RMA board debate divisive

….transportation is a hot-button issue for local officials who worry about a creeping trend toward “devolving” responsibility from the state to local governments….budget proposal to shift a larger share of sales-tax money to transportation from the general fund that pays for education, public safety and other core services….proposed constitutional amendment that would constrain the ability of state and local governments to condemn property….$1 billion from local school divisions to help pay for $2.2 billion in contributions to underfunded pension plans….give Chesterfield and Henrico equal representation on the RMA board….accused Loupassi of a “racist agenda”….blasted Jones for agreeing to a $62.3 million repayment….Richmond hopes to head off a proposal to equalize representation on the RMA board with a study of the larger concerns about transportation….shift responsibility to local officials to raise taxes….

[Mayor Dwight C. Jones] countered that the proposal to make representation equal on the RMA board is not new and is not related to the loan repayment. [Really? CHR]

via timesdispatch.com

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Pullback on public art

….[Councilor Bruce W. Tyler] would put a $250,000 cap on public-art spending as part of any capital project….Richmond has spent more than $100,000 on only two public-art pieces….two works cost $140,000 and $255,000….Richmond has spent $889,104 on 39 public-art projects since 1993….proposals for projects worth about $3 million….

The city’s public-art ordinance was written to exclude school-construction projects, but officials said it applies to the current set of projects because the schools are being guided by the Jones administration through the city’s capital-improvement plan, instead of by the School Board through its plans.

via timesdispatch.com

Percent For Art Ordinances (96-R119-112 and 97-3-41)

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Richmond set to start studies of City Stadium property

Following a request by the City Council in May, the [Mayor Dwight C. Jones] administration expects to finalize language this week to seek proposals for a study that will look at maximizing the stadium’s use as a venue for sports and entertainment….A second study will then look at the potential for redevelopment of the much-coveted 20-acre property, off Maplewood Avenue near Carytown….The council resolutions included a nonbinding deadline to complete the review by October 2011.

via timesdispatch.com