Thursday, March 6, 2014 10:00 AM
To Mayor Jones, members of City Council, members of the City Planning Commission,
Monroe Park, the James River and Kanawha Canal, and Shockoe Bottom are three of the most historically and environmentally sensitive sites in Richmond. We are alarmed that it appears that these sites are under siege and that vast city resources are being devoted to plans that would cause a degradation and damage to these important sites with little regard for obvious and prudent alternatives. The City of Richmond should respect its important historic and environmental resources and evaluate development plans by considering how these plans support and reinforce these resources.
We are very concerned that the City of Richmond is considering the 30 year lease of Monroe Park, the city’s oldest public park, to a private conservancy made up primarily of VCU and City administrators. Through the wording of this lease, the city parks department would no longer have any supervision of the care of the trees of the park, which is a vital green space of the city. The proposed lease would grant VCU the total authority to remove trees and shrubs at will. We are aware that in the past VCU has proposed removing 20% of the mature trees in the park. There is concern that the city park may be cooped by VCU as the University’s quadrangle. The proposed conservancy offers no representation to the surrounding neighborhoods that rely upon this green space, nor does it offer representation to the city parks department or organizations such as the Sierra Club and the Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden that are devoted to fostering the city’s environment. We urge that the lease of the city’s oldest and arguably most historic park be rejected in favor of reconstituting the Monroe Park Advisory Council with representation from the surrounding neighborhoods and city parks department.
The City of Richmond possesses an invaluable resource in the James River and Kanawha Canal. This canal, proposed and founded by George Washington, offers an opportunity for creating a transportation and scenic tourist magnet for our city. We believe that the historical importance of this 18th century canal far outweighs Venture Richmond’s need for an amphitheater because Richmond already has many outdoor venues. We are very concerned that Venture Richmond’s proposal to lower and remove a substantial portion of the towpath embankment for anamphitheater will compromise the opportunity to restore the canal and jeopardize the historical integrity of George Washington’s canal. We urge the City of Richmond to be a good steward of the canal and take all necessary steps to protect the canal from damage.
Likewise, the Falls of the James Sierra Club also urges appropriate stewardship of the city’s Shockoe Bottom property. Any proposal to build a baseball stadium in Shockoe Bottom must weigh the historical significance of the site and the environmental benefits of recycling the existing stadium site on the Boulevard. Every effort should be made to renovate and repair the existing stadium before committing vast resources toward demolishing the stadium on the Boulevard and creating an environmental nightmare by building a new stadium set 28 feet below ground in the floodplain. A stadium on the Boulevard does not involve building in an historic or flood-prone area and would therefore be far preferable. Traffic tangles would result from a Shockoe stadium and negatively impact mass transit planning. Shockoe Creek should be given more consideration, not buried under more concrete.
Finally, the Sierra Club Falls of the James emphatically supports the conservation easement proposed for Bandy Field Park. Citizens have worked very hard over the years to create, preserve, and improve this park. Charles Price and the Friends of Bandy Field should be congratulated and commended for their work, which should serve as an example and model for other City parks. This public park deserves full public support, just as Monroe Park and the James River Park do. These parks and places are crucial to Richmond’s quality of living. Thank you for considering the entirety of this statement.
On behalf of the Executive Committee of the Sierra Club Falls of the James group,
Thank you,
Scott Burger
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Sierra Club Falls of the James Statement on Monroe Park, the James River and Kanawha Canal, Shockoe Bottom, and Bandy Field
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