We took a principled — and now seemingly prescient — stance against the $1.5 billion Coliseum replacement and Downtown redevelopment plan that was pushed so hard by Mayor Levar M. Stoney and Dominion Energy CEO Thomas F. Farrell II, leader of the Navy Hill District Corp.

While it seems eons ago, City Council’s rejection of the expensive plan took place on Feb. 10, just two and a half months ago.

But as the city now grapples with multimillion-dollar budget gaps brought on by major losses in revenue because of the impacts of the coronavirus pandemic, we are even more thankful that the project was voted down by the level-headed members of City Council.

Already, city budget officials are anticipating a $38.5 million shortfall in the city’s general fund budget that is to go into effect on July 1.

Mayor Stoney and City Council also don’t know how badly the current 2019-20 budget will be hit by the loss of tax revenue from businesses, restaurants, entertainment and other venues that have been shut down during the emergency order. Nor do they know how long it will take customers to feel safe patronizing these public places once the order is lifted and business — and city tax revenue — goes back to “normal.”

Until an effective coronavirus vaccine is in place, the financial impact of COVID-19 on our city possibly will be felt for months, and potentially for a year or two.

Imagine if our city — and the Richmond taxpayers — were on the hook for the next 30 years for the $600 million construction cost of a new 17,500-seat Coliseum. Our poorly resourced public schools are struggling now with the latest news that they may only have a $6 million budget increase for 2020-21.

Some of the businesses that committed to moving into the new office towers may be in the midst of furloughs and cutbacks as a result of COVID-19, pushing even further out the projected tax gains the city was expected to reap. Additionally, the pandemic may have forced developers to modify or scrap their plans for the big convention center hotel and apartments that were included in the development.

So the rosy picture painted by the Navy Hill District Corp. and consultants might not have come to pass.

Thankfully, we the people have been spared what likely would have become another empty promise.

In the meantime, we are relying on the leadership of Mayor Stoney, City Council and the city’s top budget officials to adroitly steer Richmond through the rocky shoals created by the pandemic. We don’t want Richmond to wind up shipwrecked — like U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell is suggesting should happen to states — or for the city’s most vulnerable residents to be tossed overboard by any budget reductions that must be made.

We urge the administration and City Council to be creative, compassionate and transparent in this process. The lack of transparency and the need for greater public input were cited in rejecting the Coliseum plan. We don’t want that to hamper prudent decisions about the city budget.