Richmond, VA. (NewsradioWRVA.com) - Richmond mayor Levar Stoney announcing on Monday that the City of Richmond has finalized its strategic plan for economic development. The plan is called 'SPEED'.
Stoney says the plan, which covers the next five years, is the city's roadmap to economic prosperity. He says it's not just an economic development plan, but also an economic justice plan - which means not ignoring certain parts of the city just because it's economically depressed.
Stoney says the plan features five aggressive goals through Fiscal Year 2026:
1. Three Billion Dollars in announced capital investment for economic development projects.
2. Three Thousand announced new jobs with salaries at or above $52,000.
3. Reducing the poverty rate by five percentage points.
4. Public and Private real estate development activities that generate 25 million dollars in annual real estate tax revenue.
5. Twenty-five hundred post-secondary credentials awarded to Richmond residents.
Council member Mike Jones says he recently went on an economic development field trip to Northern Virginia, and thought there's no reason Richmond can't do what they're doing. He also says cranes in the air--especially in Southside, where he represents--may lead to fewer guns on the street.
