“Top Down” Planning Changes Threaten Neighborhood

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From Laurel Street neighbor Charles Pool (editor’s note: posted with permission):

Hi All,

I attended the meeting at Binford last evening regarding the three proposed zoning changes, which would eliminate ANY minimum parking requirement for anything, and lower restrictions on short term rentals (like AirBNB’s) and auxillary dwellings.

Many have objected to these changes, which are “top down” from the Planning Commission and staff (rather than requested by the communities). As I pointed out in my comment, no civic association has considered what we need to improve our quality of like and decided that we need less parking and more short term rentals!

One change proposed by the Planning Director last evening was to require owner residency for short term rentals (like AirBNB’s) EXCEPT for MIXED USE zoned areas. And for those of us who have followed this closely, the Planning Commission refused to change Oregon Hill’s future land use designation from MIXED USE. The number one goal of the Richmond 300 was to change zoning to match the future land use designation, and the city has already started the wheels in motion to rezone the entire city to match the master plan.

I hope that we as a neighborhood can oppose this!

Thanks,

Charles

Trash/Recycling Pickup Tomorrow

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This Wednesday is a “Red Wednesday”, which means trash and recycling pickup.

Please go over what can be recycled. Ideally, rolling recycling containers are stored and deployed in the back alleys along with trash cans. Please make sure you pick up containers after pickup tomorrow night.

If it seems like pickup did not happen, use this online form:
https://cvwma.com/programs/residential-recycling/recycling-service-request-form/

If you have not done so already, don’t forget to sign up for your Recycling Perks.
In order to take your recycling to the next level, read this: 10 ways to improve your recycling.

In recycling news, Chesterfield County may be taking a step backward with its privatization, but other parts of the state are increasing their recycling and increasing the Commonwealth’s overall recycling rate. Still, there is a lot of work to do to get that up further.

In the big picture, many waste companies have been challenged with flattening commodity prices, but that has not stopped them from putting bigger investments in their recycling departments.

708 China Threatened With Demolition

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The neighborhood association received word yesterday that the developer has decided to demolish the historic home at 708 China St. as part of a Special Use Permit.

708 China Street is on the State and National Registers of Historic Places as a contributing structure to the Oregon Hill Historic District. The Department of Historic Resources nomination report for the Oregon Hill Historic District dates the house to the 1850s. This one-story gable roofed structure is a rare survival within our historic district and within Richmond as a whole.

There is ample room on the lot to preserve the house while building a new addition in the rear.

More on the history:

The house appears on the 1876 Beers Atlas, owned by the estate of F. W. Baker. At that time, it was rental property. F. W. Baker was a former engineer whose family lived at 410 N. 18th Street.

The earliest city directory that cross-references street addresses is the 1878 directory. (Earlier city directories had name listings but not street listings.) In the 1878 city directory, the house at 708 China was occupied by George Evans, a stonecutter. Evans likely worked at the prominent monument business owned by A. J. Wray at the entrance of Hollywood Cemetery. 708 China is the only address listed on the north side of the 700 block of China St in the 1878 city directory, and this corresponds with the 1876 Beers insurance map.

Close-up of the 1876 Beers Atlas with the house at 708 China St., owned by F. W. Baker estate, identified with a red arrow:

1876 Beers Atlas, with a red arrow identifying the house at 708 China St. owned by F. W. Baker estate:

The house at 708 China also appears on the 1865 Mitchie map, which indicates that it is likely an ante-bellum structure.

Historian Tom Elliott has tracked the location of the serpentine wall of the Belvidere estate on the 1865 Mitchie map and notices that the 708 China building would have been within the walled enclosure. Belvidere burned in 1854 so it does not appear on the 1865 map, but the location of the building would have been nearby to the south east of 708 China. More research is needed on the history of this historic building that is an important contributing structure to the Oregon Hill Historic District.

OHNA Meeting Tomorrow

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From email announcement:

Good evening OHNA members,

I look forward to seeing everyone Tuesday at 7pm for our monthly OHNA meeting. This meeting will be hybrid: we will meet in person in the chapel of St. Andrew’s Church, and there will also be a zoom link available to access the meeting remotely, below.

Attached to this email are:
1. the agenda for our Tuesday 28 February 2023 meeting (also pasted below),
2. the 2023 schedule of OHNA meetings

We look forward to seeing everyone Tuesday evening.

Thanks,
Bryan

Monthly Meeting Agenda
Tuesday 28 February 2023
7:00PM
This meeting will be hybrid:
we will meet in person in the chapel of St. Andrew’s Church;
the meeting will also be available by Zoom, at the link below.

Topic: OHNA Monthly Meeting – February
Time: Feb 28, 2023 07:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)

Join Zoom Meeting
(For Zoom and phone meeting info, contact OHNA at ohnarva@gmail.com)

Welcome
• Treasurer’s Report

Community Updates:

1. Lt. Brian Robinson, City of Richmond Police Section Lt, 4th Precinct
2. Officer Luke Schrader, Police Liaison, VCU
3. Ms. Verenda Cobbs, VCU
4. Ms. Stephanie Lynch, 5th District Councilperson
5. Ms. Colette McEachin, Richmond Commonwealth’s Attorney

Updates:

1. Amphitheater planned for Tredegar Green.
· It is slated to seat 5,000 people and accommodate and additional 5,000 standing, as per our meeting with the developer’s representative. No additional parking is planned.
· When the previous amphitheater plan was proposed, the neighborhood raised questions about hours of operation, noise levels, and parking, none of which were ever answered.
o The applicant has not yet scheduled a meeting with OHNA.

2. An SUP application has been filed with the City of Richmond for the demolition of 708 China Street, and its replacement with a building.
· The Zoning Committee met with the applicant and asked them to reconsider demolition and incorporate the historic building into their new construction.
· The applicant has not yet come back to the neighborhood with a revision.

Continued Business

3. Traffic issues along Idlewood at Cherry and Pine Streets
· There have been several recent accidents at these two locations.
· These two intersections suffer from poor visibility and the high speed of cars exiting 195 east onto Idlewood.

New Business

4. Any items?

Bryan Clark Green, President

Harrison Moenich, Co-Vice-President

Jennifer Hancock, Co-Vice-President

Mike Matthews, Secretary

John Bolecek, Treasurer

Trash/Recycling Tomorrow

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This Wednesday is a “Red Wednesday”, which means trash and recycling pickup.

Please go over what can be recycled. Ideally, rolling recycling containers are stored and deployed in the back alleys along with trash cans. Please make sure you pick up containers after pickup tomorrow night.

If it seems like pickup did not happen, use this online form:
https://cvwma.com/programs/residential-recycling/recycling-service-request-form/

If you have not done so already, don’t forget to sign up for your Recycling Perks.
In order to take your recycling to the next level, read this: 10 ways to improve your recycling.

In recycling news, somebody left a mortar round at an Albemarle County recycling center on Saturday.

Belle Island History Hike This Saturday

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The James River Park and its Friends Of group are holding a Belle Island history hike this Saturday.

Join us for a family friendly hike to one of Richmond’s historic gems, Belle Isle. Learn about the geologic and human history of the area and the role Richmond played in the development of our nation. Please bring water, a snack and good shoes.
Parking:
Street parking on 5th street
Belle Isle parking lot
Tredegar parking lot $3 per hour or $18 for the day
Ages: 8 and Up
Location: Meet at the visitor sign in the Belle Isle parking lot under the Lee Bridge
This event is free, but spaces are limited and registration is required.
To Register contact Tyler Twyford: John.Twyford@rva.gov

Lynch’s 5th District ‘Townhall Meeting’ On Feb. 16

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5th District Councilperson Stephanie Lynch has an upcoming ‘town hall meeting’ on February 16th.

From announcement:
We would love to see you for the IN PERSON 5th District Town Hall next Thursday, February 16 at the Woodland Heights Baptist Church (611 W. 31st Street).
We will focused on the upcoming budget season, your priorities, and there will be a short update on the Charter Change Commission.
We will be recording the meeting for upload after the meeting.