May 16 Newsletter: Mayo Island park update
Weather: Feels like summer – a hot and humid weekend.
On this date in 1971, a trial date is set as Henrico and Chesterfield seek to overturn the forced integration of their school districts with Richmond’s as part of a court-ordered desegregation plan. A deadlocked 4-4 Supreme Court ultimately upholds a lower court ruling banning the merger.
Last call for nominations
Our 25 in '25 program is celebrating the people who are inspiring us by doing good and bringing joy to our communities.
There's still time to nominate a community hero, but the deadline is Sunday. Fill out the form here.
New Mayo Island park ‘on track’ to open in fall of 2026
A plan for Mayo Island, which was purchased by the city last year, was approved on Thursday.
- The plan envisions demolition and removal of most of the buildings and parking lots currently on the island.
- They will be replaced with meadows, wildflowers and gravel paths that would add a new destination to the James River Park System.
One design committee member Jessie Gemmer called it “the fantasy everyone wants. ... To be in a meadow and look up and see their city.”
Granite Schoolhouse, Westham Train Station make 2025 Most Endangered Historic Places list
Preservation Virginia CEO Will Glasco said it was critical for communities to “work together to preserve these locations before they’re gone.”
- The circa 1911 Westham Train Station was previously located in Henrico County before being moved to its present site, just north of the Squirrels stadium.
- The Granite community, previously profiled in The Richmonder, is enclave on the Southside that was founded by formerly enslaved people near a stretch of Old Cherokee Road in Stratford Hills.
Dominion Energy Riverrock adds new events to stay fresh and exciting as it enters its 17th year
While festival-goers can still expect what has been offered in years past, including outdoor competitions and concerts along the river, this year’s event will also host a new dog agility competition, skimboarding demo pool, and even a new layout.
Read more on the festival here.
Children’s Hospital of Richmond opens region’s first certified pollen tracking site
If you want to find out exactly how much pollen is gumming up Richmond’s air, the answer can be found 17 stories above downtown.
Tracking how pollen seasons are shifting helps medical providers time their treatments correctly and anticipate other impacts of exposures, like eczema flare-ups and problems linked to asthma.
In other news
- Henrico will further workshop proposed revisions to its data center regulations (8 News)
- Former city employee spent $840,000 at company registered to his house, records show (Times-Dispatch)
Mayor Danny Avula issued a comment on his Instagram page after the story was published. - Rhoads Hall, Profile of the Construction of the Building, November, 1968 (The Shockoe Examiner)
Editor Michael Phillips is out of office.
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