Feb. 10 Newsletter: RPS budget priorities

Weather: 47 and sunny. We wait to see if snow is on the way.

On this date in 1944, with most drivers receiving two gallons of gas each week in ration coupons as World War II continues, the Richmond Office of Price Administration releases a study that says 35% of all redeemed coupons are counterfeit.

State budget proposals include two key RPS priorities: more funding for staff and school construction

Richmond Public Schools may not get everything it wants from the General Assembly this year, but new state budget proposals released last week include two of the division’s key priorities.

• The Senate's budget would put $290 million into a statewide funding pool to help local governments address aging buildings.
• The budget lifts a Recession-era cap on how many support staff the state will fund in each school division, which costs the district several million dollars in potential funding each year.

Read more on the budget, and why schools across the state feel they're not getting their fair share of state dollars, here.

Also in education:

RPS unions decry proposal to share costs of health insurance increases

“This is essentially a pay cut,” said Anne Forrester, president of the Richmond Education Association, the local teachers union.

The RichmonderSarah Vogelsong

Maymont is using an $8 million COVID-era grant to enhance its facilities

In 2022, Maymont applied for a grant from the Commerce Department funded through the American Rescue Plan’s “Travel, Tourism and Outdoor Recreation Program.”

They won it, and construction has now begun, including:

• Brand-new habitats for two new species – coyote and porcupine
• Installing museum-grade climate control and fire detection systems in the mansion
• Reconfiguring the Virginia Wildlife trail

Read more on the improvements here.

Judge dismisses former senator Joe Morrissey’s defamation suit over 2022 tweet

A Richmond judge dismissed a defamation suit brought by former Richmond-area Sen. Joe Morrissey against private investigator and activist Jimmie Lee Jarvis over a tweet Jarvis posted in 2022 calling him “a violent thug, a liar and a sexual predator.” 

Read more on the case, and the outcome, here.

Overcoming doubts, Richmond Planning Commission OKs test of new type of bus platform

After requesting and receiving more information from city officials, the Richmond Planning Commission approved a plan to test a new type of bus platform that could also help slow down traffic.

It will be located in the 1400 block of Mechanicsville Turnpike near the intersection with Brauers Lane.

Data from one D.C. bus corridor where they’ve been put in showed a 34% reduction in crashes, and Richmond intends to test a single platform to see if similar results will happen here.

Read more on the stop here.

In other news

• Putt-Putt Fun Center in Chesterfield closes after 54 years (8 News)
• Snow likely Tuesday in RVA (Sean Sublette)
• Richmond speed cameras become target of vandals (NBC 12)

The editor's desk

I had a great time Saturday night at the RVA Sports Awards, which celebrate the region's best athletic performances. The special guest was Jackie Joyner-Kersee. I knew she had played professional basketball in Richmond, but I did not know that while she did she roomed with current national champion coach Dawn Staley. That's a serious power pairing.

Michael Phillips, founding editor
mphillips@richmonder.org

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