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3 weeks ago | 
richmonder.org | Graham Moomaw |Sarah Vogelsong |Victoria Ifatusin
After Richmond’s auditor found numerous problems with how the city gives money to local nonprofits, the budget Mayor Danny Avula introduced last month would repeal legal safeguards meant to prevent the misuse of public funds given to charitable groups.
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3 weeks ago | 
richmonder.org | Chris Suarez |Sarah Vogelsong |Victoria Ifatusin |Graham Moomaw
For the second time in two weeks, Richmond officials announced they made a mistake when trying to send money-related mail to residents. On Wednesday, the city said it had sent out 266 debt setoff letters to incorrect addresses. Those notices typically inform recipients money is being taken out of their state tax refund in order to pay an outstanding debt owed to the city.
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3 weeks ago | 
richmonder.org | Chris Suarez |Victoria Ifatusin |Sarah Vogelsong |Michael Phillips |Graham Moomaw
4 min With Richmond’s water crisis fresh in their minds, Virginia lawmakers recently approved legislation to require waterworks operators to swiftly notify state regulators about problems that could potentially leave their customers without clean water.
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3 weeks ago | 
richmonder.org | Sarah Vogelsong |Victoria Ifatusin |Michael Phillips
The Richmond School Board is in the beginning stages of drafting a policy surrounding artificial intelligence in schools. Four board members have been meeting monthly since January to discuss what the policy will look like. “The presence of AI offers both possibilities and challenges in the educational spaces,” Wesley Hedgepeth (4th District) told The Richmonder.
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3 weeks ago | 
richmonder.org | Sarah Vogelsong |Victoria Ifatusin |Michael Phillips
One of Richmond’s most infamous buildings may finally be nearing its end. The parking garage at 509 E. Franklin St. has been slowly falling apart for years, causing the closure of a nearby sidewalk and parking lane. Permits have now been issued for demolition, potentially as soon as April. David Alley, Richmond’s building commissioner, said the city has been working on the site in a “hands-on” way for about six months.
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3 weeks ago | 
richmonder.org | Michael Phillips |Victoria Ifatusin |Graham Moomaw |Sarah Vogelsong
2 min Turnover in Richmond city government is dropping, a trend that a top human resources official attributed to ongoing efforts to increase wages and benefits and “make this a more human place that folks will want to come.” “We’ve had some good increases in wages for our folks. We’ve done some market studies. We went through employee engagement sessions to hear from employees what you want, what bothers you, what can we do better?
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3 weeks ago | 
richmonder.org | Graham Moomaw |Victoria Ifatusin |Sarah Vogelsong
Starting Tuesday, Richmonders will vote for the first time for projects they want in their neighborhoods. This is the result of Richmond’s first ever participatory budgeting initiative – dubbed the People’s Budget – which includes $3 million to enhance neighborhoods. “This whole process has been ideas by Richmonders, for Richmonders,” said Javion Peterson, who was chosen as one of the delegates representing the 7th District in the East End.
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3 weeks ago | 
richmonder.org | Graham Moomaw |Victoria Ifatusin |Sarah Vogelsong |Michael Phillips
The budget proposal Richmond Mayor Danny Avula presented this week would raise his own salary from $130,725 to $175,000 per year, according to city officials. A city news release on the budget made note of the salary bump, which officials had discussed as a possibility before Avula took office as part of a broader increase in the pay of elected officials to keep up with inflation and higher costs of living. “The mayor’s salary has been largely fixed for two decades,” the city release said.
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4 weeks ago | 
richmonder.org | Graham Moomaw |Sarah Vogelsong |Michael Phillips |Victoria Ifatusin
Richmond Mayor Danny Avula’s first budget proposal includes $9.6 million in new funding for public schools, a variety of investments and spending reductions in City Hall and salary increases for city employees. Avula stressed that the budget he presented to the City Council Thursday doesn’t raise taxes, but it does include previously planned utility rate increases that will increase the average bill by almost $13 per month.
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1 month ago | 
richmonder.org | Graham Moomaw |Sarah Vogelsong |Victoria Ifatusin |Andy Thompson
Ken Burns has made a career telling America’s foundational stories from less-than-obvious points of view, finding fresh angles on the legendary moments and participants and unearthing forgotten ones. The Emmy-winning, Oscar-nominated documentarian famous for sweeping histories of the Civil War, Baseball, the National Parks and more, was in town Sunday to promote his newest multi-part TV event – The American Revolution.
