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Christmas Tree Pickup
The Department of Public Works policy concerning Christmas trees is the same as a bulk pick-up request. Place your tree
wherever your Supercan is picked up and call the 311 Call center or Public Works at 804-646-0999 and let the agent know you have a Bulk Pick-Up/Live Christmas Tree for pickup. They will be picked up and disposed of separately than your regular trash pick-up. You can also call my office at 804-646-5349 and let us know the address and we will make the request.
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Traffic Delays on Maple Ave. and Nansemond St.
Beware of traffic disruption between now and the end of January on two streets on which you may frequent.
There will be some disruption on Maple Avenue on weekdays through January 31 between 9:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. at the intersections of Maple Avenue and Guthrie Avenue and Maple Avenue and Christopher Lane to allow for installation of residential traffic circles.
There will also be lane closures at Nansemond and Cary Streets in Carytown (between the Kroger and Martin's)to allow for installation of curb extensions, crosswalks, wheelchair ramps and a new drainage system.
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Chief Tarasovic on Crime Decrease
 | | Chief Tarasovic Reports on 2013 Stats |
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1st District Most Clicked
We are offering a fun feature each month to show the top 3 most clicked links in the previous
month's 1st District E-newsletter!
December |
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1st District Twitter Picture of the Month
Arthur Ashe statue in the snow #RVA .
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Reporting a Neighborhood Issue
There are multiple ways that you can report neighborhood issues that you need us to address.
1. You can call my office (804-646-5349) and speak to either me or my liaison, Eli.
2. You can log on and use
SeeClickFix to report issues such as potholes, non-functioning lights, bulk pick up requests, etc.
3. You can also log in to the
Citizens Request Service (CRS) to report more serious needs (or again, call my office).
If possible, please send us a picture(s) with your request for service or issue. Many times, a picture snapped with your cell phone goes a long way to helping us relate your request to City staff so they can easily identify the issue and correct it!
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Get regular updates and news on my 1st District Facebook page!
(You don't need a Facebook account to access the page)
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UPCOMING MEETINGS
--Mon., Jan. 27
-- Mon., Feb. 10
-- Mon., Feb. 24
Begin at 6:00 pm
Joint 1st & 2nd District Shockoe Baseball Meeting
Wed., Jan. 22 at 6:00pm
Albert Hill Middle School
1st District Town
Hall Meeting
Tue., Jan. 28 at 6:00pm
Albert Hill Middle School
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Link Up on LinkedIn
Follow updates on social network for work professionals, aka "the safe-for-work social network"
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Updates & Retweets!
Keep up to date with my Twitter feed for news, updates and retweets from other city officials and departments and personalities around RVA!
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Important Numbers
Police Sector 311
Lt. Mike Stith Sector
804-646-1412 - E-mail
Finance Department
Kevin Ervin
804-646-6452 - E-mail
West End Library
804-646-1877
Web site
Belmont Library
804-646-1139
Web site
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Contact Me
804-646-5349 (Office)
804-592-1060 (Cell)
900 E. Broad St. Ste. 303
Richmond, VA 23219
Eli Wong, Council Liaison
804-310-1738 or
Social Media   
Committee Assignments:
- Land Use, Housing & Transportation (Chair)
- Government Operations
- Organizational Development
- Education & Human Services (alternate)
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Joint District Baseball Town Hall Meeting Wed., January 22
City Council President Charles Samuels and I will jointly host a
meeting to discuss the Shockoe Stadium proposal on Wed., January 22 from 6:00-8:00pm at Albert Hill Middle School at 3400 Patterson Avenue (map).
There will be a presentation about the proposal from the Administration followed by questions from citizens. We hope you can join us for this important discussion. |
Leaf Collection Still Ongoing
If leaf collection has not reached your neighborhood, please know it is coming. Due to numerous days of rain and inclement weather, the schedule has been significantly delayed.
The crews are in the Malvern area and Windsor Farms this week and signs are posted in the Patterson Avenue/Malvern area for collection next week. Public Works Director Jackson has his crews in our neighborhoods and crews will be collecting the other areas of the District over the next two weeks. You can find more information about leaf collection here.
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Town Hall Meeting Tue., Jan. 28
Please join us for the first Town Hall meeting of 2014 on Tuesday, January 28 from 6:00-7:30 pm at Albert Hill Middle School (3400 Patte rson Avenue - map).
We will revisit the new water rate structure after numerous reports of excessively high water bills. Public Utilities Director Bob Steidel will once again join us as he did in July 2013 when the new rates took effect. You can review the PowerPoint presentation he presented at that meeting here.
We will also be discussing the Revitalize RVA plan about the stadium in Shockoe, (don't forget the special meeting on January 22 - see above), as well as updates from Police, Fire, and School Board representative Glen Sturtevant. If you have any questions prior, please contact my office at 804-646-5349.
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Mayor's Response to Questions
On January 7, I received the response from the Mayor's Office regarding my December 6, 2013 letter outlining my initial concerns with the Shockoe Stadium proposal. I appreciate their reply and look forward to examining it in detail and working with the Mayor and Council and the citizens of RVA as we strive to move the discussion forward. I encourage you to read both letters that you can find at this link.
There will be much more discussion on this matter going forward with a vote on the current proposal possibly in late February or March.
You can find the related Times-Dispatch articles and Davenport report upon which the proposal is based on my web site. You will also find news articles regarding the proposal in the left sidebar.
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Faissal Aridi, 46: Owner and Cook, Westwood Pharmacy's Diner
"For breakfast, I used to  have three, four customers, only. This was in 1998. But I think from first month, I start to build it up."
"I add fresh soups every day. Fresh vegetables every day. Every day, I put 10 to 15 specials on the board. I learned something in this business: I won't let customers get bored from my menu.
"You know, when I see the same people come and support me, great families and great friends, it gives me strength to make it. I found my place. I love it. I work hard for it. I have my family in Lebanon and my family here."
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Police & Safety Update
December saw a spike of breaking and entering cases in the Museum District on nine occasions. Police have leads that they are following and concentrating resources in the neighborhood to apprehend the suspect(s).
If you have any information that can be helpful for the Police, please contact CrimeStoppers at 780-1000.
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Police have been receiving complaints about reckless driving in the 4500-4600 block of Grove Avenue near Mary Munford School. Officers will be taking action and monitoring this area for enforcement, especially during drop off and pick-up hours.
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Kudos to Chief Tarasovic and all the men and women in blue at the Richmond Police Department as the City had an overall 4% decrease in major crime in 2013. Violent crime has dropped 53 percent in the city during the past 10 years, and that total is the lowest recorded by the city in "measureable time," which dates to at least 1970. Reliable data are not available before that date. See the video with the Chief at left.
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Style Weekly has a report on the 4% drop in overall crime in 2013 across Richmond and stats decreased in every category except auto thefts. How does the city-wide rate compare to where you live? You can use the interactive map to find stats from your corner of the 1st District or across the City.
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Shyndigz Moving to the Fan
on the District's loss of cake makers extraordinaire Shyndigz in their search for more space and their move from the Patterson Avenue location:
"In a loss for the Near West End sweets scene, Patterson Avenue
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Meet the New RPS Superintendent
I am very excited about the hiring of Dr. Dana Bedden as the new Superintendent of RPS. I look forward to working with him and the School Board in the years ahead.
"During his three year tenure [in Irving, TX], the district expanded its Advanced Placement course offerings and increased the percentage of students taking: AP  courses by 13.6%, AP exams scores by 23.6%, AP Scholars recognition by 14.4% and the SAT participation rate from 39% to 85%. His system-wide reading and math extended learning program for grades K-11 provided 85,000 books for summer reading and math enrichment activities.
During the 2011-2012 school year, each comprehensive high school began implementation of signature programs in the areas of: Architecture, Construction and Engineering (ACE); Aviation and Bio-Medical Science; Energy and Environmental Entrepreneurship as part of twelve career and technical education pathways. The Career and Technical Education (CTE) courses taken by students increased over 50%. Fine Arts enrollment also experienced a significant increase in enrollment of approximately 18%."
You can read more about Dr. Bedden here.
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Albert Hill Monument Ave. 10K Training Team
Has your child ever wanted to run or walk in the Monument Ave 10K? Ran it before, but wants to run with friends? Wants a challenge for the New Year?
The AHMS Training Team, in partnership with SportsBackers, will meet every Monday after school to train for this fun race (when Monday is a holiday we will meet on Tuesday). The race itself is on March 29th and through a generous grant from SportsBackers, the fee is only $5 (normally $40!) We will meet as a group at the school prior to the race and be transported on a bus together on Race Day. More details will be provided closer to the race.
The 1st Meeting will take place Tuesday, January 21st (Monday is a holiday) immediately after school. A Training Schedule for runs/walks your child needs to do at home will be provided. If they can't make every Monday for the Training Team, they can still participate! All levels are welcome and encouraged!!
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Munford Soccer Committee Meeting
If you love Mary Munford's soccer program and want to be more involved in the planning or administration of the program or are looking for a volunteer opportunity, you should plan on attending the soccer committee informational meeting at the school on Thursday, January 30 at 6:30 p.m.
There are opportunities for small and large commitments and would like to get the ball rolling for the spring season. If you have any questions or want to be at the meeting but have a conflict, please email Jessica Hendricks atmarymunfordsoccer@gmail.com.
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BASE Classes Registration Begins Jan. 21
BASE (Before and After School Enrichment) has many exciting things going on this year! Winter BASE registration will open January 21st at 6:00 pm for Mary Munford students. An email will be sent out with a link on the Mary Munford PTA site. Registration will close Friday, January 31st. Registration will be available to the beginning on January 27th. Contact Latasha Traynham at 804-332-4926 with questions.
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T.J. Football Fundraiser with Bobby Ross
The TeeJay Fund Second Annual Football Fundraiser will be held Thursday, March 27 with guest speaker Coach Bobby Ross at Westminister Presbyterian Church on Monument Avenue. Seating is limited to the first 100 RSVPs and each ticket includes a seated dinner with a silent and live auction. Last year raised $9,000 for the TeeJay fund!
Bobby Ross' resume is long and distinguished. He has coached in college at The Citadel, won three ACC titles with Maryland, and captured a National Championship with Georgia Tech in 1990 along with the collegiate Coach of the Year Award.
His NFL tenure includes tenure as an assistant coach with the Kansas City Chiefs (1978-1981) under Marv Levy, head coach of the Detroit Lions, and he won two division titles with the San Diego Chargers and took them to the Super Bowl in 1995.
Ross, a graduate of Benedictine High School and V.M.I., and his wife, Alice, have three sons, two daughters, and 17 grandchildren. You can get more information about the dinner here.
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School Board Leadership & Budget Input
Congratulations to Don Coleman who was unanimously selected the new Chairman of the School Board on
 January 13. 4th District Representative Kristen Larson was elected Vice-Chair.
The Board is asking the public to help RPS prioritize its budget for the coming year by completing a brief survey that you can find here.
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Two Faces of 2013 Are Spiders
The Times-Dispatch recognized two new faces at the University of Richmond in their year-end roundups that you might see more of in 2014!
Keith Gill became the University of
 Richmond's athletic director in December 2012 after serving in the same role at American University five years prior where the school won 25 team conference championships. His first move was to hire Tracy Woodson, a Benedictine graduate who became the Spiders' baseball coach and he played a significant role in the $17 million renovation of the Robins Center. You can read more about Keith here.  Daniel Chemotti was named the school's first varsity men's lacrosse coach in October 2012 after winning the national title with Loyola. Richmond announced the creation of varsity lacrosse in 2012 and Chemotti, a former Duke midfielder, has been building the team from the ground up. They open their season against powerhouse Virginia in Robins Stadium on February 8th. You can read more about Dan here. |
 Riverfront Plan Meeting Jan. 21
The City is hosting an Richmond Riverfront Plan Initial Projects Public Forum: Brown's Island Dam Walk & Chapel Island Trail on Tuesday, January 21 at 7:00 PM at the Virginia War Memorial Auditorium (621 S. Belvidere St. - map).
Brown's Island Dam Walk will re-purpose an existing historical dam structure into a pedestrian and bicycle route that will connect from Brown's Island on the north bank to the Floodwall and Manchester neighborhood on the south bank. The Chapel Island Trail will build a universally accessible route along the north bank of the river from 14th Street to Great Shiplock Park.
The meeting will open with a concise overview of the Riverfront Plan. The firm leading the design of both projects will make a presentation of the schematic designs at 7:00 PM, with the balance of the meeting then open to questions and comments from the audience.
You can review the plan here.
You can contact Tyler Potterfield, Project Manager in the Dept. of Planning & Development Review at 804-646-6364 or Thomas.Potterfield@Richmondgov.com.
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Mail Updates
If you know someone who would like to receive these e-mail updates via U.S. Postal Service, please e-mail me here or call 804-646-5349 and provide their name and mailing address.
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Newsletter
