Which special interests and why?
We just moved to Richmond this summer, and live in the city limits (Fan/Carytown area) and as someone who grew up in VA and left 25+ years ago, downtown Richmond and the immediate surrounding area are MUCH different than the 80’s & early 90’s.
The city is much better/safer but not having a major arena/convention complex is puzzling. Who doesn’t want it?
Arena politics are difficult. Everyone wants one but they are extremely expensive, competition from other regional arenas can occur at any time, and there are a limited number of uses for an arena that will generate revenue to offset the costs. The NBA and NHL aren’t coming. And Taylor Swift isn’t going to play D.C., JPJ, Richmond, Hampton Roads, and various venues in NC. There’s too much competition for the same products. JPJ really only works because of UVA basketball and Coran Capshaw’s industry clout. Smart investors are aware of this and wary, which is why some initiatives got publicity but really never got any footing.
A little surprised Pitt won @NCSU last night, but not majorly. This is probably Capel’s best team at Pitt. State/Pitt look like middle of the pack ACC teams.
Surprised Clemson beat Wake by 20, not shocked they won but surprised they won by that much. I was high on the Tigers before Honor/Dawes transfered. But they are getting good guard play from Hunter/Galloway and Tyson/Hall are a good and diverse front court.
Syracuse’s Edwards is pretty good now.
Dude that runs that Twitter account went to UVa.
Is it just me or does Justin Taylor make it look like Buddy Boeheim never left?
Maybe that’s why Jim Boeheim didn’t retire…
Damn that’s a bad loss for Notre Dame
Notre Dame goes zone all game and then decides to go man in the last two minutes and gives up 2 layups
He’d swap records in a second.
The gladiator are you not entertained meme is a solid go to for this situation if you clever it up with something about how his team sucks.
Louisville sucks
Or more creatively:
Louisville is the most boring Cincinnati suburb
The new arena was anti-corporate — VCU professors, white liberal progressives, people who weren’t getting paid walking money from the developers (that’s a thing).
Casino was a bad move by supporters to put it to a referendum during a close gubernatorial election, driving up turnout in the first and fourth wards, where there are a lot of conservative Christians, and in the second, third, and fifth, where there are a lot of progressives. Strange bedfellows and the referendum lost by a thousand votes or so.
Awww fact
Interesting. I had wondered the argument against it, and doesn’t sound like there really is much of a good one other than egos and short sightedness.
Any plans/discussion to replace The Diamond? It’s been around since I was young, and at a minimum could use a major facelift. A lot of improvements to the Scott’s Addition area, but that could help revitalize that even more.
As for the casino, I moved to Richmond from a casino town in a very conservative part of the country, and there aren’t many good arguments against it. Pumped a ton of $ into the local economy and the difference in quality of school facilities in neighboring towns that didn’t have casino revenue was night-and-day. It could be a game changer for Richmond City Public Schools.
Supposed to be a 17,000-seat arena in that new GreenCity development in Henrico. Projected completion in 2026.
No idea if it’s a good idea or not.
New outdoor amphitheater maybe coming down by the river near Brown’s Island? I’d just like to attract bands that stop in Asheville/Carrboro but then skip over to DC/B’More.
Sheesh … misnamed thread strikes again
