RVA’s Got Issues

New members may be bringing a fresh approach to the Richmond City Council, one that sees a role for City Council in challenging the Mayor – not for drama’s sake, but to hold him, and city administrators, accountable to residents. Sarah Abubaker is one of these newly elected Council members calling for change. Can she help make it happen?

Danny Avula is the Mayor of Richmond. He just finished his first 100 days, and he's finding out what it’s like to try to follow through on campaign promises. One lesson he’s probably learning the hard way: Changing city government can’t happen overnight. It’s like turning an oil tanker – it happens slowly, and you need a lot of room.

There’s a Corrections crisis in Virginia! State prisons and juvenile facilities are facing claims of unsafe conditions for both staff and the incarcerated, and lawmakers are starting to push back. Rich talks to VPM news reporter Keyris Manzanares and the Virginia Mercury’s Charlotte Rene Woods to find out what they've uncovered.

It seems like every day brings new national news stories about deportations, ICE raids, or student visas being revoked. This is fueling fear not just in the immigrant community, but even among people here in the country legally. Rich talks to an advocate who serves RVA's Latino community, as well as an attorney who represents Virginia immigrants. How is this immigration crackdown affecting people...

The Trump Administration is taking on higher ed, and Virginia universities are on notice. VCU hasn’t been singled out, but IS facing program cuts, and is already making changes to try to prevent more. Who can our local institutions turn to for help? Rich talks with Virginia Congressman Rob Wittman about Trump’s challenges – and threats -- to higher education, and what the Congressman has been doin...

Henrico County: what's it all about, where is it going, and how is it going to shape the future of RVA? Henrico County Manager John Vithoulkas joins Rich to answer questions from our listener voicemail line. They talk about everything from federal funding cuts to the Green City development to Henrico’s response to the Richmond water crisis. With all of the instability in Washington, can Henrico st...

It's time to decide the People’s Budget of Richmond! Richmond's government has set aside $3M of YOUR money – and now YOU get to decide what to do with it. This participatory budget program has reached the voting stage, and now anyone who lives, works, or goes to school in the city – age 14 and up! – can vote on projects in their council district. Rich sits down with City Council staffer Leidiana D...

Rich talks to two local sports czars about the business of sports tourism, a billion-dollar industry that’s become vital to the economic health of the entire region. From youth to colleges to the pros, RVA is building a sports infrastructure that’s meant to help both residents and visitors score big. Plus: STAND UP FOR RICHMOND! We’ll talk to members of the River City Red Army about their support...

What is nuclear fusion, and why is it coming to Chesterfield County? Virginia's energy needs are growing exponentially, and we are going to need every kilowatt we can get if we don’t want our energy bills to grow with them. Adam Sledd of the Dominion Energy Innovation Center returns to the pod to talk with Rich about nuclear fusion, data centers, and the future of RVA’s energy – and energy bills....

Public education is facing huge challenges across the country, as the Trump administration takes steps to possibly abolish the federal Department of Education. Add to that demands for immigration enforcement and cuts to Diversity programs, mix in some longstanding structural and staffing concerns, and our local school systems may be facing more challenges than ever. Rich sits down with Richmond Pu...

Evictions seem like a simple issue. Renters should pay their rent. When they don't, they need to leave. But the realities of renting and leaving are much more complicated than that. Today, Rich talks with a housing expert to learn why eviction court is rarely a winning prospect for renters. The city's plan? Pair tenants facing eviction with a lawyer for free. Later we talk with a lawyer who alread...

For almost a century, local government has provided “public housing” for our most vulnerable residents. But here in RVA, there’s a plan to replace our public housing communities with something completely different. On this episode, Rich sits down with Steven Nesmith, the CEO of the Richmond Redevelopment and Housing Authority. He is spearheading this bold new plan, and a "tough love" approach, tha...

What's 45 days long, based in Richmond, and shapes the future of the state of Virginia? On this episode, Rich unpacks this year's General Assembly with veteran state politics reporter Michael Pope. A big question EVERYONE is wrestling with is how to prepare for the changes coming out of Washington. Separately, Democrats are headed towards yet another veto showdown with Gov. Glenn Youngkin. But the...

Hamilton Glass is seen by many as the founding father of Richmond's mural movement. He instigated a huge public mural project featured in the PBS Doc called Mending Walls. The project brought 30 artists from different cultural backgrounds together to collaborate on 16 murals in Richmond. The slogan for the effort was "we need to talk" about race and the artists' formative experiences. On the proje...

It's no secret: Richmond's got some baggage. Case in point, the #GreatRichmondWaterCrisis. Less than a week into new city leadership, hospitals ran low on water and people boiled snow to flush their toilets. Was it a fluke, or is this the tip of the iceberg when it comes to unresolved issues in city government? Thad Williamson is the coauthor of a new book about the history of Richmond city govern...

It's the holidays! The fire is delightful, chestnuts are roasting, people are wassailing (whatever that is). But for some folks, this is a time of year that hits hard, where the pain of addiction, of isolation, or even just loneliness, can make it much less joyful. So what can we do to close the loneliness gap in RVA?

Redlining has been illegal for more than half a century. But Black homeowners today are still feeling its impact through appraisals that undervalue their homes. Rich unpacks recent findings on appraisal bias in Richmond with two housing experts, as well as their undercover method for addressing housing discrimination today. If you live in Henrico, chances are you pay bills! But have you ever wonde...

A flood of renewable energy projects are hitting the RVA region. What does it mean for households in the region? And is it enough to satiate our soaring energy demands? A listener asks Rich: am I being gaslit by these door knockers? After a canvasser says a "no soliciting sign" doesn't apply to them, one listener is stumped about how to tell people to bug-off (although Rich hopes you don't do this...

In his very first sit-down interview since the election, mayor-elect Danny Avula joins Rich to discuss what Richmonders can expect from his administration. What are his top priorities and how will he start to tackle them? How will he bring more people into the political process? And how will he advocate for the city on both the State and Federal level? 

Need some 11th hour candidate info for election day? We have you covered! Check out any of our recent episodes on the mayoral contest, what it takes to be on city council, a plan to shake up the school board race and much, much more. We'll be next week with a new episode. Until then, see you at the polls!

Our series "Who's Got Your Vote?" takes you inside Richmond's race for mayor. Rich talks with each candidate to bring you closer to the issues and faces that want to shape the future of Richmond. For our final week of our series, Rich talks with Andreas Addison, the current Richmond City Council representative for the first district. Hear how his tutelage under Governor Wilder and Mayor Dwight Jon...

Our series "Who's Got Your Vote?" takes you inside Richmond's race for mayor. Rich talks with each candidate to bring you closer to the issues and faces that want to shape the future of Richmond. So, who's got your vote? This week Rich talks with Danny Avula, a pediatrician who was also recently the state commissioner for the the Virginia Department of Social Services. He says the connections he f...

Our series "Who's Got Your Vote?" takes you inside Richmond's race for mayor. Rich talks with each candidate to bring you closer to the issues and faces that want to shape the future of Richmond. So, who's got your vote? This week Rich talks with Michelle Mosby, Richmond City Council's first Black female president. She says she won't need training wheels to tackle the mayor's job. She also tells u...

Our series "Who's Got Your Vote?" takes you inside Richmond's race for mayor. Rich talks with each candidate to bring you closer to the issues and faces that want to shape the future of Richmond. So, who's got your vote? This week Rich talks with Maurice Neblett, an entrepreneur and community leader in the city. Hear what being "a true son of Richmond" means to him, how he says a non-political bac...

Our series "Who's Got Your Vote?" takes you inside Richmond's race for mayor. Rich talks with each candidate to bring you closer to the issues and faces that want to shape the future of Richmond. So, who's got your vote? We kick off with Harrison Roday, a leader in the nonprofit and industrial manufacturing space. He says his "get things done" attitude, experience in politics under Senator Tim Kai...