A rendering of the northern portion of the Broad at the site, with the National Slavery Museum visible in the distance. (File image courtesy of the City of Richmond)
Study into location of slavery museum back on City Council committee agenda
Richmond City Council will hold a special meeting Monday in conjunction with the Standing Committee on Institutional Development meeting at 4 p.m.
The only item on the special meeting agenda is the introduction of an ordinance regarding the use and allocation of council district funds.
Continuing on the committee’s agenda from the previous meeting was a request for a feasibility study of a potential site for the proposed National Slavery Museum, which would be the anchor of the also-under-construction Shockoe Bottom Heritage Campus, now called the Shockoe Project.
The full agenda can be found here.
Richmond EDA approves $40 million infrastructure bond for Diamond District
A recent concept drawing of the Diamond District along Arthur Ashe Boulevard. (City document)
At a special meeting last week, the Richmond Economic Development Authority's board of directors approved portions of a cooperative agreement with the City of Richmond for the development of the Diamond District project and authorized the issuance of $40 million in bonds to fund infrastructure improvements for the first phase of the development.
The lease revenue bonds are part of a $170 million bond being issued for ballpark-anchored projects, including the replacement of The Diamond. Richmond City Council previously approved a $130 million stadium bond issuance to fund the new ballpark, which would be repaid with tax revenue generated by the new development.
The City Council's approval of the bond prompted a lawsuit from local activist Paul Goldman, who argued that the bond issue should be decided by a referendum by city voters. A hearing on that case is scheduled for this Friday.
Chesterfield plans to hold a ribbon-cutting ceremony this week to mark renovations to its ballpark facilities.
Chesterfield County will mark the grand opening of The Diamonds at Iron Bridge with a ribbon-cutting ceremony on-site Friday at 1:30 p.m.
A new brand for the Harry G. Daniel Park baseball and softball facility was unveiled in May, and Chesterfield officials hope to make the facility more attractive to tournament organizers and support the county's sports tourism industry with $5 million worth of improvements.
“This tourism complex will be one of the jewels of Chesterfield's sports tourism legacy,” J.C. Poma, director of the county's sports, tourism and recreation department, said in a news release. “The Diamond at Iron Bridge will become synonymous with excellence for both our residents and the visitors who travel here from around the country for tournaments.”
Renovations at Daniel Park began in the fall and include a variety of improvements, including grading the field, replacing the outfield fence, upgrading the seating and dugouts, and installing a championship field with covered seating and an enclosed press box for high-profile games. A county news release from mid-May explained that the project is still in progress.
Chesterfield maintains triple-AAA bond rating
Chesterfield County announced last week that it has received the highest bond ratings in a row for the 28th year in a row from the nation's three major rating agencies.
The county maintains a triple-AAA bond rating with high ratings from Moody's, Fitch Ratings and Standard & Poor's. Bond ratings are similar to a personal credit score, with a higher bond rating meaning cheaper borrowing costs.
“We've been very defensive about our ratings, and for good reason: we recognize that local governments benefit enormously from being able to borrow money for capital projects at rock-bottom interest rates,” Board of Supervisors Chairman Jim Holland said in a prepared statement.
The county first achieved a triple-AAA rating in 1997.
