MEDIA WATCH
Calling Chesterfield a "power broker"
Greg Pearson

What has come over the Richmond Times- Dispatch (RTD)? Have the editorial page people taken enough bus tours in Chesterfield to understand our point of view?

In a Feb. 10 editorial that called Chesterfield a "power broker," the daily paper appeared to have an epiphany, saying "Chesterfield's time has come" to be a "political power" - primarily because we are the most populous jurisdiction in central Virginia.

For far too long, the RTD seemed to champion and defend Richmond, which has fallen from its leadership position of 30 years ago. The editorial questioned several mantras that we previously believed the RTD held sacrosanct.

First, "the statement that healthy urban centers are essential to entire metro areas may or may not be true." Certainly, few here wish any misfortune on the city, but most problems are not external, they're internal. Chesterfield, Henrico and Hanover counties seem to be doing quite well while Richmond continues to struggle. That suggests the metro area can succeed despite the challenges the city faces. As the editorial said, "Richmond can help its cause by putting its own house in order."

Second, "many suburbanites suspect 'regionalism' really means bailing out the city." That is an understated truth since the facts clearly show that whenever "regionalism" is mentioned, it often involves Chesterfield sending money to Richmond. We suspect the same is true for Henrico County.

Last month, the Poseidon Swimming Club announced it was joining forces with the Richmond Kickers Youth Soccer Club to locate just inside the county near the intersection of Route 10 and Chippenham Parkway. Given the much larger youth population in the county, the location makes sense, but the RTD story ("Swim club, Richmond hit wall") on Jan. 22 made it sound like the daily paper was disappointed about the site selection. All jurisdictions in the metro compete for economic development, and despite the city's proposed sports entertainment complex on North Boulevard, this competition should be no different. The Feb. 10 editorial concluded that "certain projects may be better served in the counties." Bravo.

Even with a regional effort, there is going to be competition for many economic developments that can result in hurt feelings. Every jurisdiction wants to capture more business for its tax base, and that competition is part of our free enterprise system.

Finally, the RTD editorial opined that "communities north of the James [River] have not always treated communities south of the James as social peers." But it added: "…if one side of the river has projected an air of superiority, then the other side has displayed a similar unflattering defensiveness."

It's our suspicion that Chesterfield has more residents from outside of the Richmond metro than Henrico or Richmond. They probably moved here not knowing about any stigma.

Of late, Chesterfield officials have become more assertive in telling the county's story to the news media in general and the RTD in particular. Witness the baseless front page story on Jan. 31 that reported Chesterfield might be courting the Richmond Braves. Two days later, the RTD editorialized that Chesterfield has "stepped up to the plate regarding professional baseball in the region," apparently negating the need for a retraction. We had always been told there was "a wall between the reporters and the editorial page." Apparently not.