More than just car insurance. GEICO can insure your motorcycle, ATV, and RV. And the GEICO Insurance Agency can help you fi nd homeowners, renters, boat insurance, and more! ® Motorcycle and ATV coverages are underwritten by GEICO Indemnity Company. Homeowners, renters, boat and PWC coverages are written through non-affi liated insurance companies and are secured through the GEICO Insurance Agency, Inc. Some discounts, coverages, payment plans and features are not available in all states or all GEICO companies. Government Employees Insurance Co. • GEICO General Insurance Co. • GEICO Indemnity Co. • GEICO Casualty Co. These companies are subsidiaries of Berkshire Hathaway Inc. GEICO: Washington, DC 20076. GEICO Gecko image © 1999-2010. © 2010 GEICO NEWMARKET SERVICES ublisher of 95 U.S. and 32 International Relocation Guides, NewMarket PServices, Inc., is proud to introduce our online version. Now you may easily access the same information you find in each one of our 127 Relocation Guides at www.NewMarketServices.com. In addition to the content of our 127 professional written City Relocation Guides, the NewMarket Web Site allows us to assist movers in more than 20 countries by encouraging you and your family to share your moving experiences in our NewMarket Web Site Forums. You may share numerous moving tips and information of interest to help others settle into their new location and ease the entire transition www.NewMarketServices.com process. We invite everyone to visit and add helpful information through our many available forums. Share with others your knowledge of your new location or perhaps your former location. If you ever need to research a city for any reason, from considering a move to just checking where somebody you know is staying, this is the site for you. NewMarket Services looks forward to cooperating with everyone to continually add to our base of City Specific Information along with our various moving topics to help many of the 40 million people who have the opportunity to relocate each year. Please do not hesitate to contact our customer service department to speak to a live representative if we can provide any assistance. Our toll free number is (866) 595-3792. Richmond Information Guide [ 5 HOW TO USE THIS GUIDE The NewMarket Services Information Guide is designed as a valuable resource tool for you, the newcomer to Richmond. It is our intent in producing this publication to standardize important and helpful information on your new community in a format that is most useful to you. Stores and services are listed by category in the business directory. Richmond Important telephone numbers, packing and Welcomes You! moving suggestions and much, much more useful information is found throughout the Guide pages. Selected area businesses, many offering significant savings are found are found in the Business Directory Section, sorted by category. The Guide can save you both time and money while providing you a continuous resource tool as you become more familiar with the metroplex. We do hope you find our Relocation Guide to be of assistance to you. If you do not find something you need, or if you have any suggestions for future issues of the Guide, please give us a call. We will be happy to assist in any way. (866) 595-3792 Toll Free From everyone at NewMarket Services Welcome to Richmond! 6 ] Richmond Information Guide www.newmarketservices.com Richmond Information Guide [ Volume 11 [ Number 5 LOCAL INFORMATION The State of Virginia 8 National Health Organization Phone Numbers 12 Area Codes, Important Phone Numbers 13 Travel Information 14 Vehicle Information 15 About Richmond 9-10 Weather 10 Historical Background 11 Publisher: NewMarket Services, Inc. Where to Stay 16 President: Patrick Morgan Dining and Nightlife 17 Managing Editor: Rebecca Wallace Entertainment 18 Things To Do 19-21 Executive Editor: Jason Gerali Media 24 Contributing Writer: Amy Tennant Recommended Tours 25 Executive VP Sales & Marketing: Robert Fischer MOVING Regional Sales Manager: Beth Hurley Smooth Transitions 27-28 Art Department: Sprague Design Choosing a Moving Company 27 Graphic Designer: Dean Sprague Packing Tips 27-28 Staying Organized 27 NewMarket On-Line: Total Web Design, Inc. Settling Into Your New Home 28 IT and Web Development: Larry Bongiovi What’s All the Talk About? 31 Research Assistant: Stephanie Cooper, Lora Price Relocating Your Pet 41 Pre-Move Checklist 32-33 Circulation: Little Drummer Boy Dist., Inc. Relocating Your Pet 34 Phoenix Office: MOVING WITH CHILDREN AND EDUCATON PO Box 30534 Reinforce the Positives 35-36 Phoenix, AZ 85046-0534 Choosing a School 35-36 Phone: (602) 923-3415 Selecting Child Care 36-37 Fax: (602) 923-0774 Education 38-41 Toll Free: (866) 595-3791 Chicago Office: FITNESS & HEALTH 902 North Ashland In The Kitchen 43 Physical and Mental Well Being 44-46 Chicago, IL 60622 Volunteering 47 Phone: (312) 226-6288 Fax: (312) 226-6290 HOUSING Toll Free: (866) 595-3792 Making the Right Choice 49-50 NewMarket currently publishes Information Choosing the Right Home 51 Guides for 95 North American and 32 Home Inspection Checklist 52 International Markets. To order your Homecare Basics for New Homeowners 53 NewMarket Information Guides for $3.50 Taking Care of Energy Costs 54 each, please contact NewMarket Services toll free at (866) 595-3792. Security 56 Home Buyer’s Glossary 56-57 In preparing this publication, every effort Who’s Who in Building 58 has been made to assure the accuracy of Selecting a Builder 59 the information contained herein, but authenticity cannot be guaranteed. Listings Selecting a Contractor 60 are subject to omission, error or change Banking & Mortgage Information 61-64 without notice. BUSINESS DIRECTORY All material in this publication is copyright Business Directory Listings 65-70 protected and can only be reprinted with permission of the publisher. Richmond Information Guide [ 7 THE STATE OF VIRGINIA Philadelphia/South Jersey The state was named after Queen Elizabeth I, who was called the NJ “Virgin Queen” because she never married. She authorized the PA 1584 expedition by Sir Walter Raleigh along the coast. Two OH Pittsburgh Baltimore centuries later, the British surrendered at the Battle of Yorktown MD near Chesapeake Bay, granting the former colonies independence. Columbus DL Virginia seceded with the rest of the Confederacy during the American Civil War, and hosted more of that war’s battles than any Washington DC other state. WV Virginia is the birthplace of eight of the United States’ presidents and portions of the original colony subsequently became Kentucky, VA Richmond Indiana, Illinois, and West Virginia as well as some portions of Ohio. Hampton Roads KY Fast Facts Raleigh/Durham STATE MOTTO: Sic Semper Tyrannis Piedmont Triad (Thus Always to Tyrants) POPULATION: 7,567,465 (2005) NC TN STATE NICKNAME: Old Dominion he Commonwealth of Virginia is one of the original thirteen CAPITAL: Richmond colonies of the United States. It’s one of the Mid-Atlantic COUNTIES:97 TStates, and was the first part of the country to be LAND AREA: 42,793 sq mi permanently colonized by the English. 187 miles of coastline Virginia is bordered by West Virginia, Maryland, and Washington, COASTLINE: DC to the north; by North Carolina and Tennessee to the south; LARGEST CITIES: Virginia Beach, Norfolk, Chesapeake Kentucky and West Virginia to the west; and by Chesapeake Bay STATE SALES TAX: 5% and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Western Virginia is mountainous, 44 covered by the Allegheny and Blue Ridge mountains. The central STATE PARKS: piedmont region, with its rolling hills, flattens out into the sandy LONGIST RIVER: Potomac River - 665 miles coastal plain toward the Atlantic Ocean. Virginia's economy is well balanced with diverse sources of income. Southeast Virginia has military installations, cattle, tobacco and peanut farming. Northern Virginia used to host a lot of dairy farms, but now has high concentrations of high tech companies. Software, communications, consulting, and defense contractors make the north home. Coal mining was a huge part of the state’s economy in the 18th and 19th centuries, and there are still some mines active in southwest Virginia. Virginia’s gross state product was $326.6 billion in 2004. The per capita personal income was $35,477 in 2004, about 85% of the national average. 8 ] Richmond Information Guide ABOUT RICHMOND OVERVIEW rom its beginnings as a trading post for early settlers to the thriving economic center it is today, Richmond has grown into a city with a rich history, diverse culture and Fgracious hospitality. Tree-lined streets and quaint bricked walkways invite locals and visitors to explore this easily manageable city. Stroll along the river that brought Captain John Smith to this area, walk in the footsteps of patriots like Patrick Henry and Thomas Jefferson and see the Capitol building which once flew the flag of the Confederate States of America. Downtown A charming blend of old and new, Richmond’s city center is made up of commercial, residential and government buildings. Capitol Square, the seat of Virginia State government, is a good place to begin a visit to the city. On the grounds are the Virginia State Capitol, the second oldest in the country, the Executive Mansion, home of the governor and the historic Bell Tower which houses the Visitor Center. Nearby are the Museum and White House of the Confederacy and St. Paul’s Church, reminders of the period during the Civil War when Richmond was the capital of the Confederate States. The The Valentine Museum depicts the city’s history through artifacts, paintings and the Federal-style Wickham House, which dates back to 1812. Richmond recently experienced a downtown renaissance when old tobacco warehouses along the James River were converted into residential and commercial space. A large medical research facility and several office buildings contribute to the economic success of the city and especially the downtown area.