All Politics is Local

There's a fairly abrasive article about Goldman in this week's Style Weekly, who I stated I was for earlier. And the article brings up a number of good points that I missed. The article is correct, that inside of City Hall re probably acted as if he was bigger than his post, and contributed to much of the animosity within City Hall, and between departments, which is the ultimate legacy of the Wilder administration. With a region that suffered unnecessarily with the division between city and county and a regional and city political atmosphere so marred by divisions (territorial, geographical, and racial)... Goldman probably would not have helped the city in that regard. It doesn't matter if Goldman proposes some great idea on how we can decentralize the city's poverty, if he burns so many bridges we can't agree to do anything beyond knocking down a project or 2.

I was wrong in endorsing him. While I appreciate what ideas he might bring to the table, we elect people, not ideas. The city needs now more than any time in a generation, a person who can bring people together. I'm still not sure who can do that best, but Goldman would have been the least likely candidate to do so.

Another big city issue has been the city's first Charter School called Patrick Henry. The city has a number of special magnet high schools, such as Maggie Walker, Community, and Open. These schools give people like me (I went to Maggie Walker when the program was based in TJ) and Ashley (who graduated from Community), challenging opportunities to learn and grow, more so than the normal school environment. Much of my sense of curiosity beyond my day to day life was fertilized there. Ashley very well might not have entertained college as something achievable if not put through the mental meat grinder that churns out the city's finest high school graduates. Some of Richmond's most unique citizens have walked through the doors of Open, and their cultural impact is one of the jewels of the city. To see the city want to add another institution that can rise to the stature of these schools is something commendable.

But there are flaws with the proposed high school. It needs public transportation. The schools listed above work because they bring people from diverse socioeconomic backgrounds to challenging curriculum. I was shocked to see that RPS will not bus kids to the new charter school. It's hardly a public school then. Also the schools are mandated to pull kids from Richmond's diverse neighborhoods, from Ginter Park to Blackwell, from Church Hill to the Fan and Westover Hills. There's no such mandate in the charter, and the risk that Patrick Henry becomes a city funded Collegiate is simply too great. I hope the school board settles these issues so that the opportunity is given to any city kid that yearns to learn outside of the regular RPS school structure.

I haven't read the Downtown Master Plan and it probably deserves its own post. But there are a few things I like about Richmond, and I'd like to see the city continue on its success. VCU has grown substantially in the past 10 years, and now looks like a complete urban campus. Along Broad Street at VCU there's a decent number of shops that have returned, and combined with Grace St. it brings a youthful urban feel that's a welcome alternative to the malls scattered around the suburbs. You still have to drive to Mechanicsville or Short Pump to buy a TV, but from books, clothes, food, and even home improvement, I don't have to commute just to get crap. That's welcome. Seeing how Carytown is becoming a Stony Point clone, a urban place that has goods and cheap eats for single people 30 or younger is nice. I wish it was dominated by fewer franchises/chains and more independent offerings, but even the real independent p[laces are around.

That growth even extends east down Broad, so it's not just VCU. Broad st. is coming back. Would suburbanites travel to 2nd and Broad, probably not. But urbanites don't need to head out to Pump Road as much.

Also I enjoy the diverse neighborhoods. When I want to feel inspired during a run, I'll run east towards the financial district. Something about 20 story buildings get me to run faster. Or i can head south to the river, or west to stroll through quiet west end neighborhoods. People here know to respect pedestrians, something you won't find in the more modest of Richmond's suburbs. People in the suburbs expect you to run or bike at American Family, not outside. The architecture on Richmond's suburbs isn't as bad as when I went to Colorado Springs (some parts looked like Weed's fictional suburb of Argestic, CA), but the subdivision bylaws limit everything down to what color lights you can have at Christmas and how high you can fly an American flag. Seriously, I'm not making that up.

I want to see that diversity continue, I want downtown to have more for people after 7PM, I want the north bank of the river tastefully developed, and the south bank kept pristine and natural. James River park should be protected. VCU has been a faithful steward, and if it wants to grow, I'm perfectly OK with that (but I can do without the Chili's). There's more art on a single block of Main street than a in a square mile of Henrico, Hanover, or Chesterfield. The city has its strengths, and it doesn't need to become Charlotte, NC or DC in order to exploit them. The strengths are already here. What's needed is managed growth, so there's a place in the city for people who are attracted to its promise while being preserves so we and people in the future can appreciate them as well.

And none of this requires a stadium.