A wide range of changes to health care, business, eviction prevention and noise control in Richmond are in the works following the latest City Council meeting Monday evening.

In a unanimous vote, City Council approved the sale of the vacant, former REAL School building at 4929 Chamberlayne Ave. in the city’s North Side to The Virginia League of Planned Parenthood for $10.

According to the ordinance, first proposed by Mayor Levar M. Stoney following an unsolicited offer, the VLPP will build a clinic that will provide family planning, primary care and gender-affirming care services.

The group intends to ensure care is available to all Richmond residents, regardless of their insurance or income level, according to operations details included in the ordinance.

The approval of the sale will bring the third Planned Parenthood clinic to the city and fulfills the city’s commitment to address health disparities made in the Richmond Equity Agenda in 2021 and a resolution focused on reproductive health care access in 2022.

“This new Planned Parenthood Center will not only improve access to reproductive health care, but also ensure that we live up to our promise of addressing health inequities in our city,” City Council Vice President Ann-Frances Lambert said in a statement released after the meeting.

“I am proud that this center will be in the Third District and I look forward to seeing all of the benefits it will provide North Side and beyond.”

The building had fallen into disrepair before and after being acquired by the City from Richmond Public Schools.

The building is currently “uninhabitable,” according to Sharon Ebert, deputy chief administrative officer for economic and community development.

VLPP anticipates a $6 million capital investment for the new facility, with 20 new, permanent, full-time jobs estimated to be created in the process alongside many temporary construction jobs.

The sale came amid a rise in abortion care statewide following the repeal of Roe v. Wade and restrictions to reproductive health care access across the country.

According to the VLPP, their Virginia clinics have seen a 30% increase in out-of-state clients recently, with overall clinician-provided abortions in Virginia increasing by 84.7% since 2020.

The sale wasn’t made without some disagreement. The Family Foundation of Virginia sent a letter through its legal arm, the Founding Freedoms Law Center, calling on Stoney to suspend the sale last week. A statement Monday from the group again criticized the move, and promised potential legal action if the sale was approved.

“Richmond City Council essentially gifting the establishment of a fifth abortion center within city limits is appalling,” said Victoria Cobb, president of the Family Foundation of Virginia.

Many of the public comments made in opposition during the meeting struck a similar chord. Over two dozen speakers criticized the sale, suggested alternatives, questioned its legality or challenged the morality of Planned Parenthood’s work and City officials.

Eight other Richmond residents, however, touted Planned Parenthood’s value not just for women’s reproductive care but medical care in general, with some pointing to their own experiences as patients or the benefits it provided to those they know.

“We all deserve health care that allows us to live our fullest lives,” said Rae Pickett, a Planned Parenthood patient. “I urge the council to uphold the commitment it made after Roe was overturned and to ensure patients have access to high quality health care in a place where providers can feel safe to provide it.”

In addition, the City Council adopted a change in the City’s noise ordinance. Violations will now only be considered following a call for service or verbal complaints made to a police officer.

The amended ordinance also excludes motor vehicles among the potential sound violations when on a public right-of-way and when noises are measured at a distance of at least 50 feet. The sounds made by radios, horns or other electronic devices inside parked or stopped vehicles remain potential violations.

Violators will now have to pay a $100 fine 15 days after receiving notice of the violation, with more fees for further violations within the week after the first.

Failure to pay may now result in a warrant of debt filed by the City in the General District Court.

The new amendment removes an option for those who violate the noise ordinance to admit liability or plead no contest, in person or by mail, at the Department of Finance and pay the civil penalty within the notice’s time period.

City Council also voted 8-1 to approve the start of the process for a potential Business Improvement and Recruitment District in Carytown. This process will include discussions with local property owners and businesses.

City Council approved several other ordinances. These included an amendment to the 2024-2025 General Fund Budget and a $1 million appropriation to create and fund a South Side Community Development and Housing Corporation.

This corporation will be part of the city’s Eviction Diversion Program.