What is happening here?!

A warehouse for storing art has been approved by the City of Richmond - and confirmed as a "museum operated by a government entity" per the Board of Zoning Appeal in March 2025.

Subsequent to the above - FGS LLC has been seeking clarification via the Virginia Department of General Services, Virginia Department of Education, and Virginia Attorney General to confirm there are plans to make use of the facility.  Unfortunately, no such records exist to confirm the plans.

Similarly, the plans were developed by a private non-profit to skip Commonwealth of Virginia Procurement and Design Requirements, intentionally.  Legal Representation for this project is shared with the Code Refresh Committee, and they worked collaboratively with city staff without informing the public of any plans.  Existing city codes were ignored, never amended, or never repealed - even though there was a recommendation to obtain a special use permit.  The city attorney never provided a written opinion on the matter when it was requested by the private attorney.

Is the plan intended for those who donate art or for the benefit of the Commonwealth?  

We are not sure!

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The VMFA Foundation started building a warehouse without approved permits, and apparently it has been planned here since 2022 - without any notice or input from neighbors.  The VMFA Foundations is not subject to public FOIA rules or typical state procurement requirements.

It will span the entire 2900 block of Floyd, Grove, Sheppard, and Colonial with entrance from Grove.

It remained concealed via intentional legal actions instead of making use of a Special Use Permit application that requires public notice.  Existing SUPs have been in place for about 50 years.  Similarly, it avoided review by the Art and Architecture Review Board despite being classified as a museum expansion.

The VMFA was not allowed to build a fence in 2020 - but a giant warehouse is somehow approved "in secret" without any notice to neighbors.

The VMFA also makes use of rented warehouse space at 1500 Roseneath Rd. and/or 3403 W Moore St - unsure if this space is fully utilized.  It seems to connect to The Community Foundation office space.

There are four households that formed Floyd Grove Sheppard LLC - a small neighborhood association - so that we can stand up to the ENORMOUS institutions that want to build a permanent warehouse on residential land when there are temporary or long-term options available elsewhere.

We have already spent a significant amount on our own, but if you can spare anything, you can assist with our ongoing efforts to seek transparency about this project.

See the DETAILS link in the menu above to learn more.  Or contact us from the ABOUT page.