April 17, 2012 Vol. 4 Issue 4   


 

Welcome     

 

Welcome to the April 2012 edition of the "Building a Better Richmond" newsletter.

I'm proud to share that the metro-Richmond region was recently ranked as the 3rd best location in job creation according to a Gallup's Job Creation Index. Such rankings are significant as they show others are becoming aware of our efforts to move Richmond forward, even in a down economy. Health Diagnostics Laboratory (HDL) is a great example of corporations in our city that are growing and expanding. I recently participated in the 'Big Chomp', which was an event to break ground on the expansion of HDL's corporate headquarters in downtown. With the expansion, comes 653 new jobs that we welcome to the city.

Our city is working to help prepare residents to meet this growing employment demand. We recently opened the City's second Workforce Development community share site at the East District Family Resource Center, 2405 Jefferson Avenue. The share site is open on Wednesdays and Thursdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

       

The City's first share site at Fifth Street Baptist Church opened in October 2011. The City is partnering with RESOURCE, the Capital Region Workforce Investment Board, to teach classes on résumé writing, interviewing and networking skills at both locations. Trained volunteers will staff the centers and serve as career agents and job coaches for interested residents looking for work.

The City's East End Vision Charrette was recently presented the 2012 Community Economic Development Award, in the Community Involvement category, from the Virginia Economic Developers Association. The Charrette was formed by a unique public/private partnership of the city of Richmond, Richmond Redevelopment and Housing Authority, and Bon Secours Richmond Community Hospital in the spring of 2010 to engage the community in a dynamic planning process.

This award recognizes the community, private sector and government partnership that brought forth the planning effort and continued its commitment to ensure a transformational change in our city's East End. I again thank all of the residents and businesses who participated in the Charrette and our partners for their unwavering dedication in this visioning process.

Speaking of our city's East End, I recently joined the Better Housing Coalition in opening a new mixed-use community and breaking ground on additional apartments for low-income seniors around the historic Beckstoffer's Mill at 1207 North 28th Street. The total development includes 3 single family houses which will be rehabilitated for home ownership, 15 new loft style rental apartments, 39 senior rental apartments, 22 historic rental lofts that are designed to be live/work spaces, and re-use of an existing small brick commercial building for office or retail.

I hope you enjoy reading the remainder of this newsletter and that you forward it to family and friends.   

 

 

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Mayor's Schools' Task Force     

 

The Schools Accountability and Efficiency Review Task Force has completed the first phase of its review of the Richmond Public Schools' budget gap of $23.8 million, and closed the gap with recommendations that exempted teacher layoffs and focused on non-instructional efficiencies.   

 

In its report, the Task Force prioritized efficiencies in non-instructional programs and recommended several areas for managed competition.   

 

Some managed competition initiatives could take more than a year to implement, but will provide for long-term savings. The recommendations include, in part: 

• Immediate hiring freeze to place the decision of filling each position subject to the review and approval by the Superintendent;
• Reduction of 50 non-teacher positions across the school system, of which up to 27 are vacant;
• Immediate in-house reform of transportation to reduce the number of routes and reduce overtime hours;
• Engaging in a managed competition process for plant management services and security services;
• Elimination of the proposed employee bonus;
• Re-negotiation of the ten largest vendor contracts;
• Continued review of shared services and department consolidations with the city of Richmond; and
• Audits of the procurement and transportation departments.

Also included in the recommendations was $500,000 for an Education Investment Fund that I endorsed. 

 

The Task Force, co-chaired by James W. Dyke, Jr., and Eva Teig Hardy, was commissioned to review the schools' spending and operations to identify efficiencies, potential consolidations with the city government, and other changes to management practices that could yield savings to the system. The Task Force then secured the services of the Robert Bobb Group and Alvarez and Marsal, and preliminary recommendations were presented in mid-April.

 

The Task Force singled out two recommendations for added action through additional State or City funds. These items were: 

• A potential reduction of 25 instructional aides; and
• A potential elimination of General Fund support of summer school

These two items would have saved a total of $1.7 million, but we will seek the additional funding to remove them from consideration.   

 

The recommendations that were brought forward by this task force illustrate what can happen when fiscal issues are addressed with a sense of innovation and urgency. I'm pleased that we have a set of recommendations that should not affect any currently employed teacher or negatively impact classroom learning. The Task Force and the Robert Bobb Group have worked quickly and decisively, and we are now preparing to present our recommendations to City Council. Full details of the Task Force's work will be presented to City Council on Thursday, April 19, at 5 p.m.

As part of the Task Force's second phase, it will look at academic benchmarks, and ways to improve educational achievement and outcomes. 

 

  

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RVA Green

 

Our 17th Street Farmers' Market opened the 2012 season with my unveiling of the city's first sustainability plan; RVA Green: A Roadmap to Sustainability. Choosing this site to make such an announcement seemed only fitting as the market provides a source of fresh food for the community, reduces harmful vehicle emissions from transporting food from long distances, and sustains our community through local small enterprises. Since April 2011, the City has been moving forward with input from the community to develop the sustainability plan for the city of Richmond. Planning sessions identified existing sustainability initiatives in the community, determined goals for sustainability and identified strategies to achieve those goals. I thank all of the residents who partnered with us in the planning process.

The five focus areas to categorize all of the goals and strategies for the sustainability plan are:

• Economic Development: Encourages a vibrant economy and includes such topics as: green and local jobs, sustainable businesses and urban agriculture.
• Energy: Encourages energy conservation, energy efficiency, renewable energy and green power purchasing.
• Environment: Encourages conservation and support of the natural world and natural resources including: air quality and the management of solid waste and water resources.
• Open Space and Land Use: Encourages sustainable land use patterns and protecting urban open spaces by focusing on topics such as: the urban tree canopy, green spaces, mixed use development and affordable housing.
• Transportation: Focuses on sustainable modes of transportation and an improved infrastructure including: bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure, complete streets and parking.

 

  

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Healthy Richmond

  Please join me on Saturday, April 28, 2012 as we officially kick-off the Healthy Richmond Campaign at the 'Get Healthy - Stay Healthy' Health Expo and Chick-fil-A Cow Walk. The Healthy Richmond Campaign is designed to promote active lifestyles, healthy nutrition, preventative health, sustainability and well-being in the city of Richmond.

This new initiative was proposed by my Blue Ribbon Commission on Health Policy, which was established in 2010, to address concerns of the disparities in health outcomes across the Richmond community. The Blue Ribbon Commission researched many factors affecting health in Richmond, and proposed five focus areas to help improve the health and well-being of city residents: Healthy Richmond Campaign to promote healthy lifestyles to the community; health and social equity; behavioral health; medical homes for uninsured; and support for healthcare providers.

The 'Get Healthy - Stay Healthy' Health Expo is from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Greater Richmond Convention Center in Exhibit Hall A.  This free event will kick-off with the Chick-fil-A Cow Walk at Festival Park between 6th Street Marketplace and the Richmond Coliseum at 8:30 a.m.

 I'm excited that our city is moving forward with implementing the Healthy Richmond Campaign and I hope you will join us.  As a city of opportunity and innovation, we are engaging the community and encouraging the public to proactively embrace the Healthy Richmond concept to improve and maintain a healthy lifestyle. 

 

  

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