Richmond's Suburban Developments

[I miss RVA]

22 minutes ago, Brent114 said:

Does anyone know if Libbie Mill is expanding to the west?  I drove behind it and the houses that dotted the area between Libbie Road and Libbie Mill are all abandoned and stripped.  There are two dozen or so over 3-4 blocks.  I’d love to see the new development move west.  I think Libbie Mill is pretty great for this kind of development but it can be much better if it’s actually integrated into the existing street grid. 

Holy wow - ALL of those houses are abandoned now? In this whole stretch on the west of what's currently Libbie Mill proper -- meaning, the block from Spencer to Libbie Ave and from Libbie Mill all the way north to Bethlehem Road? ALL of those houses are empty and ready for demo?

 

[Brent114]

Yep.  All stripped of anything useful and fenced off.  Looks like Henrico FD is fire training there this week too. 

[I miss RVA]

2 minutes ago, Brent114 said:

Yep.  All stripped of anything useful and fenced off.  Looks like Henrico FD is fire training there this week too. 

Wow!! I'm trying to remember if/when there's ever been a legacy single-family residential neighborhood in Richmond that has been bought up en masse and converted to a highly urbanized neighborhood in this fashion. Is this a first for RVA? It happens in lots of other old "legacy" cities/suburbs (I would imagine it's happened in metro LA quite frequently where residential neighborhoods developed in the '30s '40s, '50s, etc., have been bought, cleared, fully redeveloped. I just can't say I recall this happening in Richmond. If this is the first 'real' example of this, then we're witnessing some pretty neat history!

[I miss RVA]

Here's another question for everyone to chew on: given all of the development going on to the south and east of Libbie Mill in Westwood, what are the chances that sufficient development takes place such that Westwood expands enough to physically "connect" with Libbie Mill over the next 10-15 years? (Or sooner, even!)

[I miss RVA]

Looks like the retailing portion of the new massive Cosby Village development in Moseley -- some 4 1/2 miles west of the 288 beltway -- is set to get underway. Construction of the residential portion (upwards of 775 multi-family units including apartments and townhomes) is underway. Now the retailing piece, fronting Hull Street Road.

From today's Richmond BizSense:

https://richmondbizsense.com/2022/08/24/commercial-section-of-cosby-village-lines-up-first-tenants/

 

[HRVA]

Here’s another site plan showing a few of the unnamed tenants from the article:

[I miss RVA]

2 minutes ago, HRVA said:

Here’s another site plan showing a few of the unnamed tenants from the article:

Wow - they're filling out their roster pretty quickly. Nice to see that!

[eandslee]

Looks like "The Lake" project in Chesterfield is more likely to be built fully and hopefully, is a success following last night's approval from Chesterfield for some tax breaks.  More details here:

https://www.nbc12.com/2022/08/25/lake-project-moves-forward-chesterfield/

This project should be a great tourist draw for folks to come to Richmond (exactly what Richmond needs).  It will have the only surf park of its kind on the East Coast and it will be the world's largest!

[blopp1234]

Drove by the site yesterday and tree clearing is well underway. They have finished the entrance road to the site and most of the land has been cleared. Wouldn’t be surprised to see buildings begin going up this spring.

[I miss RVA]

3 hours ago, eandslee said:

It will have the only surf park of its kind on the East Coast and it will be the world's largest!

THIS is a real eye-catcher. For RVA to have the only surf park of it's kind on the entire East Coast - and for said surf park to be the largest in the world -- BIG feather in the cap for metro RVA.

NOW - we have to work toward having the world's LARGEST LEGO museum right here in River City! Once that factory is built - gotta get us a HUGE LEGOLand museum here - (and then, OF COURSE... the U.S. corporate HQ )

[skinsfan]

Winding Brook in Ashland was supposed to get a surf park as well but it fell through year’s ago. Good news is that they’re building a  Hobby Lobby there though. 

[I miss RVA]

More reporting on "The Lake" project, this time from Richmond BizSense. VERY glad to see this one moving forward.

https://richmondbizsense.com/2022/08/26/chesterfield-approves-grant-agreement-for-323m-surf-pool-anchored-development/

[I miss RVA]

Some traditional suburban (single-family/detached) infill is planned near Wyndham right at the Henrico/Goochland county line. This same developer is also re-planning a larger residential project directly across the border (and thus adjacent to this development) in Goochland.

From today's Richmond BizSense:

https://richmondbizsense.com/2022/08/31/developer-plans-homes-near-wyndham-as-it-reworks-adjacent-goochland-project/ 

[I miss RVA]

Here's another win for the metro RVA region: Carvana's new $25 million, 191,000 sq ft distribution facility is up and running in southern Chesterfield. It's Carvana's 18th such facility in the country and - check this - the FIRST OF ITS KIND IN THE COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA! 

BIG BIG win for metro Richmond!!

https://richmondbizsense.com/2022/09/01/carvana-begins-operations-at-25m-chesterfield-distribution-center/

 

[Child2021]

I'm starting to see some movement in Spring Rock Green....When I drove past this afternoon I saw and noted there were cone trucks, some little earthmovers, and a container for anyone's guess.  I also wanted to note that Chesterfield is growing so fast with all the new developments that were going on within the county, (particularly the rt. 10 corridor) makes me wonder if the next census will be short of about 5,0000 or even more in 2030. 

[Wahoo 07]

https://richmondbizsense.com/2022/09/08/salomonsky-planning-residential-tower-at-gaskins-and-patterson/

This is an interesting development.  If it comes to pass, it will be the tallest building for quite a long way and mark a fundamental break with existing development in the area.  I expect a lot of local resistance.  

[Flood Zone]

“It’s out of character for the area! If enough of us complain, it won’t get approved!”

”Yeah, but it was approved 22 years ago.”

”Well, …. that was so long ago!”

[eandslee]

Here’s an update on a proposed development at the corner of Midlothian and Huguenot.  Looks like an upscale grocery store with some dense residential (5 stories):

https://www.wric.com/news/local-news/chesterfield-county/could-whole-foods-be-coming-to-midlothian-turnpike/

[blopp1234]

32 minutes ago, eandslee said:

Here’s an update on a proposed development at the corner of Midlothian and Huguenot.  Looks like an upscale grocery store with some dense residential (5 stories):

https://www.wric.com/news/local-news/chesterfield-county/could-whole-foods-be-coming-to-midlothian-turnpike/

Wow I hadn’t even heard about this! Good find!

[Flood Zone]

On 8/23/2022 at 9:03 PM, Brent114 said:

Does anyone know if Libbie Mill is expanding to the west?  I drove behind it and the houses that dotted the area between Libbie Road and Libbie Mill are all abandoned and stripped.  There are two dozen or so over 3-4 blocks.  I’d love to see the new development move west.  I think Libbie Mill is pretty great for this kind of development but it can be much better if it’s actually integrated into the existing street grid. 

I cannot reveal my source, but I have heard the answer is yes. although there are still a couple of holdouts among those abandoned houses.

[wrldcoupe4]

this looks like an Amazon Fresh to me, not a Whole Foods.

[I miss RVA]

2 hours ago, Wahoo 07 said:

https://richmondbizsense.com/2022/09/08/salomonsky-planning-residential-tower-at-gaskins-and-patterson/

This is an interesting development.  If it comes to pass, it will be the tallest building for quite a long way and mark a fundamental break with existing development in the area.  I expect a lot of local resistance.  

Yeah - there will be pushback. I hope it gets built, though. It would definitely set a precedent in the western part of the metro for height and density and that is a good thing. It's time for this metro area to finally start to grow up some. I saw the comment in RBS about it being approved 22 years ago - Really? Or am I missing something? 

 

Edited September 8, 2022 by I miss RVA

[wrldcoupe4]

Maybe - to the west is apartments. Grayson Hill residents will probably complain.

[I miss RVA]

27 minutes ago, wrldcoupe4 said:

Maybe - to the west is apartments. Grayson Hill residents will probably complain.

Of COURSE they will.  But I reiterate what I said - it's time for this metro area to finally grow up.

[Brent114]

I’m loving that the counties are actually starting to pull their weight (IMO the lack of amenities/destinations in the counties is just about the biggest thing holding Richmond back at the moment). 
 

I wish that Richmond reporters would learn the world mid-rise.   10 floors isn’t a tower and I’m tired of getting my hopes dashed when I learn that “tower” doesn’t mean a sleek 30 floor condo on Patterson.