Meeting - March 17, 2025

March 17, 2025

Board Members Present

  • Leah Hopper (President)
  • Joy Rogers (Vice President)
  • Gayle Goldberg (Treasurer)
  • Kirk Millikan (Secretary)

Community Members Present

  • Gloria Bouldin
  • Mark Brandon
  • James Browne
  • Elise Corliss
  • Kelly Cramer
  • Christina Garnett
  • Michael Glass
  • Joe Goldberg
  • Kim Griffin
  • Toni Halsey
  • Jan Hatchard
  • Toni Johnson
  • Paul Johnston
  • Kristina Kazanjian
  • Debbie Ladd
  • Mandy Lawrence
  • Eva Matejkova
  • Hugo Mendoza
  • Emily Morris
  • Barry O'Keefe
  • Susan Rischewski
  • Clara Russell
  • Mike Slavin
  • Saji Slavin
  • Elizabeth Smith
  • Ethan Smith
  • Bert Waters
  • Paige Wazuka
  • Lee Williams

Police Department Updates

  • Update from the 3rd Police Precinct:

    • There was one crime in our neighborhood in the last 14 days – theft from an unlocked car. It is great that there is only one thing to report.

    • A neighbor asked about recent gunshots at night. The police officer in attendance said you can call the police non-emergency phone number or 911, and officers will respond.

    • A neighbor asked about the Belle Isle shooting of a park ranger last year. The police officer in attendance said that it is an ongoing investigation, and there seems to be more to the story than what was initially reported in the news.

    • A neighbor asked if there were any updates on the suspects arrested in the Hampton Street murder last summer. The police officer in attendance said there are no updates he knows of, but the case is likely going through the court process now.

5th District and Maymont Updates

  • Update on the Maymont Community Garden from Barry O'Keefe (neighborhood resident and coordinator for the community garden):

    • Barry sketched out the current location of the community garden in Riverview Park and the location for the new garden.

    • The new garden will have 20 garden beds that are bigger than existing beds.

    • If you are interested in helping with the garden work days, contact maymontcommunitygarden@gmail.com.

    • There is a waiting list for garden beds right now, but people rotate off pretty frequently if you are interested in a bed.

  • Update from the 5th District City Councilmember Liaison Amy Robins:

    • Not in attendance.

General Community Notes

  • Discussion on the Special Use Permit (SUP) Request for 1711 and 1715 Georgia Avenue:

    • Will Gillette, a land use planner with Baker Development Resources, spoke on behalf of the property owner of 1711 and 1715 Georgia Avenue. He explained the proposed houses and proposed special use permit. Will can be reached at will@bakerdevelopmentresources.com if you have any follow-up questions.

    • There is an existing two story house at 1715 Georgia Avenue, and a building permit is under development to build a new house by right at 1711 Georgia Avenue.

    • The special use permit is for two new houses to be constructed, one between 1711 Georgia Avenue and 1715 Georgia Avenue and one between 1715 Georgia Avenue and New York Avenue.

    • In theory, the property owner could tear down the existing house at 1715 Georgia Avenue and build three new houses by right. However, the property owner wants to keep the original house at 1715 Georgia Avenue.

    • All new houses would be two-story, single-family, detached houses with rear parking through the alley.

    • New houses will be between 2100 square feet and 2400 square feet. A few different designs are available for the houses to be constructed.

    • A neighbor asked the presenter how the proposed houses are not conforming to the city zoning code. The presenter said that a 50’ of lot width and a 5,000 square feet of lot area is required in an R-5 zoning district such as the Maymont neighborhood (even though many properties in the neighborhood do not meet these amounts because the properties were laid out prior to the current zoning code). The four houses would have a 40’ wide lot, a 50’ wide lot, and two 30’ wide lots.

    • The houses would have the following addresses: 1711, 1713, 1715, and 1717 Georgia Avenue.

    • As of now, fences between houses are not proposed in the special use permit, but that could change in the future.

    • A neighbor expressed concerns that the proposed houses will not look like houses in the majority of the neighborhood.

  • Next steps:

    • There will be at least four months of behind the scenes paperwork.

    • The neighborhood will vote to support or not support the special use permit. This vote will be shared with the city’s Planning Commission, and the vote is one of several things the Planning Commission will consider when they review the proposed special use permit.

    • The neighborhood will get a notice when there is a public hearing for the special use permit in front of the Planning Commission.

    • It could be October before the special use permit goes before the City Council.

    • The board will send out a survey for supporting/not supporting the special use permit in the coming weeks. The survey will be open for about a month, and you will be able to provide comments in the survey.

  • Neighborhood discussion:

    • Richmond Department of Public Utilities was not in attendance to provide an update on the upcoming project in our neighborhood. The city should have more information at our May Civic League meeting.

    • A neighbor asked how they can provide more feedback regarding the Hampton Street parking and one-way driving options outside of the neighborhood survey. Joy mentioned that you can add concerns to RVA 311. The neighborhood survey is still open for comments.

    • A neighbor mentioned that there are two uses of Hampton – one with everyday use and one with Maymont’s special event use. They said Maymont needs to be involved in this discussion.

    • Leah mentioned that if folks want to be block captains to keep your neighbors informed of neighborhood updates, that would be a big help.

    • A neighbor asked about the status of the house at 1405 S Meadow Street that caught fire in early January and if anything could be done with the belongings that are littering the front yard. The board did not have an update on the residents of the house. Joy said she would contact Amy Robins (5th District liaison) regarding the belongings in the front yard, and Joy recommended submitting a request in 311 under accumulation concerns.

    • There is a 5th District town hall meeting on Thursday March 20th at 6pm at Lois Harrison-Jones Elementary School, and the new DPU Director will be in attendance.

    • Leah mentioned that the Commonwealth Attorney’s office sent a few flyers on an upcoming expungement clinic and ABCs of criminal law event. Both events will be held at the Main Library downtown.

    • A neighbor asked if there was any update on the Texas Beach bridge work. The board did not have an update.

  • Meeting adjourned at 8:10pm

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