Moving Richmond forward: plan action

The city of Richmond is a treasure. I feel honored to have served its citizens for the past five years and to have worked on many initiatives to enhance the planning and development of the city. It is my hope that these initiatives will continue forward to ensure that Richmond remains competitive and prosperous. In particular I recommend a concentration in four areas.

Transportation

The Richmond region needs to wean itself from an automobile-focused culture to one that is truly multimodal. Viable transportation choices are essential, in order to remain competitive as a city and region. Multimodal includes public transit, such as light rail, and true pedestrian- and bicycle-oriented neighborhoods and major corridors. Economic growth and competitiveness require viable transportation choices.

To begin this transition, it is critical that Richmond obtain a Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system in the next two to five years. Currently, the Greater Richmond Transit Co. (GRTC) and the state are applying for federal funding to install a BRT line from Willow Lawn to Rocketts Landing. BRT would run along the center of Broad Street, 14th Street and East Main Street, have transit stops at half-mile increments and run every 10 minutes.

Based on results from other cities with BRT, these improvements will result in higher transit use and new investment (retail, building development) along the corridor. BRT typically serves as a precursor to light rail. It is essential that the city work closely with GRTC, the state and our elected officials in Washington to ensure that this funding application is successful.

In addition to public transit, Richmond needs to use its annual transportation funding allocations more wisely. Sadly, Richmond still allocates millions of dollars in road-widening projects and traffic signal replacements to promote more automobile use. Surprisingly, these projects are planned for streets with low accident rates and little to no congestion.

Instead of road widening, Richmond needs to use these valuable funds for "road diets." This involves removing some of the auto travel lanes and replacing them with on-street parking lanes, bike lanes, wider sidewalks and street trees. Charlotte, N.C., has initiated 28 road-diet projects with successful results: slower traffic and increased pedestrian and bicycle activity.

A good example of a road in dire need of a diet is Commerce Road in Manchester. This seven-lane thoroughfare divides Manchester in two, has no on-street parking and no bike lanes — but does have high-speed traffic and narrow sidewalks. It is no wonder that pedestrians and cyclists avoid this area and that retail has never prospered.

Another road in need of a crash diet is Ninth Street where it crosses Cary, Canal and Byrd Streets in downtown's central business district. At Byrd, Ninth Street is a ridiculous 11 lanes wide — even wider than portions of I-95 in Northern Virginia — with no on-street parking. This was a huge waste of public funds to construct and is a huge waste of public funds to maintain. Most pedestrians avoid this area, and the few who cross Ninth sprint to beat the traffic. Retail is nonexistent, and economic opportunity is lost.

With minimal financial investment, these streets can be transformed into multi-modal streets where pedestrians and cyclists feel safe and retail thrives. Richmond needs to get serious about road diets and more public transit if it wants to grow and prosper as a city. Just as the City hired a sustainability manager, it should hire a transportation planning manager to oversee such initiatives – with an eye toward pedestrians, not cars.

Riverfront

Richmond is here because of the James River. With industry and major transport no longer integral to the river, it is time to turn the river into a recreation and entertainment destination for all our citizens and visitors.

Every day we leave the James River in its current condition is another day of missed opportunity, economic and otherwise. A vibrant and beautiful riverfront would benefit the whole region and create a new identity for Richmond.

A nationally recognized landscape architecture firm was recently selected by the city to complete the downtown riverfront park design. Public input will be a key part of this design effort, and the plan should include clear implementation steps that could be executed immediately, such as a promenade walk, public gardens, and/or land purchases. An annual budget of $3 million to $5 million is necessary to ensure completion of the entire riverfront park plan over the next 10 years.

A beautiful park with access to the river will increase tourism, retail investment and residential/office development in the adjoining areas. Studies from other cities, such as Charleston, S.C., indicate that for every dollar invested in riverfront parks, $4 to $5 is gained through increased tourism, new retail and new development. The time is now for Richmond to invest and demonstrate that it is serious about making its riverfront a beautiful public space that is accessible to all of its citizens and visitors.

The Urban Landscape

Richmond's gateways and urban landscape need to be of the highest quality to send a message that the city is an attractive place to live, work and visit. This is particularly applicable to the I-95 and I-64 corridors that run through Richmond.

According to VDOT data, 110,000 to 152,000 vehicles travel daily on these interstates. The landscape along them, however, is unsightly and reflects badly on Richmond. It is also not indicative of the beauty of much of Richmond — exemplified by Capitol Square, Church Hill and Shockoe Slip, to name just a few.

This entire corridor affords Richmond an opportunity to advertise itself and attract visitors, new residents and investors. In addition, the gateways at each exit should be well landscaped: 17th and Broad, Chamberlayne, Belvidere and Boulevard are prime examples of opportunities we have missed to tell the story of the beauty to be found in our city.

In addition, the entire urban forest in Richmond needs greater attention, with a specific focus on increasing the mature shade-tree canopy. An increased canopy provides a cooler environment for pedestrians and cyclists, minimizes heat gain in buildings, reduces stormwater run-off and increases property values.

The administration of Mayor Dwight Jones initiated an increase in annual tree planting from about 400 trees in 2010 to 2,000 trees in 2011. This excellent first step, however, requires follow-up. City contractors are required to maintain new trees for the first year after planting, but they have little incentive to invest in best maintenance practices. If a tree dies, the contractor simply has to replace it, putting us back to square one. We should demand better.

Additional staff in the Urban Forestry Division is needed to oversee the expansion of the urban forest and additional funding for tree maintenance must become a priority. In addition, every hire in the Urban Forestry Division should be an experienced Urban Forester and a Certified Arborist, just as staff in the Finance Department have finance experience and essential certifications. Currently, this is not the case for Urban Forestry, a division of the Department of Public Works.

Deconcentrate poverty

Richmond has a very high concentration of public housing units in its northeast quadrant. Such concentrations keep property values depressed in surrounding neighborhoods and keep our lowest-income citizens in perpetual cycles of poverty.

Isolating low-income citizens from the people and services found in higher-income neighborhoods severely limits opportunities to move out of poverty. According to a survey of Gilpin Court residents in 2008, conducted by the Richmond Redevelopment and Housing Authority, most residents would prefer to use Housing Choice Vouchers (previously called Section 8 vouchers) rather than live in public housing projects.

Poverty is a regional concern and needs to be addressed accordingly. It is by no means solely a "city of Richmond problem." We have much to gain by creating new opportunities for our most economically challenged citizens to live in mixed-income and mixed-use neighborhoods. Examples include the transformation of the Blackwell neighborhood in the city and Winchester Green in Chesterfield. Incomes and education levels in these new neighborhoods are up, crime is down and residents have greater pride.

Everyone aspires to live in a dignified and attractive neighborhood. We should create this opportunity for all of our citizens. Albeit, there are concerns about displacement and gentrification – but doing nothing is not the answer. Recognizing these concerns and working in an open, fair and smart manner, with all concerned, is the answer.

In my view, Gilpin Court should be the next public housing project to be transformed with HUD funds – and it should (1) be completed in a timely manner, (2) aim for one-to-one unit replacement (3) ensure strong community engagement and (4) include community services such as day care, elder care, after-school services, etc. The reason I recommend Gilpin Court is two-fold: It is the largest of all the projects (about 750 units) and is closest to downtown and Jackson Ward, areas that are already on the upswing.

Such a transformation from housing project to mixed-income and mixed-use neighborhood would improve lives and have a positive ripple effect by sparking new investment in the adjoining North Jackson Ward neighborhood and further investment in nearby downtown neighborhoods, districts and major corridors.

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My experience working for the city convinces me that the citizens of Richmond are serious about transformation. Indeed, these proposed changes were recommended by many of those citizens. They are clear and realistic goals – not pie-in-the-sky prescriptions for progress. Many other cities have already succeeded in their implementation.

Remember, citizens have the greatest power in a democracy. So, take heed and work closely with the people you elected to begin the discussion and to carry out your vision. I have no doubt that together you will be successful.