Even as speculation emerges that the old GRTC property at Cary and Robinson might become the eastern extension of the Carytown shopping district, the corridor's current crop of merchants are looking to special events as a key to their future. And while the TD article on the latest pitch from the Carytown Merchants Association focuses (ho hum) on a beer festival, I get sort of giddy about the idea of Chalk Day. Maybe because my two-year-old daughter is obsessed with the stuff.
Chalk Day doesn't get much ink, but it is described as an event "where local artists and students would create pieces of art on the sidewalk using chalk." I'm sorry, but Chalk Day = Carytown + Cool Idea. Sign us up, Richmond!
"The whole idea about retail is to get feet in the stores. In Carytown, we're looking to get feet on the street," said Bob Broomfield, the new president of the Carytown Merchants Association.
Broomfield said the district needs to better capitalize on its uniqueness, which it can do by making a concerted effort to draw visitors.
To do that, the group of merchants is working to have at least one special event each month that will bring out shoppers.
By the way, Carytown is "really a hometown district that's uniquely Richmond." In contrast to Short Pump Town Center, which feels like it was torn right out of Soviet Era East Germany and plunked right smack... no, wait. Wrong story.
Back to the big land deal. GRTC is moving across the river, and the Richmond Redevelopment and Housing Authority (RRHA) is taking over the historic trolley sheds (and adjacent space).
Valerie Dixon with RRHA tells us that preservation of the property is priority in the redevelopment planning. "The current City Master Plan calls for the historic trolley sheds to be preserved. The City and RRHA will study the feasibility of adaptively reusing the buildings."
The 2000 Richmond Master Plan designates the four square block area as a mixed use development for extending Carytown eastward and also as a "Housing Opportunity Area."
"When [GRTC relocates] this site presents a unique opportunity for high quality mixed-use, urban infill development. Given the size of the site, a mixture of commercial and office uses may be appropriate within the residential development." The plan adds "Any future redevelopment activities should retain and preserve the historic trolley sheds located on-site."
The Boulevardizen reports that the neighbors at the Byrd Park community news site have been sharing their own ideas for the property.
