Ladies & Gentlemen, we’re officially live and open for business!

No online sources yet, but NBC 12 is reporting a large overnight apartment fire at The Park at Forest Hill. No injuries apparently, but no word on extent of damage.

The folks at Urban Richmond and VCU’s Commonwealth Times let us know that our own Crossroads Coffee & Ice Cream is taking over the World Cup Coffee space on Morris Street, near VCU. Here’s hoping they hang tough against the Big Green Monster.

On the other end of the beverage spectrum, Bellevue’s favorite Beer & Wine shop, Once Upon A Vine, is soon to open a 2nd store in the Shops At Stratford Hills, in the vicinity of Rock Falls Tavern. The Bellevue store’s selection has been known to attract beer fans from out state and the summer movie nights they host have been a big hit with neighborhood residents. Their expansion to Stratford Hills will be a very welcome addition!

A Plan of Development was submitted to the city seeking to tear down the vacant McCrory Dollar at Forest Hill and Westover Hills Blvd and build 12 small commercial/retail spaces with residential on the 2nd floor.

Ryan @ Richmond City Watch posted preliminary renderings and added that the city is waiting on a resubmittal of plans from the developer.

I’m under the impression that some of the neighborhood groups may have seen/heard this already, but it’s new (within the last 3 weeks or so) to me. I’ll be curious to see how this develops (no pun intended).

Gina from the Patrick Henry School Initiative wants to get the word out about their effort to establish a charter school in the Patrick Henry (aka Norrell) Elementary building. Their Mission, per their website:

Our mission is to provide a K-5 community-based school with meaningful involvement by parents and community. The school endeavors to provide our diverse socio-economic neighborhood community a traditional, academically-rigorous curriculum with high standards, focusing on the sciences and arts. Students will achieve academic excellence, develop personal values, foster an appreciation for the arts, and internalize scientific core understandings necessary to become effective citizens in an evolving natural and technological world. The school’s focus on community will include mandatory parental involvement, interactive experiences with the natural learning environment of Forest Hill Park, and extensive partnering with the local science and art museums and centers. The school seeks to provide a traditional neighborhood community atmosphere within the larger city limits. Patrick Henry Charter School will foster an environment where students, parents, staff, and the community are necessary partners in the educational process and achievement of all children.

To support their efforts, the group is having a yard sale @ the school this Saturday, 8 AM.

For more information, visit their website or take a look at their talking points (Flash Player required to view).

Your favorite neighborhood foodies, Seven Hills Market, are having a wine tasting tomorrow evening, 4:30-7:00.
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Time to get rid of all that crap you’ve got sitting around.

The City of Richmond will host a Household Hazardous Waste and Electronics Collection Event on Saturday, April 21 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Mayor’s Walk and Roll and Earth Day Event. The drop-off site will be located at the 4th and Hull Streets parking lot. City of Richmond residents are encouraged to bring their used or unwanted electronics and household hazardous waste items.

Richmond residents as well as those from other localities in the Central Virginia Waste Management Authority region are welcome to bring their unwanted electronics. There is no charge for most items, such as CPUs, printers, keyboards, speakers, wires, cables, telephones, and stereos. Recycling computer monitors costs and televisions are $5 each. Wood-encased console televisions cost $10 each.

For more information, citizens can visit www.richmondgov.com

J’s Notes took a closer look into the whole “tattoo shop” legislation proposed by our own Kathy Graziano.

The Times-Dispatch is reporting some conflicting information on an overnight shooting. According to their article, “[p]olice responded to a shooting call in the city’s East End at 25 E. 34th St.” Of course, E. 34th Street is in the vicinity of Midlothian Turnpike, not the East End (and I don’t believe there’s a 0 block of North or South 34th up on The Hill). No other media outlets have picked this up yet, as far as I can find, but more as it develops.

…you’re (probably) not imagining things. From the Dept. of Parks, Recreation & Community Facilities:

From 18 April to 29 April (and it will only happen once or twice during this period) the USMC is conducting Urban Assault Exercises in the Richmond area…

One of the locations for a helicopter “touch and go” for about 15 seconds using the parking lot at Forest Hill Park after the park gates are closed for the evening but before 10 PM.

This is not an exercise where Marines will be running throughout the Park at night, but rather an aviation exercise.

Thanks to all who mailed in the tip.

Looks like local tattoo fans are able to breathe easier.

Tennis courts at the Westover Community Center now have push-button lighting, which should lead to greater energy savings.
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A new website was launched this week to focus on vacant/neglected properties citywide. While not specific to the neighborhoods in our area, a quick look around VacantRichmond.com is pretty interesting. We all know and joke about the Jahnky House, but it’s just 1 of 126 vacant properties within 1.5 miles of the Forest Hill/Westover Hills intersection (which is a far higher number than I would have suspected).

So congrats to the Vacant Richmond folks!
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I started a “Hills & Heights”-specific Flickr group tonight. Please feel free to add your contributions to the pool!

…with the mayor have been announced. The 4th District meeting will be May 15, 7PM, at St. Luke Lutheran Church. He’s also doing 2 meetings for 5th, 8th & 9th Districts at the Southside Community Center (4100 Hull St) on May 2nd and 10th, if those are more appropriate or convenient. I’m planning to go to the 4th District meet, but if anyone cares to report on the other southside events, we’d love to hear about it.

Not exactly in our neighborhood(s), but close enough (and since there’s no Manchester People’s News yet)…

The fine folks at Legend Brewing are holding the first Spring Boch festival tomorrow afternoon. The festivities will a multi-vendor sausage cook-off, music, a German car-and-bike show and, of course, lots of Legend Beer (your humble author recommends the Hop Fest Ale, if it’s being poured).

Steve passed along the photos of a neighborhood rap video shoot last week. I’ve not had the chance to do anything with them, but he took care of that for us. Frankly, I’m envious. We’ve had a SWAT team in our backyard and countless emergency vehicles clogging up our street, but never a hip-hop shoot.

I guess that’s what dreams are for.

Several things coming up this week. Full list on the calendar, but some highlights include:

• Patrick Henry Initiative Meeting, 8:30 Tuesday
• Forest Hill Neighborhood Association Meeting, 7:00 Wednesday
• Mayor’s Town Hall Meeting, 5th & 9th Districts, 7:00 Wednesday

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