Richmond

blue

Get smarter, faster on what matters in Richmond with Sabrina Moreno and Karri Peifer.

Axios Richmond

Standard

A picture of the Richmond skyline with the letters RIC

A daily look at the most significant and interesting stories affecting Richmond.

Axios Richmond Thought Bubble

Thought Bubble

Richmond Alerts

Alert

Richmond Members

Membership

Axios Richmond Partners

Virginia prepares for potential FDA approval of psilocybin

A new state law has already created a path for the treatment — and Richmond is on one company's expansion map.

Illustration of a mushroom with the top made from a human brain

FDA-approved psilocybin — the psychedelic compound in so-called &quot;magic mushrooms&quot; — could be on the horizon, and some Virginia providers are already gearing up to deliver it if approved.Why it matters: Virginia has laid the groundwork for the treatment to become available if it wins federal approval, and a company preparing for a potential rollout tells Axios that Richmond is in its expansion plans.

News

Health

Early voting starts Friday in Virginia for an election that could reshape the state constitution on abortion, marriage equality and voting rights — and help determine control of the House.

The big picture: On Nov. 3, voters will decide three constitutional amendments and pick members of Congress while Richmond and Chesterfield voters weigh new taxes for school construction.

In one part of the city, Richmonders will also choose a School Board member.

Residents in Chesterfield's Dale district also have a Board of Supervisors election, but LeQuan Hylton is running unopposed after winning the Democratic primary last month.

Chesterfield's only contested School Board race is a special election in the Clover Hill District, where first-time candidate Christina Brady faces former Fairfax County School Board member and Trump/Youngkin education official Elizabeth Schultz for a term that runs through 2027, The Richmonder reports.

Key dates: Early voting runs through Oct. 31 and the voter registration deadline is Oct. 23.

Check your early voting sites here and look up your congressional district here.

Reproductive rights: Would protect abortion and reproductive health care decisions, including birth control and miscarriage management.

Marriage equality: Would constitutionally protect gay and interracial marriage.

Voting rights: Would automatically restore voting rights after someone convicted of a felony completes their prison sentence.

Every Richmond-area voter will see races for the U.S. Senate and U.S. House.

U.S. Senate: Democratic Sen. Mark Warner is seeking his fourth and final term against Republican Bert Mizusawa.

U.S. House: Most Richmond-area voters are in the 1st and 4th Congressional Districts, with Goochland and parts of Hanover in the 5th.

1st District: Incumbent Republican Rep. Rob Wittman faces Democrat and Henrico's Commonwealth's Attorney Shannon Taylor.

4th District: Democratic incumbent Rep. Jennifer McClellan faces Republican Robert Murray Jr. and independent Joan Bell. 

5th District: Republican incumbent John McGuire is up against attorney and former congressman Tom Perriello and independent Cooke Harvey.

💰 1% sales hike for school construction

Richmond and Chesterfield voters — along those with 45 other localities — will decide whether to give their governments the authority to add up to a 1% sales tax dedicated to public school construction and major renovations.

Between the lines: Groceries and essential personal hygiene items wouldn't be subject to the additional tax.

In Richmond, officials say it could generate about $47 million a year.

Mayor Avula has pledged to seek a 1% cut in the meals tax and proposed lowering the real estate tax rate by 1 cent if voters approve the referendum.

In Chesterfield, the tax is projected to generate up to $70 million annually for school reconstruction.

If approved, supervisors have signaled plans to cut the real estate tax rate by 2 cents and the personal property tax rate by 10 cents.

Richmond's 6th District, which runs from downtown Richmond and Jackson Ward to Northside and Manchester, has a special election for the School Board seat vacated by Shonda Harris-Muhammed last year.

Anne Holton, the former Virginia education secretary who was appointed to temporarily fill the seat in February, is running to keep it.

She's facing Jackie McDonnough, a longtime Richmond educator and former VCU professor.

What we're watching: The race comes as RPS faces major questions over aging and mold-plagued school buildings, budget cuts and how to pay for hundreds of millions of dollars in construction needs.

Editor's note: This story has been updated to add the Chesterfield School Board race. 

Virginia early voting starts Sept. 18: What's on the ballot

Among the major decisions: the future of abortion rights and marriage equality.

Illustration of a ballot with a checkmark on it

Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios. Stock: Getty Images

Early voting starts Friday in Virginia for an election that could reshape the state constitution on abortion, marriage equality and voting rights — and help determine control of the House.The big picture: On Nov. 3, voters will decide three constitutional amendments and pick members of Congress while Richmond and Chesterfield voters weigh new taxes for school construction.

Politics

It's another packed September weekend in Richmond, with Iron Blossom, Armenian food and Oktoberfest taking over.

🤠 Country singer Jon Pardi brings his Gamblin' Man Tour to Allianz. 7pm. Tickets start at $121.

🛍️ Browse antiques, art, vintage finds and home decor from over 70 vendors at the East Coast Expo at Richmond Raceway through Sunday. Times vary. General admission is $22.

⚾️ The Pair Club is hosting a baseball singles night at CarMax Park. A ticket gets you access to a private bar. 5:30pm. $43.

🇦🇲 The Armenian Food Festival returns for its 66th year with chicken shish kebabs, cheese boreg, stuffed grape leaves, pastries and more at St. James Armenian Church. Friday and Saturday, 11:30am-9pm. Free.

🍺St. Benedict Oktoberfest takes over the Museum District with German food and beer, live music, dancing and a Christkindlmarkt through Sunday. Times vary. Free.

🪩 Dance to Queen and ABBA hits performed by a string ensemble at Candlelight: Queen vs. ABBA at the John Marshall ballrooms. 8:45pm. Tickets start at $25.

🎸 Iron Blossom music festival returns to Midtown Green for two days of live music, headlined by Jack White and LCD Soundsystem, with Dijon, Geese, Portugal. The Man and more. Saturday-Sunday. Times vary. Tickets start at $122 for a one-day ticket and $212 for the full weekend.

🥳 Celebrate the 30th annual Glen Allen Day at Meadow Farm and Crump Park with a parade, more than 100 vendors and kids activities. 9:30am-3pm. Free.

⚽️ The Richmond Kickers are celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month at City Stadium with performances from Salsa Guy Richmond and Tradición Dance Company. 6pm. Tickets start at $18.

💃🏻 The Richmond Carribean Wine, Food & Music Festival brings Caribbean food, vendors and reggae, soca, dancehall and Afrobeats to Kanawha Plaza. Noon-6pm. Tickets start at $28.

🎨 Shop local artists at Hardywood's Fall Artisan Market on Ownby Lane with art, jewelry, children's toys and more. Noon-5pm.

Richmond weekend events: Iron Blossom, Oktoberfest

Plus: The Armenian Food Festival and a baseball singles night at CarMax Park.

A picture from high up of a crowd at a festival with the sunset and Richmond skyline in the background.

The view of Iron Blossom from the Ferris wheel last year. Photo: Sabrina Moreno/Axios

It&#x27;s another packed September weekend in Richmond, with Iron Blossom, Armenian food and Oktoberfest taking over.

Things to Do

A new analysis shows that Richmond's school-zone speed cameras are slowing drivers down even when the cameras aren't on.

Why it matters: The numbers are one of the first glimpses into how much these cameras are changing behavior on some of Richmond's most dangerous roads, over two years after the city added the first ones.

The big picture: Average overall speeds declined at 10 of the city's 13 camera-enforced school zones over a 29-month period, according to Richmond's transportation department.

The other three maintained speeds at or below the 25mph limit. 

Zoom in: The biggest drops were outside Richmond High School for the Arts on Midlo Turnpike, River City Middle on Hull and McClenney Elementary on Chamberlayne.

Average speeds near Richmond High School for the Arts fell 8mph, from 41mph to 33mph.

They dropped by 7mph near River City Middle School and 3.5mph around McClenney, though Richmond didn't release the average starting speeds for those locations.

Between the lines: Those three school zones also captured the top five fastest speeds recorded last year, which peaked at 76mph.

River City has also consistently logged the most citations, with 44,600 since 2024.

Go deeper: Richmond looks to expand Vision Zero playbook

Richmond looks to expand Vision Zero playbook

Richmond speed cameras are slowing drivers in school zones

One school zone saw average speeds fall 8 mph, from 41 to 33 mph.

a speed limit photo enforced sign with a picture of a camera above it and the word "School"

Photo: Will Waldron/Albany Times Union via Getty Images

A new analysis shows that Richmond&#x27;s <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="school-zone speed cameras" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/richmond/2025/07/15/speed-cameras-school-zones-richmond-fines" data-vars-content-id="8a9a18eb-7fc3-4888-b692-fa131cdeefe4" data-vars-headline="Richmond speed cameras are slowing drivers in school zones" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/richmond/2025/07/15/speed-cameras-school-zones-richmond-fines" target="_self">school-zone speed cameras</a> are slowing drivers down even when the cameras aren&#x27;t on.Why it matters: The numbers are one of the first glimpses into how much these cameras are changing behavior on some of Richmond&#x27;s most dangerous roads, over two years after the city added the first ones.

Transit

Chesterfield's newest high school could be nearly 80% full within five years — or more than 90% — depending on where the county draws its boundaries and how housing growth plays out.

Why it matters: Redistricting has become a recurring headache in Richmond's suburbs as districts try to relieve overcrowding without filling new schools so quickly that they're back where they started.

Driving the news: Chesterfield is weighing three boundary maps for West Ridge High, the county's first new high school in 20 years, opening next August with room for 2,400 students.

All three options would eliminate the 26 trailer classrooms at Cosby and Midlothian — two of Chesterfield's most overcrowded schools, per county documents.

They'd also zone students in Magnolia Green, Westerleigh and Summer Lake for West Ridge.

Current juniors wouldn't be affected, staying at their schools for senior year.

Zoom in: Depending on the map, roughly 1,500 to 1,850 students would be zoned for West Ridge, mostly from Cosby and Midlothian.

Option 1 moves the fewest — about 1,545 — and spreads enrollment most evenly among the three schools, while keeping Hallsley and NewMarket at Midlothian. 

Option 2 moves the most — about 1,846 — including Hallsley and NewMarket and areas west of Woolridge Road. 

Option 3 is a hybrid of the two, per county officials, shifting about 1,801. It would send Hallsley and NewMarket to West Ridge but otherwise largely follow Option 1. 

The tradeoff: Option 1 would leave West Ridge at about 79% capacity five years out, giving it the most room for future growth.

The other two would put the new school at around 90%-92% while leaving Midlothian around 70% and Cosby between 80%-83%.

The projections account for anticipated housing development.

What they're saying: Hallsley families are pushing for Option 1, urging the board to keep their neighborhood at Midlothian in public comment last week.

Parents have cited splitting children from Midlothian Middle classmates, longer trips and concerns about teen drivers navigating Otterdale Road.

Meanwhile: Chesterfield is separately planning to move 128 students from the western edges of the Clover Hill and Manchester zones into Cosby, filling some of the space West Ridge would free up.

What's next: A Sept. 28 public meeting at Deep Creek Middle ahead of an Oct. 13 board vote.

Chesterfield residents can look up their address here to see their children's proposed school under each option.

Chesterfield's West Ridge High redistricting maps explained

Up to 1,850 students from areas zoned for Cosby and Midlothian High could be reassigned to the new high school.

Quad-panel map of Richmond-area school districts with red, blue, and yellow regions; labeled high schools such as Midlothian, Monacan, Clover Hill, Manchester, Thomas Dale, L.C. Bird, Matoaca, Meadowbrook.

Current boundaries (top left), Option 1 (top right), Option 2 (bottom left) and Option 3 (bottom right). Photos: Courtesy of Chesterfield

Chesterfield&#x27;s newest high school could be nearly 80% full within five years — or more than 90% — depending on where the county draws its boundaries and how housing growth plays out.Why it matters: Redistricting has become a recurring headache <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="in Richmond&#x27;s suburbs" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/richmond/2025/12/11/henrico-redistricting-vote-smaller-school-boundary-plan" data-vars-content-id="d1846b8c-9232-4609-afca-ac6949efbd51" data-vars-headline="Chesterfield&#x27;s West Ridge High redistricting maps explained" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/richmond/2025/12/11/henrico-redistricting-vote-smaller-school-boundary-plan" target="_self">in Richmond&#x27;s suburbs</a> as districts try to relieve overcrowding without filling new schools so quickly that they&#x27;re back where they started.

Sabrina Moreno

Featured stories

Virginia early voting starts Sept. 18: What's on the ballot

Richmond weekend events: Iron Blossom, Oktoberfest

Virginia prepares for potential FDA approval of psilocybin

Chesterfield's West Ridge High redistricting maps explained

Richmond speed cameras are slowing drivers in school zones