RVA-Is-The-Best

With the Coliseum closed and the RIR amphitheater kind of a joke, this is probably the best chance we have to attracting big acts (or at least almost arena acts). The views from this to the skyline are going to be stunning. I almost was gonna say I'd rather this site be used for development but then I realized it's right behind Tredegar lol. So this is the best possible activation we can have for this site, I'm excited. Now move it through quickly before the Oregon Hill curmudgeons get their bearings together

Not often that a rendering takes my breath away. Wow.

We have approval on the 5-story, 63 unit building proposed at Leigh/2nd. https://richmondbizsense.com/2022/02/24/five-story-apartment-building-across-from-maggie-walker-site-approved/

Funny enough I actually kind of like the design of this building. Which is why it being a WP product surprises me edit: I should emphasize I do actually really like Nahum's work and the renderings I see on his site excite me a lot, and I generally used to think at the beginning of the development boom (around 2010-2012) that WP had some of the more forward thinking design ideas in new developments.

Me likey

Really interesting news from BizSense today: There's a 10 story apartment tower planned for across the road on Staples Mill from the main Libbie Mill area. 2369 Staples Mill, right next to the relatively new Wawa opened a few years back. https://richmondbizsense.com/2022/02/08/marchetti-led-group-plans-10-story-apartment-tower-across-from-libbie-mill/ 240 units + retail on the ground floor. My only gripe is I lowkey wish this was closer to the Staples Mill/Broad corridor so that it strengthens Broad into that high-intensity corridor the city/Henrico desire it to be, and for that general Willow Lawn area to really solidify itself as a node for high-density development. But I get that they're doing this here, Libbie Mill is booming with their mid-rises as well. Also a great sign of a healthy market that these kinds of projects are being proposed in such locations.

The Valentine has kicked off a $12m renovation, adding 9,600 sq ft of space within its existing footprint (if only they could expand the building itself) https://richmondbizsense.com/2022/02/08/the-valentine-history-museum-kicks-off-12m-renovation-and-expansion/

Interesting news break from BizSense this morning: Chipotle is opening in City View Marketplace. https://richmondbizsense.com/2022/02/08/manchester-is-getting-a-chipotle/ That might seem like passive enough news, but I see it as a game changer, these types of chains establishing a presence in the market generally indicates shifting attitudes in retail investment towards a growing market, it's like when Newtowne West/Alison got a Whole Foods. Or when Carytown got a West Elm. While chain stores themselves aren't necessarily a good thing, that shift it represents definitely is. Shows that there's pent up demand for retail. And gradually, those first few chains are the initial domino in a long row to destination retail (can only dream downtown gets an Apple Store or something ... maybe in this lifetime). And if nothing else, we are at least that much closer to getting a grocery store. One Chipotle, West Elm, whatever, at a time.

Also noted this interesting line: Will be interesting, this'll be VCU Medical Center's next big project I'm assuming. Hope it's big and we see renderings eventually

This and Tom's 'put us out of our misery' comment in BizSense yesterday has had me in splits. Developers are really entering the new year shell shocked and exhausted

Christmas came early this year Christmas came early this year Christmas came early this year

Not gonna lie, we look incredibly Napoleonic when we rant and rave about Raleigh and Charlotte and the like. I keep quiet but think it's not a good look. We're growing and doing well so why constantly compare and complain

I was actually fiddling around with this for about a week recently, and I noticed if you press the historical imagery button (with the slider bar to view imagery from past captures), it actually jumps to July 28 2021 (at least for central Richmond), though the imagery is noticeably darker and duller than the bright March and April captures (which is what you see by default on Google Earth). My guess is they capture imagery more often but only update it for everyone once they touch it up and adjust for issues (like there are two image captures for July 2021, one where clouds obscure a lot of ground view, and then one without cloud obstruction). Interesting stuff, and Google Earth often has more up to date imagery than Google Maps as a result

In a nutshell:

Godspeed to the developers. I can already hear the NIMBYs dusting off their gloves from the One Shiplock square off

Third day in a row for project announcements by BizSense in Manchester This time it's actually two projects, the one I'm gonna highlight is 116 units at the SW corner of Hull + Commerce (812 Hull St). Income based apartments, so the design isn't particularly as eye candy as the two projects unveiled in the last two days are, but still respectable in that it adds density and gets rid of more surface lots. I guess I really only have an issue with the prison-like street interaction but hey. Better than a surface lot Once again, someone must've been keeping an eye on the permits because this project was already on the development map, now we have a rendering to go with it. https://richmondbizsense.com/2021/09/17/southside-housing-projects-would-add-260-income-based-apartments/ The other project is 144 units (also income based) in six 3-story buildings at 700 W 44th St near Forest Hill, but that's more suburban in nature and is near Forest Hill anyway, so kind of off topic for Manchester anyway.

Two days in a row, huh. Manchester is on a roll. Thalhimer has announced it's intention to put up an 8-story apartment building dubbed Overlook II, with 271 apartments + ground floor retail, as sort of a successor to the Overlook at City View right on the next lot. Someone must have had the scoop, because it's already on the development map too lol. Good stuff https://richmondbizsense.com/2021/09/16/thalhimer-plans-to-put-up-eight-story-apartment-building-in-manchester/

Neat project at Summit & Norfolk (1616 Summit Ave, to be specific), project is dubbed 'Sixteen Sixteen'. Vacant 1 story building to be converted into commercial space, then have 4 levels of condos built on top of it, new construction. Only 4 units, but hey. Still good nonetheless. And condos are good to diversify the SA housing stock. https://richmondbizsense.com/2021/08/25/condos-planned-for-scotts-addition/

This "plan" is homicide on the urban core. Absolutely horrendous, they want to core the center of Richmond the way you'd core the center of an apple. Removing the good buildings that contribute to the architectural urban fabric like the SC and then chopping off the tallest building is the equivalent of shooting the chest and then sawing off an arm. In this economy we're not going to get replacements of that scale to undo the damage of losing Monroe. Hideous. This feels worse than Navy Hill. Because at least that never actually existed.

Nice little cover story from Style summarizing all the major museum developments going on, not much in the way of tantalizing new information, but a good summary nonetheless: https://www.styleweekly.com/richmond/museum-makeovers/Content?oid=17667463

https://richmondbizsense.com/2021/06/23/developer-kleyman-targets-manchester-with-bainbridge-street-projects/ Two 3-story infill buildings on empty lots off Bainbridge, 20 units total: 15 units + retail at 1421 Bainbridge St (shown below); another 5 units at 1122 Bainbridge St

Big exciting news incoming!! VMFA will unveil the design for their $190M expansion later this month! https://richmondbizsense.com/2021/06/15/virginia-museum-of-fine-arts-to-unveil-design-for-190m-expansion/ More specifically, 'by June 30th'. According to museum staff, It's been in the works for 11 years, and when they opened the McGlothlin wing in 2010, it had already outgrown it's space. "The VMFA expansion will include a new 100,000-square-foot wing off of the existing Mellon and Lewis Wing, a renovation of 45,000 square feet in three museum buildings; and a new annex building." :The largest piece of the expansion is a planned five-story addition of 100,000-125,000 square feet to be built onto the Mellon and Lewis Wing, which was constructed in 1985." All 3 phases will be constructed concurrently over 24 months after the planning stage is expected to finish by June 2023. -------------------- Just read the article. There's loads of exciting information there that I can't summarize. Very exciting times ahead.

Thanks for this link bc I began browsing the portfolio and found another project - the Center for Adult Critical Care... would be on the site of the MCV Visitor parking garage and connected to the Critical Care Hospital. Says it's a collaboration with HKS Architects. Perhaps this is one of the next major projects in the books for VCU Medical Center? https://www.knizedesigns.com/en/projects/vcu-adult

It used to be Opus and now it's this one for me too. Followed by the 12 story building at 200 E Marshall edit: actually no! The one I want to break ground the most is the big Public Safety Building site redevelopment: (followed by this one at Broad/Madison)

I must have missed this one, which one is this? I don't think it's on the development map either