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Richmond's Treasure
KATHY GRAZIANO
TIMES-DISPATCH GUEST COLUMNIST October 21, 2005
We don’t need to speak for the James. The river speaks for itself. Upstream of Richmond it speaks in the tones of Powhatan and Monacan. As it crosses the barrier into the tidelands, it speaks of Belle Isle and Hollywood and Huguenot.
The river speaks for itself, but the park whose name it bears has too often in the past had no advocate, and the more than 400 acres of riverside often became tempting sites for planners and developers looking for a little more land for their projects.
In fact, just two years ago a plan to sell part of James River Park actually ascended to City Council for formal approval. Fortunately, Council, led by Bill Pantele, stepped in, and killed the effort. But it was a near-run thing, because only a city ordinance currently prevents parkland from being declared surplus and sold for whatever short-term advantage that might arise.
It was with that backdrop that Bill Pantele and I introduced a resolution last year calling for a conservation easement to protect the park forever.
A conservation easement in its simplest form does not transfer ownership of property. It transfers the right to develop that property, in whatever terms are agreed upon. In this case, the city would transfer development rights to the Virginia Outdoor Foundation, a state-created body, with the stated goal that the easement holder would permit no development of the park, in perpetuity. The city owns the park, the city parks department will manage the park, and future generations will enjoy the park, the gem of our city.
What does that mean, though, in concrete terms? City water and sewer lines run through the park. Streets and roads border the park, and in the case of bridges fly over the park. Hiking and biking trails wind through the park; parking lots and river access points provide opportunities for visitors. What will a “no development” easement mean to those projects?
When the resolution passed unanimously last fall, we directed the city staff to come back to us this spring with a draft document.
Since then there have been a series of public meetings with interested parties, offering suggestions and voicing opinions. Users and advocates alike have spoke of the need to protect the Park forever.
For the past five months, attorneys and managers from several city departments have worked quietly to forge a working agreement, so that the James River park can be protected from development, while allowing the utility and works departments to still maintain the water, sewer and electrical service necessary for a city of 200,000 people. The departments are also committed to a policy of reducing the impact of their work in the future as technology and engineering advances permit.
This month Council will see the results of that work. Staff will report to Council on the general thrust of the document. If Council approves the direction of the staff work, we can then begin the negotiations with the Virginia Outdoors Foundation and the Richmond Recreation and Parks Foundation. When the negotiations are complete, there will be public hearings by the Planning Commission and the Council, leading to a final vote. The Mayor, who has been very supportive of the effort, will then have an opportunity to comment on the ordinance.
When we complete this work, this year, the James River Park system will have a voice. It will rumble with the voices of Hollywood rapids, or chuckle at Pony Pasture, or we will hear the ghostly whispers of Belle Isle. But whatever the voice, the message will be the same ... that James River Park will belong to us, and our children ... forever.
