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Va. Supreme Court turns back clock on restoration of felons’ rights
David Mosby, 46, had tears in his eyes when he registered to vote for the first time in his life. That was three months ago.
Mayor proposes tax hikes to fund improvements
Richmond has monster needs. Most of its schools are decaying, its streets are falling apart, its parks and public buildings need renovation — but it has maxed out its credit card and can’t afford to borrow any more money.
Hampton U cancer treatment center may get boost from General Assembly
The Virginia General Assembly is poised to hand Hampton University a major victory in its bid to boost the use of its seven-year-old, $225 million cancer treatment center that uses proton beam radiation therapy to help eradicate the disease in its patients.
Petersburg roils with turmoil
There’s trouble in Petersburg. Petitions are being circulated to remove Petersburg Mayor W. Howard Myers. Separately, a majority of the Petersburg City Council has voted to begin talks to remove Petersburg City Manager William E. Johnson III and City Attorney Brian K. Telfair, although some are questioning whether the action came at a legal meeting. All of this comes as residents are venting over the way the city is being managed, over sky-high water bills and about property tax bills that are arriving close to the deadline for payment.
Governor vetoes bills ahead of April 10 deadline
Richmond and other localities can still, if they choose, require employers with government contracts to pay workers a “living wage” that is well above the current $7.25 an hour federal minimum wage. However, the state will not be creating an experimental, independent school system where students in kindergarten through 12th grade could take all of their classes on a home computer or laptop.
City changes
Richmond population grows; it’s no longer majority black
After growing up in Richmond, Patti B. Wright joined the wave of people leaving the city for the suburbs when her son, Joshua M. “Josh” Wright, was a toddler. But now that her son is grown, she felt “it no longer made sense to live out in the country at the end of a dirt road.”
Henrico cop indicted
Kimberly McNeil made that plea to a Henrico County police officer who was firing into a car in which she was a passenger. Her plea went unanswered, a cousin recounted, as Officer Joel D. Greenway, continued shooting at her as her fiancé, Robert Davis, tried to drive away from the Exxon station where they had just purchased gas Dec. 15.
No go
5 City Council members ask Mayor Stoney to withdraw $1.5B Coliseum replacement and Downtown redevelopment plan, a major signal he doesn't have the votes needed for approval
The $1.5 billion Coliseum replacement plan is dead. Five members of Richmond City Council sounded the death knell Monday night by introducing a resolution calling on Mayor Levar M. Stoney to withdraw the ordinances regarding the project he presented last summer and to work with City Council to create a plan for developing the city-owned property near City Hall that could generate public support.
City day care program rolls out with waiting list
The new school year launched Tuesday with all classes online in Richmond, but the promise of a robust, city-supported day care program for children of working parents and for parents with weak links to the internet has yet to be fulfilled — and it is unclear when it will be.
Under fire
Calls grow for Interim Chief Blackwell to resign after word of his fatal 2002 officer-involved shooting
Interim Richmond Police Chief William V. “Jody” Blackwell is supposed to be the right person to focus on “necessary public safety reform, healing and trust building within the community.”
‘Defunding police’ rejected
Richmond City Council kills proposal to examine police funding in social, mental health and community services and move the money to other departments
No to reducing the Richmond Police budget to assuage demonstrators’ demands to “defund police.”
Confederate icons swept from Virginia Capitol building
After 88 years, the statue of Confederate traitor Robert E. Lee is gone from the State Capitol.
Remnants of the Confederacy
The statue of Gen. J.E.B. Stuart, the last of the four city-owned Confederate statues on Monument Avenue, was taken down and moved to storage Tuesday
The former capital of the Confederacy has largely been wiped clean of the racist statuary that has long dominated the landscape.
In deep: IRS filings show Dominion Energy committed $20M over 20 years for naming rights for a new Coliseum
Dominion Energy is more entwined in the $1.5 billion Coliseum replacement and Downtown redevelopment proposal than previously disclosed.
Free GRTC bus service being eyed
Free rides on GRTC buses? That idea has begun to percolate as a proposal by Richmond Delegate Delores L. McQuinn to create a regional transportation authority to provide new funding for roads and public transit moves through the General Assembly.
Navy Hill ship sinking?
Scrutiny of Coliseum replacement plan reveals major gaps
The grand plan Mayor Levar M. Stoney is pushing to replace the Richmond Coliseum with $1.5 billion in new Downtown development does not appear to include enough affordable housing to meet a City Council requirement.
Sickle cell advocate wins fight for high-dose opioids
George H. Carter appears to have won his fight to ensure that people like himself who suffer from sickle cell disease can get the high dosages of opioids needed to control the excruciating pain.
Put Schools First offers $650M plan to modernize city schools
The volunteer Put Schools First committee is rolling out a plan that calls for spending $650 million to modernize all of Richmond’s public schools — with a goal of having 19 completed within seven years and the remaining buildings done within 12 years.
City Council vote on meals tax hike set for Feb.12
Proving more adept at corralling a majority of City Council votes on a big issue than former Mayors L. Douglas Wilder and Dwight C. Jones, Mayor Levar M. Stoney is rushing to gain quick approval of his plan to raise the city’s current 6 percent meals tax by 1.5 cents.
Councilman Agelasto’s move out of 5th District puts seat in jeopardy
A giant question mark now hangs over 5th District City Councilman Parker C. Agelasto. His continued service on Richmond’s governing body appears to be in jeopardy after a constituent who is a former state elections official disclosed to the media that the councilman and his family now live in the 1st District.
