River Rising, Ludacris, NASCAR, and the Richmonder
Cheers RVA!
Today we’ll see more precipitation as Tropical Rainstorm Debby rolls through, with a high of 81. Watch out for flash floods and keep in mind isolated thunderstorms and tornadoes are a possibility. The weekend looks mostly sunny with highs closer to 90.
the juice:
The James is currently around 4 ft. but is expected to rise to more than 10 ft. over the weekend. Anything above 9 ft. means the River is closed to users other than experienced and qualified whitewater paddlers.
The forecast from NOAA also displays how much more powerful the river will be, with the flow rate expected to increase 5x over the weekend.
the pulp:
A man was found dead from a gunshot wound Thursday near Dinwiddie and E. 15th St. in South Richmond. This is the 8th homicide of the year in South Richmond as compared to 21 this time last year, according to South Richmond News.
The Richmond Jazz and Music festival kicks off tonight at the Hippodrome Theatre in Jackson Ward at 6 pm, and continues Saturday and Sunday at Maymont. The 12th edition of the festival features acts such as Fantasia, Ludacris, Wyclef Jean, Monica, and my personal favorite, the Lox. Money, Power, Respect.
NASCAR is back in town this weekend at Richmond Raceway for the CookOut 400. The engines will fire up on Sunday at 6 pm. It’s a giant party. I recommend wearing ear muffs that cover the entire ear rather than ear plugs.
the dive:
The Richmonder, a new non-profit local news outlet, is launching September 9th, via Jonathon Spiers at Bizsense.
Michael Phillips, who worked 17 years at the RTD as a sports reporter and editor, and briefly as interim executive editor, is leading the non-profit with reporters Graham Moomaw and Sarah Vogelsong. Moomaw had previously worked with Phillips at the RTD before moving to the Virginia Mercury. Vogelsong also worked at the Mercury for 5 years.
Moomaw wrote on X earlier in the week:
It’s a problem that you can read endless takes about presidential politics while there’s fewer and fewer reporters around to cover the mayor’s race in Virginia’s capital city.
The nonprofit has raised $433k so far from 54 donors, with a goal of reaching $600k quickly to “feel comfortable in terms of doing what we need to do.”
Phillips noted that while Richmond is a top 50 city, there is no reporter regularly attending City Council meetings to hold our local leaders accountable.
The site will use the nonprofit news model, where content is available to everyone for free, but is supported by subscriptions and donations.
Phillips notes the contrast with a for-profit model used by the RTD, which is owned by Lee Enterprises.
That’s one of the cool things about this as opposed to the newspaper,” he said. “Your ultimate answer was to the shareholders who say, ‘How much money did you make today,’ as they should; that is their job. Our ultimate answer is to the board, who will say, ‘How did you positively impact the city through your work this month?’
Read the full article here.
the vibe:
Have a rainy day and a sunny weekend RVA!
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