Illustration by Erin Bushnell
Highs
Squirrels Make a Nest
Richmond finally broke ground on the Diamond District this year and unveiled CarMax Park, the new home of the Flying Squirrels. It was a relief to see Nutzy wield a ceremonial gold shovel, thus ending a chapter for a project that blew past deadlines, made us question whether the massive mixed-use development would actually happen and, most importantly, keeps the Squirrels in Richmond for the foreseeable future.
The Ivy Takes Root
This city loves the Richmond Kickers, and so it’s not surprising that a second squad was immediately embraced in its first season. The Richmond Ivy Soccer Club, a preprofessional women’s team, finished 6-5-1 and averaged 4,811 fans per match at City Stadium. After the Ivy’s final match, players and staff met with fans for a half hour. “They’re all what this is all about – the young girls, young fans and young soccer players who can look up to this team and see themselves on the pitch.” says Madeline McCracken, the Ivy’s sporting director.
Out-of-this-world Views
It was a great year to stare up at the heavens and think about what lies beyond our pale blue dot. While Richmond wasn’t in the path of totality, the April 8 solar eclipse gave us a spectacular sight that won’t happen again for 20 years. Cosmic displays continued the next month as the northern lights crept down to Virginia. Solar storms returned in October, and they were joined by an unusually bright comet visible in the second half of the month. Keep your eyes to the skies just after New Year’s Day for the peak of the Quadrantid meteor shower.
Reinventing the Game
Speaking of cosmic displays, the Tri-City Chili Peppers illuminated Shepherd Stadium for four nights of glow-in-the-dark collegiate baseball, thought to be the first black light games ever. With some creative thinking and the help of local businesses, “cosmic baseball” became a reality and brought people to Colonial Heights from across the nation. If you didn’t catch it this year, you can plan ahead for the six cosmic games scheduled for 2025.
All Hail the Gun Hole
Thanks to the Chicago Rat Hole’s viral spread across social media, Richmonders were able to bond over and make offerings to an impression of a toy pistol on South Addison Street in January. It’s not hard to imagine why Richmond magazine readers dubbed the frenzy over it the “best moment of the past year.” The Gun Hole was able to tap into our sometimes jaded love for the city and its rough-and-tumble past.
Senator Tim Tim
While then-candidate Kamala Harris’ cameo on “Saturday Night Live” was known before it aired Nov. 2, it was Sen. Tim Kaine who seemingly appeared out of nowhere (and retreated back into it). In a game show sketch called “What’s That Name?” Kaine asks host John Mulaney’s character, “You voted for me to be one heartbeat away from the Oval Office in an election more recent than the release of ‘Zootopia.’ What’s my name?” Excuse us if we start calling our recently reelected senator by the wrong answers, like Tim Clinton or Tim Tim.
A Warm Welcome
Carytown unveiled a new gateway sign in October, providing a more official and decorative welcome to the city’s Mile of Style than, say, a 7-Eleven. The art deco-style neon and LED sign hangs from two 25-foot-tall poles between Thompson and Nansemond streets. Discussed for more than a decade, the roughly $100,000 sign finally became a reality thanks to federal funds designed to help cities recover financially from the pandemic. It’s a great homage to the shopping district’s 1938 founding and buildings from that era, such as the circa-1928 Byrd Theatre.
Hospital Turnabout
Plans announced earlier this year to build market-rate apartments at Virginia Union University included the partial demolition of the historic Richmond Community Hospital, which served the Black community for half a century. Supporters felt their pleas and advice went unheard by VUU and developers, and a lawsuit was filed in October. That same day, VUU issued a new plan that would preserve the entirety of the hospital and include public spaces honoring its legacy. It’s a welcome concession that allows Richmonders to treasure an important part of North Side and Black history.
Lows
The Cost of Living
The campaign to save RCH highlights another problem: Housing is still too expensive. CoStar’s Apartments.com notes that, “because the average [monthly] rent in Richmond is $1,358, you’ll want to make about $4,526 per month or $54,312 per year.” Easier said than done. The region is finally seeing more construction, but those apartments tend to be “market rate” and not truly “affordable housing.” The reality can seem detached from the wave of good economic news: Jobs reports are positive, and we appear to be making a “soft landing” from inflation. But prices are still 19% above where they were in February 2021, according to the AP. Here’s hoping the situation improves.
Pipeline Trail Goes Dry
The Pipeline Trail — one of the city’s best-kept secrets — abruptly closed in September. Though the trail is actually a maintenance catwalk installed by the Department of Public Utilities on land owned by CSX Transportation, it offers a unique view of the city and the James River. Turns out DPU is decommissioning the namesake pipe and closed the entry point in the name of safety. This hasn’t stopped locals, says Josh Stutz, executive director of Friends of James River Park. “People keep cutting and removing the fence to gain access. It is almost impossible to effectively close a trail in Richmond.”
Confounding Crash
On the morning of Sept. 5, westbound drivers on Interstate 64 were snarled by a truly bizarre sight: the bed of a tractor-trailer lodged into an overhead exit sign, standing upright and forming a sort of Leaning Tower of Pisa in northern Henrico County. The crash closed the highway for more than seven hours. In that time, images and videos from stymied drivers made their way across the internet. As for the driver of the tractor-trailer — Richard D. Houston, 62, of Lorton — he was unhurt but was charged with reckless driving.
Campaign Finance Failure
In our election feature, we wrote that 6th District City Council candidate Tavares Floyd is a cousin of George Floyd. Turns out that may not be true. Or that he has a stake in a Charlottesville funeral home. Or that he’s a practicing attorney. First, a big shout-out to the local reporters who looked across the country to verify his biography and financial disclosures. For Floyd’s part, he has denied the reports and pledged to continue “taking on the establishment” before he lost to incumbent Ellen Robertson. In any case, the saga highlights the state’s dire need for campaign finance reform — a perennial problem that requires our elected officials to be more honest and transparent about their own campaigns.
Youngkin Voter Roll Purges and Lawsuit
In October, a judge ruled that Virginia illegally purged 1,600 voter registrations during a federally mandated 90-day “quiet period” for election law changes and must restore these voters — a decision later overturned by the Supreme Court. Gov. Glenn Youngkin contended that “almost all” of them “self-identified themselves as noncitizens,” while the Justice Department argued that many had done so by checking the wrong box on a DMV form. If they are indeed noncitizens, they cannot vote regardless. And if valid voters were purged, it’s an uncouth move from Youngkin. As the federal judge noted, “It’s not happenstance that [the executive order] was announced exactly on the 90th day” of the quiet period.
No News Is Bad News
The Richmond Times-Dispatch continued to shrink in 2024, reducing the number of printed editions and laying off veteran sportswriters Mike Barber and David Teel, meteorologist Sean Sublette and photographer Nicolas Galindo. And in early 2025, the RTD newsroom is leaving the city to join its printing press in Hanover County. The news isn’t all bad: We welcome The Richmonder, a news nonprofit, and are glad to see Style Weekly publish four issues since its VPM takeover.
Hard to Call
The Doctor Is In
Dr. Danny Avula will be Richmond’s next mayor. He arrives in January as a newcomer to political leadership but not to politics, having soberly guided Virginia through the COVID-19 pandemic amid widespread fear and misinformation. That approach (also under a Trump presidency) should again serve the city well. But, as Mayor Levar Stoney told me, the job is a “pressure cooker,” and Avula will certainly face far more challenges than he had planned on. But here’s hoping he can deliver on his vision of “a Richmond where nobody is left behind.”
Casino Hits Jackpot
The people of Petersburg gladly accepted plans for a casino that Richmonders twice rejected. The $1.4 billion Live! Casino & Hotel Virginia will be operated by The Cordish Companies and Bruce Smith Enterprise LLC. “We are deeply gratified by the community’s affirmation of this project and very hopeful about the meaningful impact it will have on the city’s future,” said Smith, an NFL Hall of Famer. While getting 81.5% voter approval is impressive, opponents made themselves very clear about the city plan’s downsides.
