In the face of certain rejection by Richmond City Council, Mayor Dwight Jones withdrew his proposal to redevelop Shockoe Bottom shortly before council’s Tuesday night meeting.
In the face of certain rejection by Richmond City Council, Mayor Dwight Jones withdrew his proposal to redevelop Shockoe Bottom shortly before council’s Tuesday night meeting.
In individual interviews with several local news outlets, Jones revealed that he planned to bring the Revitalize RVA proposal to a vote at an unspecified later date.
“It’s not dead because we believe in the plan,” said Jones, according to the Richmond Times-Dispatch. As of today, five members of City Council had publicly announced they planned to vote against the ordinance authorizing the plan tonight.
Jones said that he planned to educate Council members further about his plan, which would turn Shockoe Bottom into a mixed-use development centered on a new baseball stadium for the Richmond Flying Squirrels. He invited Council members to a briefing Thursday about the plan.
Opponents of the stadium plan packed City Council chambers Tuesday night, but it is not yet clear whether they will be allowed to speak since it is no longer on the agenda.
City Council will still be voting on the city budget at tonight’s meeting.
Watch this page, and follow @btpanko on Twitter tonight for updates.
