July 2 Newsletter: Richmond and Henrico talk water
Weather: High of 90, and it's looking good for a rain-free Fourth of July once the storms move out this morning.
On this date in 1782, the city of Richmond was formed. Citizens voted in a government of 12 representatives, who chose William Foushee to be the first mayor.
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5 takeaways from the Richmond-Henrico water summit
The Richmond City Council and Henrico County Board of Supervisors held a rare joint meeting Monday to discuss the future of local water infrastructure and how to boost resiliency after this year's service disruptions.
There was no consensus on moving forward with a specific plan, and it appeared Mayor Danny Avula has more work to do to get the Council fully behind his proposal for a regional advisory group.
- Council leaders said they needed more time to talk things over on their own before committing to anything.
- There were some tense moments between the two delegations, including a dispute over data centers and whether they will or won't be a threat to regional water resources in the future.
The Council plans to keep talking about water at a special meeting next week.
RPS reinstates fired bus drivers after tensions between the union and division
Richmond Public Schools made the agreement with LiUNA Local 804, the union that represents the division's bus drivers.
- The drivers were fired in May for what the division said was a callout from after-school activity runs to attend and speak at a school board meeting in April.
- Under the agreement, drivers can no longer conduct mass callouts from work and cannot receive the flat two-hour overtime pay from after-school activity runs.
The agreements are part of the final terms of an initial collective bargaining contract between the two parties, which would be in place for three years once finalized.
'It's part of who I am': Richmond's large Cambodian community is learning to embrace its heritage
Henrico County has the second-largest population of Cambodian immigrants in Virginia, many of whom arrived 40 to 50 years ago while fleeing a genocide back home.
- People who came as children or young adults still have memories of tip-toeing around landmines, hiding in humid jungles and scavenging on mice and insects to survive.
- The refugees largely shed their former identity and worked to assimilate into American culture, but over the past decade, their children are beginning to reclaim family traditions.
“Back in our day, we just wanted to be American,” one said. “I wouldn’t even want to speak Khmer. … That’s why I’m so proud of this generation.” Read the feature story from Chris Suarez here.
Also today in The Richmonder
Audit of city fuel cards finds at least $44K in ‘questionable’ spending
A lack of effective controls on the cards and oversight of how they were used put the city "at a heightened risk for fraud, waste and abuse," the audit found. Multiple individuals have been referred to the inspector general's office to look at whether wrongdoing occurred.
Polystyrene ban begins Tuesday, but small businesses are exempt for another year
The ban stems from a Virginia General Assembly bill passed in 2021 that prohibits any food vendor that uses the plastic foam from distributing it. Local restaurant owner John Murden said his locations have already made efforts to move away from the material years ago.
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In other news
- The Virginia laws going into effect on July 1 (Axios)
- City DPU new utility rates effective July 1, 2025; Convenience fees eliminated (City of Richmond)
- 'Gone in one day': Shockoe Bottom business owner reacts to fire that destroyed his restaurant (CBS 6)
The reporter's desk
While our editor Michael Phillips is out of office for a well-deserved vacation in Kansas, we have another intern in our office! Juliana Vandermark just landed in Richmond after a yearlong stay in Madrid, Spain, where she taught high school students English for a year. She's now looking forward to writing stories about the River City, including those about education and public health. Say hi! – Victoria A. Ifatusin, education reporter
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