Mayor Dwight C. Jones issued the following statement regarding the State Board of Corrections unanimous vote approving the City’s amendments to the 2009 Community Based Corrections Plan and Planning Study. The Board of Corrections also approved reimbursement funding of 25% from the Commonwealth of Virginia for all eligible costs relating to the construction of the new Justice Center in the city of Richmond. "I thank the Board of Corrections for this unanimous vote today. I have fought hard to reach this point where we can move forward with the construction of our new Justice Center. I want to thank Sheriff C.T. Woody and those members of Richmond City Council that have stood with us. We are especially pleased that our dedicated law enforcement officers, social workers, clergy, attorneys, prisoners and their families will now have more humane conditions in the very near future. “We’ve made the necessary adjustments to our plans and it is now clear that our plans meet all comp...

Mayor Dwight C. Jones has issued the following statement in response to the letter sent by the City's Department of Finance to the Richmond Tea Party, and was subsequently released by the Richmond Tea Party to the public: "In response to the recent allegations regarding a letter sent to the Richmond Tea Party, the City of Richmond did not target the Richmond Tea Party by sending them a routine letter about overdue tax filings. "In March 2011, a list of more than 700 potentially non-compliant accounts was generated in the City’s Finance Department, by an automated financial system. Since the list was generated, it has been manually reviewed for accuracy. As part of this continuing process, more than 300 letters have been sent to those entities determined to be out of compliance for tax filing or payments. This letter means that either returns have not been filed or taxes are owed. Due to confidentiality laws, the City is prohibited from releasing any details about an indiv...

Mayor Dwight C. Jones today announced the expansion of Health Diagnostics Laboratory, Inc. (HDL) in the Virginia BioTechnology Research Park. This major expansion will occur in two Phases with the redevelopment of Biotech 5 and 3. Phase 1 will begin in early 2012 with a capital investment of $38.5 million in building redevelopment and machinery and equipment and the creation of an additional 353 net new jobs. Phase 2 will occur after the completion of Phase 1 and will include an additional capital investment of $30 million and the creation of 300 additional net new jobs. “This $68.5 million capital investment and 653 net new jobs will bring HDL’s employment to over 950 employees and makes HDL a major employer in the city of Richmond,” said Mayor Jones. “This is a great example of the importance of cultivating our existing business base, and we are proud that HDL has chosen the city of Richmond to expand and grow their business.” HDL, a CAP accredited leader in health management, offers...

~Pavement markings to improve bicycling conditions on roads~ Bicycling in the city is about to become easier and safer for Richmond cyclists. On Saturday the city began installing the first of approximately 80 lane miles of bike sharrows that will be placed along specific corridors in the city. The pilot corridors where the sharrows are being installed include Meadow Street from Broad Street to Cary Street and Harrison Street from Broad Street to Idlewood, representing about three lanes miles of bike sharrows thus far. Sharrows are shared lane markings that are utilized to improve bicycling conditions on roads where designated bike lanes are either infeasible or inappropriate due to traffic conditions. Sharrows are a simple, yet visible way of improving conditions for bicyclists while also reinforcing safe and appropriate bicycling habits which in turn make bicyclists more predictable in mixed traffic conditions. The pilot sharrows are located at regular intervals in both directio...

Through a collaboration with Cigna, the city of Richmond hosted a Communities of Health Forum - Better Together: Collaborating to Achieve a Healthy Richmond, yesterday at the Omni Richmond Hotel. The goal of the forum was to identify and prioritize high-leverage and sustainable actions to further enhance existing programs and eliminate key barriers to health, including social determinants of health. “Upon taking office, I quickly became aware of the disparity in health care resources and outcomes for many of Richmond’s most economically challenged residents. The discussion and information gathered within this health forum will further aid my administration’s focus on the specific needs of Richmond residents,” said Mayor Dwight C. Jones. “I would like to thank Cigna and Dr. Frank Brown for their partnership with the city of Richmond and their commitment to improving communities by addressing health disparities.” “We know that it is important to work closely with communities and lo...

~New web site shares more GIS maps to user browsers and on mobile devices~ The city of Richmond has launched an updated web site for the Geographic Information Systems (GIS) program. GIS is used to manage and analyze the geospatial information that applies to government operations and many aspects of decision making in government, business, and the community. The new web site was recently show-cased as part of an Environmental Systems Research Institute (ESRI) seminar for GIS professionals here in Richmond at the Omni Hotel. ESRI is the world-leading GIS software vendor, whose software the city has based its GIS on. The new site features: (1) improved presentation and organization of GIS content, (2) new GIS content, (3) a new approach to sharing GIS maps which includes mobile support, and (4) new support for maps published in collaboration with the community. The updated web site increases the amount of GIS information available to residents and the business community by publish...

Mayor Dwight C. Jones was elected to the 2012 Board of Directors of the National League of Cities (NLC) on Saturday, November 12, at the conclusion of the Congress of Cities and Exposition in Phoenix, AZ. NLC’s Board meets throughout the year and leads the organization by shaping policies and priorities and directing the advocacy, research and membership activities of NLC. “Being elected to serve the nations’ cities and towns is a high honor,” said Mayor Jones. “I have been actively involved on the board of Virginia Municipal League, and I have a great appreciation for the power local officials have when our collective voices come together on critical issues.” NLC also elected new officers for the coming year, including Bluffton, IN, Mayor Ted Ellis as President; Avondale, AZ, Mayor Marie Lopez Rogers as First Vice President; and Saint Paul, MN, Mayor Chris Coleman as Second Vice President. In addition, 22 other new board members were elected during the meeting. The full Boa...