A development agreement for the City Center project is set to be brought to Richmond City Council this fall for a vote, according to city officials.
Sixth District Councilor Ellen Robertson, who represents the area where City Center would be built, told VPM News that the project’s committee is currently in negotiations.
The committee or evaluation panel is made up of 12 members: city staff, Economic Development Authority board members and Greater Richmond Convention Center Authority finance committee members.
“We have narrowed the potential developer list down to two firms that we are negotiating the legalities of the agreement and the financing for the development,” Robertson told VPM News. “We are looking forward to hopefully being able to bring a development agreement to the City Council this fall.”
Robertson declined to name the two developers.
Mayor Levar Stoney told VPM News during a Wednesday press conference that he didn’t know who the two developers were, but he knew city officials were close to selecting a final developer for the project.
VPM News followed up with the mayor's spokesperson, Gianni Snidle, who wrote in an email, “The goal of the City Administration is to recommend the top development team to the City Council, the GRCCA Board and the EDA board this fall.”
According to the city’s project webpage, Capstone Development, City Center Gateway Partners, Lincoln Property Company and Richmond Community Development Partners were all invited last year to submit proposals.
City Center is a proposed EDA–GRCCA collaboration to redevelop approximately 9.4 acres of EDA-owned property in downtown Richmond. Their vision is to create a “mixed-use, mixed-income urban innovation district destination.” The district would be anchored by a 500-room hotel and include commercial, educational and residential space.
In May 2022 — via Ordinance 2022-144 — Richmond City Council approved the land transfer of the defunct Richmond Coliseum to the EDA ahead of implementing the vision for City Center.
“At the end of the day, we are requiring them to build us a 500-room hotel on the side of the Coliseum, so we can actually get the full use of our convention center moving forward,” Stoney said at Wednesday’s press conference. “This is the type of growth in our city that will extend into the next decade.”
The Richmond Times-Dispatch previously reported that the two hotels across from the Richmond Convention Center cannot host the thousands of people who attend events there.
Stoney previously told VPM News that delivering the City Center project is one of his top priorities before leaving office. (None of the mayoral candidates have listed City Center as a campaign priority.)
Once a development agreement is introduced to council, it will go through a public hearing process. Robertson said the public will know exactly what is in the agreement at that time. Councilors will be able to request additional information or changes before ultimately casting their vote.
“Hopefully, we will be able to move forward with a development agreement and be able to finalize that, you know, before the close of this calendar year,” Robertson said.
Robertson echoed Stoney’s comments: One of the challenges the city faces in attracting more visitors and conventions is the lack of a 500-room hotel near the convention center. She added that filling the economic hole in the downtown economy is going to be “tremendous.”
“We know that this will take a big hole out of an economic drain on the city of Richmond to redevelop the center of the city. I mean, it's the downtown area, right?” Robertson said.
According to the councilor, in addition to a hotel, City Center will provide more housing opportunities, new jobs, new office space, and incorporate and support the Greater Richmond Transit Company’s new downtown transfer center.
The Richmond Coliseum would be demolished as part of this plan.
“The current coliseum is functioning obsoletely. It's blight, and people are ready for it to be demolished and something new in its place. And so, there are a number of parcels north of Broad Street that are underutilized, aren't bringing revenue into the city,” Stoney said Wednesday. “We need to find solutions to create another line of revenue for the city, and that property right there could mean millions for the future.”
Robertson said she hasn’t received any negative feedback within her district, but added that people are excited about the opportunity for revitalization.
“This is an area that's been waiting for development for a long time,” she said.
Richmond residents can click here to submit feedback on the project.
