Richmond off-topic postings

[I miss RVA]

50 minutes ago, Downtowner said:

Vcu is A-10 champs in men’s basketball onto March madness. Let’s go vcu!!! Let’s go!!!

YESSSSSSSSS!!!!

RAMS MAKE THE DANCE!!! Great second-half push to a 12-point victory.

Edited March 12, 2023 by I miss RVA

[Hike]

8 minutes ago, I miss RVA said:

YESSSSSSSSS!!!!

RAMS MAKE THE DANCE!!! Great second-half push to a 12-point victory.

Really dislike the the NET rankings. It’s stacked to benefit the P5. There’s no way this team should have had the pressure to win to get in. The big conferences are ranked early,  before anything is determined, won’t play teams like VCU, then in league play, they just play each other, many are seeded,  so a win gets the Q1 win etc. and with that they qualify. It’s maybe 1 chance to get a Q1 victory for teams like VCU,  it’s such a bad system for non P5 schools, hope it gets fixed somehow.  I’m happy to see them get in, feels like the old CAA days, win to get in. 

[I miss RVA]

6 minutes ago, Hike said:

Really dislike the the NET rankings. It’s stacked to benefit the P5. There’s no way this team should have had the pressure to win to get in. The big conferences are ranked early,  before anything is determined, won’t play teams like VCU, then in league play, they just play each other, many are seeded,  so a win gets the Q1 win etc. and with that they qualify. It’s maybe 1 chance to get a Q1 victory for teams like VCU,  it’s such a bad system for non P5 schools, hope it gets fixed somehow.  I’m happy to see them get in, feels like the old CAA days, win to get in. 

My question is: HOW exactly has the A-10 fallen so much in terms of national prominence? It wasn't THAT long ago that the conference put six teams into the tourney. Now it's a win-to-get-in? And MAYBE - MAYBE all of ONE at-large bit? What happened?

[Hike]

11 minutes ago, I miss RVA said:

My question is: HOW exactly has the A-10 fallen so much in terms of national prominence? It wasn't THAT long ago that the conference put six teams into the tourney. Now it's a win-to-get-in? And MAYBE - MAYBE all of ONE at-large bit? What happened?

The conference is down this year, probably only 5 - 6 good teams. Then, as mentioned, no teams did well early in the season, no Q1 wins or very few, and with that, you get the potential for a one and done for the A10. My hope is Dayton still gets in some how and not a one bid league.

 It’s also in part due to the NIL, where schools with big donors can buy players, basically paid to do things like ads, benefits, etc. Big schools have $ and pay players to be there, it’s also the transfer portal, players leave a university. Schools aren’t building a team for 4 years anymore, it’s for 1 season now. 

Edited March 12, 2023 by Hike

[I miss RVA]

38 minutes ago, Hike said:

The conference is down this year, probably only 5 - 6 good teams. Then, as mentioned, no teams did well early in the season, no Q1 wins or very few, and with that, you get the potential for a one and done for the A10. My hope is Dayton still gets in some how and not a one bid league.

 It’s also in part due to the NIL, where schools with big donors can buy players, basically paid to do things like ads, benefits, etc. Big schools have $ and pay players to be there, it’s also the transfer portal, players leave a university. Schools aren’t building a team for 4 years anymore, it’s for 1 season now. 

Guess they don't call the big conferences the "Power Five" for nothing then.

[Flood Zone]

17 hours ago, I miss RVA said:

My question is: HOW exactly has the A-10 fallen so much in terms of national prominence? It wasn't THAT long ago that the conference put six teams into the tourney. Now it's a win-to-get-in? And MAYBE - MAYBE all of ONE at-large bit? What happened?

I'm going to suggest three answers: (1) the Big East reformation from a decade ago took out two of the stronger programs (Xavier and Butler, which many forget was a member for a very short time), and that's being felt to this day because the available Q1 or Q2 matchups have been reduced; (2) college basketball is cyclical (ask the ACC, which is "down" right now, at least relatively so); and (3) the two favorites, Dayton and St. Louis, underperformed (as did Richmond and Davidson, the latter of which is entering a rebuilding phase). Also, St. Bonaventure had to turn over its entire roster, and the newest member, Loyola-Chicago, just a few years off a Final Four, was dog-meat this season. Fordham looked superficially good thanks to a weak non-conference schedule, and they certainly hung in conference play, but any time Fordham gets a first-round bye in the A10 tourney is a cause to raise your eyebrows.

VCU was very good this year, a bit underrated nationally, but without really strong wins and a couple of stinging Q4 losses. Lunardi had them pegged as third-team-out had they lost to Dayton. (Had Dayton and St. Louis not underachieved during the nonconference slate, VCU probably would have been looking at a last-four-in scenario.)

This is clearly the weakest the A10 has been since around 1990, when UMass came to prominence and Temple ceased being the undisputed top dog, but there are some signs of an upswing. First, VCU and Dayton are established enough that they likely won't dip below fringe at-large/firm NIT status for a very long period of time. Neither is Xavier-level, but they're consistently good. I'd expect UMass to turn it around in the next year or two. Rhode Island pops up every few years. I'm not that optimistic about UR, but they have the infrastructure to win.

And then there's sort of the conference bellwether: George Washington (where I went). It's not a perfect correlation, but when they're good, the league tends to be very good as well. That's because it's a program in a large metro area attached to a school with a strong international presence. (Wing players from DC/Baltimore and international big men.) A rising tide lifts all boats. The -- well, not Colonials anymore for very long -- overachieved in year one under Caputo, a former assistant of Larranaga. I'd expect that they're on the upswing. 

Long-story short, the big conferences are now too big, and there's too much proliferation otherwise, for the A10 to approach 5 or 6 bids. But it's realistic to see it be a 2 or 3 bid league in the next few years.

Edited March 13, 2023 by Flood Zone

[Hike]

39 minutes ago, Flood Zone said:

I'm going to suggest three answers: (1) the Big East reformation from a decade ago took out two of the stronger programs (Xavier and Butler, which many forget was a member for a very short time), and that's being felt to this day because the available Q1 or Q2 matchups have been reduced; (2) college basketball is cyclical (ask the ACC, which is "down" right now, at least relatively so); and (3) the two favorites, Dayton and St. Louis, underperformed (as did Richmond and Davidson, the latter of which is entering a rebuilding phase). Also, St. Bonaventure had to turn over its entire roster, and the newest member, Loyola-Chicago, just a few years off a Final Four, was dog-meat this season. Fordham looked superficially good thanks to a weak non-conference schedule, and they certainly hung in conference play, but any time Fordham gets a first-round bye in the A10 tourney is a cause to raise your eyebrows.

VCU was very good this year, a bit underrated nationally, but without really strong wins and a couple of stinging Q4 losses. Lunardi had them pegged as third-team-out had they lost to Dayton. (Had Dayton and St. Louis not underachieved during the nonconference slate, VCU probably would have been looking at a last-four-in scenario.)

This is clearly the weakest the A10 has been since around 1990, when UMass came to prominence and Temple ceased being the undisputed top dog, but there are some signs of an upswing. First, VCU and Dayton are established enough that they likely won't dip below fringe at-large/firm NIT status for a very long period of time. Neither is Xavier-level, but they're consistently good. I'd expect UMass to turn it around in the next year or two. Rhode Island pops up every few years. I'm not that optimistic about UR, but they have the infrastructure to win.

And then there's sort of the conference bellwether: George Washington (where I went). It's not a perfect correlation, but when they're good, the league tends to be very good as well. That's because it's a program in a large metro area attached to a school with a strong international presence. (Wing players from DC/Baltimore and international big men.) A rising tide lifts all boats. The -- well, not Colonials anymore for very long -- overachieved in year one under Caputo, a former assistant of Larranaga. I'd expect that they're on the upswing. 

Long-story short, the big conferences are now too big, and there's too much proliferation otherwise, for the A10 to approach 5 or 6 bids. But it's realistic to see it be a 2 or 3 bid league in the next few years.

This

[RiverYuppy]

I'm hoping that VCU makes a good run this year.

I get a daily newsletter from Axios. Todays included a bracket for nicest building in RVA. Round one of voting can be found here.

Do you think any buildings are missing? What would be your first round? I think Sacred Heart Cathedral and The Mosque should both be on the list. The Jefferson would be another good one. 

Should we do our own bracket?

[eandslee]

44 minutes ago, RiverYuppy said:

I'm hoping that VCU makes a good run this year.

I get a daily newsletter from Axios. Todays included a bracket for nicest building in RVA. Round one of voting can be found here.

Do you think any buildings are missing? What would be your first round? I think Sacred Heart Cathedral and The Mosque should both be on the list. The Jefferson would be another good one. 

Should we do our own bracket?

I think we can do our own bracket for fun. It will get difficult when two different types of architecture “compete.”  Some may vote according to whichever architectural style they like best. Still, it would be fun during this slow time if you are able to generate something like this bracket we could easily do.

I’m never opposed to having a little fun!

Edited March 13, 2023 by eandslee

[I miss RVA]

2 hours ago, RiverYuppy said:

I'm hoping that VCU makes a good run this year.

I get a daily newsletter from Axios. Todays included a bracket for nicest building in RVA. Round one of voting can be found here.

Do you think any buildings are missing? What would be your first round? I think Sacred Heart Cathedral and The Mosque should both be on the list. The Jefferson would be another good one. 

Should we do our own bracket?

It's a pretty cool idea that the Axios folks came up with - though I'm hard pressed to understand putting the Capitol and Old City Hall together in an opening-round bracket. I see them as more something like semi-finalists or city champions. 

100% agreed that both the Mosque and the Cathedral should be on the list. RVA has enough iconic structures that we might need to boost this to a 32-building bracket.

From O&H - buildings like St. John's Church, Maggie Walker House, old Supreme Court building (original Federal Reserve bank at 9th and Franklin) should be added. Also: Early 20th Century - Mutual Building, the old (original) "VEPCO" Building (7th and Franklin), original MCV Hospital (12th and Broad); Mid-20th Century: Fidelity Building, Ross Building (whatever it's being called nowadays); Late 20th Century: Riverfront Plaza; 2000s-to present: Dominion Tower; on-going (not specific to any "era" - VMFA building.

Edited March 13, 2023 by I miss RVA

[Flood Zone]

Yeah, VMFA has to be in the bracket somewhere.

And, on the other end of the spectrum, we'd need a Toilet Bowl bracket. Monroe would definitely be a No. 1 seed there.

[I miss RVA]

1 hour ago, Flood Zone said:

Yeah, VMFA has to be in the bracket somewhere.

And, on the other end of the spectrum, we'd need a Toilet Bowl bracket. Monroe would definitely be a No. 1 seed there.

It might win the city championship, come to think of it.

But I DON'T WANT IT DEMO'D, DAMNIT!! Mind you, it's fugly as sin - but boys, that sucker is 449 feet tall. And that's in ACTUAL feet, NOT in CoStar feet. 

No clue what building would battle the Monroe Tower for the Toilet Bowl championship... some folks don't like the Dominion Tower. At times I'm impressed with it, and at times, I'm not.

Oh - wait - I DO know...

THE COLISEUM!!!

Edited March 13, 2023 by I miss RVA

[Icetera]

18 hours ago, I miss RVA said:

No clue what building would battle the Monroe Tower for the Toilet Bowl championship... some folks don't like the Dominion Tower. At times I'm impressed with it, and at times, I'm not.

Oh - wait - I DO know...

THE COLISEUM!!!

VCU Health's Main Hospital building get my vote:

[eandslee]

8 minutes ago, Icetera said:

VCU Health's Main Hospital building get my vote:

Yeah, that monstrosity is hideous!

[I miss RVA]

9 minutes ago, Icetera said:

VCU Health's Main Hospital building get my vote:

OH YEAH... definitely can't argue with that nomination.

[Flood Zone]

18 hours ago, I miss RVA said:

No clue what building would battle the Monroe Tower for the Toilet Bowl championship... some folks don't like the Dominion Tower. At times I'm impressed with it, and at times, I'm not.

Now this is a good point, and I can't believe I didn't think of it earlier. The Dominion tower is trash. Can't stand it. (Although Monroe is probably worse.)

[I miss RVA]

1 minute ago, Flood Zone said:

Now this is a good point, and I can't believe I didn't think of it earlier. The Dominion tower is trash. Can't stand it. (Although Monroe is probably worse.)

I think I'll like the Dominion tower more once the CoStar tower is built. The two buildings will actually play off each other (and with the Fed building as well) and create a really cool synergy of height and massing along that section of the riverfront. Could be wrong on this, but I honestly think the CoStar building (which is VERY handsome IMNSHO) will actually make the Dominion building look better.

Of the modern buildings, I'd put the CoStar tower as the #1 seed in the "best of" tournament.

[plain]

The Dominion tower probably would've looked a little better if they had built the 2nd one...

[Shakman]

I love Dominion Tower!  I'm a big fan of buildings with glass facades.

[I miss RVA]

Very interesting story in this morning's Axios Richmond citing a new report from RentCafe which places Richmond ranked 14th in the nation for the smallest average size (in terms of square footage per unit) of new apartments in the nation. RentCafe's survey of 114 cities measured the average unit size for apartments built in 2022. The size of new units in Richmond averaged 812 square feet, which is a five percent reduction in size over the past 10 years. (The study took into consideration all units developed between 2013 and 2022 as part of the basis for comparison.) RVA's unIts also check in 8.5% smaller than the 2022 nationwide average of 887 square feet, according to Axios citing the RentCafe report.

What's more, RVA's newest apartments are just 72 square feet larger than the newest units developed in Manhattan in the heart of New York City.

At the opposite end of the spectrum, Virginia Beach ranked 14th nationally among cities with the largest unit size for new apartments, with an average size of 1,006 square feet in 2022. An INTERESTING point of observation: the cities/localities with the largest apartment unit sizes were primarily in the south (Henderson, NV being the lone outlier in the top 15) and are either suburbs within larger metro areas or are growing cities that are developed in a largely suburban style - meaning, little to no dense urban core. Conversely, ALL of the cities in the top 15 of smallest average apartment sizes are either cities renown for having very high-density urban cores (and Richmond certainly qualifies) or are suburban cities such as Alexandria - which is also very densely developed. There's no surprise at all to see Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, Detroit, San Francisco, Washington, D.C., Seattle, Boston, Philly, Los Angeles, Minneapolis & St. Paul on the list.

(See graphics below)

You can check out the complete Axios story here: https://www.axios.com/newsletters/axios-richmond-ae192c47-5fcf-40ec-8219-feb6c9d7ab5b.html?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=newsletter_axioslocal_richmond&stream=top

You  can read the full RentCafe report here: https://www.rentcafe.com/blog/rental-market/market-snapshots/national-average-apartment-size/

 

Edited March 16, 2023 by I miss RVA

[Icetera]

1 hour ago, I miss RVA said:

What's more, RVA's newest apartments are just 72 square feet larger than the newest units developed in Manhattan in the heart of New York City.

At the opposite end of the spectrum, Virginia Beach ranked 14th nationally among cities with the largest unit size for new apartments, with an average size of 1,006 square feet in 2022. An INTERESTING point of observation: the cities/localities with the largest apartment unit sizes were primarily in the south (Henderson, NV being the lone outlier in the top 15) and are either suburbs within larger metro areas or are growing cities that are developed in a largely suburban style - meaning, little to no dense urban core. Conversely, ALL of the cities in the top 15 of smallest average apartment sizes are either cities renown for having very high-density urban cores (and Richmond certainly qualifies) or are suburban cities such as Alexandria - which is also very densely developed. There's no surprise at all to see Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, Detroit, San Francisco, Washington, D.C., Seattle, Boston, Philly, Los Angeles, Minneapolis & St. Paul on the list.

Yup, certainly nailed it there.  Dense cities will have smaller apartments while suburbs and counties designated as cities will have larger, due to more land availability.  I would be curious as to where Henrico fits in and how much the combined Richmond/Henrico would skew this data.

[I miss RVA]

23 minutes ago, Icetera said:

Yup, certainly nailed it there.  Dense cities will have smaller apartments while suburbs and counties designated as cities will have larger, due to more land availability.  I would be curious as to where Henrico fits in and how much the combined Richmond/Henrico would skew this data.

Good point. I'd also be curious to see how Henrico data might shake out - both now and particularly a few years down the road when many of the higher-density developments - such as the plethora in the pipeline in Westwood -- get built.

[I miss RVA]

On 3/13/2023 at 10:41 AM, RiverYuppy said:

I'm hoping that VCU makes a good run this year.

I get a daily newsletter from Axios. Todays included a bracket for nicest building in RVA. Round one of voting can be found here.

Do you think any buildings are missing? What would be your first round? I think Sacred Heart Cathedral and The Mosque should both be on the list. The Jefferson would be another good one. 

Should we do our own bracket?

SURVEY SAYS...

Axios Richmond this morning has revealed this year's RVA building champion. The iconic (and just downright bloody gorgeous) MAIN STREET STATION is the winner of the 2023 "Best Building in Richmond" tournament! It beat out Old City Hall in the finals by 22 points.

The Final Four were: Old City Hall, the Hotel John Marshall, Main Street Station and the (in-the-process-of-being demo'd!!) Southern States Silos.

The FULL BRACKET can be found below.

Edited March 17, 2023 by I miss RVA

[eandslee]

2 hours ago, I miss RVA said:

SURVEY SAYS...

Axios Richmond this morning has revealed this year's RVA building champion. The iconic (and just downright bloody gorgeous) MAIN STREET STATION is the winner of the 2023 "Best Building in Richmond" tournament! It beat out Old City Hall in the finals by 22 points.

The Final Four were: Old City Hall, the Hotel John Marshall, Main Street Station and the (in-the-process-of-being demo'd!!) Southern States Silos.

The FULL BRACKET can be found below.

The Silos?  Seriously?  People are just trying to hold on to that eyesore just because it’s about to be demolished. That’s crazy!

[blopp1234]

20 minutes ago, eandslee said:

The Silos?  Seriously?  People are just trying to hold on to that eyesore just because it’s about to be demolished. That’s crazy!

Unpopular opinion but I think the silos are better looking than the Monroe building by a country mile. Only thing Monroe building has going for it is that it’s tall and this is coming from someone who appreciates brutalist architecture.

 

I do think the silos should have lost to the federal reserve though. The fed is by far my favorite skyscraper along the riverfront and that won’t change even when the Costar building is built.