Councilwoman Kim B. Gray launches bid for mayor
Kim B. Gray drew cheers from more than 125 supporters as she vowed to usher in a hands-on, people-centered city government if she wins the race for mayor in the November election.
Virginia House-Senate disagreement threatens proposed minimum wage hike
One of the biggest fights in the waning days of the General Assembly involves raising the minimum wage from the current federal $7.25 an hour.
Richmond Public Library ends fines for overdue materials
Forget being hit with a fine for the late return of a book, recording or other item borrowed from the Richmond Public Library.
Judge dismisses $30M lawsuit stemming from traffic stop
A judge has thrown out a Richmond woman’s $30 million lawsuit claiming civil rights violations by a Richmond Police officer and the city government after she was handcuffed during a traffic stop.
Gray candidacy announcement set for Sunday; another mayoral challenger expected
Richmond City Councilwoman Kim B. Gray plans to formally announce her challenge to Mayor Levar M. Stoney this weekend.
St. Luke Building ready for tenants
The historic 117-year-old office building in which Richmond business great Maggie L. Walker launched a bank and led a crusade for African-American economic independence has been renovated into an apartment building that is ready to welcome its first tenants.
Developer interest in Coliseum and Downtown persists despite claims
Developer interest in the vacant Richmond Coliseum and Downtown real estate near it appears to be alive and well.
Blood Feud
Descendant pushes to be recognized by Pamunkey Tribe despite vestiges of ‘Black Laws’
The Pamunkey Indian Tribe’s fight in the General Assembly for the right to build gambling casinos in Richmond and Norfolk is shining a renewed spotlight on the tribe’s use of racial bigotry to ensure its survival.
Polls open on Super Tuesday March 3 for Democratic presidential primary contest
Voters in Virginia are getting their chance to help select the Democratic contender to face President Trump in the fall election.
Pamunkey tribe's status as preferred casino developer in question
Will the Pamunkey Indian Tribe hold on to its status as the preferred developer of resort hotel-casinos in Richmond and Norfolk?
VCU receives funding for pediatric brain injury research
Children who suffer brain injuries as the result of accidents or playing sports are expected to get more dedicated care at the Children’s Hospital of Richmond at VCU as the result of new funding.
New children's library to open Feb. 20 at Whitcomb Court
Whitcomb Court is getting a new children’s library from the Fountain of Youth Foundation.
City's credit rating upgraded
Richmond’s government has moved closer to its long-term goal of achieving an AAA credit rating from Wall Street credit rating agencies.
Life as they know it: Homeless residents of Cathy's Camp tent city talk about drawbacks of leaving
Money and comfort are among the reasons that the homeless encampment across from the Richmond Justice Center is still standing and the city’s goal of dismantling it is still unrealized.
Catholic Diocese of Richmond launches new victims compensation process
The Catholic Diocese of Richmond wants to ensure that people who were victims of sexual abuse by priests and deacons are compensated as part of its efforts “to assist in the healing.”
VCU to open STEM center to aid area public school students
Careers in science, technology, engineering and math are booming.
Councilwoman to challenge Stoney for mayor, sources say
For months, City Councilwoman Kim B. Gray, 2nd District, has been the only person mentioned as a possible opponent to Mayor Levar M. Stoney in his November re-election bid.
Casino gambling advances with Pamunkey Tribe in the driver's seat
The Pamunkey Indian Tribe has gained a boost from the General Assembly in its efforts to build lavish casino-resort hotels in Richmond and Norfolk.
Begin Again
City Council majority strikes $1.5B Coliseum and Downtown development project, urging the administration to start over with public inclusion
Start over — and this time include the public. That’s the cry from the five members of Richmond City Council who followed through Monday night in eliminating the $1.5 billion Coliseum replacement and Downtown redevelopment plan, just as they said they would do when the nine-member governing body met last week as a committee.
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.
Legal help offers children healthier futures
One silver lining for a parent with a child being treated at the Children’s Hospital of Richmond at Virginia Commonwealth University is access to free legal services.
Goldman drops appeal in plan for Coliseum referendum
Paul Goldman, leader of the Put Schools First campaign, is dropping his appeal of a Richmond Circuit Court ruling that blocked his efforts to put an advisory referendum on the ballot last November for Richmond voters to weigh in on the $1.5 billion Coliseum replacement plan.
School Board starts process for VCU to take over historic Moore Street School
Virginia Commonwealth University has gained a boost for its plan to take over the historic and vacant Moore Street School to expand the day care operation that its School of Education operates on the Monroe Park Campus. The Richmond School Board voted 8-1 Monday night to start the process of enabling VCU to obtain the building.
Mayor withdraws proposal to name city park plaza for Dominion Energy
A new plaza proposed for the city-owned Low Line Green that runs along the Capital Trail on the riverfront will not bear the name of Dominion Energy.
More bad news
As consultant points out flaws, City Council majority gives Mayor Stoney a choice to withdraw the $1.5B Coliseum and Downtown development plan or have it stricken
The bad news just keeps coming for the doomed $1.5 billion proposal to replace the Richmond Coliseum and develop an area of Downtown around it.
RRHA's 2018-19 HUD plan included Creighton Court redevelopment
An empty construction trailer now sits on the grounds of the long-vacant Baker School building in Gilpin Court. The arrival of the trailer that is to serve as construction offices is the first signal that the pending redevelopment of the building at 100 W. Baker St. into 51 senior apartments might soon begin.
Former Chesterfield NAACP president files defamation suit against branch treasurer
The former president of the Chesterfield Branch NAACP is seeking payback after being accused of embezzling branch funds last year in a case that ultimately was dismissed.
City Council approves Salvation Army headquarters move; honors former park superintendent
The Salvation Army will be able to move its headquarters and shelter from Downtown to 1900 Chamberlayne Ave., next to a Wells Fargo bank branch.
At 'Camp Cathy' tent city for the homeless, people live by the rules
Rhonda L. Sneed is proud of creating the most affordable housing community in Richmond — a tent city located on Oliver Hill Way across the street from the Richmond Justice Center.
Jackson Ward resident starting Wall of Love to help those in need
Richmond is about to join the Walls of Love movement that seeks to provide basic necessities to the homeless and needy without any questions or judgments.
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.
Mayor eschews status quo, urges city to think bigger in State of City address
Stop being afraid to do something great. That’s Mayor Levar M. Stoney’s response to the opposition to the $1.5 billion Coliseum replacement plan that so far has failed to gain widespread public support.
Full-court press
Navy Hill District Corp. is pulling out all stops as Feb. 24 vote by City Council on $1.5B Coliseum replacement and Downtown development nears
From robocalls to press conferences, the Navy Hill District Corp. that Dominion Energy top executive Thomas F. Farrell II heads is pulling out all the stops to generate public support for the $1.5 billion Richmond Coliseum replacement plan ahead of the scheduled vote by City Council in late February.
Pamunkey Tribe launches plan for $350M casino resort in South Side
A Virginia Indian tribe that includes Richmond as part of the territory where tribal ancestors lived and hunted before the English invasion is planning to make a splashy return to this modern city in the form of a $350 million resort hotel and casino.
Monument Avenue group raises $107,000 for Carver Elementary
A new microphone system for the auditorium. Whiteboards and projectors in every classroom. Kidney-shaped desks in each room to allow teachers to work with small groups of children needing extra attention. Those are the kinds of items that soon will be coming to Carver Elementary School, thanks to a successful fundraiser that a nonprofit group conducted on behalf of the school.
VCU breaks silence on retirement of Charles 'Jabo' Wilkins' jersey
Virginia Commonwealth University officials are offering two reasons that the No. 40 jersey of the late Charles “Jabo” Wilkins likely will never hang from the rafters of the Siegel Center, the Rams’ home court.
$200M loss spurs City Council to revise real estate tax abatement program
For at least two decades, Richmond has primed the redevelopment pump by allowing individuals and companies that improve aging houses, apartment buildings and commercial properties to pay reduced property taxes over 10 years without any restrictions.
Nonprofit regional partnership works to tackle housing affordability issues
Soaring housing costs are leaving tens of thousands of families across the Richmond region hard-pressed to pay the rent or purchase a residence.
Planned Parenthood to open clinic in Church Hill
The former home of Edloe’s Pharmacy and Drs. Frank S. and Harry W. Royal’s medical practices in Church Hill is being transformed into a full-service women’s clinic for the Virginia League for Planned Parenthood.
Mayor withdraws proposal to change definition of 'emerging small businesses'
A proposal to redefine City Hall’s definition of “emerging small businesses” has been scrapped following a Free Press report last week highlighting the potential detriment the change could create for city-based businesses seeking city contracts.
Voting begins this week in Virginia's Democratic presidential primary
The first votes in the Democratic presidential primary in Virginia will be cast this week — 45 days before the scheduled March 3 primary election across the state.
Mayor, Navy Hill officials try to sweeten the pot for $1.5B Coliseum plan approval
Can a series of revisions save the massive $1.5 billion Coliseum replacement and Downtown redevelopment plan that for months has appeared to be headed for rejection by Richmond City Council?
Bill would set up regional transportation authority and generate $ for public projects, including GRTC transfer station
A proposal that could generate tens of millions of dollars for roads and GRTC transit service in Richmond and eight other localities in the region is working its way through the General Assembly.
Salvation Arms headquarters move to North Side has clear path from City Council
The Salvation Army appears to have won its nine-month battle to move its Central Virginia headquarters and shelter program from Downtown to North Side after the main opponent, 3rd District Councilman Chris A. Hilbert, dropped his opposition.
Richmond to lower natural gas prices
A yearlong sag in the wholesale price of natural gas will finally show up on the bills of residential and business customers in Richmond.
Mayor seeks to change definition of emerging small business
For more than 15 years, City Hall has sought to use its purchasing power to boost start-up and fledgling companies, often with minority ownership, that generally bring in less than $500,000 a year in revenue and have 10 or fewer employees.
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.
City Council takes step to control Confederate statues
The Richmond City Council took its first step toward control over the statues of the slavery-defending Confederate traitors that line Monument Avenue and have long sat on other public property in the city.
'Bunching' problem plaguing Pulse service
The Pulse’s reputation for fast, reliable service has begun to take a hit, with the potential to undermine the public transit company’s ability to get more people to skip their cars and take the bus.
Federal appeals panel halts Dominion pipeline compressor station in Buckingham County
Dominion Energy has been blocked from building a key element of the Atlantic Coast Pipeline in a historic African-American community in rural Buckingham County.
