The VPM Daily Newscast contains all your Central Virginia news in just 5 to 10 minutes. Episodes are recorded the night before.
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Here’s a recap of the top stories on the morning of May 13, 2025:
Richmond City Council signs off on $3B FY26 budget
Reported by VPM News’ Dean Mirshahi
The Richmond City Council passed a spending plan for the next fiscal year, giving Mayor Danny Avula his first budget with a few changes. The $3 billion spending plan includes the 2026 fiscal year operating budget — which runs from July 1 through June 30, 2026 — and the capital improvement plan for long-term projects in FY26–FY30.
Monday night’s vote wasn’t unanimous; two freshman councilors who have been outspoken about their issues with the budget process voted against the proposal.
“My vote is a protest of process, not policy,” 4th District Councilor Sarah Abubaker said before voting “no” on the plan. (Kenya Gibson, of the 3rd District, was the other no vote.)
The FY26 budget includes money for 3.25% salary increases for city workers and a $9.6 million increase for Richmond Public Schools — $20 million less than what the school division requested. Avula’s plan will also lead to an average utility tax hike of $12.83 per month for city residents.
Several councilors voiced frustration with the process that left Avula’s proposal largely intact, fueling talks of changing how things are done — even from councilors who voted for the budget.
“Until you’re on this side of the desk and you really see it, it is hard to understand just how challenging it is to meet the unattainable need and the need that exists in our community and do that in a budget that’s already baked,” 5th District Councilor Stephanie Lynch said.
First homes sold through Henrico County’s affordable housing trust fund
Reported by VPM News’ Lyndon German
The first three homes have been purchased through Henrico County’s Affordable Housing Trust Fund, a program launched in July 2024 to reduce the cost of a home for qualifying first-time home buyers.
During the program’s inaugural year, Henrico invested $60 million using annual tax revenue generated from the county’s growing data center industry. The county is also offering developers incentives like fee waivers and expedited planning reviews to reach its goal of reducing the price of 150 new homes each year for buyers who make between 60% and 120% of the area median income (from $61,300 to $122,650 for a family of three).
Last summer, U.S. Sen. Mark Warner (D–Va.) met with county officials and suggested that the program could serve as a model for other communities.
“Housing is foundational,” said Eric Leabough, Henrico’s director of community revitalization. “It’s the single biggest wealth building opportunity that people have, but when people are paying excessive amounts for housing, then that means they're not able to pay for other things in their life that's equally as important. This program is meant to break that cycle.”
News you might have missed from around the commonwealth:
- Curran announces write-in bid for lieutenant governor (Richmond Times-Dispatch)*
- Charlottesville made a $100M commitment to affordable housing. It's not enough. (The Daily Progress)*
- Tiny homes could be Richmond’s newest strategy to fight homelessness (The Richmonder)
- GreenCity debt dispute delaying planned property transfer, developer solicitation (Richmond BizSense)*
*This outlet utilizes a paywall.