Diamond Area / Hermitage Rd Corridor / Ownby District

[Downtowner]

4 hours ago, I miss RVA said:

AHHH - that's right. A.H. Robins. Richfood was up along that stretch of I-95 though not far from them too, wasn't it?

Were not the old Richmond Robins of the AHL (early-mid 1970s) named - in part - because of sponsorship by the pharmaceutical?

Yes my neighbor worked for ah robins as well as Wyeth who bought ah robins. I worked at their manufacturing plant over on darbytown road for a year when it became fareva. My neighbor worked for Wyeth and ah robins for a long time and retired from there. He was the vp of global operations. Also yes rich food had a dairy processing plant off of 95 around that area. They also had a giant food distribution center off route 301 in Hanover on richfood road which is now SuperValu. Also carter cat has a huge place down there for heavy machinery. My dad owned a landscape supply business on richfood road and then sold it when I was going into high school in 2003 because my mom got in a really bad car accident and handled the finances and sadly no longer could handle it after the wreck. There’s alot of former Richmond companies here that have have her. Bought several times. Ah robbins  has been about 4 different things after selling fro. Wyeth to Pfizer to now fareva. 

[Icetera]

12 hours ago, Downtowner said:

Yes my neighbor worked for ah robins as well as Wyeth who bought ah robins. I worked at their manufacturing plant over on darbytown road for a year when it became fareva. My neighbor worked for Wyeth and ah robins for a long time and retired from there. He was the vp of global operations. Also yes rich food had a dairy processing plant off of 95 around that area. They also had a giant food distribution center off route 301 in Hanover on richfood road which is now SuperValu. Also carter cat has a huge place down there for heavy machinery. My dad owned a landscape supply business on richfood road and then sold it when I was going into high school in 2003 because my mom got in a really bad car accident and handled the finances and sadly no longer could handle it after the wreck. There’s alot of former Richmond companies here that have have her. Bought several times. Ah robbins  has been about 4 different things after selling fro. Wyeth to Pfizer to now fareva. 

Ah, Wyeth was the company I was trying to recall until stumbling across A.H. Robins!

[whw53]

Thalhimer is building in a customer base for their BLVD centerpiece Raising Cane's. -  A new POD was filed last week for their recent purchase at 1801 Ellen Rd directly adjacent to that upcoming Scott's Walk development. 

The filing comment shows indicates a 7-story mixed use development with 148 dwellings and 12,000 sf of medical office and 3000 sf of lobby/commercial and 168 parking spaces. 

It will be make sense to have the medical space so close. 

https://energov.richmondgov.com/EnerGov_Prod/SelfService/richmondvaprod#/plan/998fc13f-dfeb-4b8b-a749-1116613aca6f?tab=contacts

 

 

[Brent114]

When I went to Siewers earlier today they were putting up flashy renderings at the Novel site. 

[eandslee]

29 minutes ago, whw53 said:

Thalhimer is building in a customer base for their BLVD centerpiece Raising Cane's. -  A new POD was filed last week for their recent purchase at 1801 Ellen Rd directly adjacent to that upcoming Scott's Walk development. 

The filing comment shows indicates a 7-story mixed use development with 148 dwellings and 12,000 sf of medical office and 3000 sf of lobby/commercial and 168 parking spaces. 

It will be make sense to have the medical space so close. 

https://energov.richmondgov.com/EnerGov_Prod/SelfService/richmondvaprod#/plan/998fc13f-dfeb-4b8b-a749-1116613aca6f?tab=contacts

 

 

Wow!  This sounds like a cool project!  Wish there were renderings though.  Thanks for finding and posting this - good news!

[I miss RVA]

2 hours ago, whw53 said:

Thalhimer is building in a customer base for their BLVD centerpiece Raising Cane's. -  A new POD was filed last week for their recent purchase at 1801 Ellen Rd directly adjacent to that upcoming Scott's Walk development. 

The filing comment shows indicates a 7-story mixed use development with 148 dwellings and 12,000 sf of medical office and 3000 sf of lobby/commercial and 168 parking spaces. 

It will be make sense to have the medical space so close. 

https://energov.richmondgov.com/EnerGov_Prod/SelfService/richmondvaprod#/plan/998fc13f-dfeb-4b8b-a749-1116613aca6f?tab=contacts

 

 

Wow - a VERY pleasant surprise! And Thalhimer is quarterbacking this one. Nice!

Will look forward to some renderings - what's the over/under RBS will have this by the end of this week or the first of next week?

[I miss RVA]

VCU has purchased the former VAABC property across Hermitage Road from the Diamond District for their planned athletics village. Ugh... idk why I view this as a colossal waste of space, even through I know the school needs these facilities.

From Richmond BizSense:

https://richmondbizsense.com/2022/06/14/vcu-buys-abc-site-across-from-the-diamond-for-16m/

 

[whw53]

9 hours ago, I miss RVA said:

idk why I view this as a colossal waste of space, even through I know the school needs these facilities.

 because you know deep down they don't need these facilities - exhibit 24652 in higher ed glut. 

[DowntownCoruscant]

This morning’s article  on the ballpark process feels like the city floating a trial balloon for the ballpark opening mid-season 2025 or something.

[Urbs42]

23 minutes ago, DowntownCoruscant said:

This morning’s article  on the ballpark process feels like the city floating a trial balloon for the ballpark opening mid-season 2025 or something.

There's no time for ridiculous hold-ups by the city, but this is doable. 

I don't understand why Stoney hasn't tried to step out front and be the face of this - selling it as his ability to repurpose stagnant city land and push the ballparks development through city bureaucracy under a tight timeline. 

[Hike]

40 minutes ago, DowntownCoruscant said:

This morning’s article  on the ballpark process feels like the city floating a trial balloon for the ballpark opening mid-season 2025 or something.

One item not touched on is when projects are fast, often times the design and details are also fast, cheap and similar, allowing it to go up quickly.  Not looking for an architectural marvel here. Between this hurry up schedule and the VCU athletic village, probably, generic here we come. Hopefully I’m wrong and with other facilities to be designed and built surrounding these in the future, there’s hope it all works as a grouping.

Edited June 17, 2022 by Hike

[eandslee]

1 hour ago, Urbs42 said:

I don't understand why Stoney hasn't tried to step out front and be the face of this - selling it as his ability to repurpose stagnant city land and push the ballparks development through city bureaucracy under a tight timeline. 

Maybe he doesn’t have the confidence in his own City Hall to be the face of this project.  If this project doesn’t make the tight timeline, it would not be a good look for him. Yikes!

I saw this article as a “greasing of the skids” to ensure there are no snags at City Hall and for them to get ready for the pitch.  See what I did there?!

[DowntownCoruscant]

I’m probably reading too much into this, but it seems the focus has been on professionalism here. That is, let the subject matter experts get out on this and be the face of it. I’m shocked at how many people I know, who don’t know each other, and who’ve all said they’ve interacted with Maritza Pechin and say she’s amazing. Gotta be at least six. And that’s shocking to me because I figure I don’t know anybody!

[blopp1234]

https://richmondbizsense.com/2022/06/21/thalhimer-plans-seven-story-apartment-project-across-from-the-diamond/
 

Renderings have appeared for Thalheimers new apartment building proposed behind Scott’s Walk. Good infill project but it makes Scott’s Walk even more painful to look at knowing they could have put something like this in its place but chose a low density retail only development for that site.

[Urbs42]

2 hours ago, blopp1234 said:

https://richmondbizsense.com/2022/06/21/thalhimer-plans-seven-story-apartment-project-across-from-the-diamond/
 

Renderings have appeared for Thalheimers new apartment building proposed behind Scott’s Walk. Good infill project but it makes Scott’s Walk even more painful to look at knowing they could have put something like this in its place but chose a low density retail only development for that site.

Odd there's no mention of when either project is planned to break ground.  

[DowntownCoruscant]

3 hours ago, blopp1234 said:

https://richmondbizsense.com/2022/06/21/thalhimer-plans-seven-story-apartment-project-across-from-the-diamond/
 

Renderings have appeared for Thalheimers new apartment building proposed behind Scott’s Walk. Good infill project but it makes Scott’s Walk even more painful to look at knowing they could have put something like this in its place but chose a low density retail only development for that site.

Scott’s Walk has to be RVA’s crappiest (planned) development over the last decade, right? That thing stinks.

[ancientcarpenter]

1 hour ago, DowntownCoruscant said:

Scott’s Walk has to be RVA’s crappiest (planned) development over the last decade, right? That thing stinks.

Hopefully the city takes this into account when selecting developers for Diamond District...as article says Thalhimer is one of three on contest?

How they think the city is going to be happy to see a low density strip mall on Ashe Blvd next to a city-planned mini-city is beyond me. 

Edited June 21, 2022 by ancientcarpenter

[I miss RVA]

7 hours ago, blopp1234 said:

https://richmondbizsense.com/2022/06/21/thalhimer-plans-seven-story-apartment-project-across-from-the-diamond/
 

Renderings have appeared for Thalheimers new apartment building proposed behind Scott’s Walk. Good infill project but it makes Scott’s Walk even more painful to look at knowing they could have put something like this in its place but chose a low density retail only development for that site.

It's a gorgeous design, too - really sweet looking building. Fully agree with you, @blopp1234that it's a sin and a shame that such an atrocious, car-centric, suburban, mini-strip mall gets plunked down on Arthur Ashe Blvd right across the street from the Diamond District while this beautiful mixed-use residential building gets shuffled off behind Scott's Walk.

 

Edited June 21, 2022 by I miss RVA

[wrldcoupe4]

How this one turns out will really depend on what it is skinned in.

[Jordon]

I was snooping around google images and came across what seems like what that area would look like when built out. (Don’t remember  the city) But imo it doesn’t really look that bad.

Edited June 21, 2022 by Jordon

[I miss RVA]

EDITED/UPDATED to include Level 2, across the Acca Bridge from the northern "Greater Scott's" - simply because these three apartment developments - when taken together - already will make a tremendous statement in the coming years on Arthur Ashe Boulevard.

When you consider what is/will be "between" these two wonderful developments (Novel Scott's Addition and whatever the new building planned for  Ellen Road) in "Greater Scott's" (hard to call the swath west of Arthur Ashe Boulevard "Diamond District" since it has been so well defined as everything EAST of A.A. Blvd) - it's just stunning to me that we can see two amazing buildings with so much... ugh... "stuff"... (Scott's Walk... the Greyhound bus station...) between them.

In a "Greater Scott's sandwich" (so to speak), talk about the bread being tastier than the filling.

 

 

Edited June 22, 2022 by I miss RVA

[Virginian11]

Todays the day the final proposals from the 3 finalists are due, correct?  

[Icetera]

4 hours ago, Virginian11 said:

Todays the day the final proposals from the 3 finalists are due, correct?  

That is correct.  Now to wonder how long until the final development team is chosen.

[DowntownCoruscant]

Richmond BizSense article

It says the selection team will announce the winning bid next month for presentation to the city council in September.

[DowntownCoruscant]

Whoops, the article actually says it would go to council in “the fall.” I guess I read September into that but it could mean October or November, I suppose.