The motel site is across the street from the VUU campus. (BizSense file photo)
After soliciting development proposals earlier this year, Virginia Union University has closed on its purchase of a neighboring motel property it has eyed for an expansion of its campus in Richmond’s Northside.
VUU paid $2.9 million for the Budget Inn of Richmond motel at 2201 N. Lombardy St. in a deal that closed Dec. 5, city property records show. The 0.9-acre property at the corner of Lombardy and Brook Road is directly across the intersection from the university’s campus.
The motel site at 2201 N. Lombardy St., beside Brook Road. (BizSense file photo)
The site is planned for a multipurpose building that will focus on community development, according to a release distributed Monday. The release quotes VUU President Hakim Lucas, who described the acquisition as “a historic decision.”
“For the first time in four decades, we are expanding beyond our current gates,” Lucas said in the release, adding that the move would help “strengthen redevelopment in the Northside Richmond community.”
The release states the purchase was made using available resources and without incurring debt. VUU had the property under contract as of late March.
The property was purchased from Surjaya Corp., which purchased the motel in 2006 for $1.2 million. The latest city assessment valued the property at $543,000.
A map of the rezoning area. Click to enlarge. (Courtesy Richmond Planning and Development Review)
Earlier this year, VUU put out an RFP seeking development proposals for the property, which was included in a city-initiated rezoning of multiple parcels as a first step toward implementing a revitalization plan adopted for the area in 2016.
Called the VUU/Chamberlayne Neighborhood Plan, it calls for mixed-use, pedestrian-friendly development that would create a “neighborhood center” in the area of Lombardy, Brook and Chamberlayne Avenue.
A press conference formally announcing the acquisition was scheduled to be held at the university at 1 p.m. today.
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