Reconnect Jackson Ward

On Feb. 28, 2023, the U.S. Department of Transportation announced a $1.35 million grant award to the City of Richmond for future planning and design to advance a framework that will reconnect Jackson Ward. The funding is through the Reconnecting Communities Pilot Program, a first-of-its-kind initiative to reconnect communities that are cut off from opportunity and burdened by past transportation infrastructure decisions. Read the press release here.

Richmond 300 Big Moves 

Reconnect The City: Cap highways to reknit neighborhoods destroyed by interstates, build/improve bridges, introduce street grids, and make the city easier to access by foot, bike, and transit.

Provide Greenways and Parks for All: Develop parks and greenways so that by 2037 100% of Richmonders live within a 10-minute walk of a park. 

PROJECT OVERVIEW

The Virginia Office of Intermodal Planning and Investment (OIPI), in coordination with the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) and the City of Richmond, has undertaken a feasibility study to develop options to reconnect Jackson Ward, a historic African American neighborhood that has been physically and economically separated by Interstates 95 and 64 since the 1950s.  Born out of the Richmond 300 Master Plan’s vision for new infrastructure to reconnect Jackson Ward, the Reconnect Jackson Ward Feasibility Study engaged the community to evaluate and develop viable options for new transportation connections and public spaces in this area.

PROJECT LOCATION

The project location generally extends from the Belvidere Street Bridge over I-95 to east of the North 1st Street Bridge over I-95. This encompasses portions of Jackson Ward, Gilpin Court, and surrounding neighborhoods.

Final Study Report and Grant Application

Grant Application: On Oct. 10, 2022, the City of Richmond successfully submitted a grant application to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Reconnecting Communities Pilot Discretionary Grant Program for the Reconnect Jackson Ward project.

Final Study Report: OIPI, VDOT, and the City of Richmond have prepared a final report, documenting the Reconnect Jackson Ward Feasibility Study process.