The headline of the RTD article says it all: VCU gym plans move ahead –
State official OKs proposed expansion of Cary St. facility into Richmond’s Oregon Hill. VCU has aproval from the state to move/demolish the 2 stables and to build a 125,000-square-foot student rec center in their place.

From the article:

[…]

“It’s just really a tragic complication for our neighborhood. There was nothing we could do,” said Todd Woodson, executive director of the Oregon Hill Home Improvement Council.

[…]

Scott Burger, president of the Oregon Hill Neighborhood Association, has voiced concerns about the project’s scale and effect on parking and traffic in the area. He said he had hoped that state agencies involved in the approval would respond to residents’ pleas.

“It’s way out of proportion to the rest of the neighborhood, and it’s going to be a real problem for us,” Burger said. “We’re concerned because we’re not hearing the right things from these agencies. We don’t see where they’re going to hold VCU accountable for what they’ve done and what their plans are. We don’t want to see this rubber-stamped.”

[…]

“It’s not like the bulldozers are going to move tomorrow. There’s still a design process and there’s still some approval processes that have to occur,” Bennett said.

“We’re going to remain open to soliciting design comments about the exterior. We’re optimistic all of the neighborhood groups . . . will sit down with us and help us come up with the best design possible,” Bennett said.

[…]

Oregon Hill, which overlooks the James River and Belle Isle, once stretched as far north as Main Street, Woodson said. In the late 1960s, more than 100 neighborhood homes were demolished to make way for the Downtown Expressway, he said.

“Oregon Hill has already paid a very dear price for the convenience of other Richmond residents,” Woodson said. “We thought, under those circumstances, the demolition would stop, but unfortunately it has not.”

[…]