2nd Street Connector Draws More Citizen Scrutiny- What Does It Mean For ‘Riverfront Planning’?

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While OHNA urges support of the City’s interest in protecting the historic resources in the canal basin, citizens continue to question plans for the proposed 2nd Street connector street.

C. Wayne Taylor provides a great graphic with details on his City Hall Review site.

One Oregon Hill resident sent this to me on September 30:

I have many comments and questions about traffic.

Bike Lanes
I’d be more likely to bike on this new road vs drive. If it must be built then bike lanes are a must.

Roundabout
We’ve been waiting for a long time for the Idlewood roundabout. I’d like to see that finished before we build a 2nd Street connector. After the last OHNA meeting I noticed there was a traffic accident at the 3 road merge exactly where the roundabout would be located (Grayland + Idlewood + RMA ramp). We need sidewalk improvements here and we should add bike lanes as well. The Byrdhouse Market would benefit from these improvements as well.

Pedestrian Bridge
We’ve been waiting for a long time for the Pedestrian Bridge. I’d like to see that finished before we build a new 2nd Street Connector.

Area Traffic
Will we see more traffic coming from the Idlewood RMA ramp? Will people shortcut through the neighborhood down Idlewood and or S Laurel? I commute down Spring St out of Oregon Hill and turn left onto 2nd Street to get downtown for work. Will the morning southbound traffic on 2nd hinder that left turn during rush hour? Will there be any traffic lights added? Will there be a traffic study?

I should say that Oregon Hill residents do understand that many people would like more public routes to the riverfront and understand the pubic desire in the proposed 2nd Street connection road, however there are real concerns about HOW this project is done. At the moment it seems to be proposed in a manner that benefits the corporate interests of New Market and Dominion more so than any public interests. That New Market seems determined to rush it does not give folks any confidence that their concerns will be considered.

Perhaps we will hear more about this at the next Riverfront Planning meeting on October 18th. Hopefully citizen involvement will be meaningful.

OHNA Sends Letter In Support Of City To Protect Canal

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Yesterday, Oregon Hill Neighborhood Association president released a letter that she had sent to City officials-

At its September meeting, the Oregon Hill Neighborhood Association (OHNA) adopted a resolution to support the City of Richmond’s effort to protect and preserve the historic James River and Kanawha Canal, Penitentiary basin, and green space in any development, including the proposed road connecting Second Street with Tredegar Street and the proposed amphitheater.

The canal, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, is of great historical significance to the City of Richmond. It was first chartered in 1785 as the James River Navigation Company with George Washington serving as its first President. Reorganized in 1831 as the James River and Kanawha Canal Company, the canal played an integral role in the industrial and mercantile development of the city.

There are important historical connections between the canal and the Oregon Hill neighborhood. Samuel Pleasants Parsons, whose home (built in 1819) survives at 601 Spring Street, was the Superintendent of the Canal in 1840 when the Canal was expanded westward to Lynchburg.

From about 1850 to 1875, Oregon Hill resident John Messler ran a canal boat building enterprise in the Penitentiary Basin. Messler had a short walk from his home the Jacob House (which survives at 619 W. Cary Street) to the canal basin below Oregon Hill.

The two attachments to this e-mail show the Canal and Penitentiary Basin below Oregon Hill in both the 1876 Beers Atlas and in a panoramic photograph assembled from three 1865 photographs. John Messler’s canal boat building business in the Penitentiary Basin can be seen in the middle of the panoramic view.

Because the James River and Kanawha Canal is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, OHNA strongly recommends that the City consult closely with the Va. Department of Historic Resources early in the process of designing the proposed bridge over the canal.

Please forward this resolution to all members of the Richmond Planning Commission.

Thank you for your assistance.

Sincerely,

Jennifer Hancock
President, OHNA

Candidate Bernard Canvassing This Saturday

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About the time that the neighborhood clean-up will be wrapping up this Saturday, Virginia Senate candidate David Bernard and volunteers will be visiting the neighborhood, going door to door and asking for residents’ votes.

To learn more about Bernard’s platform or volunteer, go to his website David Bernard for Senate.

Oregon Hill will be voting in the State Senate District 10 for the first time after being redistricted this past spring. The incumbent is Sen. John Watkins, who Bernard is challenging.

Recycling Notes

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Regular CVWMA curbside pickup and regular City trash pickup tomorrow morning.

Electronic Recycling Day for City Residents happens Saturday, October 15.

WHO: Richmond Clean City Commission, Richmond Department of Public Works, and Central Virginia Waste Management Authority.

WHAT: Drop off for all household electronic items, such as computers, monitors, radios, fax machines, microwaves, camcorders, etc. Fluorescent light bulbs and large appliances cannot be accepted.

WHEN: Saturday, October 15, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

WHERE: 3101 N. Boulevard (corner of Boulevard and Robin Hood Road)

BACKGROUND: The City of Richmond’s E-Cycle Day offers City residents an efficient and green option to recycle unwanted electronic products. There is a $7 recycling fee for televisions. All other household electronic items will be recycled free of charge. For more information on E-Cycle Day, visit www.RichmondGov.com http://www.richmondgov.com/.

Lastly, and most pleasantly, I am happy to announce that VCU Goes Green will be sponsoring the Green Team volunteer recycling at the Richmond Folk Festival.

Pine Street Baptist Launches ‘SpiritQuest’ On Wednesdays

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Pine Street Baptist Church has created a Wednesday evening program “designed to feed your body and your soul”.

Meals will be offered every week. The 1st Wednesday of each month will be a FREE covered dish – bring a dish to share. Other Wednesday nights will be a prepared meal with child friendly options. Meal cost $6 for adults; $3 for children and youth; $15 immediate family maximum. Interested in a meal? Call the church to make your reservations by the Monday before the prepared meal.

The Wednesday evenings will also included a variety of group discussions and bible studies as well as children’s activities and choir practice.

For more information, call 804-644-0339

Expect Occupy Richmond

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The mainstream corporate media has been downplaying the Occupy Wall Street protests until very recently when the marching has expanded to include more of New York and more people who are not traditionally part of these street protests. I have seen reports of airline pilots and Marines joining the movement. I know some Richmonders, ones who usually are not into public protest, who have gone to NYC on the Chinatown bus to be part of this.

At any rate, spurred on by the theme of resistance to corporate rule and greed, now there is yet even more expansion and there is an Occupy Richmond, including their own article in the news.

What does this have to do with the neighborhood? Well, for one thing there is talk of local protests close by, taking place October 15 around the Federal Reserve.

From this morning’s Times Dispatch article:

According to its Facebook page, Occupy Richmond seeks to “collectively voice our disapproval of the intermeshing of government and corrupted capitalism. We unite as 99 percent of the American population.”

“The middle class is disappearing,” said Alexandria Vasquez, a Richmond organizer and a graduate student of sociology at Virginia Commonwealth University.

Vasquez said young people are led to believe that “if they get their education, they’ll get that prized job. That’s not the case. They’re going to be graduating and fighting for a job making $7.25 an hour.”

Vasquez, 23, said the local movement plans to hold a meeting Thursday at 5:30 p.m. at Monroe Park to discuss plans for the Oct. 15 demonstration.

She said they plan to cooperate with Richmond police. “We want to actually work with them,” said Vasquez, who is president of Students for Social Action, a student group at VCU. “This is going to be a peaceful protest.”

Virginia Penitentiary Records Now Available

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From Out Of The Box blog post:

The Library of Virginia is pleased to announce that the records of the Virginia Penitentiary (Accession 41558) are now available to researchers. The collection contains 289 bound volumes and 698 boxes of paper records spanning nearly 200 years (1796-1991; bulk 1906-1970). Included are administrative records such as annual reports, correspondence, office and subject files, minute books, photographs, and blueprints, as well as specific records related to the State Convict Road Force and State Convict Lime Grinding Board. Also included are financial records such as account books, cash books, ledgers, payrolls, and receipt books. The prisoner-related records include: prisoner registers, 1865-1980; photographs and negatives, 1906-1914, 1934-1961 and 1965-1966; medical records; commitment orders; punishment records; escape reports; index cards; and execution files. The records of the Virginia Penitentiary document the institution’s operational history, prisoners, and the evolution of corrections in Virginia.