City News

Press Releases and Announcements

Mayor Avula, Regional Partners Advance Next Steps on Water Infrastructure, Security

Richmond, VA - Mayor Avula is pleased to share the next steps of the City of Richmond's ongoing efforts to ensure a resilient and sustainable water future:

  • Monday, August 18, 2025: Chief Administrative Officer Odie Donald and Director of Public Utilities Scott Morris will bring together the regional work group of utility directors and administrators from the City of Richmond, Henrico, Chesterfield, and Hanover Counties to review and evaluate capital investment plans.
  • Monday, August 25, 2025: The regional work group will conduct a day-long tabletop exercise focused on cybersecurity, emergency action plans, system modeling, system monitoring and information sharing through dashboards.

While these meetings are not open to the public, the City will provide a summary of outcomes and next steps.

Richmond E-Cycle Day: More than Electronics! Saturday, September 13, 2025

Posted 8-13-25

 

WHO:   The Department of Public Works, The Clean City Commission, and The Department of Public Utilities

WHAT:  Richmond E-Cycle Day – More than Electronics! 

 For Richmond Residents, no business or commercial items accepted

WHEN:  Saturday, September 13 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

WHERE: 1710 Robin Hood Road (23220) northeast corner of Robin Hood Road and Arthur Ashe Boulevard

BACKGROUND:  The City of Richmond’s E-Cycle Day event offers City residents an efficient option to recycle paper, household hazardous waste items and electronics to help keep hazardous waste materials out of city waterways, streams and rivers. 

This event is available to city residents – proof of residency is required. 

Please note, this is a drive-thru event. Volunteers will remove items from the cars.

Paper Document Shredding

  • Up to five (5) boxes of documents
    • Be sure to remove all binders, staples, and clips

Electronics (various fees apply)

  • Computer systems (hard drive or CPU) and accessories (cables, wires, keyboards, mice, speakers, etc.) VCRs, camcorders, stereos, and all phones
    • Televisions, computer monitors and printers
  • Other used electronic equipment (almost anything with a plug - see the online list for clarification, use the link below)
  • Get the list of fees and the full list of electronics to recycle

Household Hazardous Waste Items (HHW)

  • Oil-based Paint
  • Bug spray, pesticides, rodent poison, and herbicides (Roundup, Weed B Gon etc.)
  • Latex and water-based paints will not be collected. These items can be left in open paint cans until they have dried out and then put in with regular curbside trash pick-up. 

 

For more information on recycling or the event, please visit us online at www.rva.gov/public-works/clean-city-commission or email us at AskPublicWorks@rva.gov

We’re Social! For updates on DPW-related projects, activities and events visit us on X @DPW_RichmondVA or visit the Clean City Commission’s Instagram page @rvacleancitycommission

 

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The City of Richmond Department of Public Works (DPW) is one of only 195 currently accredited public works agencies in the United States. DPW’s portfolio comprises a wide array of services to include leaf collection; street, sidewalk and alley maintenance; trash collection; recycling; grass cutting;  graffiti removal; parking enforcement; urban forestry; street signs; traffic signals and pavement markings and civil engineering. In addition, DPW  issues permits for working in the city’s right-of-way; manages Main Street Station,  the RVA Bike Share program.. DPW’s operating budget comes from the general fund of the City of Richmond.  For more information about DPW services, click here or call 3-1-1

RPD Releases Final Review of Fatal Monroe Park Shootings

The Richmond Police Department has prepared for the public a final review of the investigation into the fatal shootings that occurred in Monroe Park following the Huguenot High School graduation in 2023.

Chief Rick Edwards presents the review, a video that runs just over seven minutes, that features crime scene photos, evidence that was collected, locations at the scene of involved persons, circumstances, motive and a portion of a video presented in court.

The incident generated immense public interest; however, the RPD was constrained in what details could be shared as the matter was being adjudicated. The Office of the Commonwealth’s Attorney has stated that no further criminal prosecutions in this case are planned, therefore Chief Edwards can fulfill his pledge to present more information to the public at the appropriate time.

“We hope this comprehensive account of this extremely complex case provides the public with the details they need to understand this tragedy,” said RPD Chief Edwards. “I have the utmost respect and appreciation for the actions of the RPD officers, VCU Police officers and VCU security staff who were present at the scene and the RPD detectives, forensic professionals and members of the Office of the Commonwealth’s Attorney who successfully investigated and prosecuted this difficult case.”

The video can be viewed on YouTube or downloaded through Dropbox

City of Richmond to Host August 19 Public Meeting on Upcoming Utility Work in Forest Hill

Richmond, Va –The City of Richmond is hosting a virtual public meeting on August 19 at 6:00 p.m. to provide additional details and answer questions regarding upcoming utility projects in the Forest Hill Avenue area. These projects are continual work to replace failing infrastructure and improve system reliability, including aging water lines and deteriorated sewer laterals. 

Water line replacement
Location:  Hathaway Road from Riverside Drive/Longview Drive to the 2900 block of Hathaway Road
Anticipated start date: August 25, with a duration of six months

Sewer lateral replacement
Location: 6900 – 7000 blocks of Forest Hill Avenue westbound lanes
Anticipated start date: September 2, with a duration of two months

During the meeting, residents and business owners will have the opportunity to hear from DPU project managers to learn more about the project scopes and review project plans and traffic impacts. This meeting is open to all members of the public and affected property owners are strongly encouraged to attend. 

Meeting Details
Date: August 19 
Time: 6:00 p.m.
Location: Virtual

Meeting Link | Meeting ID: 251 549 138 971 5 | Passcode: kX6jX6dE 

+1 804-316-9457,,565779580# | Phone conference ID: 565 779 580#

City awards $9 million through Affordable Housing Trust Fund

Funds to be used to support affordable housing projects and to bolster Healthy Homes rehabilitation program 

Richmond, VA – The City of Richmond is proud to announce the allocation of more than $9 million from its Affordable Housing Trust Fund (AHTF) to support the development and preservation of affordable housing in the City. The investment includes $7 million for eight housing projects which will expand access to safe, reliable, and affordable homes for Richmonders as well as $2.2 million to bolster the City’s Healthy Homes Rehabilitation program.  

The Healthy Homes program, launched in 2024, provides grants to qualifying homeowners for repairs to improve the sustainability, health, and affordability of the home. With the additional funds, the program will be able to support more residents throughout the City, keeping Richmonders in their homes and improving the longevity and sustainability of the City’s housing supply. 

“Addressing our housing crisis is not a matter of choosing between development and preservation, but a thoughtful combination of both,” said Mayor Danny Avula. “Our City needs new, affordable units to accommodate a growing population, but it also needs to protect the people and the homes that are already here. This round of funding is a reflection of that important strategy.” 

The eight housing projects were selected from a competitive pool of more than 20 applicants and will create nearly 600 affordable housing units across multiple districts and neighborhoods, moving the needle on both the quality and supply of affordable housing units in the City. 

The funding recipients include: 

District 

Developer 

# of Units 

Award Amount 

Genesis Properties 

77 

$1,000,000 

Maggie Walker Community Land Trust 

$175,000 

The Hanson Company 

50 

$689,026 

SupportWorks Housing 

82 

$1,000,000 

Elmington 

246 

$1,500,000 

 

Maggie Walker Community Land Trust 

20 

$450,000 

Pennrose 

50 

$1,000,000 

Douglas Development 

48 

$1,200,000 

“This funding is consistent with Mayor Avula’s stated goals of providing access to quality affordable housing for Richmonders across all income levels” said Director of Housing and Community Development Merrick Malone. “We are providing affordable housing to accommodate our growing population while also preserving homes for our long-term residents who want to remain in the City.” 

Projects were selected based on recommendations from the City’s Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) and were objectively scored based on criteria such as readiness, location, target population, and developer experience and capacity. Projects that met minimum, established thresholds based on these criteria were advanced for consideration and underwriting. Projects which did not were notified, advised on how they might improve their application, and are encouraged to apply for future funding.  

“Housing is front of mind for residents in my district and across the City,” said 6th District Councilmember and AHTF Board Chair Ellen Robertson. "They are concerned about the housing supply, they are concerned about affordability, they are concerned about getting priced out of a neighborhood they have called home their whole lives. This funding is a small, but important, way that we can start to address those concerns and show our residents that we are not only creating new housing units but working to protect the units that are here.” 

About the Affordable Housing Trust Fund 

The Affordable Housing Trust Fund (AHTF) was established by the City of Richmond in 2004 as part of strategy to work with the nonprofit and for-profit development community in accessing and producing much needed long term affordable housing for (low to moderate income) residents of the City. The AHTF accesses a variety of funds for affordable housing support services and production. Nonprofit and for-profit residential developers can leverage AHTF funds with other private and public affordable housing financing sources to facilitate affordable housing counseling services and production in the City of Richmond. 

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