~$50 per Day Following Violation Warning~ City residents will need to pay strict attention to the times they put out their Supercan, as well as the time they remove it from the City right-of-way.  Beginning March 11, in accordance with a City Ordinance, residents and property owners will be subject to monetary fines for leaving their Supercans out too long.  City Code Section 86-44 stipulates Supercans and recycling bins should not be placed out earlier than 4 p.m. on the day before collection and must be removed from the right-of-way by 7 a.m. the day after collection.  The City right-of-way includes sidewalks, alleys and median strips between sidewalks and roadways.   “The right-of-way is part of a natural corridor contributing to the aesthetic quality and value of our neighborhoods. Removal of our refuse and recycling receptacles after service returns this area to its natural state, providing pedestrian, cycling and vehicular passage in our communities,”...

~State Review cannot find hard copies of records that should accompany automated files~ At the request of the City of Richmond, on January 28, 2013, the Virginia Department of Social Services (VDSS) began on-site reviews of hard copies of case files and staff interviews related to 200 cases in foster care and adoption, child protective services, and family services as part of an in-depth review of policies and procedures. A review of automated records had previously been underway following a number of allegations the City received concerning the management of the department.  Interim Deputy Chief Administrative Officer for Human Services, Stephen Harms, reported today that VDSS advised him on Thursday evening that 37 of 100 requested Child Protective Services (CPS) hard copies of case files could not be found. As of Tuesday, February 5, only 1 of those case files has been located. “While some information on these cases is available in the automated files and the files...

Mayor Dwight C. Jones today announced that Christie C. Peters has been named the new director of Richmond’s Animal Care and Control (RAC&C). Peters will begin city service effective February 25, 2013. As director of RAC&C, her duties include fiscal oversight and general management of the agency, creation of work programs, policies, goals and standards; and promotion of broad based community support of RAC&C. “We are pleased to have such experienced and knowledgeable leadership coming to the helm of this critical department for the city.  Richmond is concerned with the well being and care of all of our residents, including the four legged and fur covered among us,” said Mayor C. Dwight Jones. Peters previously served as executive director of the Portsmouth Humane Society since 2009. Prior to that she worked at the Heritage Humane Society where she oversaw operational programs, financial and human resource management, community and public relations, marketing an...

Richmond Redevelopment and Housing Authority (RRHA), along with U.S. Congressman Robert C. “Bobby” Scott, Richmond Mayor Dwight C. Jones, and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Richmond Field Office today jointly announced RRHA’s receipt of HUD’s new and competitive Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD) to redevelop RRHA’s 42-year-old Frederic A. Fay Towers senior housing building, located in North Jackson Ward. RAD will allow RRHA and other recipients the opportunity to leverage private debt and equity to make necessary improvements to distressed affordable housing stock by converting properties to either project-based Section 8 rental assistance or project-based vouchers. RRHA is one of only two public housing authorities in the Commonwealth of Virginia to be awarded by HUD. “RRHA is excited about the opportunities that will stem from this unique grant, including the ability to leverage funding resources to create greater quality, af...

Mayor Dwight C. Jones Accomplishment Video 2013 State of the City Speech January 29, 2013 ( As Prepared for Delivery )   Thank you, Jackie McClenney, for welcoming our audience tonight and for sharing some of the good news about Richmond. Venture Richmond has been such an important partner to the City and we appreciate your service. Please give the Richmond Public Schools All-City Jazz Band a hand for providing that wonderful medley of music. I want to particularly thank Ms. Joyce Basset for making the arrangements for the All-City Jazz Band to be here and I want to thank their conductors, Gregory McCollum and Nathaniel Boyd for joining us as well. We really appreciate your efforts. There are lots of people that I want to thank for being here tonight, and I will get to some of that shortly. GENERAL OVERVIEW This is my 5 th  State of the City Address and we’ve been going about the business of improving our city and “Building the Best ...

~Staff to develop timeline in response to recommendations~ The Mayor’s Anti-Poverty Commission today presented its final report to the City of Richmond after close to two years of research, public input sessions, and committee work. The Commission offered what it termed “top-tier” and “second-tier” recommendations to begin to address a poverty rate (25%) in the city of Richmond that is over twice that of the metro area as a whole. “The report rightly acknowledges that City government has limited resources and capacity to tackle this problem,” said Mayor Dwight C. Jones. “That’s why the work of this Commission has been so important in that this report can provide a roadmap for us to create a comprehensive anti-poverty strategy involving all stakeholders. I believe we can make a meaningful difference over time if we all work together.” The Anti-Poverty Commission is comprised of community advocates, academics, community leaders, members of the business sector and other stak...