North Richmond residents — Your opportunity to help transform downtown starts next Friday!

From July 20 through July 26, the City of Richmond, Venture Richmond and Florida-based planning firm Dover Kohl invite the public to participate in a highly interactive process to update Richmond’s Downtown Master Plan.

The series of discussions and design events (known as a charrette) are open to the entire community – residents, business owners, non-profits and government officials. Each day, a public design studio will be updated to reflect – in the moment – the ideas contributed by participants. The results of this week of work will shape the future of Downtown Richmond, and the broader Richmond community.

For ongoing coverage of the Downtown Plan charrette, visit Buttermilk & Molasses’ Richmond Planning and Development page. For more details on the Downtown Plan charrette, visit the city’s Department of Community Development website, or contact Brooke Hardin with the City of Richmond at (804) 646-6310 or email him at brooke.hardin@richmondgov.com. To participate, drop by one or all of the following public events:

The Charrette Schedule

Friday, July 20 – Kick-off Presentation
Location: Plant Zero (Hull Street & E. 3rd Street)
Time: 6:30 pm - 8:00 pm
Event Description: At the start of the charrette week, a “food for thought” presentation will be given to educate the public on best practices in downtown urban planning.

Saturday, July 21 – Hands-on Design Session
Location: Plant Zero (Hull Street & E. 3rd Street)
Time: 9:00 am - 2:00 pm
Event Description: At this design session, we will work in small groups sharing ideas and thoughts on the future of Downtown.

Sunday – Thursday, July 22 - 26 - Open Design Studio
Location: The Commons @ Plant Zero (220 Hull Street)
Time: Sunday 1:00 pm – 7:00pm; Monday – Wednesday 9:00 am – 7:00 pm; Thursday 9:00am – 12:00pm
Event Description: The design team will work on-site creating the plan. We invite the community to stop by and offer continual input and monitor the work-in-progress.

Thursday, July 26 - Work-in-Progress Presentation
Location: Plant Zero (Hull Street & E. 3rd Street)
Time: 6:30 – 9:00pm
Event Description: At the end of the charrette week, the design team will present the work-in progress to the community.

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