Here’s a recap of the top stories for the week of June 27, 2025:
Youngkin weighs in on Richmond’s regional water service issues
Reported by BizSense's Jonathan Spiers
Following a joint meeting between supervisors from Hanover and Henrico counties, Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin held a closed meeting with top administrators to discuss the region’s water delivery issues.
Tuesday’s meeting included the board chairs and leading officials for Richmond, Chesterfield, Hanover and Henrico.
Richmond Mayor Danny Avula said in a statement that he appreciated Youngkin joining the conversation, noting the state’s interest in securing water service and preventing a similar outage from occurring in the future.
Another joint meeting between Richmond City Council and Henrico’s Board of Supervisors is scheduled to be held at 3:30 p.m. on Monday, June 30, at the Richmond Department of Public Utilities building located at 1801 Commerce Road.
Avula has also extended an invitation to the three surrounding counties to join the city in forming a regional advisory group to discuss the future of water service in the region, following repeated, dayslong water issues in the Richmond region.
Richmond area real estate developer sentenced to nearly 6 years in federal prison
Reported by BizSense’s Jonathan Spiers
Chris Harrison — a local real estate developer, former UVA and NFL football player — was sentenced to six years in federal prison for an embezzlement case involving his conversion of the Model Tobacco building in South Richmond into apartments and an aborted hotel redevelopment in Petersburg.
Harrison was accused of misusing loan funds for the development of apartments in the Model Tobacco building on Richmond Highway and another project in North Carolina. Harrison put those funds toward unauthorized expenses, including litigation costs related to his failed redevelopment of the since-razed Ramada Inn hotel in Petersburg.
Harrison pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud stemming from an indictment last fall. In June, US District Court Judge David Novak sentenced him to 71 months in prison and three years of supervised release.
Richmond hosts a private tour of the new CarMax Park
Reported by BizSense's Jonathan Spiers
As the Richmond Flying Squirrels start the second half of what’s set to be their final season at The Diamond, construction of the team’s new home on Arthur Ashe Boulevard is more than halfway finished.
The 10,000-seat capacity stadium completed its primary steelwork and continues to take shape, as the seating bowl starts to fill in and the upper-level suites above the concourse are being framed.
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