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President calls on religious groups to speak out on poverty
The African-American boy who grew up with an absent father, who started his work life as a community organizer on the payroll of a Catholic agency and who later became U.S. president had plenty to say about poverty in our “winner-take-all” economy. President Obama spoke Tuesday of “ladders of opportunity” once denied to black people and now being dismantled for poor white people as their difficult lives get that much more difficult: “It’s hard being poor. It’s time-consuming. It’s stressful.”
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Michigan officials face charges in Flint water crisis
Michigan prosecutors on Tuesday charged four former government officials in Flint, including two city emergency managers, with conspiring to violate safety rules in connection with the city’s water crisis that exposed residents to dangerous levels of lead.
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High hopes
We had high hopes for great improvement in Richmond Public Schools when Dr. Dana T. Bedden took over as superintendent in January 2014. He sounded the
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Dry spell broken for Cleveland’s pro teams
It has been a long time between sips of champagne in Northeast Ohio. Led by LeBron James’ MVP performance, the Cleveland Cavaliers scored a heroic Game 7 win Sunday night over the favored Golden State Warriors to clinch the NBA title and end decades of sports frustration in the Midwest city. The Cleveland Cavaliers were an NBA expansion squad in 1970. They reached the playoff finals in 2007, losing 4-0 to the San Antonio Spurs and falling 4-2 to Golden State in the 2015 finals.
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Wilder sues VCU president, dean of school named for him
He may be 86, but former Gov. L. Douglas Wilder is showing Virginia Commonwealth University he is not to be trifled with.
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City Council acts to reduce ‘drama’ during annual school funding debates
Richmond Public Schools each year would receive at least 55.4 percent of all real estate tax revenue City Hall collects under a policy unanimously approved Monday night by Richmond City Council.
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Thomas Jefferson starts football season with new field, new quarterback and new classification
Jaylen Tyler scored three touchdowns in Thomas Jefferson High School’s opening 48-6 win at Colonial Heights High School. Shamar Graham tallied three touchdowns in the home-opening 56-6 rout of Armstrong High School on Wednesday, Sept. 4.
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Washington or Virginia Commanders? Va. aims to lure NFL team
Virginia lawmakers are advancing a measure intended to lure the Washington Commanders to the state by allowing the NFL team to forgo what could be $1 billion or more in future tax payments to help finance a potential new football stadium.
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City Council to vote on new $772M budget plan May 10
The first ever city pay supplement for public defenders who represent most Richmond residents charged with crimes.
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Planning commission gives Walker statue final oK
Coming soon: The statue and memorial plaza honoring Richmond great Maggie L. Walker at a gateway to the historical African-American section of Downtown known as Jackson Ward.
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$3.4B:City Council approves 2018-2020 spending plan
Richmond high school students will be able to take unlimited free rides on GRTC buses beginning July 1. Organized activities for city youths also will be beefed up starting in July, with city recreation centers operating longer hours and after-school programs at elementary and middle schools being upgraded.
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City Council member wants to send Richmond 300 plan back to drawing board
Too many flaws. That’s City Councilwoman Ellen F. Robertson’s take on a proposed new master plan, dubbed “Richmond 300,” to guide the city’s future development and enable Virginia’s capital to become the “welcoming inclusive, diverse, innovative place” it seeks to be.
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RRHA tenants to get refunds in lawsuit settlement
The Richmond Redevelopment and Housing Authority, which is the landlord for Richmond’s public housing, has agreed to refund nearly $1 million to current and former tenants who were overcharged for electricity over four years. In addition, the RRHA plans to return nearly $80,000 to tenants as it implements new utility allowances that will increase the amount of power tenants can use before they must pay.
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School Board approves $224.7M for school buildings
The Richmond School Board once again is challenging the mayor and City Council to find money to start replacing or renovating the decrepit public school buildings a majority of students attend.
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Lost cause
Richmond City Council rejects resolution requesting General Assembly approval for authority over city’s Confederate monuments
The racist Confederate past has maintained its stranglehold on Richmond’s future.
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More fresh regionally grown produce headed to school cafeterias
More fresh lettuce, tomatoes and other regionally grown produce could be headed to the cafeteria meals served to students in schools in Richmond and Henrico and Chesterfield counties.
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VCU to get $16M to purchase new stadium site
The General Assembly just gave a big boost to the plan to build a replacement for The Diamond baseball stadium on the stateAlcoholic Beverage Control Authority property at Hermitage and Robin Hood roads.
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Mellody Hobson, a Black woman, joins Broncos ownership group
The Waltons, heirs to the Walmart fortune and America’s richest family, have won the bidding to purchase the Denver Broncos in the most expensive deal for a sports franchise anywhere in the world.