$1.4 billion Coliseum redevelopment deal would be largest in city’s history

Yesterday afternoon Mayor Levar Stoney gave the mayoral thumbs-up to the NH District Corp. plans for replacing the Richmond Coliseum and in theory revitalizing a large swath of Jackson Ward. This announcement follows months of closed-door negotiations between the Mayor’s office and NH District Corp. NH District Corp. is a private group led by Dominion Energy CEO Thomas F. Farrell II.

More details on the plan from Mayor Levar Stoney:

• We will create 21,000 jobs — including more than 9,000 permanent jobs and workforce training opportunities. Less than a mile away in Gilpin Court, 75 percent of our residents live in poverty. This project will offer economic opportunity to thousands of men and women who just need a helping hand.
• This project will include more than $300 million in contracts for minority businesses – this will ensure that our talented minority contractors are in the game and NOT sitting on the sidelines.
• We will build nearly 680 units of affordable housing – a substantial down payment on our goal of building 1,500 affordable units by 2023. We want those who work in this neighborhood to be able to live in it as well.
• We will build a new GRTC transit center here in the heart of downtown so that residents across our city can have a facility that offers shelter and dignity to our hardworking men and women who rely on public transit.
• We will preserve and restore the historic Blues Armory – bringing it back to life as a centerpiece of this newly revitalized neighborhood.
• And we will reconnect our street grid and raise Leigh Street so that we can create a true walkable and vibrant neighborhood that links to a resurgent Jackson Ward.

As mentioned all this is dependant on the city council approving the creation of a special tax district. The likely next steps will be drafting of a formal proposal that the city council can debate and eventually vote upon.