Fire Station 20, 4715 Forest Hill Avenue, is currently closed for extensive building renovations. As a result, all station operations have moved to Fire Station 17, 2211 Semmes Avenue. This action will have minimal effect on service delivery to the fire district serviced. The building renovations are projected for completion in April 2017 at which time normal operations will resume.
 
 A few of the Fire Station 20 renovation highlights include:
 Exterior wall, window and concrete ramp repair
 Addition of public access area and bathroom
 Safety storage area for firefighter turnout gear
 Employee health and fitness area
 Added privacy in employee bathrooms
 New fire alarm notification system
 The total renovation budget for Fire Station 20 is $1,309,169.  This fire station renovation will be the third undertaken during Mayor Dwight Jones’ Administration, as part of the multiyear station renovation and replacement plan. The renovation of Fire Station 13 was completed in De...

The city of Richmond and the Greater Richmond Partnership (GRP) are pleased to announce that ICMA-RC, one of the top financial service corporations, has chosen to expand into Richmond. The non-profit individual financial services corporation, headquartered in Washington D.C., provides retirement plans and related services to more than a million participants in the U.S. The company plans to hire roughly 100 new employees and bring more than 100 employees from their Washington, D.C., headquarters to Riverfront Plaza, in the city of Richmond’s Central Business District. “We are so pleased to have worked closely with GRP on this great project for the city and are thrilled that ICMA-RC has chosen the city's vibrant and growing downtown as its new location,” said Mayor Jones. “They will be a valuable addition to the vibrant and growing downtown business community.” ICMA-RC conducted an extensive search for their second location, narrowing the list of prospective cities to seven, inc...

The City’s Electoral Board voted on July 20 to offer 97 different classes, representing almost 300 hours of training, this fall for its officers of election. The first classes for new election officer training begin August 20 and September 19. The majority of the classes will begin the week of September 22, and conclude the week of October 31. Residents must be an officer of election in order to enroll in any of the offered classes. Persons interested in becoming an officer of election for the City of Richmond can apply online at www.elections.virginia.gov or call (804) 646-5950 to request an application.  The Electoral Board is planning to recruit 200 more individuals in the coming weeks, bringing the total amount of sworn officers close to 1,200. Once accepted as an officer, individuals will be informed of the basic training calendar. Upon completion of basic training, the full calendar of training options will be made available.

Mayor Dwight C. Jones and Richmond Police Chief Alfred Durham issued the following statement today: We should all be deeply troubled by the shocking events of the last few days, to include the questionable killings of two black men by police officers and the subsequent killings of five police officers in Dallas, Texas. The community and police grieve together this morning. We offer our condolences to all of the families and communities and to law enforcement professionals that have been impacted by these tragic events. There is simply no excuse and no justification for what we’ve all seen transpire. And it is up to all of us to speak up and to come together to make sure events like these do not occur in any community. Everyone, including police, has a right to feel valued and respected. Community protest in the face of injustice is understandable. But police should not be the target. Rather, we must target bad policing where it exists and work to bring about change in that regard....

Mayor Dwight C. Jones presented on June 27 a Triple-Action Investment Plan that grew out of the work of the Multi-Year School Capital Investment Project Evaluation Team that he convened in April of this year. The Project Evaluation Team was charged with charting a funding course for the long-term renovation and construction plans of Richmond Public Schools in a way that would protect the overall funding needs and fiscal integrity of the City. The Team met its goal of completing its review by the end of June. The Triple-Action Investment Plan calls for immediate action of expanding the Governing Debt Policy ceiling from 10% to 12%. This action will expand debt capacity to over $580 million over the next decade, making that borrowing capacity available to the City if the governing body elects to utilize it. At the same time, the City is charged with coupling that action with additional policies; concerning the City’s unassigned fund balance, reserve levels, and equalization polici...

Today at the U.S. Conference of Mayors Annual Meeting in Indianapolis, Richmond was announced as the nation’s 1st Place winner for the Large City Category in the 2016 Mayors’ Climate Protection Awards, an initiative sponsored by the U.S. Conference of Mayors and Walmart. Celebrating its 10th anniversary, this mayors’ awards program recognizes mayors for their energy and climate protection efforts, selected by an independent panel of judges from a pool of mayoral applicants. New Bedford, MA Mayor Jonathan F. Mitchell won first place in the Small City Category. Click here to watch the live stream of Mayor Jones receiving the award. “Mayors Jon Mitchell and Dwight Jones are both innovators and leaders, showing us how to confront the energy and climate protection challenges before our cities and the nation,” said Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, President of The U.S. Conference of Mayors. “As we witnessed in Paris late last year, it is the mayors who are the first responders in ...

~ East Richmond Road landfill is target location for residents’ debris removal efforts ~ City of Richmond crews reported that a total of 711 tons of debris had been removed from City streets since storm recovery efforts began. With the exception of Willow and 2nd streets, all City streets are now passable.  The City’s arborist has begun to measure the storms impact on the existing tree inventory to determine what additional trees may have to be removed for safety. The City’s recovery effort includes code enforcement work. City officials have surveyed hundreds of properties to ensure public safety and are identifying those properties that will require repair. Byrd Park, which initially had been closed due to downed wires and trees, is now open during regular hours. Bryan Park remains closed as clean-up continues in that area. Battery Park Pool remains closed at this time. At Bellevue and Hermitage roads, the traffic signal remains out. Temporary signalization will be in...