RECENT COMMENTS
This is not Church Hill (an open letter to the RVA media)
Dear TV folks (more than anyone) –
There are many neighborhoods in the East End of Richmond, of which Church Hill is only one. When something happens the area, please try to identify the neighborhood accurately. This is a diverse community with many different neighborhoods. Each have a related but different history, and related but different challenges. It’s kind of important to get it right.
Today, Yvette Yeon of nbc12 writes about a “3-year-old boy shot in his Church Hill home”. The shooting took place over a mile away from Church Hill. This misidentification happens all the time. That double homicide on Christmas Eve? Happened in Chimborazo. As a commenter alluded to here on CHPN, you don’t call West Leigh Street or Idlewood Avenue the Fan. Check your facts, please.
Try this, it’s fun! Go to the city’s Parcel Mapper and type in an address. Click on the marker for that address and open the info window. Click the tab for “Planning” and look where it says “City Neighborhood Name”. Bingo!
TAGGED: map
Thank you John!! You’ve expressed my recent thoughts to the tee. It absolutely makes me cringe when I hear the local media refer to these incidents as taking place in “Church Hill”.
The fact is….none of them have. When they mention the address as they have in every recent incident…these tragedies did not take place in Church Hill. Simply because these neighborhoods are on a hill to the east of the city does not constitute them taking place in Church Hill.
This constant media assault is bad for neighborhood business, real estate values, and overall perception of the community. Church Hill proper is actually VERY safe barring nuisance crimes. It simply appears to me that the reporters are either uneducated or lazy about the facts. I do think the residents of the “Hill” should push back on this haphazard reporting and demand they tell the real story. Sloppy, sloppy “journalism”.
I couldn’t agree with you more in your analogy about the Fan. They seem to understand what distinguishes the Fan, the Museum District, Oregon Hill, Jackson Ward, and Carver… What the heck is wrong with them?
Great post, John! The media’s actions are really a disservice to those who have worked hard to build this community (like my parents, here since ’74) and those who continue to do good work here to pin all violent crimes in the East End on this neighborhood.
Emmy
Yea, good call.
Nobody in the rest of the city knows what Chimborazo is. I lived in Chimborazo. How many people in Chimborazo would say they live in Church Hill? A quarter? Most? Almost all? Also, does it help anybody except for people in Proper Church Hill’s ego to divide up and talk about how crime is somebody else’s problem/responsibility?
People just aren’t familiar with the hoods. I’ll tell people I live in Fairmount cause Brauers area is tiny.
@Justin – Sure, there’s definitely value in correctly identifying places. While we share issues, they are differences across the area. Other folks’ ignorance of the neighborhood distinctions is no reason to be ignorant ourselves.
The Fan and Museum District are similar, as similar as any 2 or 3 neighborhoods in this area, but that’s no argument not draw the distinction. Oregon Hill is close to Randolph and they share issues, but are different.
My house is in Fairmount, not St.John’s. Not Brauers, either. Fairmount has some crime, but the big problem is vacant houses – not an issue on Libby Terrace, or as much even in Union Hill.
@Brett – 8 years ago, most folks didn’t seem to know where Fairmount was. Put Brauers on the map!
I technically live in Chimborazo and tell others I live in Church Hill, mostly just for geographic reference (as Justin said, most people don’t recognize Chimborazo as a neighborhood). However, I’m so glad to see this posted, especially directed to the media. Maybe if people start hearing the different neighborhoods correctly identified on the news, the rest of the city will become more familiar with the makeup of the East End.
I thought of this the other morning when I heard a traffic report that said there was a car accident in Church Hill at 25th and Main. I live in Chesterfield, but even I know that 25th and Main is Shockoe Bottom.
I consider places like Chimborazo a sub-neighborhood within the bigger Church Hill neighborhood. I agree with Justin. Just because something happened in what is technically a different neighborhood, doesn’t mean it didn’t happen just a few blocks or streets away, and it is all of our responsibility to help lower crime. This smacks a little bit of elitism to me. I can see wanting the media to report that a crime happened in the “such-and-such section of Church Hill,” but to insist that it didn’t happen in Church Hill seems like denial to me. By the way, I’m not even sure which section I live in, because lots of times, the boundaries of these little sections change depending on who you talk to.
I totally agree with Justin and Tricia.
The city’s neighborhoods map is incorrect. John, you can post my map. People need to know. Although it’s not finished, it is 1 billion times more accurate, using the city’s OWN information which they ignore as well as some historic and modern boundary/names. http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?msid=207185548068201764998.00047a223869168f9f093&msa=0
Thanks Justin and Tricia,
I’m a little disheartened by this “open letter.” When I saw on the news that a three-year old child was killed in his home, (and many of the other horrific things that I see on the news), I first and only thought was, “How horrible and tragic.” I did not jump to, “how will this effect my home value?” or “hope my friends still visit this side of town.”
I guess it really takes the death of a small child to prompt a discussion on technical boundaries of the east end…
@sah-rah – I think that you’re misreading my intent. I don’t have a stake in this, that way. Shoot, my house is in Fairmount.
Having *very* closely watched this area for over 7 years now, on a daily basis, I have come to see and appreciate the differences and different challenges faced by the neighborhoods up here.
To speak of something happening in Brauers or Woodville or Union Hill isn’t to dismiss or coverup or ignore the incident (all of y’all are reading about all of this, here, on this site, right?), but instead to more clearly describe where something has happened. It’s that simple. The neighborhoods exist, I’m not making this up.
And this isn’t really a new conversation about the neighborhoods, it’s one that Cadeho and I have been having on and off for years it seems
Also – this has gotten quite a positive response on facebook and on tumblr.
John…I couldn’t agree with you more. It seems that a few folks here are missing the point. From what I’ve read, there have been no comments that are attemting to ignore, dismiss, or deny that there have been some serious tragedies here in the East End. Also, there was no mention of one area being more “elite” than the others. The point is that none of these things occurred in Church Hill. They did occur in other neighborhoods close to Church Hill. All that some are asking for is to identify the area correctly. Simply because some are ignorant about the difference in neighborhoods does not justify lumping it all into one well-known neighborhood. If the local media would have been helping to educate the public by correctly identifying each neighborhood as they report the news, this wouldn’t be an issue.
For folks who have “skin in the game”, perception does matter. Ask any Church Hill business owner if they think bad press has been helpful for their business. I know what they’ll tell you.
Hell, John. Some years ago I sent Mark Holmberg a terse email for reporting something about Union Hill as being in Church Hill, suggesting that he try doing some research about the city he was reporting on. I stopped listening to or reading him so maybe he got it right after that, but for sure very few in the media seem to know Richmond’s neighborhoods.
I live in Greensboro NC but I tell people that I live in Church Hill so I can get away with hell.
Agree with you John. It’s a matter of accuracy. Using overly broad and inaccurate descriptors of location makes it hard to tell where stuff happens.
John, I do understand your intent, however, drawing lines is just not helpful right now. Where ever you live in this area, east from the Bottom, we have some serious problems that have been recently highlighted. We had better work together to get some attention from Richmond Police, City Council, the Mayor, etc. to get these crime issues addressed. The comments Laura has made on previous posts come across as “not MY neighborhood, not my problem”. I doubt that’s what you mean, Laura, but that is how it comes across to those that don’t live in CH proper. I realized after I moved here 5 years ago that CH proper is different. It’s more like “Wyndham in the City”. For the record, I live in Chimborazo. I tell people that live in the area that I live in Chimborazo and tell outsiders that I live in Church Hill.
If we could get “…district of Church Hill,” I think that would achieve as much accuracy as possible. What the city’s map identifies as “Church Hill” is actually the St. John’s district, which is, yes, part of, but not all of, Church Hill. Also, @Cadeho–your map is lovely. It inspires me to quilt it, so it can be rendered in colors and textures as well.
@20…I respectfully disagree with your assertion that I’m discounting the problems that exist. You’ve lived here for 5 years…the condition then was nowhere near what Church Hill proper WAS 20 years ago. The changes that took place in the Hill did not happen by accident or as a result of any Mayor, city council, police department or other government entity. It happened due to the efforts of the residents and yes, they were organized. Caring residents got engaged in their neighborhood…they started crime watches, community groups, planted trees, held alley rallies, and fixed up their properties. They also called the police whenever something seemed suspicious. They got involved…the “district” got involved. This, in turn, made the area more desirable to live, increased property values and drove out the problem residents that were holding back the community. It doesn’t feel as though the surrounding communities are as focused on solving the problems themselves…they’re waiting for the mayor, city council, and the police department to take care of things. It doesn’t happen that way….and, if you’re waiting for that…good luck….you’ll be waiting a long time. The residents of the communities will drive the change on a grass-roots level.
St. Johns residents are some of the most vocal in the city and they advocate for their community. Is that happening elsewhere? Church Hill residents have worked hard to gain “Wyndham in the City” status and don’t deserve to be unjustly smeared with sloppy media reporting. Be an agent of change as opposed to someone who is making it someone else’s problem.
John Murden, thanks for posting this. I like it a lot, think it’s high time the media realized the (sometimes subtle, sometimes not) differences in neighborhoods, even sub-neighborhoods within neighborhoods.
Laura #22, I don’t always agree with your views, but this time I definitely do in your post @22. I’ve lived here over 25 years, so I’ve definitely seen some changes. South of Broad in 1978 was a far cry from what it is today. And you are correct, there was a lot of activism that went into it. My only disagreement with you is small -I think there are active citizens all around here, way north of Broad, I think sometimes they aren’t as well organized, or perhaps not as vocal and in as great numbers as the more southern areas were in the past, that’s all. I’ve met some folks who are truly dedicated to trying to clean up their areas, but sometimes they need more folks on board with them to make a bigger difference, and I hope that in the near future they will be more successful.
I think the letter has a point, but respectfully disagree. I think all those neighborhoods are sub-neighborhoods of the greater Church Hill. Richmond is a small city, which sometimes seems to get absurdly focused on micro-distinctions, which have no real meaning.. For example, I live in the Fan. I’m told that 2 blocks south of me, yet still north of 195 is not the Fan? Absurd. Its clearly part of any reasonable coherent hole.
For that matter, I think the arguably stronger distinction between the Fan and the Museum District is equally silly. The 2 neighborhoods have basically the same residents, who move back and forth between them without thinking about it, basically the same townhouses (I’m from out of town, the fundamental distinction between 1911 townhouses and 1921 townhouses is not quite as glaring to me as it is to some, lets say… ), and casually shop in each other’s markets and restaurants. They really are one neighborhood by any reasonable analysis. Whereas the Near West End really is a different neighborhood.
People are going to react to the realities of the situation, not minutiae like who the developer of a particular tract was. I agree that Church Hill needs, and deserves, better press, but I don’t think this is the best way to get it.
Laura, As I said in my post, I don’t think that you don’t care about the problems in the area. However, it does FEEL that way when we get caught up in drawing lines. I am definitely out spoken and I call the police when ever I see a drug deal, panhandling, public drinking, etc. but I am not part of, nor do I know of, an organized effort. I have seen a change in my area and I know my efforts have paid off. Obviously there is still much more work to be done.
They’re neighborhoods in churchill yall still come over trying to change something so you can feel good about saying thats not my neighborhood.How about next time a crime happens you can say no the crime you speak of didn’t happen in my neighborhood, it happened 4 blocks away. The east end is not that big so the crimes are still right a couple of foot steps away. Yall killl me!!!!
It isn’t a ego game nor a matter of drawing lines in the sand but more image.
Church Hill had a bad reputation years ago as being high crime and a slum area. It has taken years to reverse this yet many still tag that albatross on us. Try to get a chain pizza delivery here. Years ago you couldn’t even get a newspaper delivered on certain streets.
I think it’s nice to distinguish between different neighborhoods in a region, especially for historic reasons. However, neighborhood boundaries are an organic thing. They’re constantly changing based on the addition and subtraction of physical features and occupation. People take the labeling and distinction personally because what’s being defined is not necessarily a place but an identity. I think people need to ask themselves to what extent their neighborhood defines their own identity and respect others own interpretations. With regard to the news media, I think they have an obligation to understand the history of the area and know the facts if they refer to a place name, and maybe rather than reporting a crime took place in a certain area they can identify the address or block. I have personally found the tv news reporting in Richmond to be lazy and uninspired.