Tuesday Verses; An Aquatic Branch of the Underground Railroad: The James River and the Keziah Affair of 1858; Bend Your Ear; MORE…

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The Richmond Voice, going out into the neighborhood, has found black business owners in the Jackson Ward area are generally supportive of the Downtown Plan so far. The article quotes one anonymous business owner saying that he did not find anything controversial in the plan and that is the reason for him not attending the meetings, another says “it will be great”, and a third says “it’s well deserved and I hope that all taxpayers in the city will be able to take advantage of it”.

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The Center for Neighborhood Empowerment and Enterprise Development (C-NEED) is sponsoring a “Yes, We Can” Town Hall Meeting on Tuesday, July 22, to develop strategies to create jobs, build affordable housing and create more vibrant neighborhoods. [via]

The “Yes We Can” Town Hall Meeting is scheduled for Tuesday July 22, at Ebenezer Baptist Church , 216 W. Leigh Street. The meeting which starts at 6 P.M seeks to gain input from citizens in the creation of what is being called the “Peoples Platform”. The “Peoples Platform’ will include innovative strategies to end poverty, create jobs, build truly affordable housing, develop alternatives to crime and build vibrant neighborhoods. The “Yes We Can” meeting is non partisan and not connected to the Obama Campaign. It however fully endorses the concept of “Change” and is a response to concerns that many important issues are not being addressed in the platforms of candidates. According to Lillie A. Estes, a planning committee member, “Change begins at home”. Through the People’s Platform, for the first time citizens will have a chance to direct what the “Changes” for Richmond should be. Candidates for mayor, school board and city council will be invited to attend however, unlike “meet the candidates’ forums” they will not be allowed to use the meeting to make campaign speeches. It is the hope of the planning team that the “Peoples Platform” will be a document that will guide political candidates and serve as a tool to hold them accountable after they are elected. For more information call 648-4800 or email grchh1@gmail.com.

The City of Richmond Planning Commission will discuss further revisions to and consider adoption of the June 2008 Draft Downtown Master Plan on Monday, July 21. The meeting is open to the public, but there will not be a public hearing. The discussion on the Downtown Master Plan will be held at the end of the regular meeting agenda and will begin no earlier than 6PM. The meeting will be held in the fifth floor conference room of City Hall.

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The gate is finished at the Carver Garden and the veggies are really coming in!

The Barrack Obama campaign is opening 20 offices across Virginia this Saturday, July 19th, from 10AM-2PM, including the Richmond office at 1208 West Marshall Street. Stop by and say howdy!

Bend Your Ear; Planning Commission meeting on June 2008 Draft Downtown Master Plan; Tuesday Verses; Gilpin Jackson Center Yard Sale; MORE…

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Photo by Celladoor, seen in the Carver&Jackson Ward flickr pool.

Art6, Gallery5, Transmission, Quirk, AND MORE… First Fridays Artwalk is brought to you by Curated Culture and sponsored by the Modlin Center for the Arts at the University of Richmond.

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HJWA and City Lights Partners will be hosting a National Night Out gathering at Abner Clay Park from 6-8PM on Tuesday, August 5, 2008. Check out the flyer for more info.

ACORN is accepting nominations for this year’s Golden Hammer Awards. If you know of an outstanding (I-can’t-believe-they-fixed-that-wreck) renovation project with a completion date of Sept.1, 2007 and Aug.15, 2008, let ACORN know by sending in a nomination form before Sept.1 (and, yes, you can nominate your own project!).