~ Vehicles without authorized parking passes will be ticketed and/or towed~ During the Tuesday, November 5 general election, special on-street parking restrictions will be in place near polling locations in order to accommodate chief election officers and those working the polls.  Parking will be prohibited in the following downtown areas from 5 a.m. to 10 p.m. November 5 and on Wednesday, November 6, from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.:  Three parking meters on 1 st Street, on the west side of the Main Library All parking meters on 9 th Street and 10 th Street between Broad Street and Marshall Street North side of Marshall Street between 9 th Street and 10 th Street All meters will be marked accordingly. In addition, Hermitage Methodist Home at 1601 Palmyra Avenue is a polling location.  Special parking will be designated on the north side of the 1600 block of Palmyra Avenue from 5 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Tuesday only.   Unauthorized vehicles will be ticketed and/or towed while the

WHO:         Mayor Dwight C. Jones                   Cynthia Newbille, Richmond City Council - 7th District                   Harriet Coalter, Director, Richmond Public Library                   Dr. Brenda Drew, Vice-Chairman, Richmond Public Library Board of Trustees                   Veronica Holloway, East End Library Community Services Manager                   Dr. Sandra Mobley, East End Library Advisory Council     WHAT:      Ribbon Cutting Ceremony of the newly renovated East End Library WHEN:     Tuesday, October 29, 2013 at 4:30 p.m. WHERE:   1200 North 25th Street                     Richmond, VA BACKGROUND: Mayor Dwight C. Jones invites the community to celebrate the opening of the newly renovated East End Library on Tuesday, October 29 at 4:30 p.m. The East End Library is the sixth branch library to be renovated through the “Building a Better Richmond” fund of the City’s Capital Improvement Plan. To celebrate the reopening, Richmond Public Library is forgiving overdue f

The City of Richmond advises absentee ballot applicants of technical difficulties with receiving faxed applications from 2 p.m. on Thursday, October 24 until 3 p.m. on Friday, October 25. During that 25 hour period, the fax machine was inoperable and the Office of the General Registrar did not receive faxes. Persons attempting to send faxes during that time frame may not have received notification that the fax was not received. The Office of the General Registrar believes the delayed faxes were all recovered. However, the City advises anyone who faxed an Absentee Application to the local registrar on October 24 or October 25 to check on-line at www.sbe.virginia.gov or with the local registrar’s office to verify that your application has been received. The deadline for filing absentee ballot applications by mail for the upcoming election is Tuesday, October 29, 2013, at 5 p.m. eastern standard time. The deadline to apply and vote absentee in person is Saturday, November 2, 2013, at 5

The Central Virginia Emergency Management Alliance will host a Regional Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) Exercise on Saturday, October 26, 2013. The City of Richmond Office of Emergency Management will oversee the training. Approximately 90 volunteers will be participating from localities including the cities of Richmond and Colonial Heights and the counties of Chesterfield, Henrico, Dinwiddie and Louisa. The exercise will give CERT members, who are all volunteers trained in emergency response, an opportunity to test their skills, including search and rescue, fire suppression (simulator), triage, medical treatment, patient transportation and structural cribbing, learned during their original training sessions. The exercise will be held at the Hickory Hill Community Center, 3000 East Belt Boulevard from 9 a.m. - 1 p.m. Using the training learned in the classroom and during exercises like these, CERT members can assist others in their neighborhood or workplace following

Chesterfield, Henrico, Prince George County, and Richmond Police, and Dinwiddie and Hanover Counties Sheriff's Offices have joined forces with the Central Virginia Crime Prevention Association and Shred-it to offer residents this free Crime Prevention Month program. When: Saturday, October 26 Where: Richmond Police Veterans' Hospital (VAMC Medical Center - Rear entrance) (1201 Broad Rock Blvd.) Time: 10 a.m. - 1 p.m. Call Office Kimberly Cheatham-McClarin at 646-6754 for more information.

The City of Richmond is extending the public review and comment period for its proposed amended 2013-15 Consolidated Plan budget and its proposed amended 2013-14 Annual Action Plan budget that began on September 27, 2013 and will be extended to November 25, 2013.   The Plans will serve as a comprehensive planning document discussing Richmond’s community development and housing needs with particular emphasis on the provision of decent housing, a suitable living environment, assisting and preventing homelessness, assisting special needs community, and the expansion of economic opportunities, particularly for low and moderate income persons.  The four HUD entitlement programs for which the City of Richmond receives funds are: Community Development Block Grant (CDBG), HOME Investment Partnership (HOME), Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG), and Housing Opportunities for Persons with AIDS (HOPWA).  The HOPWA funds are allocated to the City to administer for the Richmond-Petersburg MSA.  

Virginia Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) and the City of Richmond have invited Artspace Projects, Inc., America’s leading nonprofit developer of affordable spaces for artists and creative workers, to Richmond to conduct a Community Needs and Use Assessment with artists and community members. The outcome of the visit will help determine the community’s specific needs in terms of space and amenities, affordability and location preferences for multi-use, affordable and sustainable facilities for artists. The public is invited to attend a free informational meeting regarding a potential new arts oriented development in Richmond on Thursday, October 24, 2013, at 7 p.m. at the Plant Zero Poetry Slam Stage, 400 Hull Street . Those who attend the meeting will have the chance to share their thoughts and provide feedback about any future project and its affect on Richmond’s art and business communities. Ideas and suggestions gathered at the meeting will be used by Artspace to gauge

Ceremony Also Highlights Revitalization of Chapel Island and Advancement of Riverfront Plan WHAT: Ribbon cutting ceremony for the Virginia Capital Trail western trailhead at Great Shiplock Park and revitalization of Chapel Island WHO: Mayor Dwight C. Jones, City of Richmond Cynthia Newbille, Richmond City Council, 7 th District Charles Donato, Board of Directors Chairman, Virginia Capital Trail Foundation Dr. Norman Merrifield, Director, Parks, Recreation and Community Facilities WHEN: Tuesday, October 15, 2013 at 2 p.m.   WHERE: Great Shiplock Park  2603 Dock Street Richmond, VA 23223 BACKGROUND:   The Virginia Capital Trail Foundation and the City of Richmond jointly announce a ribbon cutting ceremony for the Virginia Capital Trail western trailhead at Great Shiplock Park. The ceremony will also highlight the revitalization of Chapel Island, to include the addition of a non-motorized boat launch, a half-mile trail, and significantly-enhanc

WHAT:           City of Richmond Inaugural RISE! Achievement Awards WHO:             Mayor Dwight C. Jones                         Chief Administrative Officer Byron Marshall City of Richmond Employee RISE! Achievement Award Recipients WHERE:        John Marshall Hotel, Virginia Ballroom                         101 North 5th Street                         Richmond, VA 23219 WHEN:          Monday, October 7, 2013 at 3 p.m. BACKGROUND: The purpose of the City of Richmond Employee Recognition Program (City Administrative Regulation 7.8) is to provide a framework for regularly demonstrating general appreciation of City employees and for rewarding exemplary service and commitment to the success of the organization. The RISE! program is a structured and multi-level citywide program that celebrates the most outstanding contributions of City employees in the following six award categories: ·         Community Service ·         Exceptional Customer Ser