from the Chesapeake Bay Restoration Fund. The program seeks to collect additional data on the maritime history of the James River. The Chesapeake Bay Restoration Fund is financed through a portion of the proceeds from the annual subscription fees of the “Friends of the Chesapeake Bay” license plates.

OHNA Meeting Tomorrow Night

Posted on by
Reply

From email announcement:

Monthly Meeting Agenda
Tuesday 25 April 2023
7:00PM
This meeting will be held by Zoom, at the link below.

Topic: OHNA Monthly Meeting – April
Time: Apr 25, 2023 07:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)

Join Zoom Meeting
(Editor’s note: meeting information redacted, email OHNARva@gmail.com to request it)

Welcome
• Treasurer’s Report

Community Updates:

1. Lt. Brian Robinson, City of Richmond Police Section Lt, 4th Precinct
2. Officer Luke Schrader, Police Liaison, VCU
3. Ms. Verenda Cobbs, VCU
4. Ms. Stephanie Lynch, 5th District Councilperson
5. Ms. Colette McEachin, Richmond Commonwealth’s Attorney (Nathan Hiddle)

Updates:

1. Amphitheater planned for Tredegar Green.
· It is slated to seat 5,000 people and accommodate and additional 5,000 standing, as per our meeting with the developer’s representative. No additional parking is planned.
· When the previous amphitheater plan was proposed, the neighborhood raised questions about hours of operation, noise levels, and parking, none of which were ever answered.

2. An SUP application has been filed with the City of Richmond for the demolition of 708 China Street, and its replacement with a building.
· The Zoning Committee met with the applicant and asked them to reconsider demolition and incorporate the historic building into their new construction.
· The applicant has declined to make revisions and wishes to proceed with demolition and replacement.
· The item was placed on the 3 April agenda. At that meeting, it was continued until the next meeting, 17 April. At that meeting, it was continued for a month, until the 15 May meeting (an agenda is not yet available for that meeting)

Continued Business

3. Traffic issues along Idlewood at Cherry and Pine Streets
· There have been several recent accidents at these two locations.
· These two intersections suffer from poor visibility and the high speed of cars exiting 195 east onto Idlewood.

New Business

1. An SUP application has been filed with the City of Richmond for 601 ½ South Pine Street, and its replacement with a building.
· The applicant is proposing to divide the parcel and to construct a new, two-family detached dwelling which will be configured to appear as a single-family dwelling from the street.
· The proposed new two-family detached dwelling would be two stories tall fronting China Street
· This SUP will be reviewed by the zoning committee, and a presentation and recommendation will be brought to an upcoming PHNA meeting (subject to the ability to schedule a meeting with the applicant to discuss their proposal)

2. A volunteer has agreed to head up a committee looking into locations for a dedicated dog park in Oregon Hill and addressing the various city requirements for such an undertaking.
· Any other volunteers?

3. Any new items?

Bryan Clark Green, President

Harrison Moenich, Co-Vice-President

Jennifer Hancock, Co-Vice-President

Mike Matthews, Secretary

John Bolecek, Treasurer

Trash/Recycling Pickup Tomorrow

Posted on by
Reply

This Wednesday is a “Red Wednesday”, which means trash and recycling pickup.

Please go over what can be recycled. Ideally, rolling recycling containers are stored and deployed in the back alleys along with trash cans. Please make sure you pick up containers after pickup tomorrow night.

If it seems like pickup did not happen, use this online form:
https://cvwma.com/programs/residential-recycling/recycling-service-request-form/

If you have not done so already, don’t forget to sign up for your Recycling Perks.
In order to take your recycling to the next level, read this: 10 ways to improve your recycling.

Oh yeah, Earth Day.

‘Commission to vote today on proposed repeal of city parking requirements’

Posted on by
1

From RichmondBizsense.com article:

The proposal has its share of critics. Several citizens have submitted opposition letters ahead of today’s commission meeting, contending that any cost savings for developers would not necessarily be passed on to homeowners or renters. Others said parking is already scarce in certain areas and expressed concern that the change would exacerbate the issue.

At the community meeting last month, Oregon Hill resident Charles Poole said, “If you want to tweak the minimum parking requirements, tweak the requirement, but to get rid of it altogether would be extremely burdensome for the neighborhoods.”

Contending that the city had not adequately engaged the public on the issue, Poole added, “You haven’t been going to the neighborhoods and asking what will help their quality of life. There’s been nobody in our neighborhood who’s said, ‘Oh, you know what? We need less parking spaces here.’”

VCU Green Action! Demonstration Friday

Posted on by
Reply

From VCU Green Action! invitation:

Hello All,

My student organization, Green Action!, is hosting a peaceful demonstration on Friday the 21st from 12-1, starting at the Compass and walking to President Rao’s office, where we will demand that the university begin to take climate change seriously, and I’m humbly asking you to attend.

VCU has a responsibility to its students, the greater Richmond area, and as an institution of higher learning wielding power in our society, to look out for our futures. Last semester, when faculty met with Rao’s administration about declaring a climate emergency, they said they didn’t want to get political. Our future isn’t political.

Please consider setting aside just an hour of your time. All you need to do is show up – the more people there are, the harder it will be for the administration to ignore us.

Thank you, first of all, for signing the petition to encourage President Rao to declare a climate emergency. Every signature matters, and we expect to reach our goal of 2,000 before earth Day! If you want to review the petition in detail, you can read it here. It includes nine action items that accompany the emergency declaration for VCU to accomplish.

Secondly, thank you for opening and reading this email. You’re a trooper for that.

I hope to see you on Friday the 21st at 12:00 in the Compass. You can follow @greeanactionrva on Instagram for reminders on when and where the protest will take place in the following week.

Let’s show Rao and his administration that student voices can’t, and won’t, be ignored.

Carolyn Hindle

Looking Forward To Tito’s Taqueria and La Fe Cafe

Posted on by
Reply

Oregon Hill residents are excited to hear about two ‘sibling’ restaurants opening in the building that used to be Mojo’s at the southeastern corner of W. Cary and S. Laurel.
Richmond Magazine has a nice story that describes past and future plans of the family affair.

Splitting the 6,700-square-foot building into separate ventures, Tito’s Taqueria will occupy the larger side of the space, while La Fe Cafe will take the other. Estefay says her parents are excited for them, and that a solo venture of her own has been a long time coming.
…
“I dream a lot of the place being busy, so I think it’s going to be good, my dreams have been telling me,” Tito says, noting that he was drawn to the property because of its walkable neighborhood in close proximity to VCU campus and businesses such as the Altria Theater.

Tito says there will be 15-20 different types of tacos on the menu at the taqueria, a combination of traditional varieties, more Americanized versions and vegetarian options. Offerings will also include sopes, “tornado fries” and playful riffs such as birria pizza. He also hopes to make happy hour a fun two- to three-hour period with mariachi or other music and plenty of frozen margaritas on tap.

At La Fe Cafe, Estefay plans to start the day a little earlier than her older brother, focusing on breakfast, lunch and coffee. Drawing influences from her travels and her background, she says, “I decided to do something different, like a breakfast cafe but a little bit international. I’ve been traveling a lot, and I love food … and experiencing different places and different cultures.”

Estefay says her vision for brunch includes elaborate pancakes and waffles — the latter served both solo and in sandwich form — along with chilaquiles, Honduran baleadas and pupusas, which draw on her mother’s Salvadoran roots.