Diamond Area / Hermitage Rd Corridor / Ownby District

[123fakestreet]

Really disappointing design, but whatever lets just get this thing built at this point.

There's not one unique feature that stands out. Incredibly architecturally bland. Looks like a nice high school stadium surrounded by some generic low slung apartments.

Edited March 26 by 123fakestreet

[ancientcarpenter]

Maybe I'm the odd man out but I LOVE this design...and I never cared much for baseball growing up. 

A few years ago I went to a Minnesota Twins game. Sat in my seat and enjoyed the show. Next weekend we went to a league lower game at the St. Paul Saints stadium - much smaller stadium but I had an amazing time because the stadium was built like this new Squirrels stadium except it was much more bland and vanilla. We had a blast walking around the stadium 360degrees, sitting in the grass, casually getting drinks and food while also a long game of baseball was played. It completely overshadowed the Twins major league game for me. It felt like I was hanging out with friends and family while a game of baseball was happening that we could casually watch. Baseball is perfect for that.

This fits RVA really well - we like sports but we aren't willing to go major leagues as we want more of a "chill" and "family" atmosphere. This design (to me) hits the nail on the head. I just hope the outside design is cool and unique to standout as a strong symbol to RVA. Very excited to take my kids to this and not be glued to our seats the entire time... LOVE IT!

Edited March 26 by ancientcarpenter

[eandslee]

I’m not sure what I was expecting, not sure I was expecting this.  Seems REALLY small and I can’t believe we are UPGRADING to this design (is it really an upgrade?).  I don’t know….I just hope the design and the amenities are so ahead of its time because that’s the one part I worry about. We’re not doing this again for another 40+ years folks, so the designers better not have left a stone unturned!  As for the 2-tier design, I would have liked to have seen more than a couple rows of seats on the top level.  That part is just not doing it for me. 

Edited March 26 by eandslee

[BigBobbyG]

I like it! I think if done right the industrial design could work well considering the past of Scott’s Addition. I hope they add more brick and don’t love all the white on the roofs but the 360 design and the lawn seating is awesome. I also like that they made it 10k capacity. 

[Flood Zone]

43 minutes ago, eandslee said:

I’m not sure what I was expecting, not sure I was expecting this.  Seems REALLY small and I can’t believe we are UPGRADING to this design (is it really an upgrade?).  I don’t know….I just hope the design and the amenities are so ahead of its time because that’s the one part I worry about.

This is basically the contemporary design for a minor league ballpark. Vast majority lower-level seating with a wrap-around effect down most of both lines, small upper-level club seating and press box access, covered wide concourse with vantage points behind home plate, lots of room for concessions, outfield bar* and lounge area, kids play area, more inviting gate entrances, etc. It's the FredNats park but twice the capacity. I can definitely live with that. Is it a thing of beauty? Not from the renderings, but I've been in dozens upon dozens of ballparks in my lifetime and I don't really know a ballpark until I experience it and get a sense of its "personality" (yes, a ballpark has a personality, lol).

A couple more points: (1) You were previously concerned about being big enough for a Triple-A conversion, and 10,000 capacity is comfortably the size of a new-build Triple-A stadium. (2) Although I am one of the few who thinks The Diamond is a perfectly fine place to watch a game, this would absolutely be an upgrade from The Diamond in almost every conceivable way.

 

*That bar near the foul pole looks either interesting or dangerous (especially if the park is more hitter friendly than our current one). Look out!

Edited March 26 by Flood Zone

[eandslee]

2 minutes ago, Flood Zone said:

This is basically the contemporary design for a minor league ballpark. Vast majority lower-level seating with a wrap-around effect down most of both lines, small upper-level club seating and press box access, covered wide concourse with vantage points behind home plate, lots of room for concessions, outfield bar* and lounge area, kids play area, more inviting gate entrances, etc. It's the FredNats park but twice the capacity. I can definitely live with that. Is it a thing of beauty? Not from the renderings, but I've been in dozens upon dozens of ballparks in my lifetime and I don't really know a ballpark until I experience it and get a sense of its "personality" (yes, a ballpark has a personality, lol).

A couple more points: (1) You were previously concerned about being big enough for a Triple-A conversion, and 10,000 seats is comfortably the size of a new-build Triple-A stadium. (2) Although I am one of the few who thinks The Diamond is a perfectly fine place to watch a game, this would absolutely be an upgrade from The Diamond in almost every conceivable way.

 

*That bar near the foul pole looks either interesting or dangerous (especially if the park is more hitter friendly than our current one). Look out!

Hey - thanks for your inputs!  I’m apparently not in the know (I’ll admit it). I’ll trust your thoughts on this and hope this is a resounding success!  
 

Also, you’re right - good point!  I WAS worried about it meeting AAA standards and having a seating capacity of 10K, surely does that!  So, I guess I can’t be anything but pleased with this!  

Finally, after thinking about it, the brick and rustic old, but new look will look very Richmond and fit into the neighborhood quite nicely!  I like that part of it even though the renderings don’t show that very well. Hope we get more detailed renderings soon!

[HRVT]

13 hours ago, Downtowner said:

I have been hoping this with too nhl expansion is still seemingly trying to take place. Richmond will no doubt get a triple a team with expansion. Same with nhl if Atlanta seems to try again with hockey like they are. 

I don't know if Richmond is a shoo-in for an AHL team with any expansion. A lot of the expansion in the minor league systems was westward. This is why Norfolk lost their AHL team (Norfolk was low-ish in attendance figures.... but nowhere near the bottom).  I suspect Richmond would be a great candidate for the ECHL.... but AHL is more dicey even with the new arena (for instance, Jacksonville has an ECHL team even with their arena seating 13k for hockey, Orlando's ECHL team uses the same arena as the Orlando Magic).

6 hours ago, eandslee said:

I’m not sure what I was expecting, not sure I was expecting this.  Seems REALLY small and I can’t believe we are UPGRADING to this design (is it really an upgrade?).  I don’t know….I just hope the design and the amenities are so ahead of its time because that’s the one part I worry about. We’re not doing this again for another 40+ years folks, so the designers better not have left a stone unturned!  As for the 2-tier design, I would have liked to have seen more than a couple rows of seats on the top level.  That part is just not doing it for me. 

This is the trend in minor league baseball stadiums. Instead of building up, they're largely building out with wide and open concourses (see Scranton/Wilkes-Barre for instance who demolished their double deck mini-Vet for a design shaped like this).  Durham and Charlotte are two more examples like this. I think it looks solid. 

Edited March 26 by HRVT

[blopp1234]

21 minutes ago, HRVT said:

This is the trend in minor league baseball stadiums. Instead of building up, they're largely building out with wide and open concourses (see Scranton/Wilkes-Barre for instance who demolished their double deck mini-Vet for a design shaped like this).  Durham and Charlotte are two more examples like this. I think it looks solid. 

You are correct about this trend. Almost every minor league baseball stadium built in the last 20 years is pretty much single tiered, with a layer of suites above the single level. Ballparks now attempt to wrap around the field with the intention that fans can view the game from any angle.

 

As far as the proposed stadium, I think it looks really good. Lots of things to like, such as the beer garden, behind home plate suites (which is very major league ish), and seating completely around the stadium. I do wish there was some sort of roof that extended over some of the lower deck seats in order to provide more shade, but that should hopefully be an easy add. Overall, it looks a lot more unique than most minor league ballparks and definitely fits the Richmond theme (it doesn’t look like a cut and paste cookie cutter stadium imo).

[HRVT]

39 minutes ago, blopp1234 said:

You are correct about this trend. Almost every minor league baseball stadium built in the last 20 years is pretty much single tiered, with a layer of suites above the single level. Ballparks now attempt to wrap around the field with the intention that fans can view the game from any angle.

 

As far as the proposed stadium, I think it looks really good. Lots of things to like, such as the beer garden, behind home plate suites (which is very major league ish), and seating completely around the stadium. I do wish there was some sort of roof that extended over some of the lower deck seats in order to provide more shade, but that should hopefully be an easy add. Overall, it looks a lot more unique than most minor league ballparks and definitely fits the Richmond theme (it doesn’t look like a cut and paste cookie cutter stadium imo).

Honestly, even the roof extending over the lower deck seats is pretty uncommon. Durham sort of has one that extends a bit but the lowest seats aren't really shaded.  Same with Polar Park. Charlotte doesn't really have one at all. Scranton/Wilkes-Barre is also roofless. However, all of these stadiums do provide shade on the main concourse underneath the press box/suites (Durham's main concourse is out of view of the stadium at the infield level, though there is a bit of an area where one can walk around, see the game, AND be in the shade). 

I think it looks like it would be a good place to catch a ball game. I don't get up to Richmond a lot, but when I'm there, I look forward to catching a game at this park. The Diamond: Been there, done that.

[I miss RVA]

On 3/25/2024 at 10:13 PM, HRVT said:

Sometimes it's about affiliations and other factors than pure attendance that drives who stays in what league. Buffalo is less than 2 and a half hours from Syracuse (both AAA markets). Rochester is between the two. Buffalo is affiliated with Toronto which is not far away. Syracuse is with the Mets. Rochester however is affiliated with the Nats.... and Washington just so happens to be the closest major league city to Richmond.

I'm not sure I fully buy that that happens. But when expansion does happen, Richmond will be on the AAA short list. If Charlotte or Nashville get a team, its highly likely Richmond gets the AAA team (or at least the expansion would cause a chain reaction leading to Richmond getting one).

My understanding is that Nashville is on the short-short list for MLB expansion - and that would have a ripple effect in the IL, no doubt. Am guessing Richmond would be a prime candidate to jump into the IL. Interesting that Rochester is Washington's AAA club. From the standpoint of proximity, Richmond would totally make the most sense as the Nats' AAA club. I'd be curious to know if we would be "trading" teams - meaning - the Squirrels would go elsewhere and remain affiliated with the Giants - or - given the Squirrels' close connection with RVA, would they stay and simply change affiliation and league? It would be great to keep the Squirrels here - and simply move them to the IL and make them Washington's affiliate.

I'm scared to even try to contemplate the amount of money that would take though.

Edited March 27 by I miss RVA

[HRVT]

1 hour ago, I miss RVA said:

My understanding is that Nashville is on the short-short list for MLB expansion - and that would have a ripple effect in the IL, no doubt. Am guessing Richmond would be a prime candidate to jump into the IL. Interesting that Rochester is Washington's AAA club. From the standpoint of proximity, Richmond would totally make the most sense as the Nats' AAA club. I'd be curious to know if we would be "trading" teams - meaning - the Squirrels would go elsewhere and remain affiliated with the Giants - or - given the Squirrels' close connection with RVA, would they stay and simply change affiliation and league? It would be great to keep the Squirrels here - and simply move them to the IL and make them Washington's affiliate.

I'm scared to even try to contemplate the amount of money that would take though.

Its only a matter of when MLB expands. The question is when and by how much. One estimate is that each division adds a team (expanding the league to 36).... this likely happens in 2-3 spurts rather than at once.

Like you said, this will create a ripple effect. Let's just say the MLB adds two teams. Not only does that add the need for two AAA teams, but if they pull from other AAA markets (like Nashville or Charlotte), you actially have FOUR openings in AAA.

Of course AAA likely pulls from AA or High-A which will create more movement. Greensboro for instance could be a candidate for AA. Fredericksburg could move up to High-A. And if MLB does expand to 36, that's going to create a lot of opportunity. Some markets who recently lost MiLB may be back in the cards (with the right investment).

That all said, Richmond has a very good chance of being AAA soon once this ballpark is built... maybe without expansion. Without expansion, it could be a bit of a trade though more likely would be a shuffling all together (there are typically a fair number of affiliation changes every year). For example, the Nats could put their AAA team in the IL while the old Squirrels "fill" the spot in the Eastern League in Rochester... but maybe with a different afflliliation (the Giants getting a new AA team while that team's affiliation goes to Rochester).

[I miss RVA]

11 hours ago, HRVT said:

Its only a matter of when MLB expands. The question is when and by how much. One estimate is that each division adds a team (expanding the league to 36).... this likely happens in 2-3 spurts rather than at once.

Like you said, this will create a ripple effect. Let's just say the MLB adds two teams. Not only does that add the need for two AAA teams, but if they pull from other AAA markets (like Nashville or Charlotte), you actially have FOUR openings in AAA.

Of course AAA likely pulls from AA or High-A which will create more movement. Greensboro for instance could be a candidate for AA. Fredericksburg could move up to High-A. And if MLB does expand to 36, that's going to create a lot of opportunity. Some markets who recently lost MiLB may be back in the cards (with the right investment).

That all said, Richmond has a very good chance of being AAA soon once this ballpark is built... maybe without expansion. Without expansion, it could be a bit of a trade though more likely would be a shuffling all together (there are typically a fair number of affiliation changes every year). For example, the Nats could put their AAA team in the IL while the old Squirrels "fill" the spot in the Eastern League in Rochester... but maybe with a different afflliliation (the Giants getting a new AA team while that team's affiliation goes to Rochester).

Personally, I hope MLB does NOT expand to 36 teams. That's just too many - and not merely from a dilution of the talent pool. I'm comfortable with a 32-team league structure (like the NFL has) - but frankly I personally think 32 clubs should be the cap across ALL FOUR of the major North American leagues. I realize the leagues themselves likely don't agree with that - too many cash registers are set to go "cha ching" from merchandizing, television rights, not to mention just the big bucks the new ownership has to fork over to the league just to enter the fraternity.

The NFL is my #1 sport and as much as I would LOVE to see London, Manchester and perhaps Frankfurt get teams, given the rousing success of the NFL's regular-season jaunts over to Europe every season now for the past decade or two, I honestly think the league is maxed out in terms of the number of clubs it should have. The Jaguars have a HUGE connection with the London fan base. If the Jags want to leave Duval (I'd hate to see them go - their fan base there is fantastic, but how do you compete with a city of over 9 million? (Yes, London is actually bigger than NYC by a narrow margin)) - then London's franchise should be (IMNSHO) via relocation, not expansion.

I know... dream on.

MLB has been looking at geographically balanced expansion - which means putting one new club in the east (Nashville the most likely candidate as it has been atop the short-short list for a while now) and -- prior to the A's deciding to pack up and leave for the desert - Vegas. I've heard plenty of rumblings that the powers-that-be are strongly leaning toward "replacing" the A's in the Bay Area as quickly as possible once the club moves to Vegas. Whether that entails "leaving behind" the name, branding, history, stats, etc., as was the case when the original Browns moved to Baltimore to become the Ravens remains to be seen. But that said, we'll likely see Nashville come out of the IL and Vegas come out of the PCL.

That being the case, I'd tend to think that indeed Richmond would be first in line to land in the IL South, taking Nashville's position - and HOPEFULLY the powers that be would go the smart route and immediately affiliate the club with the Nationals. Hard to say what might happen to Rochester - meaning, whether they'd stay in the IL perhaps with a new/different affiliation, or somehow get bumped (but if a new spot opens up, there would be no need to bump anyone out of the league). Either way, I just hope we could somehow keep the Squirrels in the process.

Flip side - if we DID lose the Squirrels (which would be really sad) - perhaps Richmond's new IL club could have the classic nickname of "Virginians" again - or maybe (particularly if they're affiliated with the Nats), "Capitals" (since RVA is the capital of the Commonwealth and the Nats play in the nation's capital). 

Just a little pie-in-the-sky pipe dreaming. 

[Downtowner]

My thought is that it will happen like Jacksonville did when they moved up to triple a. I see them promoting the flying squirrels to aaa and demoting Rochester. To aa at least with no expansion at the moment. With expansion then you have much larger shuffling around teams. So I don’t see the team name or owner leaving here altogether the affiliation and level will change for the squirrels but that’s it. I would be very happy with a nats triple a. At the moment they are reloading their minors with some big time hot bats. Dylan crews is one of the biggest they have other than that they have a premium amount of talent. Giants have some great talent still pumping. My main thing is I want to see the Gwinnett Braves come play us and hear everyone boo them to death. Me I am a die hard Braves fan since birth can’t change won’t ever change. I would be pulling for Gwinnett every time they come just because I’m a die hard Braves fan from mlb to A ball. Either way I’m excited for the new ballpark and yes this design is very common across the minors kind of like how Baltimores oriole park at Camden yards was the founding father of today design. I go to Camden a lot more now that I’m closer to Baltimore and dc to go watch games. Only three hours from Pittsburgh now who has the most beautiful view to watch a ball game at with downtown Pittsburgh right in front of you.,

[HRVT]

5 hours ago, I miss RVA said:

Personally, I hope MLB does NOT expand to 36 teams. That's just too many - and not merely from a dilution of the talent pool. I'm comfortable with a 32-team league structure (like the NFL has) - but frankly I personally think 32 clubs should be the cap across ALL FOUR of the major North American leagues. I realize the leagues themselves likely don't agree with that - too many cash registers are set to go "cha ching" from merchandizing, television rights, not to mention just the big bucks the new ownership has to fork over to the league just to enter the fraternity.

The NFL is my #1 sport and as much as I would LOVE to see London, Manchester and perhaps Frankfurt get teams, given the rousing success of the NFL's regular-season jaunts over to Europe every season now for the past decade or two, I honestly think the league is maxed out in terms of the number of clubs it should have. The Jaguars have a HUGE connection with the London fan base. If the Jags want to leave Duval (I'd hate to see them go - their fan base there is fantastic, but how do you compete with a city of over 9 million? (Yes, London is actually bigger than NYC by a narrow margin)) - then London's franchise should be (IMNSHO) via relocation, not expansion.

I know... dream on.

MLB has been looking at geographically balanced expansion - which means putting one new club in the east (Nashville the most likely candidate as it has been atop the short-short list for a while now) and -- prior to the A's deciding to pack up and leave for the desert - Vegas. I've heard plenty of rumblings that the powers-that-be are strongly leaning toward "replacing" the A's in the Bay Area as quickly as possible once the club moves to Vegas. Whether that entails "leaving behind" the name, branding, history, stats, etc., as was the case when the original Browns moved to Baltimore to become the Ravens remains to be seen. But that said, we'll likely see Nashville come out of the IL and Vegas come out of the PCL.

That being the case, I'd tend to think that indeed Richmond would be first in line to land in the IL South, taking Nashville's position - and HOPEFULLY the powers that be would go the smart route and immediately affiliate the club with the Nationals. Hard to say what might happen to Rochester - meaning, whether they'd stay in the IL perhaps with a new/different affiliation, or somehow get bumped (but if a new spot opens up, there would be no need to bump anyone out of the league). Either way, I just hope we could somehow keep the Squirrels in the process.

Flip side - if we DID lose the Squirrels (which would be really sad) - perhaps Richmond's new IL club could have the classic nickname of "Virginians" again - or maybe (particularly if they're affiliated with the Nats), "Capitals" (since RVA is the capital of the Commonwealth and the Nats play in the nation's capital). 

Just a little pie-in-the-sky pipe dreaming. 

Personally, I would love to see each division grow by one. I think there's a lot of good baseball even at the AAA level where I think that could be supported. It expands not only big league baseball to some areas that deserve it but don't have it but it also expands AAA baseball into some deserving markets... and it even expands any kind of professional baseball into some additional markets (including some that were lost in the re-shuffling a few years ago... but that are willing to commit to the resources to "play ball").

On the Charlotte message board I think, I actually engaged in a thought exercise that made me realize just how easy it would to expand that way as each divisional designation (East/Central/West) in baseball had at least two deserving markets. This might not be exactly what I posted in the other thread, but here's what each division could potentially add (I'm going to assume the As are moving to Las Vegas):

AL East: Nashville

NL East: Charlotte (or Raleigh)

AL Central: Indianapolis

NL Central: New Orleans

AL West: Salt Lake City

NL West: Portland

I'm not sure I'm sold on Salt Lake City being as viable as some are saying, but they are quite a drive to the next nearest metro and have a fair amount of size to them at this point and they are growing quickly. As for Oakland... that's a city that not only isn't getting its act together, I'm just not sure if the metro has a big need for a 2nd team (the Giants are just 21 miles away). If the area does warrant a 2nd team, I actually wonder if San Jose makes more sense (though I don't think they have the desire for one).

That all said, should it play out similarly to what I wrote out, Richmond would 100% be back in AAA. It too good of a market not to be... with what appears to be a solid stadium to boot. I also wonder if the Peninsula would be able to get A-ball back. I know there was talk a while back of Hampton building a Single-A stadium downtown (War Memorial Stadium where the old Carolina League Pilots used to play was outdated 30 years ago when they left and probably isn't able to be upgraded at this point) but I think those talks stalled out. I wonder if something in Newport News could still work.

Edited March 27 by HRVT

[I miss RVA]

13 minutes ago, HRVT said:

Personally, I would love to see each division grow by one. I think there's a lot of good baseball even at the AAA level where I think that could be supported. It expands not only big league baseball to some areas that deserve it but don't have it but it also expands AAA baseball into some deserving markets... and it even expands any kind of professional baseball into some additional markets (including some that were lost in the re-shuffling a few years ago... but that are willing to commit to the resources to "play ball").

On the Charlotte message board I think, I actually engaged in a thought exercise that made me realize just how easy it would to expand that way as each divisional designation (East/Central/West) in baseball had at least two deserving markets. This might not be exactly what I posted in the other thread, but here's what each division could potentially add (I'm going to assume the As are moving to Las Vegas):

AL East: Nashville

NL East: Charlotte (or Raleigh)

AL Central: Indianapolis

NL Central: New Orleans

AL West: Salt Lake City

NL West: Portland

I'm not sure I'm sold on Salt Lake City being as viable as some are saying, but they are quite a drive to the next nearest metro and have a fair amount of size to them at this point and they are growing quickly. As for Oakland... that's a city that not only isn't getting its act together, I'm just not sure if the metro has a big need for a 2nd team (the Giants are just 11 miles away). If the area does warrant a 2nd team, I actually wonder if San Jose makes more sense (though I don't think they have the desire for one).

 

Hmmm... we might have to agree to disagree. I just don't think MLB needs 36 teams - and I don't think every city without an MLB team "needs" one. I know - way too much money to be made - but I'm not in favor of it. Add Nashville and a team in the west, be it back in the Bay Area or maybe Portland, and call it a day.

Just my two shekels - and I realize it's not likely a popular view. I just think ballooning leagues to these astronomical sizes is ridiculous. IF we're going to keep expanding, then why stop at 36? Why not go to 40 or 42 teams? Even more cities could get into the mix that way. Why not put clubs in Austin, San Antonio, OKC or Columbus? Maybe add in a couple of worthy Canadian cities - Vancouver, Montreal (and they SHOULD be back in, IMNSHO). Perhaps Orlando. What about Honolulu? I know travel... meh... travel schmavel... if the leagues are willing to keep expanding, why not put a team in a rockin' vacation spot like Hawaii?

See my point?

Sometimes less is more - and I definitely think that's the case when it comes to major league professional sports. And for the record, I LOVE professional sports. I'm a former AP sports writer, and I've been a huge fan of pro sports and the "big four" leagues since 1970. And even with all of that, I think enough is enough - and that 30 or at most 32 teams in a given league are okay, but 36 are just flat too many. I love the NFL with a passion, but honest to God I don't want to see them expand. Keep it at 32. That's enough. More than enough.

Re: the Bay area and supporting two clubs: even with pandemic-related and post-pandemic population decline, the greater Bay Area CSA still clocks in at over 9 million, the fifth-largest in the country, right behind Chicago at 9.7 million. As for the distance between the teams - yeah, 11 miles isn't a lot of separation between the A's and Giants. HOWEVER, here in Chicago, the Cubs and White Sox are separated (as the crow flies) by a mere 8.25 miles door-to-door, and I've had the pleasure on a few occasions of taking in an afternoon game at Wrigley, then hopping the "L" and heading over to the South Side for a Sox game that same evening. Admittedly, the teams have been ensconced in the Windy City for 148 and 123 years respectively and are in a city of 2.6 million - but still. I don't think there's an issue with the Bay Area being too small to support two MLB teams, especially given that they've done so for the past 56 years. 

I like the idea of San Jose, but if they're not looking to get a club, not much can be done there.

[HRVA]

The Giants control the San Jose market and won’t cede that territory to the A’s, even though the A’s previously ceded it to them. It was one of the areas the A’s considered relocating to. 

I agree with 32 teams - at least give it a decent amount of time before expanding any further. I’d rather see 32 with realigned divisions though. Either 4 divisions of 8 teams or 8 with 4. 

[whw53]

Wooo-hoo 180 for sale units coming to FeedMore site! (remember Feedmore is moving up Brook Rd). Stacked units gotta be either Stanley Martin or StyleCraft homes - probably 4 -5 stories.

https://energov.richmondgov.com/EnerGov_Prod/SelfService/richmondvaprod#/plan/c33522a7-f5de-4fb0-ac21-31c07c4f82c4?tab=locations

 

EDIT - builder looks to be khavanion homes which is an entry into the market for them. Welcome to RVA!!!

https://www.khov.com/

Here's a sample 2 over 2 project they have on the market in Loudoun County - https://www.khov.com/find-new-homes/virginia/ashburn/20147/k-hovnanian-homes/the-flats-at-waxpool-crossing

 

Edited March 28 by whw53

[I miss RVA]

16 minutes ago, whw53 said:

Wooo-hoo 180 for sale units coming to FeedMore site! (remember Feedmore is moving up Brook Rd). Stacked units gotta be either Stanley Martin or StyleCraft homes - probably 4 -5 stories.

https://energov.richmondgov.com/EnerGov_Prod/SelfService/richmondvaprod#/plan/c33522a7-f5de-4fb0-ac21-31c07c4f82c4?tab=locations

 

EDIT - builder looks to be khavanion homes which is an entry into the market for them. Welcome to RVA!!!

https://www.khov.com/

Here's a sample 2 over 2 project they have on the market in Loudoun County - https://www.khov.com/find-new-homes/virginia/ashburn/20147/k-hovnanian-homes/the-flats-at-waxpool-crossing

 

WOWWWWWWWWWWWW... this is lookin' GOOD!! Can't wait to see what the renderings look like. And 180 units is nothing to sneeze at - that's a pretty big development, particularly for condos. 

Looking at the site for their NOVA development, I culled this rendering to give us an idea of what this development MIGHT look like. (IMPORTANT NOTE: THIS IS ONLY FOR SPECULATIVE PURPOSES AND NOT TO BE CONSTRUED AS ACTUAL RENDERINGS OF THE RVA PROJECT)

[I miss RVA]

Welllllllllp folks - this falls into the "RUTTTT ROHHH, RASTRO" category...  

So apparently the bill to extend the law which would allow localities to collect/use a portion of sales tax to help pay for large projects like ballparks and arenas past the July 1 expiry got torpedoed when the General Assembly kiboshed funding for the big arena/stadium project in Alexandria. This impacts Richmond (at least for now) in that Richmond now will not be able to collect the expected $25 million in sales tax revenue from stuff like sales of T-shirts at the ballpark, etc., to help pay for the stadium. This particular bill passed the House of Delegates but was never taken up by the Senate and allowed to basically take a dirt nap.

This will put pressure on the city to use the other funding sources, such as real estate taxes on new residences and commercial space built in the Diamond District/TIF, meals tax, license fees, admissions tax, hotel tax, etc., to make up the shortfall from the anticipated use of the sales tax revenue.

The governor can step in and add to legislation that the G.A. will consider when it goes back into session in a few weeks.

Oy vey - I swear, if it's not one thing it's a million (or in this case, 25 million).   And this one's not even the city's fault (for once). 

From today's Richmond Times-Dispatch:

https://richmond.com/news/local/business/development/diamond-district-baseball-stadium-northern-virginia-arena/article_411ff93a-eb7b-11ee-9656-af4be815f7cc.html

Edited March 28 by I miss RVA

[Flood Zone]

21 minutes ago, I miss RVA said:

The governor can step in and add to legislation that the G.A. will consider when it goes back into session in a few weeks.

Not a prediction, but it seems an easy fix. Ted Leonis accepted defeat this week and entered into an agreement with DC to keep the Wiz/Caps there, so that political hot potato is off the table.

[plain]

1 hour ago, I miss RVA said:

WOWWWWWWWWWWWW... this is lookin' GOOD!! Can't wait to see what the renderings look like. And 180 units is nothing to sneeze at - that's a pretty big development, particularly for condos. 

Looking at the site for their NOVA development, I culled this rendering to give us an idea of what this development MIGHT look like. (IMPORTANT NOTE: THIS IS ONLY FOR SPECULATIVE PURPOSES AND NOT TO BE CONSTRUED AS ACTUAL RENDERINGS OF THE RVA PROJECT)

Yeah I seriously hope that the Richmond ones look nothing like that. That design is definitely the epitome of suburbia. Other than that, this is great news.

[Shakman]

Yeah keep those types of designs in the burbs.

Edited March 28 by Shakman

[HRVT]

8 hours ago, HRVA said:

The Giants control the San Jose market and won’t cede that territory to the A’s, even though the A’s previously ceded it to them. It was one of the areas the A’s considered relocating to. 

I agree with 32 teams - at least give it a decent amount of time before expanding any further. I’d rather see 32 with realigned divisions though. Either 4 divisions of 8 teams or 8 with 4. 

Yeah, I knew there was some kind of deal killing problem with San Jose.... even if San Jose is considerably further from San Francisco.

The reason I personally like the 36 team approach is that expansion happens neatly without blowing up the current divisions. I hate the idea of realignment.... and even more so I hate the idea of uneven divisions. In baseball especially, you could do 36 teams without watering things down too bad. 

As for capping pro sports leagues at 30/32, while that has sort of been a range of comfort in leagues for the last 20-30 years, it's only a matter of time before a league (probably MLB) pushes the envelope on that number. If there's money to be made.....

[I miss RVA]

2 hours ago, HRVT said:

1.) As for capping pro sports leagues at 30/32, while that has sort of been a range of comfort in leagues for the last 20-30 years, it's only a matter of time before a league (probably MLB) pushes the envelope on that number.

2.) If there's money to be made.....

1.) Unfortunately, it is just a matter of time in all likelihood. You're probably right that MLB would be the first out of the gate - UNLESSSSSSSSSS... the NFL jumps them and gets out of the blocks first. It's the world's worst kept "secret" that the NFL is (pardon the term) absolutely "lusting" over London, and one doesn't need to be a SpaceX engineer to see why. A city of well over 9 million (depending on the source - Greater London checks in at around 9.4 million) - and the wider London metropolitan region has a population of 14.4 million -- so this is city larger than any in the U.S. - and only the wider NYC and LA markets at 21 million and just under 16 million respectively - are bigger. The NFL has a deal in place (at least for now) with Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. If a franchise (say Jacksonville) were to relocate to London, no doubt they'd play at Tottenham for the foreseeable future. Wembley stadium (and its 90,000 seats) is also an available venue. While it would be preferable IF the NFL puts a franchise permanently in the English capital for said franchise to come via relo, given all the incredibly deep pocketed potential ownership groups there, there's NO WAY that the NFL would turn down the tremendous money that would come into their coffers just from the fee to buying into the league.  Not to mention all of the other money that could be made.

2.) Ohhhhhhhh believe me - there's money to be made. Lots of it. I'm often reminded by the line from a rap song by (I think) Grandmaster Flash from back in the '80s - "It's all about money, ain't a damn thing funny. You gotta have a con in this land of milk and honey." Nothing drives professional sports like the ringing of cash registers. 

Edited March 28 by I miss RVA

[HRVT]

24 minutes ago, I miss RVA said:

1.) Unfortunately, it is just a matter of time in all likelihood. You're probably right that MLB would be the first out of the gate - UNLESSSSSSSSSS... the NFL jumps them and gets out of the blocks first. It's the world's worst kept "secret" that the NFL is (pardon the term) absolutely "lusting" over London, and one doesn't need to be a SpaceX engineer to see why. A city of well over 9 million (depending on the source - Greater London checks in at around 9.4 million) - and the wider London metropolitan region has a population of 14.4 million -- so this is city larger than any in the U.S. - and only the wider NYC and LA markets at 21 million and just under 16 million respectively - are bigger. The NFL has a deal in place (at least for now) with Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. If a franchise (say Jacksonville) were to relocate to London, no doubt they'd play at Tottenham for the foreseeable future. Wembley stadium (and its 90,000 seats) is also an available venue. While it would be preferable IF the NFL puts a franchise permanently in the English capital for said franchise to come via relo, given all the incredibly deep pocketed potential ownership groups there, there's NO WAY that the NFL would turn down the tremendous money that would come into their coffers just from the fee to buying into the league.  Not to mention all of the other money that could be made.

2.) Ohhhhhhhh believe me - there's money to be made. Lots of it. I'm often reminded by the line from a rap song by (I think) Grandmaster Flash back in the '80s - "It's all about money, ain't a damn thing funny. You gotta have a hustle in this land of milk and honey." Nothing drives professional sports like the ringing of cash registers. 

Oh yeah, they'll (sports leagues and other related entities) definitely make money... hence it's inevitable. On that, we are in clear alignment.

As for Richmond, it would certainly be nice to see AAA baseball again there..... it's obviously a good enough market. Maybe they would keep the Squirrels name too.