Jamie, Stephen,
After giving the situation some thought, I am resigning from my lead volunteer position of the Richmond Folk Festival‘s Green Team in protest of Venture Richmond’s role in pushing the 2nd Street Connector proposal, which evidently comes before City Council on Monday night.
My neighborhood association as well as the local Sierra Club have serious concerns about the 2nd Street Connector proposal, and to my knowledge, those concerns have not been addressed in a proper public manner. I am disappointed by how the 2nd Street Connector proposal is being pushed through the public process, while the rest of the Richmond Riverfront Plan has been delayed.
https://www.oregonhill.net/2012/07/13/city-council-and-2nd-street-connector/
https://www.oregonhill.net/2012/02/04/sierra-club-speaks-against-proposed-2nd-street-connector/
https://www.oregonhill.net/2011/10/08/ohna-sends-letter-in-support-of-city-to-protect-canal/
Although I do not want you to take this resignation and protest lightly, I also want you to know that I do plan to continue to support and volunteer with the Richmond Folk Festival without holding the Green Team leadership position. I repeat, I plan to volunteer for Green Team shifts even though I am resigning my leadership position.
As someone who has always supported the Folk Festival (including when it was previously the National Folk Festival), and having won the 2010 Folk Festival Volunteer of the Year award, I believe the Folk Festival has become a vital and important part of Richmond’s cultural landscape. I also want the Richmond Folk Festival to become more ‘green’ and become an environmental role model for other festivals in the area.
I just wish Venture Richmond would take a step back and recognize it’s duty and responsibility as a neighbor and part of the community and how the 2nd Street Connector and amphitheater proposals impact those roles.
Sincerely,
Scott BurgerOn May 14, 2012, at 6:05 PM, J Thomas wrote:
The Volunteer page for the Richmond Folk Festival goes live tomorrow!
In order to make sure that the links are all working, please take a moment to click on http://richmondfolkfestival.org/docs/volunteer.html
Oregon Hill
News For Oregon Hill, in Richmond, VA
I have met with Venture Richmond before, and know those folks. I say this, as I too, love the Folk festival. Jack Berry and Venture Richmond sickened me.
Their first concerns have never been the real Richmond or its citizens. They might as well be called Venture Short Pump or Venture Corporate Welfare. I absolutely hate the good ole’ white boy aloofness that comes out of 3rd & Canal Street.
VR truly acts like they know what is best for Richmond. I literally was brought to tears in the meeting I attended there as their decisions were based on what was best for graduates of St. Christopher’s and St. Catherine’s School’s.
They try so hard to blend (for the the entire community) in, does VR, and they use their 2nd St. Festival as a crutch to prove this. While I too love that festival, it doesn’t give VR the right to run around and make all the decisions for Richmond and what their citizens should do for entertainment or we all of a sudden need a road built asap when in all actuality they are hurting the true character of this amazing city so Jack Berry’s ego can expand.
John Lewis Morgan of One Way Richmond
P.S. I know how hard Scott works for this city, and its unfortunate that the Venture Richmond’s get rewarded whenever they want, and folks like Scott Burger who really are in the trenches get brushed aside. Shame on Venture Richmond.
The folk festival is a huge event that costs lots of money. Who pays for it so that richmonders can enjoy it for free? Lets look at the top sponsors: altria, dominion, mwv, TCF, first market, RTD, genworth, suntrust……
I suggest, with all sincerity, that Scott Burger move to a small town that does not have a large corporate presence. Scott, you would be much happier.
You see, Cities were build for commerce. Your corporate consipracy theories (yes we know what you’re alluding to here with the new road) fall of deaf ears. The bigger the city, the bigger the corporate presence. Period. Commerce is city and city is commerce. Get over it.
Ive never dealt with VR but I read this whining resignation letter like this: Boo hoo, you support this road that is all for the big bad corporations…..boo hoo hoo….so im not going to be on your team. Booo hooo hooo. im taking my toys and ball and going home. Boo hoo hoo.
Look west Scott…there are some nice little river towns that were not built buy commerce and do not exist and thrive because of large corporations, the business they create, and their employees.
They also dont enjoy all the awesome things from environment to entertainment, charitable, and just pure love for the surrounding City that big corporations generously donate.
Do you have the stones to post this?
First of all, I am hardly “taking my toys and ball and going home. Boo hoo hoo”. In the above letter, I clearly state that I plan to continue to support and volunteer with the Richmond Folk Festival without holding the Green Team leadership position because I do think it is a good event.
As for the rest of your bit, we have been here before. You, for some reason, think that citizens should grovel in appreciation to the corporations for every scrap, and I believe it should be the other way around.
Rather than rehash old arguments where you inevitably degrade to silly name-calling, let me say that, thankfully, I am increasingly not alone. The MoveToAmend (www.movetoamend.org) democracy movement is gradually growing larger. Yes, perhaps someday I will be driven out of this town, but that does mean I have been wrong about anything.
Finally, a little history trivia, since this city supposedly cares about history (as it is bulldozed)- When the American revolutionaries boarded ships and dumped tea into Boston harbor (you might remember this historical event as the Boston TEA PARTY), whose tea was it?
Answer: East India Company. What was the East India Company? A corporation.
You see, I don’t usually wrap myself up in the flag, so to speak, but I do firmly believe that history is on my side.
Speaking of American revolutionaries, a little more history from a current Canal Walk display:
Washington’s vision was to connect the Atlantic Ocean to the Mississippi River with navigable rivers, canals, and a land portage through what is now West Virginia. After the Revolution, the James River Company was created, primarily as a result of his sponsorship and lobbying efforts. Before Washington’s death in 1799, a large portion of his dream had been realized.
Two canals bypassed the falls of the James River at Richmond, and 220 miles of river improvements extended westward. In the early 19th century, other farsighted Virginians took over Washington’s leadership role. The final elements of his plan were completed in the 1820s, when the Kanawha Turnpike joined the headwaters of the James River to the Kanawha River. In 1835, the James River and Kanawha Company was formed, and within 15 years a canal system stretched to Buchanan, Virginia, a distance of 197 miles.