Join Capital One and the Office of Minority Business for the Capital One Diverse Supplier Mentoring Program’s “Special Restaurant Training Session.” The one-day virtual training is open to all restaurant owners and up-and-coming owners.

The session will be facilitated by Jason Alley, City of Richmond Policy Advisor for Restaurants and Small Business. The session will cover the following topics:

• General business requirements
• Importance of knowledge of the business you own, or plan to own
• Ongoing/continuous improvement plans
• Opening a food service business in the City of Richmond
• Determining the appropriate venture
• Business 101 for restaurants
• Overview of general trends in the industry

The training will take place on Monday, April 11, 2022 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

The deadline for registration is Wednesday, April 6, 2022. To receive the meeting link, registration is required.

To register, you may click on the link below:

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0a49a4ad23a3f85-restaurant1

If you have any questions, you may contact the Office of Minority Business Development at (804) 646-5947 or email us at gale.jones@rva.gov.

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The City of Richmond is officially inviting 6 development teams to submit responses to Request for Additional Information (RFAI).

On February 15, 2022, the city received 15 submissions from development teams in response to the Diamond District Request for Interest (RFI) issued on December 28, 2021.

“The city is extremely pleased with the amount of interest in redeveloping this over 67-acre site,” said Deputy Director for Equitable Development Maritza Mercado Pechin. “Considering the area’s potential, this enthusiasm comes as no surprise. As we continue this careful and competitive process, we’re more optimistic than ever that the Diamond District will go far in supporting our growing city.”

The Diamond District Evaluation Panel reviewed the 15 submissions against the evaluation criteria listed in RFI. Based on the evaluation, six development teams have been invited to continue in the competitive process and respond to the RFAI (listed alphabetically):

• Diamond District Gateway Partners
• MAG Partners
• Richmond Community Development Partners
• RVA Diamond Partners
• Vision300 Partners, LLC
• Weller Development Company and LMXD

Based on its evaluation of RFAI responses, the Evaluation Panel will select development teams to respond to a Request for Offers.

The RFAI is a new intermediate step that the city has added to the Diamond District redevelopment process to facilitate the careful and competitive redevelopment of this strategic development opportunity. The city added the RFAI step to the process to collect more information for respondents prior to issuing a Request for Offers to the finalists. For the Request for Additional information (RFAI) document, please visit www.rva.gov/economic-development/diamond. Submissions are due on April 25, 2022 at 3 p.m.

The City anticipates the following evaluation process as outlined below. The City reserves the right to alter the process at any point to ensure the greatest benefit is derived for the City and its citizens.

• RFAI Submissions Due – RFAI submissions are due no later than 3:00 p.m. ET on April 25, 2022.
• RFAI Evaluation – The Evaluation Panel reviews the RFAI Responses.
• Announcement of the Finalists – The City anticipates narrowing down the RFAI Respondents to its finalists the week of May 9, 2022.
• Public Meeting –The City anticipates hosting a public meeting the week of May 24, 2022.
• Request for Offers (RFO) – The City anticipates issuing the RFO to the Finalists the week of May 24, 2022.
• RFO Submissions Due – The City anticipates that the RFO submissions will be due the week of June 6, 2022.
• RFO Evaluation, Negotiation and Selection – The City will negotiate with one or more of the finalists to derive the best and highest benefit to the City and its residents. The City anticipates announcing its preferred development team in June 2022.

About the Diamond District project

The Diamond District project is just one aspect of Richmond 300: A Plan for Growth, which has been awarded the 2021 Daniel Burnham Award for a Comprehensive Plan for the American Planning Association. The plan provides a detailed roadmap to ensure “Richmond is a welcoming, inclusive, diverse, innovative, sustainable, and equitable city of thriving neighborhoods, ensuring a high quality of life for all.”

About the Diamond District Evaluation Panel

The Evaluation Panel is comprised of 10 members, including City Council members, city administrative staff, and VCU administrative staff.

Communication with the Panel: Members of the public can send comments/questions to the Diamond District Evaluation Panel by using this form. This form is publicly posted on the project page. Do not email the Evaluation Panel members, facilitator, or advisors about the Diamond District project, as emails sent directly to the Evaluation Panel about this project will not be read. Comments and questions will be reviewed every other week and distributed to the Evaluation Panel during the evaluation process.

Evaluation Panel Members

1. James P. Duval – Investment and Debt Portfolio Manager, Finance Department
2. Sharon L. Ebert – Deputy Chief Administrative Officer, Planning and Economic Development
3. Karol Kain Gray – Senior Vice-President and Chief Financial Officer, Virginia Commonwealth University
4. Katherine Jordan – Council Member, Second District
5. Ann-Frances Lambert – Council Member, Third District
6. J.E. Lincoln Saunders – Chief Administrative Officer
7. Leonard L. Sledge – Director, Department of Economic Development
8. Caprichia Smith Spellman – Interim Director, Office of Community Wealth Building
9. Robert C. Steidel – Deputy Chief Administrative Officer, Operations
10. Stephen M. Willoughby – Director of Emergency Communications

Evaluation Panel Facilitator: Maritza Mercado Pechin, Deputy Director, Department of Planning and Development Review, is the Project Manager for the Diamond District redevelopment process and will run the evaluation panel meetings, coordinate logistics, and serve as the official point of contact between the evaluation panel and the respondents.

Evaluation Panel Advisors: These individuals will attend evaluation panel meetings and offer expertise as needed.

• Matthew A. Welch – Policy Advisor, Planning and Economic Development Portfolio
• Lynne S. Lancaster – Deputy Director, Department of Public Works

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The City of Richmond has selected MGT, a public sector firm that specializes in disparity and availability studies, to perform a disparity study of the city’s programs for minority business enterprises (MBE).

The purpose of the study is to determine whether a significant gap exists between the number of MBEs that are qualified to perform and the number of MBEs engaged by the city or its prime contractors.

Director of the Department of Procurement Services Betty J. Burrell stated, “We embrace the opportunity to work with Office of Minority Business Development and MGT on this important disparity study. Our business model includes continual process improvements; therefore, at the conclusion of the study or as potential challenges are identified during the study process, we welcome recommendations for improvements that could be made to our procurement policies and procedures that would help remove barriers to success for minority firms.”

The study will be based on five years of historical data and will include statistical analysis, empirical evidence, and an assessment of any anecdotal and qualitative evidence of discrimination within the city’s procurement process. MGT will perform the study, and, if a disparity is found to exist, offer analysis on whether the use of only race neutral based measures would be effective or if other remedies should be considered to correct the inequity.

Input from the local community and stakeholders is highly encouraged. The first community meeting is scheduled on April 7, 2022 and details can be found at richmondvadisparitystudy.com.

MGT will gather qualitative input from businesses during the course of the study. Questions regarding the study should be directed to Vernetta Mitchell, vmitchell@mgtconsulting.com or (813) 321-1400  ext. 2131.

About MGT

MGT is a national public sector management and technology services firm that delivers diverse services and solutions to a wide range of state, local and education clients across the U.S. and abroad. Leveraging a 48-year track record and reputation, our industry subject matter experts’ partner with thousands of public agencies to provide trusted solutions that improve government performance and help communities thrive. 

It is the largest solutions providers of disparity studies and has conducted more unchallenged studies than any other consultant firm in the country. The team has executed more than 230 studies across the country and will aim to provide the city of Richmond with a comprehensive, effective, and legally supportable disparity study.

Visit us at www.mgtconsulting.com or find us on social media.

The Department of Public Works (DPW) and The Burning Sands Alumni Football Foundation (Burning Sands) invite the community to celebrate the unveiling of three Adopt-A-Street signs on the campus of Virginia Union University at 10:00 a.m., Saturday, March 26. The ceremony will take place at the corner of Admiral and North Lombardy streets.

The 30-minute service will begin with a presentation by DPW and the unveiling of an Adopt-A-Street sign bearing the organization’s name, and end with a “Panther March” to the corner of North Lombardy Street and Brook Road, where Burning Sands members will uncover two Adopt-A-Street signs honoring VUU legendary football coaches Willard Bailey, the late Jesse Chavis and “Tricky Tom” Harris, and Joe Taylor.

Through a partnership with the Richmond Clean City Commission’s Adopt-A-Street program in 2021, Burning Sands members performed bi-weekly clean-ups of the three streets that form the triangle encompassing Hovey Field – 1200-1300 blocks of Admiral Street, 1500 block of North Lombardy Street, and the 2000 block of Brook Road – in an effort to keep the campus of its beloved alma mater cleared of trash and litter. The organization kicked off its 2022 clean-up campaign on March 5.

The Burning Sands Alumni Football Foundation (Burning Sands) is a nonprofit organization that raises money to support various educational and athletic initiatives of the university’s football department. Membership is comprised of men and women who are either former VUU football players, coaches, athletic trainers, cheerleaders, or just loyal supporters of the university.
Members, many of whom are former Virginia Union University football players, elected to pay tribute to these four coaches because of the indelible imprint they left on their lives. The sign bearing the organization’s name is strategically placed at the Admiral Street site to serve as inspiration to VUU football players as they head to the workout room from the practice field.

Willard Bailey, a 2021 inductee into the National Black College Football Hall of Fame, is the winningest coach in VUU history. Coach Bailey holds a school record of 151 wins between 1971-83 and 1995-2003. His teams won six CIAA conference championships. Jesse “Bad News” Chavis is touted as the best defensive coordinator Virginia Union has ever had. His 1973 defensive line, known as “The Wrecking Crew,” posted six shutouts en route to an undefeated season and the first CIAA Championship in 50 years. “Tricky Tom” Harris coached football, basketball, and track between 1950-1983 at VUU. He won 99 football games during his career. Joe Taylor, another legend in college football, has won four national championships, 14 conference championships, seven bowl games, and has a lifetime win-loss record of 233-96-4. Coach Taylor, current VUU Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics, was inducted into the National Black College Football Hall of Fame in 2020 and was recently appointed to serve on the national College Football Playoff Selection Committee.

Coaches Willard Bailey and Joe Taylor, Jesse “Skeet” Chavis, son of Coach Chavis, and a representative from the Tom Harris Alumni Chapter will be present as honorary guests. Coach Alvin Parker, along with members of the VUU football team, will attend.

Contacts:    

Angriess Scott, President
(804) 840-4819 • sco04@henrico.us

Jacquelyn Stanley, Secretary
(804) 306-6798 • jacrob@comcast.net

Paige Hairston, Richmond Department of Public Works (804) 385-0409 • Paige.Hairston@rva.gov
 

Have you been boosted yet?

The City of Richmond will be hosting a COVID-19 Vaccine Clinic in partnership with the Richmond City Health District for city employees and members of the public at Main Street Station from 9 a.m. -12 p.m. this upcoming Friday!

Walk-ups are welcome, but in order to reserve your vaccine, we recommend that you register below! 

Pfizer 12+

Moderna

J&J