Today Mayor Stoney announced the members of the Task Force to Reimagine Public Safety and outlined his primary requests of the diverse group of professionals. The majority of task force members stood with the mayor for the announcement.
 
“There is a lot of work ahead of us, but this group’s diversity of expertise and lived experiences is a key asset on our path forward,” said the mayor. “I am thrilled to have this team help our city heal.”
 
The members of the task force bring an array of perspectives from activist, legal, academic, law enforcement, emergency services, artistic, healthcare and other fields. At the close of a 45-day period, the task force will bring the mayor a set of actionable steps forward to build a safer city for all.
 
“After additional conversations and review of actions taken in other cities, I do not believe we can wait to begin acting on reform recommendations,” said Mayor Stoney. “I have asked this task force to report back with initial recommendations within 45 days of their first meeting.”
 
The mayor established three foundational requests of the task force: reviewing the police department’s use of force policies, exploring an approach to public safety that uses a human services lens and prioritizing community healing and engagement.
 
“We need a new process for noncriminal and nonviolent calls for service, and that will be a top priority for this task force,” noted the mayor. “We must center compassion instead of consequences.”
 
Regarding community healing and engagement, the mayor said that the task force will allow the city to explore methods of engagement that will enable meaningful change, using his support for the Virginia Black Legislative Caucus’ legislative package as an example.
 
“Last month I expressed my support for the VBLC’s package for the summer session,” said Mayor Stoney. “This task force can determine where the city can explore complimentary legislation and where we need to focus community advocacy to make statewide change a reality.”
 
Members of the Task Force
Sergeant Carol Adams, Richmond Police Department
Ram Bhagat, Manager of School Culture and Climate Strategy for RPS
Glenwood Burley, retired RPD officer
Keisha Cummings, community engagement specialist, founder of 2LOVE LLC, member of the Richmond Transparency and Accountability Project and the Richmond Peace Team
Torey Edmonds, Community Outreach Coordinator at VCU Clark-Hill Institute for Positive Youth Development
Professor Daryl Fraser, VCU School of Social Work professor and licensed clinical social worker
Triston Harris, Black Lives Matters organizer and organizer of the 5,000 Man March Against Racism
Birdie Hairston Jamison, former district court judge for the 13th Judicial District in Virginia
Councilman Mike Jones
Shanel Lewis, Youth Violence Prevention Specialist at the Richmond City Health District
Brandon Lovee, Richmond artist and advocate, member of the Richmond Peace Team
Colette McEachin, Richmond Commonwealth Attorney
Reverend Dontae McCutchen, Love Cathedral Community Church
Dr. Lisa Moon, Associate Provost at VUU and former Director of the Center for the Study of the Urban Child
Sergeant Brad Nixon, RPD
Tracy Paner, Public Defender for the City of Richmond
Bill Pantele, Richmond attorney and former City Council Member
Professor William Pelfrey, VCU professor with expertise in emergency preparedness and policing
Councilwoman Ellen Robertson
Rodney Robinson, National Teacher of the Year and teacher at the Richmond Juvenile Detention Center
Patrice Shelton, Community Health Worker in Hillside Court and director of the Hillside Court Partnership
Lashawnda Singleton, President of the Richmond Association of Black Social Workers
Sheba Williams, Executive Director of NoLef Turns
Courtney Winston, Richmond trial attorney
 
The Mayor’s Office is specifically working with the Office of Community Wealth Building’s Community Ambassadors to identify additional community members, including youth, to be part of the task force’s important work and to assist with community engagement.
 
The task force is committed to a transparent process and will make meeting minutes available to the public.

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As of July 1, firearms are prohibited in city-owned buildings, parks, recreational facilities and community facilities. This includes, but is not limited to: City Hall, community centers, the two Department of Social Services locations and all public parks.
 
Richmond City Council passed the mayor’s ordinance to prohibit guns in city buildings and parks in July 2019. However, the prohibition did not go into effect until July 1, 2020 because the state only recently voted to give municipalities the power to limit guns in certain spaces.
 
“No Richmonder should ever be threatened by gun violence,” said Mayor Stoney. “This is especially true in public spaces like parks and community centers, where residents expect to enjoy public amenities, not fear for their lives.”
 
“Paired with our reporting requirement on illegal guns, this key legislative change is a model we should replicate and a foundation we should build on,” continued Mayor Stoney. “Carrying the memory of Markiya Dickson in our hearts, we must continue to advocate and innovate for a safer, stronger Richmond.”
 
The text of the city code, § 19-334.1 Carrying firearms in certain places, reads:
 
No person shall carry any firearm within any City-owned building, park, or recreation or community facility. This prohibition shall not apply to any duly authorized (i) military personnel in the performance of their lawful duties, (ii) law enforcement officer, or (iii) security guard contracted or employed by the City.  (Ord. No. 2019-165, § 1, 7-1-2019)

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Today, Mayor Levar Stoney, using his emergency powers, ordered the immediate removal of multiple monuments in the city, including Confederate statues.
 
The mayor presented two reasons for this action to city council. First, that failing to remove the statues presents a severe, immediate and growing threat to public safety.
 
“As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to surge, and protestors attempt to take down Confederate statues themselves, or confront others who are doing so, the risk grows for serious illness, injury, or death,” noted the mayor. “We have an urgent need to protect the public.”
 
Second, the mayor asserted that immediate removal will expedite the healing process for the city, a former capital of the Confederacy constantly grappling with that legacy.
 
In March of 2020, the General Assembly passed an amendment empowering localities like Richmond to remove monuments to the Lost Cause. The law took effect today, July 1, at 12 AM, allowing Richmond to enter into a 60-day administrative process during which the city will solicit public input while determining the fate of the statues. Any removed statues will be placed in temporary storage while that process takes place.

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In observance of Independence Day, city government offices, including City Hall, will be closed on Friday, July 3 ,2020. City offices will reopen at regular business hours on Monday, July 6, 2020. Please be aware the City of Richmond government facilities will enter Phase Three of the city’s operating plan. The city continues to urge residents to use available e-services. For questions about available city services, view this updated list.

This closing includes all branches of the Richmond Public Library and all city community centers. City Community centers and libraries will re-open Monday, July 6. Please visit RVALibrary.org for more information on your local branch’s COVID-19 safety protocols.

Richmond Animal Care and Control is closed to the public and arranging adoptions by appointment only. Please email Christy.Hemsworth@richmondgov.com

Refuse collection will be performed as normally scheduled Wednesday, July 1, Thursday, July 2. Solid Waste Offices will be closed Friday, July 3 and Saturday, July 4. Normal service will resume on Monday, July 6.

The East Richmond Road Convenience Center and Hopkins Road Transfer Stations are also closed on July 3–4. Each facility will resume its normal schedule on Monday, July 6.
 
 
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On Monday, June 22, Richmond City Council passed a series of amendments to the city’s Zoning Ordinance that creates a set of regulations on short-term rental (STR) properties, which are usually advertised on apps like Airbnb. Those changes go into effect Wednesday, July 1. 
 
Before this ordinance passed, short-term rentals were not a permitted use in the City of Richmond’s Zoning Ordinance. Therefore, rental units offered for a period of fewer than 30 consecutive days were effectively prohibited. However, a March 2018 study revealed that 749 unique short-term rental units were active within city lines. 
 
The city recognized a need to formalize its stance on short-term rentals, working with Richmond Regional Tourism and PlanRVA to identify best practices and discuss the various approaches pursued by neighboring counties and cities. The city’s work group studied 14 localities, all of which were either located in Virginia or similar in size to Richmond, who had already implemented short-term rental regulations. 
 
“This is a great example of how city policies can make Richmond more competitive,” said Mayor Stoney. “I’m all about tourism and economic empowerment, letting Richmonders leverage their assets to strengthen our city’s economy. However, other cities have seen unfettered short-term rentals lead to speculative markets. Bottom line: the health of our city’s housing market must be protected. The Department of Planning and Development Review and Planning Commission have done a great job ensuring we have a responsible regulatory framework in place.”
 
For a two-month period in 2019, staff of the Planning and Development Review conducted an aggressive public input campaign, soliciting opinions via print and online surveys, emails and phone calls. The city’s team attended councilmembers’ meetings in all nine council districts and hosted two informational meetings exclusively focused on short-term rental regulations.
 
“Throughout the community engagement process, we have heard from both short-term rental operators and other residents who had concerns about STRs,” explained Mark Olinger, director of the Department of Planning and Development Review. “With these regulations, we hope to strike a balance by allowing homeowners to rent their properties to supplement their incomes while limiting the effects to the character of residential neighborhoods and the housing supply.”
 
The finalized regulations emulate best practices from around the Commonwealth, allowing short-term rental units to operate as an accessory use to dwelling units with conditions to ensure the health and safety of the renters and minimize any negative effect on the permanent residents of the neighborhood.
 
In order to operate a short-term rental, the rental unit must be the operator’s primary residence, meaning the operator must reside there at least 185 days a year. This protects the housing market from the speculative use of private residences as effective hotels and is present in the regulations of counties such as Henrico and Arlington. The number of nights a year each short-term rental can operate is currently unlimited.
 
The Planning Commission offered an amendment to the administration’s original ordinance. The amendment, recommended by the Planning and Development Review staff, requires the Department of Planning and Development Review to provide a report on the implementation of the ordinance in the summer of 2021.
 
Said Olinger of the amendment: “We appreciate the opportunity to review the implementation of the ordinance in a year to determine what amendments may need to be made to the regulations.”
 
For more information on short term rentals in the City of Richmond, visit http://www.richmondgov.com/PlanningAndDevelopmentReview/ShortTermRental….
 
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