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A last walk through a town I’ve watched be reborn

Posted at 12:10 AM, Feb 16, 2018
and last updated 2018-02-16 15:53:19-05

RICHMOND, Va. -- When I first started reporting here in the mid-80s, Richmond was still in it’s heyday.

The streets were crowded, but kind of divided. Blacks were on one side on Broad street, while whites were on the other.

A little while later, crack cocaine came to town and everything changed. For Richmond, it was almost death from 1,000 murders in a short window of time, from the late 80s to the mid-90s.

What was going to turn the city around?

One thing did happen, Virginia Commonwealth University.

VCU has completely taken over the city, including areas that used to be rugged and desperate for a facelift. Not places that you would want to be…

Now, 30,000 students, mostly law-abiding, have made a big change in Richmond. Plus good policing, and believe it or not, heroin kind of took the sting out of cocaine.

Richmond is BACK!

Watch the video and take a walk with me through the City of Richmond as I reminisce, say goodbye to old friends, and talk about my future in Wilmington, North Carolina.

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