1 | Environmental group sponsoring tours of toxic clean-up site, March 21 and March 28
The Richmond Shoreline Alliance is hosting walking tours of the Zeneca toxic waste site, on March 21 and March 28. There are two tours each day, one at 10 a.m. and one at 2 p.m. The 86-acre site along Richmond’s southeast shoreline is contaminated from 100 years of industrial chemical dumping. It’s now the focus of a federal Superfund clean-up project. Alliance members say “substandard clean-up efforts have left dangerously high levels of toxic and cancer-causing chemicals and heavy metals in the soil and groundwater.” Zeneca toxic site tour, Sat., March 21 and Sat., March 28, 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. or 2 p.m. to 3:30 p.m., 1415 S. 47th St., Richmond. RSVP here.
2 | Groundbreaking for major library renovation, March 25
City officials will kick off a $30 million renovation of Richmond’s main library with a groundbreaking on March 25. The library was closed in July 2025 in preparation for the two-year rehabilitation project. Central library operations were temporarily moved to the Nevin Avenue conference rooms in the Richmond Memorial Auditorium. The city’s two other public libraries — the West Side Branch Library and the Bayview Branch Library — remain open. The main library, which opened in 1949, will have “life safety” and “critical maintenance” done. Among the improvements will be seismic upgrades, fire sprinkler improvements, lighting systems, electrical power upgrades, new windows and elevator replacements. The library is scheduled to reopen in fall 2027. Richmond Main Library groundbreaking, Wed., March 25, noon, 325 Civic Center Plaza. Free
3 | Affordable housing units now available on formerly contaminated land
A grand opening was held earlier this month for 43 new affordable housing units in Richmond. The Legacy Court project was built on land that was once contaminated from its use as a junk yard. The state Department of Toxic Substance Control provided funding for the cleanup. The Legacy Court homes on Fred Jackson Way are reserved for families earning between 30% and 60% of area median income. Thirteen homes are reserved for unhoused individuals. The state program is also providing 90 affordable apartments at the Nellie Hannon Gateway project in Emeryville as well as 76 affordable units at the Native American Health Center in Oakland. For more information, contact the Department of Toxic Substance Control’s Berkeley office at 510-540-2122.
4 | Atchison Village Credit Union now accepting members throughout Richmond, San Pablo
All Richmond and San Pablo residents are now eligible to join the Atchison Village Credit Union. The institution recently expanded its services beyond the Atchison Village neighborhood to include anyone who lives, works, attends school or worships in Richmond and San Pablo. The expansion was recently approved by the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation. The not-for-profit credit union, which was formed in 1958, now manages $13 million in assets for 1,800 account holders. The Atchison Village housing tract is a 450-home neighborhood built in 1941 to house civilian workers in Richmond’s defense industries. It is part of the Rosie the Riveter WWII Home Front National Historic Park. For more information, contact the Atchison Village Credit Union at 510-233-3218.
Also check out our list of ongoing things to do (many of which are free). And add your events to our free community calendar.
