Q&A with Andreas Addison, candidate for Richmond mayor

Election Day is three weeks away, and this year, it’s a five-way race for Richmond’s next mayor.

Richmond voters will decide between City Councilmember Andreas Addison, physician Danny Avula, former councilmember Michelle Mosby, community advocate Maurice Neblett, and nonprofit founder Harrison Roday.

The candidates responded to questions from BizSense about their priorities for Richmond, how they’ll support business growth and economic development, and other topics that will shape the city’s future.

Each day this week, we’re presenting their responses, with candidates presented in alphabetical order.

We start today with Addison, who has represented Richmond’s First District since 2017 and previously worked at City Hall for eight years. The 42-year-old Virginia Tech alum owns Pure Fitness RVA and is an adjunct professor at UVA’s Frank Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy. He has an MBA from the University of Richmond Robins School of Business.

Richmond BizSense: What are your economic development priorities for Richmond? How do you plan to support business growth in the city?

Andreas Addison

Andreas Addison: The city’s operating budget has grown in the last five years from $640 million to $1 billion. It’s time for Richmond to start competing in the region by recruiting and engaging businesses of all sizes, not only in the context of large-scale development projects.

My administration will restructure the Economic Development Authority to be a one-stop shop for entrepreneurs to learn, network, grow, and succeed. The EDA will identify opportunities for business development and lower barriers to entry for SWaM businesses to open and grow in new and expanded commercial corridors. There will also be a small business portal that directs inquisitive entrepreneurs through the process of opening a business step-by-step with online forms and advice on permissible uses of potential spaces. With help from the EDA, applying for and renewing a business license will be available online.

We should also leverage the EDA to direct funding and resources towards creative-centric businesses and projects like festivals, performances and public art. We have incredible creatives in Richmond – from artists, filmmakers, musicians, dancers, designers, architects, and even advertisers – who advance economic growth in the city. This can be done through diversifying tourism demand, marketing campaigns, public procurement, and transforming spaces to accommodate our creative economy.

I’m also prioritizing technological upgrades to pay taxes, submit permits, renew business licenses and submit service requests. Outdated technological systems prevent City Hall from having accurate and updated records, seamless communication, and an online system to easily process applications and payments.

Small businesses are an economic engine for Richmond’s economy. But workers are the engines powering small businesses. To have a thriving economy, we need a healthy workforce with access to care, affordable housing, education and training. In my first 100 days, I will launch plans to build a state-of-the-art Southside Workforce Development Center for RPS students, university graduates and individuals looking to advance or even transition in their careers.

I’m also committed to improving neighborhoods with well-funded schools, parks, libraries, sidewalks and amenities built around public transit. And building up Southside is a priority investment for me so our planned growth will also bring jobs and grocery stores to South Richmond.

RBS: What do you see as the No. 1 challenge holding back Richmond’s growth potential? How do you plan to address it?

AA: Vision. Richmond has been digging itself out of a financial hole for the last several decades. We are held back by a scarcity mindset that limits our ability to see and embrace our full potential.

Limited thinking is holding Richmond back. My administration will focus on shifting the culture of “no” and complacency to saying “yes” to new ideas and technologies. Yes, to collaborative decision-making. Yes, to solutions and investments that will lead Richmond forward.

My administration will confront and dismantle barriers to success and opportunity for all communities. A few examples include my economic plan, which focuses on supporting businesses and entrepreneurs who have faced systemic barriers to opportunity. My housing plan focuses on preserving and creating genuinely affordable housing for hardworking Richmonders and lowering burdens on homeowners, especially legacy residents. My education plan creates support networks for our youth, like after-school programs, apprenticeships and scholarships, so all students, regardless of their background, can access pathways to success.

Each one of my plans is focused on confronting the barriers that have held our city back and unlocking our limitless potential.

RBS: Are you satisfied with the plan for the Diamond District development? Do you support the plan to redevelop the City Center area and replace the Coliseum?

AA: City Council voted to save the stadium and to keep our beloved Richmond Squirrels. However, the plan has been subject to criticism due to the changes in financing since it was introduced in 2022. The process has highlighted our limited strength and resources to support economic growth and development projects.

Economic Development Authorities are able to create their own debt and bonds to support real estate projects. Chesterfield County EDA purchased the former Cloverleaf Mall location to lead its conversion into a now blossoming new neighborhood and shopping center that has created new housing, businesses and revenues. We need to be able to deploy our EDA resources to support projects like this all across the city. The Diamond District project showed that we are not organized in this capacity, limiting our ability to embrace the full potential of our opportunities.

We need to turn our focus from the dollar value of these projects and to making each part the highest quality possible. For example, we could have split the project into separate parts for a hotel, apartments, townhomes, offices and mixed-use developments, and bid out each to the best partner for each. The lessons learned through the delays and changes in the Diamond District process should be applied to our City Center plan.

We need hotels downtown to support our convention center to attract more visitors and tourists to Richmond. We need mixed-income and mixed-use developments that activate our streetscapes and make supporting our new downtown businesses easier. This will strengthen our revenues downtown by bringing people to support our local businesses.

As Mayor, I will focus on bringing high-quality economic development projects that fully embrace our potential, strengthen our economy, and further support our small businesses and residents. Every economic development project must benefit the city and improve the quality of life for our residents through access to new amenities, new housing options, new jobs and new businesses.

RBS: How will you address recent increases in real estate tax assessments in the city? Is more tax relief needed for small businesses and residents?

AA: Tax relief is absolutely needed for residents and small businesses. The city depends on our tax base to fund our schools, public amenities, and the delivery of city services. But people who are choosing to stay in their homes are being punished for it because their neighbor sold their house. And City Hall hasn’t done the best job of ensuring that residents see a direct reinvestment for neighborhood improvements.

Additionally, Richmond’s businesses pay triple the tax rate than Chesterfield and Henrico. This stifles our ability to compete in the region and attract new business to Richmond, and keep the businesses we have in the city.

There are three things we can do:

• – shift to Land Value Tax. In 2020, I worked with Rep. McClellan (then-Senator Jennifer McClellan) to pass legislation allowing Richmond to adopt a Land Value Tax (LVT) model that shifts our focus from taxing buildings to taxing land value itself. This revenue model is a smarter, more equitable approach that ensures Richmond grows responsibly — without displacing residents or stifling development;
• – raise the BPOL threshold. As mayor, I will raise the BPOL threshold to $1,000,000 and decrease the current BPOL tax rate ($0.58/$100) until it matches the regional rate of ($0.20/$100). I raised the Business Professional Occupational License (BPOL) tax threshold from $100,000 to $250,000 to support Richmond’s smallest business owners. More than 50% of businesses that paid BPOL taxes in 2023 did not have to pay in 2024;
• – decrease real estate tax and provide a rebate. Decrease the real estate tax rate by 2-cents from $1.20 to $1.18 per $100 of assessed property value and provide a 2-cent rebate for lower-income residents.

Here’s what these changes will do:

• – lowers the tax burden on homeowners, on seniors, and those on fixed incomes who struggle to keep up with rising taxes. Homeowners won’t be taxed more for improvements or additions to their homes and their annual tax bills remain steady;
• – turns blighted and unused properties into housing, commercial spaces and mixed-used developments. This creates a market incentive to increase our housing supply and create housing at all price points;
• – supports a vibrant local economy with additional revenue for the city, boosting services and infrastructure for small businesses and residents.

RBS: Are you satisfied with the current approach to encouraging housing affordability in the city? What would you do differently to address Richmond’s declared housing crisis?

AA: For many Richmonders, housing costs are rising faster than incomes, especially for low-wage earners and seniors on fixed incomes. The financial strain is having the worst impacts on Black and Brown communities and legacy residents who cannot keep up with costs. We need to intervene as a city to address homelessness, avoid evictions and reduce displacement.

• – Create more housing. Simply put, Richmond’s housing crisis is fueled by scarcity. We need to create a diversity of housing at all price points. My administration will confront this crisis by realigning the city’s development rules to encourage new homes that fit anyone’s budget. Updating our zoning ordinances will also create more housing types throughout the city and greater density along enhanced transit corridors.
• – Reduce evictions. I created the city’s first-ever Right to Counsel program to help tenants navigate the eviction process with help from an attorney. I will work with City Council to expand funding for this program. Additionally, the One Shot Deal Eviction Diversion would provide a one-time grant to Richmonders to cover housing-related expenses and help them stay in their homes.
• – Confront homelessness. The city can reach its goal of ensuring that homelessness is rare, brief, and one-time by expanding partnerships, providing wraparound services, and leveraging city-owned properties suitable for conversion to emergency housing or services. Richmond also needs to amend the zoning ordinance to allow by right emergency shelter units and permanent supportive housing units.
• – Transform RRHA. My administration will center RRHA residents in redeveloping Richmond’s public housing stock and provide community members the opportunity to negotiate the terms of redevelopment through a Tenant Bill of Rights. We will also assist over-income public housing residents transition to market-rate housing, develop small area plans with inclusive community input, and integrate the city’s and the RRHA’s housing objectives into a comprehensive strategy for RRHA residents to build wealth.
• – Collaborate regionally. My administration will align with regional partners like the Partnership for Housing Affordability (PHA), Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development, and Virginia Housing to increase homeownership, particularly among Black and Brown households, and improve relationships with landlords regarding the Housing choice voucher program.

RBS: Do you support how City Hall has been responding to issues surrounding meals tax collections, the finance department, and permitting and plan reviews? What else needs to be done?

Addison was among local business owners who spoke out against delays with the city’s permitting office when he was opening his gym in Scott’s Addition. (BizSense file photo)

AA: Back in 2012, I participated in an employee survey when I worked at City Hall. Results showed that City Hall employees overwhelmingly said they did not have the training they needed, systems to operate, nor accurate information to do their job correctly the first time. Here we are in 2024 and those are the three things that the recently terminated employees of the Finance Department listed as their challenges.

This is about understanding the challenges faced by our frontline employees. The mayor and CAO must understand the training, systems and information needed for employees to do their job well. From the meals tax issue, problems in the Finance Department, FOIA compliance, a whistleblower lawsuit and credit card misuse — there continues to be a string of crises caused by poor decision-making, a lack of transparency, and poor oversight.

There are short-term and long-term plans I will put in place to have a well-resourced, responsive, community-involved, and proactive City Hall, including:

• – efficient and personalized services with text and email updates with responsive city services to pay your bills online, get building permits, and track progress on applications;
• – streamlining permitting process by hosting weekly Friday morning meetings with every decision-maker involved in the building permitting process to review and approve permits;
• –  language and digital access in English and Spanish, recruit and retain Latino staff in front-facing offices, and work with advocates to develop a comprehensive Language Access Plan. Plus, my administration will work on the user experience of the website and social media so individuals with disabilities can access information (e.g. alt text, caption videos);
• – hiring a new Chief Technology Officer to overhaul and update our technology infrastructure, so city services are available by phone, mobile app and a streamlined in-person experience;
• – collaborating with City Council in the early stages of the budget cycle to identify funding priorities in each district and create a budget that reflects our shared values and hard work;
• – supporting our Finance Department, frontline employees and City Council to triage and rectify bills for accuracy, upgrade financial systems, and develop measurable performance management goals;
• – meaningful community engagement with constituents through quarterly meetings and a greater presence in your neighborhoods so we hear your ideas and concerns year-round.

RBS: You’ve said that you would not retain the current chief administrative officer if elected. How will you keep leadership changes from disrupting city initiatives that are already underway?

AA: In my 16 years of experience as a public servant, I’ve worked with seven CAOs during that time.

I understand the need for stability and minimal disruption for operations. As we look for a new CAO, I will make the direct ask for the current CAO to support the transition at City Hall so operations can run smoothly as we conduct a national search for a replacement.

During this search period, I will work with City Council and RPS School Board, city managers and leaders from Henrico and Chesterfield counties as well as nonprofit leaders, small business owners and community members on choosing the next CAO for Richmond.