Press Release: Richmond General Plan Passes!

PRESS RELEASE                                    
For Immediate Release                                                    

 
Richmond General Plan Passes!


RICHMOND, Calif. –On Wednesday, April 25, 2012 at 12:44 am, the Richmond City Council voted to pass the General Plan 2030 (GP) with a vote of 5-2—Councilmembers Booze and Bates voted ‘no’.  Nearly 30 members of the REDI (Richmond Equitable Development Initiative) collaborative filed into an already packed City Council chamber around 8pm Tuesday evening for the second and final round of the GP adoption hearing. The GP agenda item didn’t begin until 10:45pm. Roughly two hours into deliberations, the Council voted unanimously to approve the Environmental Impact Report (EIR), then minutes later to approve the Plan.
 
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REDI's Christy Leffall on KPFA's Morning Mix - April 19, 2012

Listen to Christy Leffall, land-use program coordinator and coordinator of the Richmond Equitable Development Initiative (REDI) at Urban Habitat, on KPFA's Morning Mix hosted by Richmond Planning Commissioner Andres Soto that aired on April 19, 2012 at 8:00 am. Leffall gives a recap of the General Plan Rally at the Richmond City Council Chambers on April 17th and subsequent adoption hearing of the General Plan with the Environmental Impact Report, which REDI has been working on for over six years.

REDI members turned out in significant numbers to this meeting. The vote was tabled until next week because the general plan agenda took over four hours, one hour for the staff’s presentation, and another three hours for public testimony where 111 speakers had signed in to speak. The upcoming City council vote on Tuesday, April 24th, 6:30pm at Richmond City Hall. Listen to an edited version of the segment here (or download). Visit, KPFA to hear the full version.

Christy Leffall is currently a Land Use Program Coordinator working in Contra Costa County. Leffall is coordinator of the Richmond Equitable Development Initiative (REDI) in Richmond, CA, which advocates for the adoption and implementation of equitable elements within the city’s updated General Plan. 
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Support the Richmond General Plan on Tuesday, April 17

Richmond transit village, where BART buses, and Amtrak come together. © 2008 Scott BraleyDear Richmond Community Allies: Finally, after six years of community-­based planning, education, and advocacy efforts, the Richmond City Council will vote to adopt the General Plan.

We, the Richmond Equitable Development Initiative (REDI) are excited to attend the General Plan Adoption Hearing to support and urge our allies to put community health and the quality-­of-­life of city residents first!

When: Tuesday, April 17, 6:30pm
Where: Community Services Building 440 Civic Center Plaza Richmond, CA

We are optimistic that our allies on the City Council will pass the Planning Commission’s recommendations to the General Plan, but We Still Need Your Help!

We ask that you please commit to supporting REDI’s General Plan campaign by doing one or more of the following:

• Call and email our allies on the City Council to adopt the General Plan
• Bring your friends and family to the April 17th adoption hearing
• Speak in support of the General Plan at the adoption hearing
• Forward this attached letter to all of your community allies (Download the PDF here)

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REDI Partners Celebrate, Mobilize

Jan. 7, 2012, REDI Accomplishments Event

Saturday, Jan. 7, 2012, was a day to celebrate. REDI community partners gathered at Grace Lutheran Church in Richmond to celebrate the group’s accomplishments of the more than five-year General Plan campaign. Representatives from REDI partners included, Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment (ACCE), Asian Pacific Environmental Network (APEN), Communities for a Better Environment (CBE), Contra Costa Interfaith Supporting Community Organization (CCISCO), Faith Works, and Urban Habitat.

Community members from each group shared stories around their personal and group’s participation toward a vision for a better and more equitable Richmond. The partners were excited to reiterate their success in getting the Planning Commission to incorporate a majority REDI’s recommendations regarding jobs, transit, housing, safety, and community health in the final draft of the General Plan. This event was also a call to action to mobilize members to attend upcoming city council meetings and the impending general plan vote expected within the next few weeks.

After the General Plan is passed, REDI members will remain vigilant heading into the Housing Element analysis and implementation phases of the General Plan.

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REDI Leadership Training, May 21, 2011

Looking west on Willard Street to the refineries. © 2008 Scott BraleyPrepare to Speak out on Richmond's General Plan! Lift up your dreams for the city where you live.

When a city approves a General Plan, it makes a commitment to the kind of place it wants to be. This is our chance to prepare to speak out and calion the city's leaders to lift up our needs and dreams. The General Plan can help us make Richmond a safe, healthy and thriving place that has homes people can afford and sustainable jobs. A city that makes sure no neighborhoods bear more than their fair share of pollution, and polluters bear their fair share of cleaning up the air. The Richmond Planning Commission AND the City Council have to approve the plan. Get ready by attending the REDI Leadership Training- come strengthen your skills, speak up for your community!

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