School Board Budget Approved, a VMFH Warehouse, and a Rescued Barred Owl
Cheers RVA!
Today will partly cloudy and windy, with a high of 53 and a low of 31. Wind gusts could exceed 25+ mph.
the juice:
The RPS School Board has voted to send Superintendent Kamras’s budget to Mayor Avula for consideration.
The FY26 financial plan includes a 7.4% increase in funding that focuses on five main objectives, including prioritization of reading supports and honoring all collective bargaining agreements.
The budget calls for an additional $31 million in funding from the City, which provides roughly 60% of the total operating budget, with the state providing nearly all of the other revenue.
The amount of state funding is unlikely to change as that budget has already been sent to the Governor, but city allocation could differ, with Mayor Avula having been upfront about large increases in funding being unlikely in a tight fiscal year.
View the full approved budget here.
the pulp:
An effort to stop the construction of a planned storage warehouse by the Virginia Musuem of Fine Arts was rejected by the zoning board, according to Graham Moomaw at the Richmonder. Moomaw noted the group of neighbors still has an unresolved lawsuit in the court system. The 12k-square-foot warehouse is planned to be built on land zoned for residential use, which is allowed for publicly owned amenities.
Elise Steele at RIC Today offers a guide to the Richmond Black Restaurant Experience, which kicks off this Sunday at Monroe Park with 30+ ‘soul-elevating’ food trucks and live music.
Richard Hayes from RVA Hub reports on the rescue and release of a Barred Owl that was stuck in a fireplace in a residence in Forest Hill Terrace. Excellent photos.
the dive:
Jahd Khalil explains “Why Virginia is a Dillon rule state” in a recent article for VPM.
The Dillon rule is a legal obstacle that makes it difficult or illegal for localities to do things not authorized by the state legislature.
Former City Councilor Andreas Addison cites the Dillon rule as an impediment to installing speed cameras at unsafe intersections, and uses the intersection of Monument Ave and Arthur Ashe Boulevard as a perfect example.
Khalil and Addison stood at the intersection for half an hour and every few minutes observed cars running red lights in both directions.
But state law prevents the installation of speed cameras if the intersection is not located near a school.
The rule goes back to a 1868 Iowa Supreme Court ruling:
The rule dates back to an 1868 ruling by John Dillon, a justice on the Iowa Supreme Court who was concerned about local officials being corrupt and passing unethical laws or inappropriately giving businesses public funds. In his opinion, Dillon determined localities only really exist because of their state legislatures.
In the 1960’s and 1970’s many states adopted “home rule”, which allowed localities to govern themselves.
But the 1971 Virginia Constitution did not.
Read the full article here.
the vibe:
Have a perceptive day RVA!
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