Dish By Design Laura Dyer Hild Laura pens our Dish by Design column. She is inspired by all things related to art, design, architecture, and the natural environment. The column takes Laura’s interests and applies them to design related topics for Manchester The World Is Your Oyster We sometimes forget the inner connections that we have with each other and how fate plays a role in bringing us all together. Coming “full circle” and finding the reason for a certain encounter can take years to unfold. And so the story begins….. Oysters connected Mike and I to Haleh…..Read More 9th RVA Latino Festival At Sacred Heart Church The Latino Festival kicked off last night in Manchester but continues today (June 24th) starting at noon until 11:00 pm. The location is at the Church of the Sacred Heart at 1400 Perry Street…..Read More Richmond Nostalgia: Thalhimers Six-Layer Chocolate Cake Richmond is becoming a foodie paradise. I would bet a great deal of you frequented a food festival this weekend given the Richmond Greek Festival and Broad Appétit were in full swing. But there is one special cake in Richmond’s history that you may not be aware of-it’s the Six-Layer Chocolate Cake and it used to be the bell of the ball at Richmond’s Thalhimers Bakery Shop once upon a time…..Read More The Loop The T. Tyler Potterfield Pedestrian Bridge has brought local residents and the outside community together by connecting downtown Richmond to the Manchester neighborhood. Many people are now able to interact with the James River in a completely unique way, solidifying the river as the city’s greatest asset…..Read More Manchester Mardi Gras Parade 2017 The Mardi Gras Parade 2017 put on by the Dogtown Dance Theatre still happened in spite of the sudden bad weather that rolled into RVA yesterday. Mother nature decided to grace us with a beautiful day but right about the time the event started…..Read More Calling All Artists And Community Participants: New Sculpture At Hull Street Library Coming right on the heels of Valentine’s Day, it looks like Manchester just got a big kiss on the lips from the Percent-for-Art Program. A large sculpture will be installed in front of the Hull Street Library. The Public Art Commission will hold two public meetings to gather input from the community and to share information about the project…..Read More Ain’t Nothing Like The Real Thing Is it appropriate for corporate home builders to try to steal Richmond’s timeless historical architecture and replicate it in a faux urban-suburban environment?…..Read More Got Junk in Your Alley? Got junk in your alley? Broken down street signs? Graffiti tags on buildings? Broken street lamps? If you live in Manchester, you know what I’m talking about. These issues are rampant. I don’t know about you, but I’m tired of seeing mattresses, TVs, couches, any random piece of junk that you would normally see in an enclosed space in your house or apartment out in the alley…..Read More Maury Cemetery A recent trip took me to the Maury Cemetery in Southside. The cemetery is anchored by two streets, Maury and Jefferson Davis Highway. Maury Street as you may know runs through Manchester. I’m embarassed to say it, but I did not know about this cemetery until recently…..Read More Blood in the Cut This past week was an historical event that won’t soon be forgotten. Like others, I’ve had mixed emotions because it’s been a long haul not only for the national election but the local election as well. I’ve been fixated with a certain song from K.Flay – “Blood in the Cut”. It’s an emotional, raw song and seems quite appropriate…Read More Sweeten the Pot…. Transforming a neighborhood doesn’t come easy. It can be overwhelming at times when all you see are a myriad of 40 ounce beer cans wrapped in that “oh so chic” shiny black plastic, along with the litter of lottery tickets strewn…Read More Building UP RVA-Education in the Trades? I recently checked out a book at the Hull Street Library in Manchester and I was impressed by the little neighborhood establishment. I’m a firm believer in being able to easily access books without paying an arm and a leg for the recent release of a new…Read More RVA Clean Sweep: Manchester Litter Pick Up THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU to RVA Clean Sweep for the continued effort to pick up litter in Manchester. Clean Sweep has committed volunteers in Manchester for two weeks and yesterday was the start of that initiative. According to the RVA Clean Sweep twitter post, there were 43 volunteers that gave 2.5…Read More No Good Deed Goes Unpunished No Good Deed Goes Unpunished …..the saying that everyone is familiar with but can’t quite grasp. It makes no sense to me that doing good could mean being punished for such an act. It’s not a secret that Michael and I are passionate about RVA and specifically Manchester. There is so…Read More Some Good-Lookin’ Cans Y’all!!! Manchesterites – if you notice some new trash cans in your neighborhood you can thank RVA Clean Sweep and Keep Virginia Beautiful. RVA Clean Sweep received a grant this year from Keep Virginia Beautiful which made possible the purchase of trash cans for Manchester. Clean Sweep has done countless cleanups around…Read More Poll: Do You Want To See Streateries & Parklets In RVA? San Francisco, Seattle, Denver, Vancouver and anywhere else I’ve forgotten are drinking the kool-aid referred to as Streateries & Parklets! And why not, it brings the community together creating an energy and vitality to these urban city environments. Instead of just getting from point A to point B, people are stopping, meeting, lingering, drinking, eating and enjoying the…Read More “It All Drains To The James” – 2016 Storm Drain Project Back in April we announced the RVA 2016 Storm Drain Project and recently the five finalists painted their winning designs on storm drains along Tredegar Street. The project received 50+ entries which are currently on display in City Hall. The drains were painted between July 13-18. The following storm drain pictures depict the conceptual criteria for the contest – “It…Read More Manchester Walking Tour Last Saturday, July 9th I went on the Manchester walking tour led by Liz from The Valentine. It was the inaugural tour of the season and although I knew some of the history already, I did learn some new things as well. We started out at Camden’s Dogtown Market and proceeded south across Commerce Road into…Read More CAHUTE – ( In Cahoots) – Glave Kocen Gallery The new exhibit coming soon at Glave Kocen Gallery is called Cahute. I’m interpreting the name of the exhibit to mean in cahoots or in partnership since the derivation comes from the french origin of cahute. I could be wrong in my interpretation but I like where this is going all the same. Over the… Read More Let’s Reopen The Manchester Canal! I spent a recent sunny afternoon walking the once operational Manchester “Mill” Canal. Unfortunately, the canal has not been in service for quite some time and now holds mostly shallow stagnant water and over grown water grasses. That wasn’t always the case. At one time a charter was set forth by William Byrd III ensuring that…Read More WasSUP RVA-WhoLetTheDogsOut? I went to the Dominion Riverrock at Brown’s Island yesterday to see what wasSUP with the river festivities. After my own SUP experience last weekend, I was interested in seeing how the competitors would fair in the SUP Cross over the James River Rapids at the old VEPCO dam. This also happens to be the location for…Read More Are You Down With SUP? I recently had a long weekend trip to Southern California. My first leg of the trip was in Huntington Beach – Surf City USA. The first morning started off with an overcast sky also dubbed as the “marine layer” that burns off by the afternoon. Once the layer dissipates you’re left with bright blue sunny…Read More BridgePark RVA Since 2012, the BridgePark has been an idea that hasn’t fully left the drawing board. That’s unfortunate because an idea like this makes a tremendous amount of sense. The bridge would sit roughly between the new Tyler Potterfield Bridge and Manchester Bridge and span across the river from Kanawha Plaza to the Manchester Climbing wall. The James…Read More Announcing The 2016 Storm Drain Art Project CALLING ALL ARTISTS: Anyone want to paint a storm drain? If so, the City of Richmond’s RVA H2O program is sponsoring an initiative to allow you to submit your original ideas, and if selected, you will be able to paint your art on a storm drain. THE DEADLINE FOR ENTRIES IS: MONDAY, MAY 30, AT MIDNIGHT. Here are…Read More Creativity Abounds At Manchester’s RVA Street Art Fest RVA Street Art Fest 2016 at the Manchester Silos is a weekend worth remembering. Saturday’s festivities started with drizzling rain but ended with a sunny, breezy, bright blue sky. There was so much to do, and so much to see. The creativity was captivating as artists painted their murals, local vendors sold their wares, and a costumed parade marched…Read More Pothole Art-Gone To Pot? Unless you drive a hovercraft to work, you know Richmond has a major pothole problem. And if you live or work in Manchester, you experience firsthand some of the worst road maintenance the City has to offer. I know personally I’ve driven into a hole that felt like I was making my way to China! Just recently, John…Read More Manchester Silos: Support The RVA Street Art Fest 2016 Many of you may have heard or seen this already via other news outlets and blogs but I’m feeling so excited about this project that I want to shout it from the roof tops! Manchester is hosting the 3rd Edition of the RVA Street Art Fest 2016 at the Manchester Silos on April 22nd through the 24th…Read More Gateway To Manchester RVA A Gateway is a means of access or entry to a place…And Manchester is deserving of a Gateway into this unique RVA neighborhood. Gateways could be located at key locations up and down the Hull Street corridor as mentioned in an earlier article, Revival of Manchester Waterfront. The entry over The Mayo Bridge into Manchester…Read More Trees Wanted Now The opening image depicts a beautiful tree displayed quite prominently on the side of an old brick building in Manchester at the corner of Hull and Cowardin. In stark contrast to this image is the reality of the Hull Street corridor without the beauty of trees lining its main thoroughfare. Instead…Read More Call to Action-Bike Racks In recent years I’ve taken up biking as a means to keep in shape and de-stress over the weekends. My bike isn’t anything flashy, but more than anything else it harkens back to the days as a young tween pedaling through my suburban Tuscawilla neighborhood in Florida. I had a…Read More Revival of Manchester Waterfront The flood wall along the James River provides flood protection for downtown Richmond and Manchester. This is a good thing for all of us, but along Manchester’s waterfront it’s a bit of an eyesore. A raised walkway along the flood wall is nice but it doesn’t put you close to…Read More So You Have An Old House – Now What? Old houses that need work challenge the new owner(s) with what path to take – pay homage to the past or go modern to keep current with the times? I’m going to highlight one particular house as an example. This isn’t the end all to be all, but it will show…Read More What’s A Girl Got To Do To Get Some Polka Dots Around Here? Who doesn’t like Polka dots? Whimsical Simplicity. Symmetrical Patterns. Vibrant Colors. Calming Repetition. What’s not to like? What started as a demonstration project in Silver Lake, Los Angeles looks to become a permanent polka dot fixture. The pilot project was organized through Streets for People (People Street) and Frank Clementi of Rios…Read More Introducing Dish by Design: Planting an Urban Seed The Dogtown Dish is proud to announce a new column we are calling: Dish by Design. The column will focus on design and artistic subjects as it pertains to Manchester. Our hope is it will be a place where we can conceptually think about the community in a cohesive way through design. Our desire is…Read More » SaveSave