East End teardowns unlikely, city's new zoning study says

There has been a whole lot of citywide agita about Richmond’s ongoing code refresh process, and the East End has not been exempt. A common objection to the update—the city’s first major one since the 1970s—is that it will incentivize real-estate developers to tear down historic buildings and replace them with structures that have less “character,” a squirrelly term that means many different things to many different objectors.

But good news! A new study commissioned by the city’s Department of Planning and produced by the planning and real-estate consulting firm RKG Associates, projects that even in the most extreme densification scenarios, virtually no parcels would see demolition in the East End’s residential neighborhoods. I’m sure this will end all the bellyaching once and for all.

Just kidding. I’m sure it won’t. But let’s at least take a look at the study’s findings, shall we?

Released earlier this month, the 30-page report evaluates how four different development changes proposed in the refresh would effect residential neighborhoods in each of six subdivisions throughout Richmond. (Those divisions kinda map onto the city’s council districts; in the context of RKG’s study, the East End is contained in Subarea 1.) Two of the questions considered in the review are focused on how the refresh might influence lot subdividing; another, how many homeowners would add additional dwelling units (ADUs) on their own, without a developer.

In general, the study—which modeled Richmond parcel and geographic data against rental and construction pricing—found that housing production in these neighborhoods would be “gradual, not transformative,” and that “[p]reservation outperforms demolition” under the proposed new rules.

“If we're going to flip these levers and change these things, what will happen?” said Kevin Vonck, the city’s planning director, commenting on the study’s purpose to The Richmonder’s Sarah Vogelsong. “Where will it happen? And what might the rate of change be?”

Of particular interest to the neighborhood’s more preservation-minded residents is how the code refresh might empower less preservation-minded developers to buy properties to acquire residentially zoned parcels, raze existing structures, and build a pair of dwellings and an ADU in their stead. Per the report (emphasis theirs):

In Subarea 1—the study’s rough approximation of Richmond’s 7th District—RKG found these economics especially unattractive, forecasting an annual rate of change of zero parcels in all three types of “residential detached” zoning. (In any of the city’s Old and Historic Districts, unauthorized demolition now carries a penalty of double the market value of the demolished building thanks to a new ordinance passed earlier this year, partially in response to the unsanctioned destruction of storefronts on the 3300 block of E. Marshall St. in 2023.)

“We’re not saying that [teardowns in RD zones] would never occur,” RKG’s Kyle Talente told the Zoning Advisory Council this past Wednesday, per Vogelsong’s coverage. But the firm’s math suggests it wouldn’t really make financial sense.

📜 Possum Poetry

Possum Poetry is original verse written exclusively for The Lookout by Penelope Poubelle, the Lookout’s litter critter-at-large. If you spot roadside trash you’d like her to immortalize in doggerel, email a photo to [email protected]. All submissions anonymous!

💿 A recent inventory of E. Marshall St.’s free DVDs

Perhaps you’ve noticed the blue filing cabinet-esque container standing on E. Marshall St. between Jade Multicultural Salon and Chimbo Sandwich Shop. “LEAVE A MOVIE / TAKE A MOVIE” it reads in yellow block caps. The color scheme is instantly familiar to anyone born before, say, 2007, when the launch of a company called Netflix marked the beginning of the end for the brick-and-mortar movie-rental giant Blockbuster. (“Only Nineties kids will remember,” et cetera.) Much like the last remaining Blockbuster in Bend, Oregon, this self-serve version in Church Hill operates independently of the collapsed chain.

A recent visit to the neighborhood’s DIY DVD repository revealed a partial inventory that included:

Has anybody watched a DVD from the E. Marshall St. “Blockbuster” bin? Does anybody even still have a DVD player? Inquiring minds (me) want to know:

This has been The Lookout’s highly irregular hyperlocal physical-media update.

📹 In Shockoe Bottom, surveillance camera cluster gets clipped

As I reported last week for The Richmonder, since 2024, Richmond Police Department has paid over a million dollars to Flock Safety for surveillance devices including automated license-plate readers (ALPRs). But as I noted in that feature, Flock is not the only vendor that has installed the controversial cameras to monitor the city’s streets. For example, in Shockoe Bottom, a cluster of non-Flock camera units mounted on streetposts surveils northbound traffic on N. 18th St. at its intersection with E. Grace St. Last year, users on Bluesky helped me identify these devices; they appear to be ELSAG model cameras from the Italian defense mega-contractor Leonardo.

In the course of my reporting for The Richmonder, I tried and failed to locate a city contract that pertained to Leonardo, ELSAG, or any of its affiliated procurement vendors in Richmond’s (sometimes-finicky) Open Data Portal. I also swung by to photograph the units again earlier this month. When I did, I noticed that one of the devices’ cables had been cleanly clipped at several points; that camera, unlike the others at the intersection, did not display a red scanner light, suggesting it’s no longer functioning.

Anybody got more information on these devices, and/or what happened to these cables? Get in touch. Anonymity available.

📢 Happenings on The Hill

• Kiss me, etc.: The 40th-annual Church Hill Irish Festival officially starts tomorrow, but sometimes there’s a little neighbors-only soft launch the Friday prior. Not sure if that’s afoot this year, but maybe stroll by? All the details here.

• Sidewalk shop: Chimborazo Elementary School is holding a yard sale to raise more funds for its playground project tomorrow (3/21) from 8am-3pm. Scope the plans here.

• Tent shop: Dear Neighbor is holding a tent sale tomorrow from 11am-5pm that is, and I quote, “ALL ABOUT THE DEALS.” Here’s the deal.

• Bring the noise: If you’re running the Hilltopper 5k on Sunday (3/22), best of luck. If you’re not, get out there and cheer on the runners as they hit the course. More details.

Happenings on The Hill is a digital bulletin board for events, causes, and other items of interest to East Enders that don’t necessarily merit full editorial treatment. Got something for a future edition? Email the relevant details, links, etc. to [email protected] for consideration!

📸 A Very CHill Photo

Want to share your Very CHill Photo from the neighborhood? Email it to [email protected] with your name as you’d like it to appear for publication, and the camera you shot it on.