Image default

Come to the State of the City Address by Mayor Stoney!

Mark your calendars:

On Tuesday January 23rd, in the Martin Luther King Jr. Middle School on 1000 Mosby Street, Richmond Mayor Levar M. Stoney is addressing us all in a State of the City Address.

This is a public event so parking and seating are available on a first come, first served basis. The event starts at 6 P.M.

15 comments

The U.....nion Hill 01/22/2018 at 8:56 PM

We should ask our dear Mayor (who hasn’t ever worked a real job) where he gets the nerve to raise the meal tax on us.

Reply
Mike 1 01/23/2018 at 7:30 AM

Exactly what #1 said….

Reply
lanny 01/23/2018 at 12:19 PM

On January 6, 2014, then-mayor Dwight Jones presided over the grand opening of the taxpayer-funded $40 million dollar Martin Luther King Junior Middle School, saying “We simply owe it to our children to equip them to be ready for the world they will face. And while bricks and mortar cannot solve all of the very real challenges we face with performance in our schools, I do want all to know that we are raising expectations for what we want to come out of these schools. We expect better teaching and we expect better learning.” (http://archive.constantcontact.com/fs172/1102543181027/archive/1116280795575.html)

First off there’s nothing “simply” about burdening businesses and taxpayers for an item on someone’s political agenda, divisively claiming that a particular demographic is the most important demographic in the city and therefore that group is due something other groups aren’t.

As for the better teaching, I haven’t read much about it; but in regard to the “better learning,” media coverage since the school’s opening makes it pretty clear that city taxpayers haven’t gotten their $40 million dollars worth. For instance (and there are lots more like these).

“Unruly students” https://www.styleweekly.com/richmond/teachers-blast-unruly-students-at-new-school/Content?oid=2075998

“2015-2016 Accreditation Ratings”
http://www.nbc29.com/story/30365578/va-dept-of-education-releases-2015-2016-accreditation-ratings

“It’s not safe” http://www.nbc12.com/story/25521096/rva-teachers-on-middle-school-its-not-safe

“Unique challenges”: http://wtvr.com/2017/08/21/5-principals-in-7-years-leaders-say-mlk-middle-struggling-to-find-consistency/

At a 7th district meeting I attended some time ago someone asked that district’s representative Newbille why no Richmond politician ever thanks the taxpayers for what they make possible. She responded that she had never thought of that before – but that maybe some thanks were due to them.

Reply
mary 01/24/2018 at 10:30 AM

My, my…where was that man when Creighton residents were in dire need of hot air?

Reply
The U.....nion Hill 01/24/2018 at 12:03 PM

Keep raising taxes and people will vote with their feet by leaving the city. Richmond will back where it was in the early 90’s.

Reply
lanny 01/24/2018 at 1:15 PM

#5 – I agree…and the egress is underway.

Reply
lanny 01/24/2018 at 2:23 PM

It just keeps getting better.

Richmond’s can’t support funding for new schools that will make everything better for students the way building MLK did (see # 3 on how well that’s going) unless there is a tax increase of some sort.

And last night at his State of the City talk the mayor said he wants 1500 more public housing units in Richmond. That’s 1500 more than the city already has.

And he is claiming “…that investing millions into public housing would not diminish funding for new schools or educational improvements.”
(http://wtvr.com/2018/01/24/mayor-stoney-public-housing/)

With commenters here expressing worry about their utility bills and businesses worried about the city trying to shut them down either by way of the new bus lines or increasing the meal tax.

WTF does this say about the State of the City?

Reply
mary 01/28/2018 at 2:28 PM

Does anyone who attended the State of the City talk recall whether or not the mayor said when his plan for “swift justice” would be unveiled?
In a June, 2017, interview with WTVR the mayor, when asked about the city’s surge in violence, responded as follows: “Thursday night Jon Burkett took those concerns to Mayor Levar Stoney who assured him that a plan for swift justice is on the way.”
http://wtvr.com/2017/06/08/mayor-stoney-insists-plan-in-the-works-to-stop-surge-in-violence/
We’re in a new year and to the best of my knowledge the mayor never mentioned his plan again after the above. Some, like Newbille, when asked at one of her get togethers about the plan, claimed the it’s already in place.
Like the mayor would miss a PR event to announce his plan? I don’t think so.
But if anyone can clarify when and where he announced his plan, please let me know.

Reply
lanny 02/01/2018 at 4:42 PM

A Stoney appointee is now calling for a boycott of any restaurant that opposes having the meal tax raised. WRIC reports today that “Cindy Menz-Erb, a former interim school board member and one of Stoney’s six appointees to his Education Compact, sent an email” that called out to “Only patronize restaurants who support the meals tax,” stating that “There will be signs for restaurants to display soon but in the meantime, just ask if they support it.”

While not actually saying NOT to boycott those restaurants who do not want to have their livelihoods put in jeopardy, Stoney did state on his facebook page that he didn’t support penalizing anyone/any business for their beliefs; but then went on to state that “strong restaurants can help build strong schools” while calling for an action that will tend to make restaurants less strong…and probably cost jobs.

When an elected official says “this punishment is good for you” that’s called politics.

Reply
Liz 02/02/2018 at 4:23 AM

As of this morning, this appointee has stepped away from consideration for the special group. Good. What a ridiculous stance to take as a city representative.

Reply
Annonymous 02/02/2018 at 7:57 AM

New housing units? Are they unaware that new housing units are usually built by non-profits and get tax exemption thus producing more mouths to feed (i.e. students in schools, people for police to protect, etc) WITHOUT actually contributing taxes to the school system, police force, fire department, etc. that the new residents are zoned for? What a moronic thing to say!

Focus on city government inefficiencies like the workers standing around all day and not doing construction projects, or people in city hall pulling thousands of dollars a year in salary and playing solitaire and being rude on the phone when they do answer it. Cut the fat don’t raise the tax!

Reply
SueWho 02/02/2018 at 11:26 AM

I’m not thrilled with how this administration is going to work out. Stoney was/is too green and scripted for his position as mayor.

My preference was Baliles, who knew city government inside and out, and now he’s out of Stoney’s administration. My ideal for mayor would have been a combo of Baliles, Berry, and Morrisey (minus the shenanigans,…) because these folks new their facts and figures and knew that City Hall was long overdue for a house cleaning.

The schools have been crumbling for decades which increases both rehab and maintenance costs. We should not be behind any increase in the meals tax and the ridiculous call for boycotting restaurants whose owners oppose it. Raising funding for rehabbing/building schools is a complicated, convoluted process that needs thoughtful planning and not sound bites. We certainly don’t need to discourage city residents and patrons from the surrounding counties from dining in RVA.

Reply

Leave a Comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.