Government

“It’s really hard to hear your stories and know that there were solutions that we’re voting on now that we could’ve done earlier,” Councilmember Katherine Jordan told restaurant owners before Monday’s approval.

Transferring the land has been needed for the creation of the project’s community development authority, which would help fund the new ballpark that’s planned to replace The Diamond.

“I think we were all embarrassed by what we read about the City of Richmond…but localities have the ability to fix this problem,” Sen. Creigh Deeds said during Tuesday’s deliberations.

The project would add a 10-foot-wide shared use path that would connect to a new two-way bike lane, all of which would run alongside the Libbie Mill development.

“It’s not going to happen overnight,” Richmond CAO Lincoln Saunders said of about 500 accounts that the city is reviewing in light of high tax bills due to late fees and interest charges.

The 2024 agreement is largely similar to the contract that regulated EventMakers’ use of the venue last year, though it tweaks the fees paid to the county for use of the site and how long concerts can last into the night.

GRTC is looking at five sites across the city for the home of its future bus station hub, which would incorporate a larger mixed-use development and be the permanent successor to the temporary facility it opened last year.

The state Senate has passed legislation that could ease a regulation that’s long been a point of contention for many of Virginia’s bars and restaurants.

Described as the county’s birthplace, the former plantation straddles Interstate 295 on the north end of the Varina-Enon Bridge and once served as Henrico’s seat of government.

“With the media attention and the number of people who have reached out to us, it’s become more apparent that there are specific, common issues between a lot of these business owners that we could address legislatively,” City Council President Kristen Nye said.