Councilman Addison’s Priorities

Transparent City Hall

As your representative on City Council, I am committed to creating an accountable and responsive City Hall. It is my goal to improve upon everything that comes across my desk as your City Council representative, focusing on bringing value and improving accountability in city operations. It’s time to transition Richmond from being a follower of best practices to setting the example of good government.

Economic Development

Fostering economic development is one of my highest priorities, and I’m looking to bolster our economy through the streamlining of processes like the City Council budget approval development and small business approval operations. Creating a 21st Century City Hall and updating the operations within it will allow us to build a prosperous City and First District.

Streets & Maintenance

By utilizing the new internal service fund created by the city, our office will increase transparency and accountability for our street maintenance programs. I will also work with city administrators to publish all completed, ongoing and future road work projects. Look for much improved transparency later this year.

Multi-Modal Transportation

Bike Lanes

Malvern and Patterson are slated for projects that will improve bikers’ ability to ride on those streets. Notices have been distributed to the homes that may be affected by the project, and I want to reemphasize the First District team’s commitment to creating a safe city environment conducive to biking and bike riders. Using Richmond’s Complete Streets and Vision Zero resolutions as a guide, I am dedicated to ensuring the safety of car drivers, bikers, and pedestrians in the development of new traffic patterns.

Alleys

Over $1 million has been allocated citywide to grade and gravel our deplorable alleys. Over the summer Public Works has been hard at work catching up and fixing many of them, but this is not enough funding for every alley’s so if your’s is in need of repair due to large potholes and standing water, please let us know by sending an email labeled “Alley Repair” with your address to: nicole.williams@richmondgov.com

Improve Public Schools

RPS

In the First District, Liz Doerr and I have partnered with students from the University of Richmond to work on an engagement project with parents with children at Mary Munford Elementary and Albert Hill Middle School. The students are conducting surveys as well as face-to-face interviews to learn more about ways in which to strengthen our public schools in order to increase our elementary and middle school attendance.

Education Compact

In February of this year, Mayor Levar Stoney presented the City Council and the School Board with an Education Compact, a document containing 3 elements:

• Shared commitment to organizational collaboration between City Council and the School Board
• Shared commitment to transformational improvement in academic progress and in improving the lives of children outside of the classroom through support services and poverty reduction
• Shared commitment to developing a resource strategy allowing the City and Richmond Public Schools to achieve these shared goals

The Education Compact articulates the broad goals that the School Board will work towards achieving and provides a framework for organizational proposals and accountability measures. It reinforces the commitment made by the Mayor, City Council, and School Board to work together to create a brighter future for Richmond Public Schools. The full Education Compact can be accessed here.

Safe Neighborhoods

As always, the safety of the First District’s residents is of paramount importance. In light of recent car break-ins and burglaries, I supported a fully-funded Richmond Police Department during the past budget creation cycle. By fostering positive working relationships with both Police Chief Alfred Durham and Police Lt. Nathaniel Bynum, I am working to effectively communicate the First District’s needs to police and emergency services.

BRT / Pulse

Construction for the 7.6 mile designated bus lane for the new Bus Rapid Transit routes on Broad Street have been underway and are slated to be completed later this year. This new route will transform our public transit system and is a catalyst for new development along our main street in Richmond. For more information about the project click here.