ric75

Style had a much more favorable review last week that I don't think got posted here. Beauty and the Beef

Want to talk about class? How do you like the league not allowing us talk to any other teams until they feel like it? From this mornings Times Dispatch article interviewing IL President Randy Mobley... Sounds pretty fishy. Either the Braves and the IL are acting like spoiled brats throwing a temper tantrum or this "move" to Atlanta is just a ploy to get more money and a faster time line out of the RMA in their panic to keep the Braves in town. Here's a link to the full article... New team will have to wait

Thanks for the reply. This is going to stray off-topic but now that we've started it I have to wonder if people in the burbs are aware of or willing to acknowledge all the positive developments that have occurred in the City just in the last 5 years or so? I've seen a ton of improvement in the short amount of time that I've been here and am really excited about the direction we are going... then again I'm not tainted by past perceptions and thats one thing the City has to work on. I don't think public perception matches current reality. The reality is downtown is becoming a bustling place again, with great cultural offerings and distinct, quality restaurants and shops. But I guess with an antagonistic Wilder at the helm and generating the headlines, it's just concreting the opinions of those hard to reach folks who stay out in the counties. I think a true leader could find a way to bridge these gaps but as we've unfortunately discovered, Doug Wilder is not that person.

Have any of you been reading the reactions to this on the Times Dispatch website? Some people just disgust me. I've only been here around 6 or 7 years now but I've frequently noticed this ugly attitude among county residents where they practically celebrate when things go wrong in the City. Does anyone have any idea why this is? Is this a local phenomenon or is it just a normal suburb vs. city battle? Seems like some people have a looooong way to go before they would agree to any kind of regional approach to moving the area forward.

A belated Happy Birthday to you burt! I sure hope you know you are one of if not the the most valued posters here and offer a perspective on Richmond most of us don't have. The board certainly wouldn't be the same without you!

The Park System as far as I'm aware brings in more people on a smaller budget and people aren't charged admittance. If a team wants to come here that can for the most part support itself and manages to raise attendance I'm all for it but the Braves as they stand now show no propensity for bringing in crowds. A better comparison would be the Performing Arts Center which has been criticized by some for taxing many to support the few but it at least helps to contribute to the overall draw of downtown to visitors. The Diamond did not and it had no synergy with the surrounding area. Perhaps Bill's Barbecue saw a rise in business on game evenings but that's probably about it. I supported a Shockoe Bottom stadium that didn't mean leeching tax dollars from the surrounding neighborhood businesses for years to come but the devlopers couldn't be swayed on that idea either. It seems that Richmond is looked on as a city for handouts. We need to change that image and start attracting responsible, self-supporting franchises and developments.

Bon voyage Downtowner and the RBraves... you won't be missed. Seriously people, what do the Braves bring to Richmond? Why do you think a city even needs a sports franchise to have an identity? This is completely ridiculous how people are getting upset over this. It means NOTHING except that area taxpayers will have more money to spend on businesses that can manage to stay afloat on their own instead of leeching off the tax base. This move is long overdue. Let some other sucker locality spend tens of millions to build them a ballpark and let Richmond spend its money continuing to improve downtown. If the demand for a baseball team was there this issue wouldn't even exist but the fact of the matter is, in a metro-area of 1 million plus a baseball game brings in 3,000 (thats THOUSAND) on a good night. Why should all the people who obviously don't want to watch baseball subsidize the hobby of this minority? The Braves at first supported the idea of rebuilding on Boulevard and now, after the city has spent time and money putting a new plan together, we find the Braves have been courting another locale basically behind our backs. Let the jack***es go and be done with it.

Yeah Richmond blogs were talking about that last week. Velvet was good for one thing, holding up the Di mural... now that that's gone I hope a mini-flood comes and sweeps that building into the James so someone with an inkling of class can rebuild there. Between sketchy Santa standing on the street corner, the Humvees, and the spotlights (which I used to be ok with) they are getting on Richmond's last nerve.

A nice article about VCU's new "Brandcenter" More Than an Ad School

More conventions means good news for Richmond hotels... Area's 2008 convention business gets strong start

Fallout is run by the same folks that own Mars Bar and seems to be exclusively and industrial/goth club. Tried getting in once and was turned away I assume because I didn't fit the look I think they already have their clientelle so marketing doesn't seem to be a priority. I'd be interested to hear what may be going on in the old Wildcats building.

That's too funny nhughes. There have been several times when friends and I are in the Bottom and have talked about looking into the place to open a business. The location is great and we love the rooftop deck! I wonder why the owner is MIA? It's a shame (and quite stupid) that an owner would sit on an ideal location like that and let it degrade. I suppose they are meeting the city requirements for vacant buildings though, otherwise the city would be on them. I wish they were in violation of a code so they'd get the motivation to do something with that property, whether it be renovate it, lease it, or sell it.

Wow thanks for the great update nhughes. Very informative! I was under the impression things had slowed down or even stopped at Goodfellas so I'm glad to hear that things are still progressing. I'm excited to hear that the space on Franklin has garnered some interest. I've seen newspaper and old permits in the window for what seems like years now. And you're right about the facade. Gorgeous! Can't wait to see what this becomes. What used to be a pretty desolate stretch of the Bottom is getting a little action with the expanded Papa Ningo and this new establishment by Julep's. The restaurant in the old River City Diner building is called "Bubbling". Some friends and I ate there a few weeks ago. I can't highly recommend their cous-cous however friends raved about the falafel and gyros and I did enjoy a hookah filled with a tasty apple tobacco. A rare treat for me! They really skimped on ambiance though and hope they can stay around long enough to make improvements.

Halligans was open to the public the night of the Grand Illumination. They will be opening soon I believe but I don't have an exact date. From what I've heard, the piano bar is a no-go, or has at least been delayed a good while. The owner of Big Daddy's and now BPM has apparently run into money issues. Last I saw that space had a "For Rent" sign in the window. Good Fellas is another project of his at the corner of 18th and Main. Work has been done in there however recent activity (or lack thereof) indicates that project may have been put on the backburner as well. Further up Main towards Tobacco Row, a new coffee shop is going to be opening.

Well I'm not a huge fan of McDonald's (though you can't beat the 99 cent double cheeseburger) but it will be nice to see that area spruced up a bit. I wonder how big it's going to be? With the Children's Museum and Science Museum right there I'm sure it is or soon will be a popular stop for families. Hopefully they put in a cool Play Place

I was driving down West Broad today near the Science Museum and noticed an area where demolition is occurring. Looking in my rear view mirror I realized that the McDonald's was no longer there so I'm assuming that the one at 2700 W. Broad has been ripped down. Anyone have the scoop on that? Are they putting in a newer/nice replacement or is it a new owner altogether?

Burt, all the tables were full when we were there with folks sitting at the bar as well but the noise level didn't seem too bad. I wouldn't consider it a quiet/romantic place to dine however I wouldn't put it anywhere near the noise level of Sine at night either

Finally visited 27 on Broad St for my company Christmas dinner last night. I don't have the ability to wax poetic about food as many reviewers here can however everything I ordered was amazing! I had the scallops wrapped in bacon as an appetizer. The glaze on the scallops was delicious and they were grilled to perfection. For my main course I had the beef ravioli in a tomato/walnut cream sauce. I was scraping the plate to get every last morsel! Finally I topped it off with dessert which was a delicious chocolate/hazelnut gelati. It was a great experience and considering the quality of the food I was very impressed with their prices. Check them out when you get the chance!

Saw this a while back and got reminded of it again today when I visited the CNN.com frontpage. A little writeup in Southern Living about our beloved town... Virginia's capital merry and bright

Some info on the proposed marina from Richmond.com's "Ask the Mayor"...

I've wanted to see a Circuit City flagship store downtown as well.. something along the lines of the Toys 'R Us or Virgin store in Times Square... but smaller in scale of course How could we go about suggesting this?

Perhaps this will cool prices (which have been steadily increasing) down a bit and allow me to enter into the market! There's already a surplus and considering the new mega-developments going on in the exurbs, I would think prices will have to be corrected a bit.

Here's an idea on Regional cooperation. Have Hanover, Goochland, and Powhatan Counties begin creating more vineyards and convince Richmond-area restaurants to serve up their products. Not only would that create a regional pride, it would offer some of Richmond's outlying counties an economic alternative to suburban sprawl. Virginia is for wine lovers

In all likelihood, Greensboro simply offered the more generous incentive package. That's a huge part of how cities bring in business these days. I'm not too concerned either way. Our airport continues to draw record numbers of passengers each month and as long as we see healthy growth, new flights and airlines will come with it.

Very cool! So which restaurant will be making use of the Canal Walk itself? Highwater or Urban Flats? I thought they were going to have tables set up outside like they did when Ripple was there last summer but so far I haven't seen anything. Edit: Nevermind. I found my answer in burt's post in the Toad's Place thread