RICHMOND, VA—Beginning Friday, July 18, 2008 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. the Department of Public Utilities (DPU) will be performing emergency sewer work in the 700 block of N. Boulevard. The project is expected to be complete by Wednesday, July 23, 2008.

During this time, the two northbound lanes of N. Boulevard will be closed between Monument Ave. and Grace St.

Traffic will be detoured east on Monument Ave and directed north on to Davis Ave. to W. Broad St

Dragon and Tiger Qigong - July 19, 1 PM. Come learn the Dragon and Tiger form, which boosts energy, increases flexibility and balance, and is good for heart and kidney issues.

Sample a delicious and potent antioxident blend from Nature’s Way on July 25, 4 - 7 PM. This 100% certified organic blend of goji, mangosteen, pomegranate and acai is not only a very potent antioxidant but tastes great as well!

Farmers’ Market - Every Wednesday, 3:30 - 7:30. Ellwood Thompson’s is the original Farmers’ Market, but they’re setting up outside each Wednesday with local farm favorites.

Introduction to Goat Cheese - July 30, 7:30 PM. Think all goat cheese tastes the same?

Speaking with Spokes: On August 1st, 2008, Ellwood Thompson’s Local Market and RVA Magazine team up to create Speaking with Spokes, the first organized, sponsored and safe group bike ride through the city. This ride will benefit Books on Wheels,

Ellwood Thompson’s is located at 4 N. Thompson St.

Amici is located at 3343 W. Cary Street.

Infuzion is located at 1401 Roseneath Road.

From their website:

• We’ve leased part of the former “Martha’s Mixture” building located at 3445 West Cary in Carytown.
• We’ll have nearly 3,000 square feet of retail space. That’s over 4 times the space we have now and we’ll have 4 times the selection!
• We plan to expand our offerings with upholstered headboards, dining tables & chairs, desks and an even more sumptuous and fuller selection of sofas, chairs and tables, mirrors and lighting.

Ord. No. 2008-160 (Patron: President Pantele, By Request) - To authorize the special use of *** 3031 Norfolk Street for the purpose of converting the existing building for use as up to 90 multi-family dwelling units ***.

Ord. No. 2008-162 (Patron: President Pantele, By Request) - To authorize the special use of *** 1700 Summit Avenue for the purpose of converting the existing building for use as up to 89 multi-family dwelling units ***.

I’m no expert when it comes to zoning, council meetings, etc, but it seems like these proposals need a good review before getting Wilder & Pantele’s old rubber stamp.

The proposals are pretty similar, so I checked out the Summit property in more detail (Full PDF of the proposal here)…

• The Summit property is an old vehicle repair building and is zoned as M-1 Industrial. Most of the surrounding property is zoned Industrial as well. Plopping hundreds of people in an Industrial zone isn’t too appealing.
• They’re only constructing 89 parking spots. Call me crazy, but if you’re building 89 units with 149 bedrooms, you’re going to need more than 89 parking spots.
• The plans call for lots of really small apartments. Some of the 2 bedroom units are as small as 612 square feet. Do we really want a lot more tiny apartments in this city? I realize the market will sort all these types of things out, but some city planning could help.
• The owner is looking to cash in on a lot of Federal, State, and Local tax credits. Before doling these out, let’s double check that this is what we want to spend taxpayer money on.

Those are my thoughts. What about you?