HENRICOCITIZEN.COM HENRICO’S HOMETOWN NEWS SOURCE SINCE 2001 AUG. 1-14, 2019 County to seek private operator for Belmont course BY TOM LAPPAS posal this week or next, Luther said, and su- Citizen Editor pervisors could select a new operator by Golfers, rejoice: Belmont Golf Course November, then turn control of the course isn't going anywhere. over by Jan. 1. Months of speculation and discussion Instead of requiring an operator to pay about the future of the county-owned a direct lease fee, county officials will create Lakeside course have led Henrico officials a capital reserve fund for the course and re- on a thorough journey – and, ultimately, a quire the operator to contribute an as-yet circular one that returned them to a famil- unspecified percentage of gross annual iar place. revenues from the course to it.That money will provide for future improvement or ren- Henrico Recreation and Parks Director ovation needs, Luther said. Neil Luther last week recommended that the county's Board of Supervisors seek bids Luther anticipates that bidders will pro- from private companies that want to lease pose lease terms of 15 to 20 years or more the course from, and operate it for, Henrico. – long enough to allow the investment to SEE BELMONT P. 6 The county will issue a request for pro- , CITIZEN FILE PHOTO Taylor, Branin ‘A beacon of light, laughter’ lead in June Friends,patrons mourn beloved bartender fundraising BY PATTY KRUSZEWSKI [email protected] BY ARRMAN KYAW Over the last decade, Henrico's Mekong Restaurant has Special to the Citizen consistently made headlines. Not only is its Vietnamese cuisine Henrico County Commonwealth’s a frequent winner of top-tier honors in local "best Asian restau- Attorney Shannon Taylor raised the rant" polls, but Craftbeer.com has also named Mekong "Best most funds during the month of June Beer Bar in America" for multiple consecutive years. among candidates for local office in Since a June 30 tragedy in the James River, however, Henrico – $13,637 – according to cam- Mekong has been in the spotlight for all the wrong reasons -- paign finance reports for the latest filing and members of the Mekong community are still grappling period. Incumbent Three Chopt supervi- with unanswered questions. sor Tommy Branin was That Sunday morning, Quy Pham, beloved bartender at the second, raising just popular establishment, inexplicably drowned while participat- more than $10, ing in a triathlon. Pham was only 35, and left a wife and two 500. young daughters. Candidates for From the moment the news broke, Mekong regulars, mem- the Nov. 5 general bers of the beer community and Pham's fellow cyclists and election, except those triathletes flooded Facebook with posts to express their shock running for Henricopolis District Soil and sadness and laud Pham as a "beacon of light and laughter," and Water Conservation director posi- as one admirer put it. tions,were required to submit campaign finance reports for the latest filing peri- Many posters spoke of Pham's welcoming presence at the bar od on July 15. Funds raised could in- and his easy way with customers. "Quy loved everyone," wrote clude both cash and in-kind contribu- Thomas Glazier. "He always made us feel so special." tions. "He made you feel like you were at home all the time," said Taylor, a Democrat seeking her third Frank Barksdale. The Veil Brewing Co. released a special beer term, also ended the filing period with "Quy treated everyone like they were the most important per- in honor of Quy Pham, the largest overall ending balance son in the world," wrote Michael Felberbaum. "I always made sure with all proceeds bene- (about $69,000) – nearly triple that of SEE QUY, P. 4 fitting his family. SEE CAMPAIGN, P. 6 2 BUSINESS 5 GOVERNMENT 7 EDUCATION 9 ENTERTAINMENT JIU JITSU STUDIO OPENS BOWERS ATTEMPTING TO SIGNING DAY EVENT FILIPINO FESTIVAL RETURNS IN WEST END UNSEAT THORNTON WINS STATE AWARD AUG. 9-10 BUSINESS Cushman & Wakefield | Thalhimer * * * Westerre Parkway; Chicken Salad Chick – at 205 Towne Center West Boulevard in and the Richmond Tennis Association Cushman & Wakefield | Thalhimer leased 2,700 SF in Westpark Shopping Cen- Short Pump, recently announced new announced recently that Thalhimer is the announced the sale of 1600 Forest Avenue ter at 9645 W. Broad Street; GE Precision management as well as new attractions new title sponsor of the Club Challenge, in Henrico County. TBL Networks pur- Healthcare, LLC – leased 13,309 SF in East and prices. New attractions include The Lit- beginning with the 2019 event scheduled chased the 13,464 square foot office build- Shore II at 120 Eastshore Drive; His High- tle Warrior, the park’s first inflatable obsta- for Sept. 20 – 22 at the Westwood Club in ing situated on 1.26 acres from Atlantic ness Prince Aga Khan Shia – renewed its cle course geared to all ages, and Melt- Henrico. Union Bank for lease of 8,793 SF in Parham Trade Center at Down, a six-player action game. The park The newly named Thalhimer Challenge $2,300,000. Will Mc- 2500 E. Parham Road; Thetford Financial consists of 13,000 square feet of trampo- is the largest tennis Googan of Cushman Services – renewed its lease of 1,911 SF in lines, in addition to a Ninja Warrior course, event of its kind in & Wakefield | Thal- Vistas II at 5516 Falmouth Street; and Vir- high level ropes course, and zip line. Virginia. It draws himer handled the ginia Commonwealth Bank – leased Boomerang’s new management is led by 1,350 SF in Scott’s View at 1400 Roseneath Ralph Daniel, Michael Badway, Brandon more than 500 play- BUSINESS sale negotiations on ers and thousands of behalf of the seller. Road; GAI Consultants, Inc. – leased Todd Moses, Malikah Younger, and Jack spectators represent- Send your business 10,945 SF in East Shore II at 120 Eastshore Brown. news to citizen@ The company Drive; and Dadoo Care Transport, LLC – ing 12 tennis clubs in henricocitizen.com also reported the * * * the Richmond metro- leased 1,200 SF in Parham East at 2201- following real estate 2221 E. Parham Road. EXIT First Realty (Richmond/Glen area to compete during transactions in Henrico County: LS Allen) recently announced that Judy Tat, a three-day period for the Thalhimer Cup. Evolutions LLC – leased 3,500 SF at 1650 * * * Robert Lavoie, III, Elehue Pierce and Participating clubs include acac, Burk- Willow Lawn Drive; The Winvale Group, Boomerang Air Sports, an indoor Thomas Dale recently joined its Glen Allen wood, CCV, Dominion, Hermitage, Mid- LLC – leased 3,165 SF in Westerre I at 3951 trampoline park and entertainment center office. lothian Athletic Club, Midlothian Tennis Club,Raintree,Salisbury,Westwood,Wil- low Oaks and Woodlake. Defending "Aegis is a special space where our stu- champion acac will attempt to repeat. Jiu jitsu studio opens in West End dents should expect to learn valuable skills without undue pressure or aban- The event format includes two men’s Aegis Jiu Jitsu, the first jiu jitsu studio ans of jiu jitsu and small business. They doning fun.” doubles matches, two women’s doubles in Henrico's West End, recently opened at wanted to created a family-friendly, mod- Jiu jitsu is akin to other martial arts in matches, and one mixed doubles match at 200 Towne Center West Boulevard, Suite ern atmosphere that provides cus- various NTRP rating levels from 3.0 up to that it demands respect, discipline, and 605. tomized instruction in a safe context. 5.0 and above (the “Open” division), with a thoughtful execution. Called “human club earning two points for every match The business, owned by Dave and “What really sets us apart is our posi- chess” and “the gentle art of choking,” it victory and one point for every loss. Christine Kenworthy and Brett Scott, of- tive culture, and that’s what guided the requires strategic thinking in addition to The format creates an interesting dy- fers self-defense memberships to those design of everything from our syllabi to grappling skills. But its mechanics are also namic because teams’ lower rated players ages six and up, including women-only our infrastructure," said head instructor scalable, enabling students of varying are just as important as higher rated ones, classes, seminars and private group Dave Kenworthy, a 16-year veteran of jiu ages and abilities to take part. so there is an element of team spirit and events. jitsu, a first-degree black belt, and owner For details about Aegis, visit camaraderie across different levels. Scott and the Kenworthys are veter- of two national medals in the discipline. aegisjj.com. 2 • HENRICOCITIZEN.COM AUG. 1-14, 2019 COMMUNITY St. Matthew’s United Methodist Church in students must earn a semester grade point aver- Goochland County recently named Mark Mont- age of 3.5 to 3.69. gomery its new pastor. Montgomery most recent- *** ly served as an associate pastor at Ebenezer United Methodist Church in Stafford and previously at Maurice Wilson of Henrico was named to the Grace United Methodist Church in Corpus Christi, spring 2019 dean’s list at Champlain College in Ver- Texas. He also has served as campus minister at mont. To qualify for the dean’s list, students must George Mason’s Fairfax campus. He was raised in earn a semester grade point average of 3.5 or high- the United Methodist Church in San Antonio,Texas er.Wilson is majoring in Business Management. and earned his undergraduate degree from Mc- *** Murry University in Abilene, Texas. He then gradu- Annabel Sammons and Dawn Westbrook- ated from The Divinity School at Duke University in Boyd of Glen Allen graduated in May from Durham, North Carolina, one of 13 seminaries Rochester Institute of Technology in New York.