Last night Richmond City Council voted unanimously in favor of the Richmond 300 plan, which changes Oregon Hill’s future land use from residential to mixed use.
This happened during holidays when most people are pre-occupied with family matters, in a pandemic emergency, during which the Virginia Attorney General has called on municipalities to suspend all non-life-threatening business, and specifically land-use issues.
City Council voted for this despite opposition from many different parts of the City, but especially from this neighborhood, which has taken part in the process from the beginning, put up with bad online ‘presentations’, and has consistently asked for changes in the plan.
Laurel Street neighbors Scott Burger and Charles Pool wrote prominent letters to the editor in the past few weeks, and outgoing Oregon Hill Neighborhood Association president Todd Woodson wrote a very heartfelt editorial in Style magazine.
It’s worth noting that as a City Council candidate Stephanie Lynch wrote:
“I absolutely pledge to defend the Oregon Hill Community from inappropriate encroachment from surrounding entities like VCU. One of my top priorities will be to work with Oregon Hill residents and the administration at VCU to enter into a longer term agreement regarding future development that is respectful of the needs and wishes of Oregon Hill residents. As a two time VCU grad, I understand all that VCU brings to the Richmond Community, but I also have close ties to Oregon Hill and I recognize that VCU could be a better neighbor to the Oregon Hill neighborhood and its residents. I think it’s imperative that before we approve future expansion plans from VCU, we work with them to enter into MOUs with surrounding communities like Oregon Hill. I additionally support the requests laid out in the OHNA’s written submissions to the Planning Commission and the RVA 300 planning committee. I’m looking forward to working with everyone in Oregon Hill to make sure that the neighborhood is protected and kept intact, housing needs are met, and the neighborhood character is preserved.”
And as Oregon Hill’s elected City Council representative, Stephanie Lynch did write to the Richmond300 planners, sharing neighborhood concerns. So some residents were surprised and taken aback that Lynch did vote for the unchanged Richmond300 plan last night.
What Councilperson Lynch has indicated is that she would be joining other Council members in putting forward amendments in the new year that may help the neighborhood’s cause.
All that said, questions abound. What will these proposed amendments consist of? Will they really get passed by City Council? If passed, will the Planning Commission accept them?
Is this setting up the neighborhood for success (to use Woodson’s wording) or failure?
