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If I ever won the MegaMillions Jackpot I would buy the CNB building in a heartbeat to save it from further deterioration. Of all the vacant buildings in Richmond, this has to be the saddest; it has so much potential.

This is fantastic news.

While I do appreciate that the two new parking decks have added a bit of street presence to the very bland, boring stretch of Grace formerly occupied by the surface lots, I can't say I really like the buildings too much. To be honest, my main complaint is the HUGE caps left between the sections of precast concrete used during construction. Every 20 feet or so there is a pretty wide gap where the concrete sections meet. I'm probably just being picky. However, this particular quote from the story did excite me quite a bit: Nice planning on VCU's part!!! Also, I was on the MCV campus today and noticed that the steel frame of the new School of Medicine building has reached the 9th or 10th floor, approximately.

Good to see the surface lot being developed. Hopefully some element of street level retail will be incorporated. The number of students along that corridor should make it an attractive location for retailers. I wonder how these new dorms will effect the surrounding neighborhoods.With the addition of about 850 new beds between the two new dorms on Grace (not to mention the 400 new beds that opened a few years ago at Cary and Belvidere and the new beds created from the Broad and Belvidere expansion), as well as nearby private developments (540 units at 8 1/2 Canal, new building beside Belvidere 7 Eleven, new developments downtown), It would seem as if the rate of developments marketed towards VCU students is outpacing the increases in enrollment. I wonder if there will be a mass exodus from the Fan, Oregon Hill and the Museum District as students move to these new developments closer to campus.

I can't say I'm a fan. Given Manchester's history and its current state, I think something a little more 'industrial' and 'urban' would have worked better. It looks really suburban to me.

Wow, that would be a MAJOR development. But there is one correction to your post, burt. The 450,000 sq ft of office space is only the first face. In all, they hope to add 3.5 MILLION sq ft of NEW space. For reference, at 250 ft height limit would allow residential buildings as tall as ~25/26 stories depending on floor-to-floor heights. An office building would have higher ceilings so you'd likely not see any more than 20 (but probably in the 16-18 story range).

For those who may be unfamiliar with the property being discussed, this is a before picture of the buildings located in the 200 block of East Grace St: I apologize for the shoddy cell phone pictures.

As I was walking to and from work over the past week, I noticed that the section of East Grace Street affectionately known to many Richmond residents as "Little Baghdad" is nearing (or perhaps has reached) completion. The three buildings in the 200 block of East Grace Street (directly behind the vacant CNB tower) have undergone a dramatic transformation. I'm not sure whether or not the units are occupied, but last night there appeared to be a catered gala occurring in one of the first floor retail spaces, perhaps a 'grand opening/project completion' celebration. Unfortunately, I don't have pictures at the moment, but I will try to grab some in the next few days. If this transformation is any indication of the direction that East Grace Street is heading, I'm sincerely optimistic that E. Grace St. is on its way to becoming one of the premier, most beautiful streets in Downtown Richmond.

Wow...that is stunning. I'd love the chance to tour the place. I love that Richmond has preserved (or is restoring)so many of her historic buildings.

EXCITED FOR RVALUTION! I just hope they can bring in some bigger name artists.

News of VCU's new Art Institute to be designed by Steven Holl has made its way to some major architectural publications including Arch Daily...'the world's most visited architecture website' http://www.archdaily.com/138324/steven-holl-architects-to-design-an-art-institute-at-virginia-commonwealth-university/

Steven Holl is a fairly world-renown architect that has really been getting a lot of attention recently. I wouldn't quite call him a starchitect yet, but he's getting close. I'm excited to see what he comes up with. Knowing some of his past projects, I'm sure it will be unique, and likely controversial. I wonder if this marks the beginning of a trend for VCU: choosing high-profile architects for VCU's high-profile projects. If you remember, the new VCU Medical School tower is a collaboration between Ballinger Architects and Pei Cobb Freed and Partners. Pei Cobb Freed is one of the most well-known architectural firms in the world.

Yes, the VCU Commons is also at Floyd and Linden. The new proposal will be diagonally across the Floyd-Linden intersection from the Commons, adjacent to the Library. Here is a bit of information I was able to find on the project. Note that this information is a few years old and may be a little outdated: The renderings:

From the latest "Periodic Update": To read the full text of the Periodic Update: http://www.president.vcu.edu/updates/20110516.html

I think two things could work very favorable for Richmond and Virginia. Climate: Richmond's climate is generally more temperate than Oman's. This may not seem like a huge deal, but sporting events like these are often very mindful about the conditions that the athletes are subjected to. If you recall, in late 2010, a US swimmer died of exhaustian while competing in the UAE which is adjacent to Oman. Many swimmers complained of the high temperatures. After that rather high-profile event, competition organizers may be hesitant to stage another such event in an environment that many would consider relatively extreme. Political/social stability: Don't get me wrong, OMAN is one of the most politically, socially and economically stable countries in the region. But with the increased social and political unrest in the Middle East, some of the decision makers may find it difficult to predict the conditions that may be in place in 2015 when the event is set to occur. While Oman is considered stable, Richmond would certainly be a safer pick in that regards. But of course, this is only my opinion. We can only sit back, watch and wait. I'm hopeful, though.

Wow, the Hippodrome renovation is absolutely class A.

Wow. I can imagine The Lion King will be HUGE!

http://www2.timesdispatch.com/lifestyles/news/2011/apr/28/tdmain01-vcu-gets-major-financial-gift-ar-1001220/

RVA Creates: Video was created by the RVA Creates folks back in February, but I don't think it was ever posted here. REALLY high quality, in my opinion.

As far as I know, CNB is still owned by Douglas Development Corporation, the same company that owns quite a few buildings along that section of Broad Street (100 and 200 blocks of E. Broad). The company seems to be reactivating some of the projects that were previously dormant in the area; my hope is that the momentum will allow them start working on CNB. As I'm sure you know, Douglas is primarily active in the DC region. I've been hearing his name and the name of his company in DC development news more and more recently. For instance: Plans to build a 13-story, 250-unit residential building: http://dcmud.blogspot.com/2011/03/450-k-street-nw-in-final-design-phase.html Recent purchase of a high-profile building with plans for renovation: http://dcmud.blogspot.com/2011/02/mccaffery-interests-and-douglas.html Plans to build a 6 story apartment building in DC: http://dcmud.blogspot.com/2010/11/jemal-presents-plans-for-another-14th.html This can, of course, be interpreted two ways: He has new-found confidence in the economy and is confident enough to begin large scale development again He will become preoccupied with more lucrative DC-area projects and allow CNB to rest on the back-burner. But...who knows...

This has little (if nothing) to do with Richmond, so thats why I'm posting it in the off-topic section. I follow a DC-area real estate blog and came across these pictures of a once-dilapidated block that has been restored: Before: After: The reason I post it is because it very much reminds me of parts of Grace St downtown (between, say 1st and 5th streets). I love the architecture along Grace St. Its a shame that there isn't more life on the street. But it has so much potential. Imagine the possibilities!

It really pains me to see CNB sit empty. I don't know why, but in the few years I've been here, I've grown quite fond of it. Probably my favorite building in all of Richmond. If only I could win a mega-millions lottery drawing or something...

I have a Korean coworker who told me his family and friends in Korea have been requesting he send them VCU tees and other VCU related fan gear.

Hmm.. So I wonder if he'll be buying a new downtown/Shockoe condo, instead of just renting.

I agree 100% with you on this one. Here's what I just posed on the RTD website, about 5 minutes ago: Earlier in the night, I had the misfortune of experiencing tear gas for the first and hopefully last time in my life. At the corner of Grace and Laurel, students had gathered, most just partying (there was music blasting on outdoor speakers from a nearby business...I think Sahara's). Unfortunately, about 5 or 6 idiots decide to throw small rocks (the kind used for landscaping) at the Virginia State Police officer's riot shields. The VSP decides to deploy tear gas at the crowd. I was not in the crowd. I was actually about 100 yards east of the crowd on Grace, just watching. Unfortunately, it was quite breezy last night so the gas completely missed the intended target and us bystanders got a face full of the stuff. I can say that it definitely works as a crowd dispersant tactic, because at that moment I wanted to get out of there as fast as possible. Otherwise, it was a pretty fun night, and most of the crowd behaved themselves very well.