calwinston
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Posts posted by calwinston
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Another BIG supporter of Main Street Station and high speed rail, until he flipped, was the Congressional Minority Leader of The House. He appeared with local officials, CEO's and other supporters at the station and extolled its beauty and relavence for downtown Richmond.
The $600 Million figure is for the entire upgrading to high(er) speed level from Washington's Union Station to Collier Yard in Petersburg via MSS -- just about all of which would have come from the Feds. Rebuilding the S Line south from Petersburg all the way to Raleigh would be paid through North Carolina's stimulous allotment.
You mean Representative Eric Cantor flipped because he would be seen as taking stimulus money from the evil President Obama! Im shocked!
Even though it would have been great for the Region. What a shame.
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Didn't a state representative from that district a couple of years ago beg the general assembly for money to improve that segment of railway?
Never mind found the answer to my own question.
http://www.styleweekly.com/richmond/missing-the-train/Content?oid=1364024
The cost is anywhere in between $122 million and $600 million. Thats a big gap.
http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2006-02-03/html/E6-1500.htm
Also if it was moved downtown many business travelers going south will use the train.
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Rail work is still awaiting approval from the busy rail yard near Staples Mill to Main Street Station in Richmond, although travel time on that section has improved by about 5 minutes. The CSX tracks south of MSS for about 10 miles to a junction at Centralia are not up to passenger train standards. That's why the Norfolk train will not serve MSS.
Didn't a state representative from that district a couple of years ago beg the general assembly for money to improve that segment of railway?
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I noticed one of the local stations had a piece on the Moss/Desteph press conference, but didn't see much else. Anyone know how it turned out?
Here is the news story about the press conference.
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I dont know if anybody has posted this before but it gives everyone an idea of the 11 bridge restoration and replacement project going on Interstate 95. The video also has many nice aerial views of the City.
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An assessment of high-speed rail (90 to 110 mph) has been released for the Richmond/Hampton Roads corridor.
Lord knows if and when high speed will ever happen, but we do know that Norfolk will get one-seat service to Boston (via Petersburg and Richmond) beginning with once-a-day round trip trains (at top speed of 79 mph within Virginia) beginning in December.
Meanwhile, twice-a-day service to and from Newport News will continue.
From today's RTD:
http://www2.timesdis...sed-ar-2170868/
NOTE: The new train service from Norfolk beginning in December does not mean that there will be an additional train at Richmond. The new service is actually the 7AM train currently originating at Richmond's Staples Mill Station. In mid December, it will originate and terminate at Harbor Point Station in Norfolk.
Thats great news for Norfolk and all of Hampton Roads! Now if we can route all the traffic through Downtown Main St Station instead of the Suburban Staples Mill Station.
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Looks like the mayor and the business community is getting tired of asking the counties for help! All of these projects would improve the quality of life in the metro area. It still seems the counties do not see it that way. For example when the UCI World Cycling Championships comes to town in 2015 it will fill hotel rooms from DC to Hampton Roads. Hopefully all this is done in the next couple of years. For all the cry babies saying that we dont have enough money. You were saying the same thing during the boom years. These battles have been going on for 10 years and still no progress. If they do go forward today I foresee all these projects done by 2016. The economy in Richmond-Tri Cities is growing again with Capital One expanding in Short Pump, Goochland, and Chesterfield, Amazon, the Downtown Research park expanding with new tenants, Fort Lee expansion, Tumblr IT headquarters, Rolls Royce expansion, Sabra expanding, the list goes on. Great time to be there.
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I'm sorry, but it seems pretty hard to justify spending $10 million for a PRACTICE FACILITY!
I agree with you. Apparently he is trying to get private money to pay for it. The problem I have is promising that it will be built without knowing where the money is coming from. If they screw this up then Richmond will be left with a huge black eye. Plus he already has had 3 months to ask the local Fortune 500 companies and other businesses to chip in. Now he has 2 months left.
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The City of Richmond and the Redskins have narrowed down the sites between Leigh St. behind the Science Museum and City Stadium. The Redskins are leaning toward the site at Leigh St. Im still wondering where the Mayor is going to pull $10 million in such a short period of time. Plus the 6 month construction time is very short. Hope the city pulls it off.
http://www2.timesdis...eum-ar-2165932/
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However the Flying Squirrels are indeed worried that the city is now focused (and reserving more money) on the Redskins and building their new camp in the city, something that only has been on the radar for about two or three months, instead of helping get RVA a new ballpark, something that has been in the talks for say, four or five years. An honest reason to be worried.
Try 10 years
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Just received the periodic university update for VCU and scrolled down to the Master Site Plan update and found this:
Several Google searches later I stumbled upon a conceptual rendering of the new facility dated back to last year. All I can say is WOW, but have a look for yourself:
This last link is from VCU's wesbite:
http://www.maps.vcu.edu/mcv/pavilion/
Will the Childrens Pavilion addition be built beside city hall facing Broad St.?
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World famous hair stylist to the stars, Garren DeFazio and his partner Thom Priano, have put their Richmond house on the market for $1.3 million. They say they've had enough of the commmute to and from New York since Jet Blue pulled out of the market.
http://www2.timesdis...-on-ar-2064455/
This is very sad that we have talent leaving the area because of mediocrity in attracting tenants at RIC. The crazy thing about this is I was just looking into the cost of flying to New York from Richmond non stop today. The cost of a round trip ticket is $322 during low season for travel. Compare that to DC which is $100 or Raleigh which is 3 hours south of us at $150, Charlotte $163, Atlanta $210, Jacksonville $208, Miami $200. Hell I can get a roundtrip ticket from LA to NY for $275. The area needs to get on top of this pronto. This is blatantly outrageous! Soon enough businesses would not want to move here because of the outrageous airport prices.
P.S. This rant is in no offense to you Flack4ric. Just flat out frustrated.
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Virginia Beach is still the wrong place for an arena. Norfolk is the central hub for the region. The arena the Sacramento Kings currently play at is quite a bit away from downtown too which is a reason why the Kings do not succeed. If Mayor Fraim does not jump into this, Norfolk is dumber than I thought.
I agree with you that Norfolk is the central hub for the region. The only reason their is 7 cities in Hampton Roads is because all the counties back then were paranoid of being annexed.
I think the reason for Comcast and Live Nation wanting the Arena at the beach is for mainly summer concerts. You will have people walking from the oceanfront to the Arena for the concert then walking back to the beach and enjoying themselves.
Unfortunately I think Comcast and Live Nation could care less what the NBA or NHL team attendance record is for the Arena. The franchise will be paying the same lease to Comcast regardless if the franchise is making money or not. So mainly the arena is coming to the beach because of the huge untapped concert market in Hampton Roads.
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Cant wait to see the proposal that comes out of Tuesdays meeting with the Virginia Beach City Council and Comcast.
I only wonder if the city can take on that much debt with Light Rail and the Sports Arena at one time. The easiest way to finance all of this is just raise the hotel tax in Virginia Beach or tack on a airport fee like Oklahoma City did to finance its Sports Arena. Of course all of South Hampton Roads will have to agree with the airport fee.
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The number of residential units rising south of the James in Manchester is amazing.
Lucy Meade of Venture Richmond is quoted in this story saying that downtown population doubled between 2000 and 2010 to about 10,000. I bet a quarter it has picked up another 2,000 in the last two years.
Hopefully this spurs into more businesses coming to downtown and Manchester!
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The DC Regions tallest skscraper will be finished early 2013.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/mondayproperties/6896918796/in/photostream
http://www.arlnow.com/2010/09/30/groundbreaking-scheduled-for-rosslyn-skyscraper/
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Update on the Silver line running from Falls Church-Tysons Corner-Dulles International Airport-Route 772
"Va. transportation chief Sean Connaughton lays out position on Silver Line"
The first part of the 23-mile Silver Line, which will run through Tysons Corner to Wiehle Avenue, is under construction and is expected to be completed in August 2013. Construction of
of the project is expected to start next spring and will run from Reston to Dulles Airport and Loudoun County.
But already there have been delays in starting the process to get bids on the second part of the project.
The
Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority (MWAA), which is overseeing construction of the $6 billion Silver Line, appears unwilling to change an incentive that it put into a labor agreement for the second phase.That has stalled Virginia from giving its share of money for the construction because of a bill that passed the General Assembly preventing Virginia from giving money for the Silver Line if there were labor incentives in place. Some officials believe the MWAA’s labor agreement violates the state’s right-to-work policy.
The MWAA board is expected to discuss the issue at its Wednesday meeting.
There are also
concerns among Loudoun supervisors over the labor agreement and the project’s cost. Officials in Loudoun have until July 4 to decide whether they are in or out on helping to pay for the project.“We’ve always said we’re going to give $150 million,” Connaughton said Wednesday, just before the breakfast started. “The issue is, we can’t give them that money or provide any other money if there is a labor agreement or preference given in the procurement.”
He said the $150 million is not due to the project until 2013.
“Virginia is committed to this project,” he said. “We are going to provide these funds as long as it doesn’t violate any of our laws.”
The Silver Line is being paid for with funds from the federal and state governments, Fairfax and Loudoun counties and revenue from the Dulles Toll Road.
“Virginia is a right-to-work state,” Connaughton said. “This is not a federal project. This is a state project with state funds and taxpayer and toll payer funds. Therefore, we want our laws to be respected.”
At the Wednesday event,
Stephen Fuller, an economist at George Mason University, said Loudoun County would lose $72.2 billion in economic benefit if the Silver Line doesn’t run to Loudoun.With the rail service, Fuller said that 40,000 professional and business service jobs would come to Loudoun. Without it, the area would remain more of a bedroom community, he said.
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Tysons Corner (the 12th largest employment center in the United States). Has a problem with letting the developers come up with their own tax code.
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Private-sector executives are sometimes known to grumble about government tax policies that amount to a bureaucratic maze. Why can’t the government just create a straightforward system, they wonder? And why does every decision take so darn long?
In Tysons Corner, the roles have been reversed, as the area’s major landowners have
struggled for months to agree on how to raise $506 million for more than a dozen major road upgrades as the government waited." -
While we wait for the unveiling of Steven Holl's architectural plan, here's is more information on VCU's Institute for Contemporary Art.
An opening in 2014 is anticipated.
http://arts.vcu.edu/...ntemporary-art/
To further what Burt posted this morning. Here is a in depth article with renderings from the Times-Dispatch.
Gallery
http://www2.timesdispatch.com/list/gallery-vcu-unveils-design-new-art-institute/gallery/
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'This year, Richmond will start three projects that are part of a broader plan to make Shockoe Bottom a destination point for tourism, drive commercial development and create a vibrant neighborhood centered on the landmark Main Street Station and a revamped 17th Street Farmers' Market.'
Shockoe Economic Revitalization Strategy
http://www2.timesdispatch.com/mgmedia/file/663/shockoe-strategy-plan/
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I'm posting this opinion piece from today's RTD because of the rendering attached of the proposed First Freedom Center in Shockoe Slip.
The project will include two Courthouse Marriott hotels if ever it is constructed.
Each design is uglier than the last, IMO.
http://www2.timesdis...dom-ar-1824765/
Hopefully one day Richmond will come out of building architecture that is 20 years past its prime. For a site that was the birth place of religious freedom this is a disgrace to Richmond and the rest of the world.
To add where has the First Freedom Group been lately with all the religious bickering going on across the country. Seems like they have their head stuck in the sand and do no want to bother with what are fore fathers have written.
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Hopefully this study and plan gets implemented! To anybody who has lived in this town, know that studies rarely become reality. To recall I dont think any study in Richmond becomes reality.
Richmond Riverfront Plan.
http://static.mgnetw..._Commission.pdf
http://www2.timesdis...6555/#poll_1392
http://www2.timesdis...-river-journal/
This is a photo gallery posted in the Times-Dispatch today which is also relevant to the above articles
http://www2.timesdispatch.com/list/richmond-riverfront/gallery/
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VDOT sprucing up the city gateways before the Road World Cycling Championship comes to Richmond in 2015
http://www.virginiadot.org/projects/richmond/i-95_richmond_gateway.asp
Richmond: Economy/Business/Real Estate
in Richmond
Posted
Fortune 500 medical supply company Owens & Minor has expanded in to Europe.
http://www2.timesdispatch.com/business/business/2012/sep/01/tdbiz01-owens-amp-minor-completes-europe-deal-ar-2169625/