St. Andrews’ Tables and Benches

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From Oregon Hill Neighborhood Association President Todd Woodson:

Special thanks to Richmond Love You Block grants, Richmond Toolbank, Oregon Hill Home Improvement Council and Dominion Energy for making this possible. We unloaded six picnic tables and four benches for the kids today.
VOLUNTEERS NEEDED! Saturday, October 24th at 10am at 1000 Idlewood Ave to prepare the bed for the St Andrews Pollination Station/Education Garden. We have tools- shouldn’t take too long. See you Saturday the 24th! Just bring your mask and water!

Virtual Richmond Folk Festival Begins

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Unfortunately, the pandemic has forced this year’s Richmond Folk Festival to ‘go virtual’.
From The Richmond Free Press:

The 16th Annual Richmond Folk Festival, a celebration of music and culture from around the globe, will take place virtually Oct. 9 through 11.

Because of the coronavirus pandemic, people can enjoy the festival through a special television program, radio broadcasts and online streaming.

Music from Jamaican reggae, Chicago blues, Altai throat singing, kosher gospel, Gypsy jazz, Indian slide guitar, Gulf Coast boogie-woogie, Ireland and Dominican bachata will be featured from 6 to 10 p.m. Friday, Oct. 9, noon to 6 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 10 and Sunday, Oct. 11, on Virginia Public Media radio stations 107.3 and 93.1 FM. The music is by performers from past Richmond festivals.

From 6 to 8 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, the festival will broadcast “All Together Now,” a two-part television celebration of Virginia artists, including Butcher Brown featuring J. Plunky Branch, Cora Harvey Armstrong, Kadencia and Jared Pool & Friends. The performances were filmed at Richmond’s Spacebomb Studios in partnership with VPM, and will be interspersed with performances from the festival’s Virginia Folklife Stage from the past. It will be broadcast on VPM Plus Channel 57.1 WCVW digital HD and livestreamed on VPM’s Facebook page and VPM’s YouTube page.

An interactive art installation by artist Kevin Orlosky will take place on Brown’s Island, the site of the festival in the past. Public participation is encouraged, with people wearing masks and socially distancing. People can paint a rock that represents something they miss, mourn or are looking forward to doing again after the pandemic. The rocks will become part of Mr. Orlosky’s stone labyrinth that, when viewed from above, will form a hand.

Artist Shannon Wright of Richmond, an illustrator and cartoonist whose work has been featured in major publications, books and online sites including The New York Times, created the official poster for the festival.

Details about the festival, performers, schedule, activities and where to listen or watch it are available on www.richmondfolkfestival.org.

As one of the handful of people who attended the very first folk festival (rainy) night in Richmond, back when it was National Folk Festival, I am delighted to see that it is soldiering on, as I very much enjoy the outside music it usually brings to the area. And while neighborhood relations have not always been harmonious, I know many Oregon Hill residents will be sad that they will not have the full festival just down the hill this year. It deserves support. (And talk is cheap- if you can afford it, do purchase a folk festival poster or t-shirt at Plan 9 Records or online).

Park Land Saved

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Dear Ms. Ebert,

I was pleased to hear that you have removed 606 Spring Street and 609 China Street from the Biennial Real Estate Strategies Plan list for city property proposed to be sold. So that this error does not happen again, it is imperative that these lots are properly listed in city records as city park land and part of Oregon Hill’s linear park.

Thanks to the great help of the City Clerk’s office and the City Record’s librarian, I have located the City Council Ordinance 85-285 whereby the City Council authorized the purchase of the lots to create the linear park when Belvidere Street was widened. As noted in the Ordinance: “The purpose of this paper is to authorized city acquisition of the residual portions of the properties, and in some instances, additional properties that front on the side streets.” These two lots at 606 Spring Street and 609 China Street were among the additional properties that front on the side streets as shown on the Plats 21444 and 21437 attached to the ordinance. (Please see attached ordinance and details from the plats.)

In 1998 the Richmond City Council approved Council Resolution 98-R61-77. The purpose of this Resolution was to accept $2,336 from the Save Oregon Hill Organization to build the gazebo on the Oregon Hill park land that was formerly known as 609 China Street. This gazebo is still located on city park land on what was formerly known as 609 China Street. (Please see the attached photograph).

This is the link to the Council Resolution 98-R61-77:
https://richmondva.legistar.com/LegislationDetail.aspx?ID=2151094&GUID=44542EF4-3CB6-463B-AD25-9F247102E503&Options=ID|Text|&Search=Oregon+Hill

As shown in the attached 1990 plan for the linear city park, 606 Spring Street and 609 China Street are essential portions of Oregon Hill’s park. (Please see attachment.)

Please update all city records to show that 606 Spring Street and 609 China Street are city park land. Our city park land is precious.

Sincerely,

Charles Pool

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 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.

Condolences to friends and family of recycling worker Matthew L. Pitchford. He was struck by a car and killed this past week in Chesterfield County. Please be careful around work trucks of all kinds.

Planning Director Punked!

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At the Planning Commission meeting today, Planning Director Mark Olinger stated that he was highly offended by the rendering of the possible building that could be constructed in Oregon Hill if the ‘mixed-used’ designation with four-six story building height was approved. He stated that he would never allow such a horrible building to be constructed in Oregon Hill. Apparently Mr. Olinger did not realize that it was a photo of the very building that he approved in Oregon Hill on West Cary Street! He simply cannot be trusted.

Of course, when Oregon Hill resident Charles Pool tried to respond to Olinger’s presentation, the Planning Commission Chair muted him.

We need a new Planning director, and probably a whole new administration and Planning Commission. The Richmond300 plan cannot be allowed be allowed to pass when it is effectively ignoring the input of citizens who just don’t want to see their neighborhood ruined by greedy developers.

This is what we can expect from Richmond’s establishment, which has a bad history of running roughshod over its less wealthy residents. Sadly, its doubtful the local media will pick up on it, because they do not want to offend said establishment.

Sundial

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In Hollywood Cemetery, in front of the massive mausoleum for Lewis Ginter, is found a very modest sundial marker for his heir and niece, Miss Grace Arents.

On the sundial reads the words: “FROM SCHEME AND CREED THE LIGHTS GO OUT THE SAINTLY FACT SURVIVES THE BLESSED MASTER NONE CAN DOUBT REVEALED IN SAINTLY LIVES.”

Miss Grace Arents was the “patron saint” of Oregon Hill. With her inheritance from Lewis Ginter, she generously gave to the Oregon Hill neighborhood. Among her remarkable contributions are the St. Andrews Church, the William Byrd Community House, the Grace Arents School (now Open High) and the Grace Arents Housing on Cumberland St., perhaps the first and finest subsidized low-income housing in Richmond. (This Grace Arents Housing is now fenced off and the neighborhood is concerned that the future of this important part of her legacy is threatened.)

Mayor Wants To Take Away Park Land For ‘Affordable Housing’

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Mayor Stoney’s Biennial Real Estate Strategies Plan wants to use city land to promote affordable housing development and affordable homeownership.
To that end, it proposes taking City-owned parcels to the Maggie Walker Community Land Trust (MWCLT) for the development of affordable homes.

It is including at least two parcels in Oregon Hill’s Samuel Parsons Park in this proposal.

(and least people think this just about Oregon Hill, the Biennial Estate Strategies Plan also identifies other city park lands such as 1800 Maplewood in the Randolph neighborhood and 1901-1905 Conrad Street in the East End as building sites.)

Neighbors, understandably, are very upset. But so far, either the Mayor’s office, other City officials, the media, and the Mayor’s challengers in the election are ignorant of the proposal or don’t care.

Of course, many neighbors believe in and support affordable housing, and have done so historically in Oregon Hill and elsewhere.

But this proposal is bringing up bad memories from when other parts of the park were built on due to City government’s (and in particular, the Planning Department’s) ineptitude and callousness.

It’s part of the utter disregard for established neighborhood plans and the neighborhood’s dream for a Belvidere greenway.

Neighbors can’t help but see this as part of a coordinated attack on the Oregon Hill neighborhood in conjunction with the disastrous Richmond300 plan. If they were not aware of the target lines being drawn on the community before, they are becoming aware now.