With the elections over, neighbors are watching to see how they might effect Victory Rug building’s proposed Special Use Permit (SUP). Neighborhood leaders remain in strong opposition. The City Planning Commission’s consideration of the Victory Apt. Special Use Permit has been postponed at the developer’s request until Dec. 3. The assumption is that City Council will consider the issue the following Monday on Dec. 10.
Following the destruction of the historic canal wall, the Oregon Hill Neighborhood Association (OHNA) put forth the following press release. Keep in mind for legal purposes, only the original issuers of press releases are responsible for verifying the accuracy of their content. Oregonhill.net, and its principals, officers and employees disclaim any liability whatsoever for inaccuracies found in the content of the press releases posted on or through the oregonhill.net website.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Venture Richmond damages a portion of the historic James River and Kanawha Canal.
RICHMOND, VA: On Tuesday, Venture Richmond proceeded to damage a portion of the historic James River and Kanawha canal bank and to destroy a century-old brick structural component of the canal.
The Oregon Hill Neighborhood Association (OHNA) has called for the preservation of the 200 year old canal, built largely with slave labor when George Washington was the President of the canal society. The Oregon Hill neighborhood has many connections to the canal, including 601 Spring St, the former home of Samuel P. Parsons, the Canal Superintendent in 1840.
Jennifer Hancock, OHNA President, said, “We are seeing Richmond history disappear before our eyes.”
OHNA finds it disturbing that it is a public/private partnership that is responsible for the destruction. According to the Times Dispatch, Venture Richmond gets a large amount of public funding: $1.68 million from a special city tax on downtown property owners, in addition to $700,000 in public money for the Clean and Safe program.
Venture Richmond’s proposed amphitheater has ample sight lines without damaging the canal.
The Oregon Hill neighborhood has long sought the restoration of the canal to allow boats to travel west to Maymont. But the canal would not hold adequate water to float a boat to Maymont if the banks of the canal are lowered. According to archaeologist Lyle Browning, if the height of the canal bank is lowered below 82 feet above sea level, its current level, the canal will not hold enough water to allow boats to make the trip to Maymont in the future. “Lowering the height of the canal towpath without adequate archaeological investigation of the towpath will irreparably damage a nationally important resource.”
After the media started to pick the story up, Venture Richmond declared they had nothing to do with the tearing down of the canal wall. The Times Dispatch reported that Venture Richmond Executive Director Jack Berry called (the press release)”bogus” and “libelous.”
In response, OHNA released this correction this morning:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
OHNA calls for investigation into the destruction of canal property
Richmond, VA: The Oregon Hill Neighborhood Association (OHNA) acknowledges to Venture Richmond that OHNA made an incorrect assumption that Venture Richmond would be aware of bulldozers and construction crews operating on their own property, and therefore made the erroneous statement that Venture Richmond was responsible for the recent damage to the historic wall and canal.
According to an article that appeared in the October 20, 2012 edition of the Richmond Times Dispatch, “William Roberts, a project manager for J.A. Liesfeld, a Rockville-based contractor, acknowledged the firm was hired by NewMarket Corp. to tear down the wall but would not discuss the project.”
The Richmond Times Dispatch, in October 2011, reported that NewMarket destroyed another large section of the pre-Civil War Tredegar wall, only obtaining the required permit after the fact. http://www2.timesdispatch.com/news/2011/oct/07/tdmet01-richmond-officials-say-newmarket-work-was–ar-1365435/
Last Tuesday, 150 feet of brick wall constructed before the Civil War was demolished by a construction crew operating on Venture Richmond property.
“We request an investigation of whatever entity was responsible for the destruction of this historic property,” said Jennifer Hancock, OHNA President. “Whoever demolished this wall should be required to rebuild the wall.”
The James River and Kanawha Canal was built over 200 years ago largely with slave labor when George Washington was president of the canal society. The Oregon Hill neighborhood has many connections with the rich history of the canal.
Some facts worth noting: NewMarket is listed as a major contributor to Venture Richmond. Two NewMarket executives sit on the Venture Richmond Board, including NewMarket’s CEO Gottwald. NewMarket a few weeks ago gave Venture Richmond the property for the amphitheater where much of the damage took place.
At the same time, according to sources, NewMarket is now contradicting the Times Dispatch to say that NewMarket had absolutely no role in the demolition of the wall located on the City’s property.
Another fact to keep in mind- the City Council 5th District’s boundary was slightly altered earlier this year to include the 2nd Street area.
The City’s new Riverfront Plan should be coming up at City Council very soon. It’s worth remembering that citizens spoke at planning meetings in favor of renovating the Kanawha Canal as a priority of this Riverfront Plan.
Oregon Hill residents have contacted the City’s Commonwealth Attorney to see how the criminal investigation is going. Stay tuned…
Despite opposition from the Oregon Hill Neighborhood Association, the Sierra Club Falls of the James, citizens, as well as open government concerns, the City is pushing ahead with construction of the 2nd Street Connector.
Yesterday, despite promises for full exploration of the historic significance of the site, over 150 feet of century old structural canal brick wall was destroyed.
From City press release:
Construction on Richmond’s new street that will connect Second Street to Tredegar Street on the north side of the James River downtown will have a minimal effect on visitors to the James River Park’s Belle Isle who park in the Tredegar Street lot.
The first or eastern entrance to the lot on Tredegar Street will be closed effective Tuesday, October 16, due to construction on the new connector street; however, the second or western entrance to the lot, as well as the entire lot itself, will remain open throughout the entire construction period.
The Oregon Hill Neighborhood Association (OHNA) has repeatedly pointed out that the 400 block of S. Cherry is too narrow to support parking on both sides of the street as proposed by the Victory Apartments Special Use Permit application. The VDOT minimum standard is 28 feet for a residential street with parking on both sides. This land survey definitely shows that the street is too narrow for parking on both sides of the street, narrowing from 26.41 feet at the Victory Rug building to 23.23 feet at the top of the hill.
Here is the latest for the controversial Victory Rug Special Use Permit (SUP). To see details, you may want to click here to download the PDF.
From City press release:
City to Open New Bike Skills Training Area on Belle Isle
Richmond, VA – The City’s Department of Parks, Recreation and Community Facilities will open its new Belle Isle Bike Skills Area on Saturday, September 29, at 10 a.m. with a celebration that will include a ribbon-cutting ceremony, demonstrations, and tours. The public is invited to attend and to bring their bicycles to try out the mountain bike training area.
“I encourage residents and visitors to come discover the Belle Isle Bike Skills Training Area as it is another step Richmond is taking to create bike-friendly, outdoor tourist attractions, as we prepare for the UCI Road World Cycling Championships in 2015,” comments Mayor Dwight C. Jones. “The benefits of cycling are tremendous to our city in many ways, including our efforts to encourage city residents to get active and adopt a healthy lifestyle.”
The new training area is located within the James River Park on Belle Isle across from the Tredegar Street suspension bridge. It includes a beginner and expert pump track, rock gardens, and log and rock skinnies in addition to other features. Bicyclists can learn to handle these obstacles and challenges, which they will find on the trails throughout the James River Park, in a controlled environment.
“This site, which has been built largely with the labor of volunteers who love mountain biking, will provide a place to learn and practice mountain biking skills and introduce the fun of mountain biking as a recreational activity to a much larger audience,” said Dr. Norman C. Merrifield, director of the department.
In addition, while this new facility provides “off-road” training, the city also has plans to add an “on-road” training component on Belle Isle adjacent to this site. The on-road training facility will provide a place for children and adults to become competent bicyclists, as well as learn and practice the skills needed to ride safely in an urban environment.
“The James River Park is already known throughout the East coast and internationally for its outstanding network of urban mountain biking trails. Now with the addition of this skills area Richmond has enhanced its reputation as a ‘bike city,’” said Jakob Helmoldt, the city’s bicycle, pedestrian and trails coordinator.
Organizations that provided volunteers who helped construct the new training site, as well as in-kind donations, include the Friends of the James River Park, the James River Outdoor Coalition, the Richmond Mid-Atlantic Off-Road Enthusiasts, the International Mountain Biking Association, Virginia Bicycling Federation, Hands-On Greater Richmond, SportsBackers, Altria, Luck Stone, Tektonics Design Group, Sattler Creative, Alpine Trails, Dreaming Creek, and Green Side Up Landscaping.
The Belle Isle Skills Area is free to use and is open from sunrise to sunset. For more information, call (804) 646-5733 or visit www.RichmondGov.com/Parks.
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From email:
Dear Mr. Berry,
Thank you for taking time out of your schedule to visit the Oregon Hill Neighborhood Association (OHNA) on August 28, 2012 to make a presentation on the proposed amphitheater located near the Oregon Hill neighborhood. In your presentation, you discussed the changes Venture Richmond wished to make to the site, including a proposal to trim the south bank of the historic James River and Kanawha Canal in order to improve the sight lines for the amphitheater, which you envision accommodating 10,000 people.
At the same meeting, OHNA voted to oppose any damage to the historic James River and Kanawha Canal and, specifically, removing any portion of the south bank of the canal. The Oregon Hill neighborhood has important historic connections to the canal. The surviving home at 601 Spring Street belonged to Samuel P. Parsons, the canal Superintendent responsible for the canal’s expansion to Lynchburg. These connections also include the surviving home at 619 W. Cary Street that belonged to the Messler family, who owned a canal boat building business in Penitentiary Basin, just east of the proposed amphitheater.
While we deeply appreciate the worthwhile efforts of Venture Richmond in bringing the Folk Festival to Richmond, we believe that this can be accomplished without damaging the irreplaceable historic canal. This is an original portion of the canal that was built when George Washington was the first president of the canal. The city is going to considerable expense to protect the canal in the construction of the 2nd Street connector, so it would be unacceptable to damage the canal just to the west of this connector.
Suggestions made by members of OHNA include: covering the canal with a temporary protective structure during the folk festival, encouraging Venture Richmond to consider a smaller venue at the location of the amphitheater that would not require damage to the historic canal, moving the adjacent Children’s Stage to another location and using the new open space as a part of the proposed amphitheater, or placing an impermeable liner inside the canal, filling it with soil and flowers and building bridges to cross the canal.
OHNA is also asking that Venture Richmond limit the number of performances at the amphitheater to 15 days per year and to limit the times of the performances to 10:00 pm on weeknights and to 11:00 pm on weekends.
Again, we appreciate Venture Richmond’s presentation to our organization, and we hope that you will keep us informed regarding developments of the proposed amphitheater.
Sincerely,
Jennifer Hancock
Oregon Hill Neighborhood Association, President
For more background on this, please click here and here and here.
Excerpt:
Three days after City Council agreed to give $14 million in tax dollars to renovate the Landmark Theater, the group managing the work scaled back part of the project, citing an “unanticipated reduction” in funding.
In a June 1 filing with the Virginia Department of Historic Resources, the Richmond Performing Arts Center indicated it was cutting back the first two phases of the project, which began in July, by $7.6 million. In order to obtain federal and state historic tax credits, construction plans first must be approved by the state and National Park Service.
Two months earlier, those first two phases involved $11.4 million in renovation work, according to state filings. That included a new roof and improvements to the restrooms, concession areas, sidewalks, lounge spaces, loading docks and the theater’s internal offices.
The amended filings in June scaled back the plans to include facade work, minor roof repairs, exit path lighting and prep work for a new box office and other building upgrades, a total of $3.75 million.
So as not to disrupt Landmark’s fall season, some work likely had to be scaled back because of the delays, says John Winter, chief capital projects manager for the city. “There had to be documents approved by council in order for the project to move forward,” he says. “I think that had a lot to do with the shortening of the window of available time.”
It’s unclear if the initial reduction in funds will affect the overall project. Altria Group agreed to pay $10 million for the naming rights to the Landmark in July, but that money is being provided while the work progresses during the next two years.
According to signs, the 195 on-ramp from Cumberland will be closed for a month starting tomorrow while there is more work on the toll plaza.
From WRIC Channel 8’s website:
Richmond, VA—The Downtown Expressway Cumberland Street on-ramp will be closed to traffic for thirty days beginning Monday, September 10.
The on-ramp will be closed through early October, for the final phase of the Downtown Expressway Open Road Tolling project.
Motorists wishing to enter the roadway in this area are encouraged to use a detour to the westbound Belvidere/2nd Street on-ramp.
Foundation for 617 S. Laurel in place.
