Good morning, RVA! It's 41 °F, and it’s gross out. Today you can expect cold temperatures, cloudy skies, and maybe even some snow later this morning! The sun should come out after lunch, though, and set us up for what looks like a really pleasant weekend. Get some rest, and enjoy!
Water cooler
As of this morning, the Virginia Department of Health reports 2,082 new positive cases of the coronavirus in the Commonwealth and 28 new deaths as a result of the virus. VDH reports 220 new cases in and around Richmond (Chesterfield: 90, Henrico: 76, and Richmond: 54). Since this pandemic began, 1,186 people have died in the Richmond region. Here’s this week stacked graph of new reported cases, hospitalizations, and deaths. Yesterday, I said we'd hit a plateau, and I think you can see that pretty clearly in these graphs. I mean, just look at this graph of local reported cases—big time flat. The UVA COVID-19 model, which I mentioned earlier this week, has updated, and you can flip through their four possible scenarios for how the disease could spread this summer. Some of the graphs—like what happens if one of the virus's variants takes over while we're simultaneously all getting lazy with our mitigation efforts—should give you the shivers. In their words: "If new variants become widespread as residents loosen prevention measures, Virginia may see another peak, with cases peaking at 33,636 per week during the week ending June 27, 2021." Don't get lazy! Prevent the peak!
Yesterday, at the Richmond and Henrico Health District's Arthur Ashe vaccination clinic, Mayor Stoney got his first dose of the Pfizer vaccine. Stoney qualifies for vaccination as a member of the "continuity of government" group of Phase 1b frontline essential workers. Every day more and more folks get vaccinated and we get closer and closer to Phase 2: Everybody else. That's exciting. I know it can feel frustrating, especially for those of us who want a vaccine but aren't yet eligible—me included!, but, as I wait patiently inside of my house, it's exciting and hope-giving to see folks continuing to get vaccinated from different parts of my life.
Related, a mass vaccination clinic will open up on the Southside next week at Celebration Church off Midlothian Turnpike. The Richmond Times-Dispatch's Sabrina Moreno reports that the Richmond and Henrico Health Districts plan on giving 800–1,000 doses per week while they kick the tires of this new location for a bit. You should tap through and read Moreno's full story, because there's a lot of different pathways for vulnerable folks and folks living on the Southside to get vaccinated—that's in addition to this new Celebration Church location and includes mobile clinics and a community hub.
Mark Robinson at the RTD reports that the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development has approved Richmond's plan to begin demolishing Creighton Court. Some context from the piece: "HUD’s blessing for the demolition is the latest sign that the massive redevelopment that leaders have pursued over the last decade is fast approaching. The RRHA ceased leasing at Creighton in 2019. More than a third of the units sit vacant. Many are boarded up." This is complicated stuff. Creighton Court is one of Richmond's aging public housing neighborhoods, and Richmond does not have the best record at redeveloping it's aging public housing neighborhoods. Even the words used to talk about this process—redevelop, relocate, transform—make me feel weird. However, the construction of the nearby Armstrong Renaissance, where some folks from Creighton have already moved, does give me hope. If you haven't had the opportunity to walk through Armstrong Renaissance, I really encourage you to do so. It's beautiful. Keep an eye on this story though, because it's important for Richmond to figure out how to move humanely and empathetically through this process.
Earlier this week I mentioned the rezoning of the City's western part of Broad Street, and Jonathan Spiers has some more fascinating details. I love that Councilmember Addison just kind of took the initiative and kicked this rezoning off without waiting for the Department of Planning to get to it. Don't worry, this conforms (or at least mostly conforms) with Richmond 300, so it's not a total rogue rezoning. But it is kind of shocking to see a member of City Council propose something progressive related to zoning or land use or infrastructure. I'm so used to ordinances to stop, prevent, or delay that I think my brain's a little broken!
Via last week's Richmond 300 email, I learned that Sunday is your last day to provide feedback on the Mayor's Equity Agenda. I see a lot of comments already on the draft, but, in my opinion, it could always use more! Do you have strong thoughts about community engagement, history, policing, children, transit, or public health? I'm sure you do! Take four minutes, tap through that link, and leave two comments about how you think the City could address those issues in a creative and equitable way. The Mayor plans on submitting the Equity Agenda to Council as a resolution, so we'll learn more soon (I hope) about how they'll incorporate all of this great feedback.
This morning's patron longread
The 2021 NCAA tournament will be more complicated than ever
Submitted by Patron Karen. While I don’t believe we need to be having any sort of NCAA tournament at the moment, the organizers sure did put a ton of work into planning this year’s coronatimes tournament.
Organizers liken the convention center to a university’s student union, and they plan to expand the amenities, including bringing in local restaurants, as teams exit the tournament and more space becomes available. By the Sweet 16, there will be more indoor lounge space, and there are plans for an outdoor garden area with patio furniture and lawn games. There will be dedicated mail and parcel service plus a complex laundry system running almost around-the-clock. Two trailers typically used for disaster response will be stationed in the loading dock, outfitted with 16 washers and 16 dryers. They’re prepared to churn out more than 1,000 bags of laundry per day, accounting for practice and game uniforms, warmup gear, towels and personal clothing. “We brought a lot of our Olympic Village expertise into helping plan these laundries,” Klein said. “When we do the Olympic Village, it’s a similar setup.”
If you’d like your longread to show up here, go chip in a couple bucks on the ol’ Patreon.
