Cary Street Parking Changes Considered

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In a recent VCU’s Telegram for Students, this bullet point appeared:

2. Changes to Parking on West Cary Street
VCU is considering requesting the City of Richmond change the parking restriction on the south side of West Cary Street, the 900 and 1000 blocks, from no restriction to 2-hour parking, similar to the majority of campus streets. The change is being considered because of the opening of the Cary Street Recreation Center and the demand for parking near this new facility (I added boldness here- ed.). Please direct comments to Paul Walker, manager of Parking & Transportation, at prwalker@vcu.edu no later than March 12.

While this is in congruence with making the Cary Street corridor more urban-business-friendly (something that the Oregon Hill Neighborhood Association is in favor of), it stands in contrast to what the VCU administration said during its campaign against the neighborhood:

E. Objection to parking. This project will not increase the enrollment at VCU, and therefore does not increase campus parking requirements. .

Of course, most Oregon Hill residents are not surprised in the least by this. It fits in with the rest of the Student Recreational Center controversy. (Again, OHNA was never against VCU students getting a new facility. The location and implementation were the issues). Hopefully, someday soon, VCU will take more positive steps to allow healing.

A Veteran Nearly Frozen, 1897

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From the Richmond Dispatch, February 28, 1897:

An old soldier, who for four years wore the grey and bore the stoma of battle, lay all day yesterday unconscious at the City Hospital. He is John W. Satchfield, and since July 5, 1890, has been an inmate of the Soldiers’ Home. A gentleman was passing near Church and Holly streets yesterday morning about 6 o’ clock, when on the corner lay the prostrate form of a man insensible, and, apparently, dead. The ambulance was called and Dr. Lyne responded, and found that the old man must have been exposed all night, and was stiff and benumbed with cold. He was taken to the hospital, and during the whole day did not revive, thought the physicians worked faithfully over him, and even had to cut his clothes from his body, but their efforts to bring renewed life back and make the blood flow faster in those veins were fruitless. His condition is considered very grave, but at a late hour last night he seemed better, and his pulse was stronger, but speech and movement had not come.
Mr. Satchfield was a member of Pegram’s Battery during the war, and came to the home from Petersburg. Colonel Bigger gave him a permit the day before for a leave of two days, and he went away with the intention of going to Manchester, and then to Petersburg. How he came to be at Church and Holly streets cannot be understood, and he alone can tell.

VCU Tornado Preparedness Exercise

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Dear Monroe Park Community Advisory Group Members,

I want to advise you that VCU will conduct a tornado preparedness exercise on Tuesday, March 2, as part of statewide emergency preparedness efforts.
The VCU exercise will begin at 9:30 a.m. with the activation of 10 sirens on the Monroe Park and MCV campuses along with text messages, digital signs, Web site information and social media that are part of a multi-channel system for communicating emergency information to VCU students, employees, parents and neighbors.

Tuesday’s test is a departure from the regular noon tests each semester and will serve as the Spring 2010 full-scale test. The sirens will sound a fast, up and down wail for four minutes, and after a three minute pause, the sirens will sound a steady wail for two minutes to signal “all clear.”

In addition, VCU is conducting its first Campus-Community Emergency Response Team (C-CERT) class with the assistance of the Virginia Department of Emergency Management and Virginia Department of Transportation. Student volunteers will simulate tornado “victims” at a designated site on campus, providing the C-CERT students an opportunity for the triage portion of their final class drill.

The tornado “victims” will be staged at Park Plaza, between Cabell Library and Hibbs Hall on the Monroe Park Campus. The location also will serve as the site for an incident command post location. Emergency personnel from VCU and the City of Richmond will participate and their equipment, including vehicles, will be staged in the area.

I also would like to remind you that you and your neighbors may sign up for text messaging in order to be notified about emergencies, closings and delays due to inclement weather, and the monthly and semester emergency tests. There is no cost for enrolling, and you can sign up for text messaging now at www.vcu.edu/notify. Emergency information also is available on the VCU Alert Web site at www.vcu.edu/alert.

We hope you will find that our emergency communications are beneficial to you, and we will continue to work together to provide as safe an environment as possible. As always, we will communicate with our community neighbors when there is any enhancement or change about which you would want to know. And please, do not hesitate to forward this email to your neighbors, to help spread the word about the siren test.

Sincerely,

John M. Bennett
Senior Vice President for Finance and Administration
Virginia Commonwealth University

804-828-6116
jmbennett@vcu.edu

The Solid Democratic Club of Oregon Hill, 1888

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From the Richmond Dispatch, February 26, 1888:

The Solid Democratic Club of Oregon Hill met last night at 8 o’clock, with President D.R. Read presiding and J.L. Lee acting as secretary. After transacting the regular business of the club, lively and stirring addresses were made by Mr. Meade Haskins, James W. Gibbons, W.M. Prentiss, John J. King, and others. The club is in good working order, and ready for the fight for Democracy.

City News Release: Traffic Signal Improvement Safety Project

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From City of Richmond press release:

The city of Richmond is preparing to start construction on a traffic signal upgrade project to improve intersection safety for motorists and pedestrians.

Who: City of Richmond Division of Transportation Engineering

What: Traffic signal improvements

When: Monday, March 1 through September 17

Where: Belvidere Street and Main Street; Belvidere Street and Franklin Street

Scope of Work: Installation of new mast arm signal poles and pedestrian pedestal poles; installation of pedestrian countdown indicators; installation of new wheelchair ramps; newly painted pavement markings; sidewalk restoration

For more information on city services and schedules, please visit us on line at www.RichmondGov.com.

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OHNA Positions Filled

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While Jennifer Hancock is still the interim President of the Oregon Hill Neighborhood Association, there were some leadership decisions made at this past Tuesday’s OHNA meeting. Kyle Meyer is the new vice president. Debbie Anderson is the new secretary. Todd Woodson is still Treasurer. OHNA has a new committee dealing with VCU gym membership. Barbara Carter is the new contact person with VCU and she is now the go to person for any questions or concerns about the VCU gym. Her email is barbara.carter86 at yahoo.com

More detailed meeting minutes may get posted later.

Two Ways to Support SynerGeo

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From SynerGeo :

As with most non-profits, it’s been a challenging year finding the resources to keep the wheels turning at SynerGeo. Please help us to continue building community and providing a safe, fun place for kids to get creative in Oregon Hill. This winter / spring, we’ve got two great options for supporting Synergeo and supporting yourselves at the same time:

Place an order with us for homemade brunswick stew. It’s perfect soup weather! We’ll be cooking up a delicious batch of this classic stew for $7 a quart, and it will be available for pickup (or if you know somebody here, delivery!) on February 27th after 12:30pm. Contact Bonnie [bonniehofmeyer at synergeo.org] or call us [804-648-2287] to pre-order.

Buy some plants from us for your spring garden. Your yard will thank us, and we will thank you for giving back to your community. Our online shop has something for all your gardening needs, including gorgeous flowers, fruits and vegetables. Each plant you order will arrive in the mail, ready to plant, at the appropriate planting time! Note: if you’d rather order by cash or check, you can contact Bonnie [bonniehofmeyer at synergeo.org].
Thank you so much for your generosity — your good works help us to do ours.