Dec. 17 Newsletter: Renovating the rails
Weather: Temperatures will reach the mid-50s today, breaking a run of below-average days.
On this date in 1954, Richmond city dry cleaners ask Henrico County to remove a $150-per-truck fee they must pay to do business in the county.
Today's newsletter sponsored by Virginia Commonwealth University: As a top 20% global university, Virginia Commonwealth University is an unparalleled powerhouse of innovation and creative problem solving. VCU attacks challenges as opportunities. It's truly a university unlike any you’ve ever seen.
Fewer Amtrak trains means future progress as a bevy of projects get underway in Virginia
The future of rail is coming, but will involve some short-term pain first.
As a key bridge goes under construction in Northern Virginia, the number of daily departures out of Richmond will shrink from 10 to 8, before growing to 13 after the work is finished.
Also, Amtrak is building an overnight storage facility near Main Street Station, to facilitate more departures there. Read more here.
City Council recap
An eventful night at Council included:
- The passage of a FOIA library that will include documents requested of the government, while giving officials discretion to withhold documents that don't serve the public interest.
- Amending Council's request for a budget based on a lower tax rate, which would delay implementation until fiscal year 2028.
- A fast-tracked resolution to allocate the city's budget surplus.
Before voting on how to use the surplus, several Council members aired frustrations with how financial matters are handled. Read more here.
RRHA board accepts mayor’s ‘joint governance’ proposal for Gilpin redevelopment
The board of Richmond’s public housing authority voted Tuesday night to accept a plan from Mayor Danny Avula’s administration for a “joint governance” approach to the redevelopment of Gilpin Court, the city’s oldest and largest public housing community.
The resolution approves the creation of a Joint Gilpin Transformation Working Group that would have “the authority, power, financial oversight, public accountability, and shared responsibility to implement the Gilpin Court redevelopment and the larger Jackson Ward Community Plan.” Read more here.
Richmond Council asks state for law allowing city to prevent ‘rent gouging’
The request is among the city’s top three legislative priorities for the 2026 session.
Proposals last year would have capped annual rent increases at 3%, but did not make it through the General Assembly. Read more here.
Today's sponsor:
Reisweber is putting addiction therapy in the hands, and headsets, of patients
Jarrod Reisweber’s self-directed virtual reality program extends the impact of professional care.
“Your therapist can’t always be there,” he said. “So we asked, what if the treatment could always be there?”
Reisweber has created a new world to address a harsh reality of addiction, it strikes at the most inconvenient times. Patients put on a VR headset and are transported to a lakeside cabin, and amid the calm surroundings, dozens of sessions help them quiet cravings, develop coping strategies and connect with others in recovery. Read more.
Also today in The Richmonder
- Four arrests made, all youth, in Shockoe car smashing case
- Midlothian grad among those killed in Brown shooting
- State grant to fund HVAC, roof repairs at two Richmond high schools
- On Faith and Values: If it's fixed, go ahead and break it
In other news
- Remembrance: Edwin “Eddie” Slipek, 1950-2025 (Style Weekly)
- Sub Rosa Bakery reopens after yearlong closure from fire (Axios)
- Trader Joe’s eyes third local store as part of redeveloped Genworth campus (BizSense)
The editor's desk
I was saddened to hear the news of Eddie Slipek's death. As an architecture critic, he made buildings come to life with his prose, and those who knew him spoke of his kindness and generosity. Our thoughts are with his family, friends and fans.
Michael Phillips, founding editor
mphillips@richmonder.org
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