Richmond’s Getting a Major Upgrade: On Networks & Flow

The River City and a History of Revival

For those familiar with Richmond, Virginia — and even for those who aren’t — perceptions often default to its dark history as one of the nation’s largest human trafficking ports or its role as the Confederate capital during the Civil War. But for those of us who call Richmond home, we know it can be both a place of reconciliation and one of abundant prosperity. If you’ve lived here long enough, there’s a deep pride in being a Richmonder.

Not everyone shares that perspective. I’ve spoken with people eager to leave Richmond because they lack financial stability and see limited prospects for their future here. Yet in more than 90 conversations on the America’s Healthiest City podcast — and with countless others working alongside me in the community — I’ve sensed both kinetic and potential energy. There’s a strong desire to become a great city and a growing connectivity among people, governments, and geographies.

I believe this expanding connectivity will catalyze Richmond’s transformation from a city that struggles to one that becomes known as the healthiest metropolis in America.

Why Networks & Flow Matter for Richmond

As someone who has learned most of what I know through observation, pattern recognition, and trial and error, I’ve developed a deep appreciation for networks and flow.

My first career was in IT, where I learned how physical hardware networks connect the websites, applications, and communications used by people across the globe. I came to understand how bandwidth limits speed, throughput, and functionality — and how improving those systems allows more data to move faster, powering the digital economy.

My second career in marketing revealed the power of connectivity across digital platforms. I learned how to optimize campaigns to generate more economic output with fewer inputs, leveraging online networks to build steady pipelines of business opportunities for myself and my clients.

Early in that marketing career, I also moonlighted as a day trader, chasing gains in equities and crypto markets seven days a week. Immersing myself in financial news reinforced my understanding of how networks and flow shape outcomes. When I stopped trading, it felt like my only contribution had been adding flow to the exchanges. But looking back, I learned valuable lessons:

• Information networks drive business decisions.
• Technology networks accelerate marketing communications.
• Transportation networks move people and goods.
• Human networks, amplified by digital connectivity, can form overnight.
• Energy networks power it all.

What’s Happening in Richmond Right Now

In recent years, Sports Backers, a regional nonprofit founded in 1991, has championed a vision for a regional trail network called the Fall Line Trail. Over the past 12 months, funding from the Central Virginia Transportation Authority and local partners has turned that vision into reality, with groundbreakings and ribbon cuttings marking the start of a 43-mile trail spanning multiple jurisdictions.

If you’ve never visited a region with a trail network like this, it can be hard to grasp the transformation that happens when people are connected by a safe, lower-speed mode of transportation. The network the trail will create — and the flow of people who use it — will become catalysts for people-oriented development and solutions to some of our most pressing challenges. Unlike the Capital Trail, which connects disparate communities across a largely rural trail, the Fall Line Trail will connect cities within our metro region.

This isn’t unique to trails. Rail systems and roads can spark similar effects. But trails offer something they don’t: immersion in nature without traffic noise, pollution, or the risks of high-speed travel. While some sections of the Fall Line Trail will pass through urban areas and be exposed to those elements, its regional connectivity and the reduction in vehicular traffic where trail lanes are added will still improve quality of life.

Where We Can Look for a Preview of The Fall Line Trail

Cities across the country are investing in multimodal urban-to-rural trail networks to connect people to nature, jobs, entertainment, and more. I’ve had the opportunity to join Richmond community leaders on trips to cities where vibrant trail systems have spurred human-centered development. ChamberRVA’s annual Intercity Visit — a trip designed for immersion, connection, and learning — has consistently shaped Richmond’s future.

On one such trip, Jon Lugbill, then Executive Director of Sports Backers, first encountered the Indianapolis Cultural Trail. That experience inspired him to spearhead what would become the Fall Line Trail in Greater Richmond. The 2024 visit to Atlanta took us to the BeltLine, and in 2025, we visited Greenville’s Swamp Rabbit Trail. Lugbill shared insights from his Intercity visits on America’s Healthiest City before retiring in the summer of 2025.

The trails in those communities are thriving. We saw people walking, biking, skateboarding, and scootering to work, shops, restaurants, parks, and fitness amenities — or simply to meet friends and enjoy nature. Morning and night, the trails were busy, with safety seemingly not a concern. These weren’t empty paths; they were alive with people, conversations, and spontaneous interactions as neighbors and strangers crossed paths.

The trails wound through neighborhoods, connecting to community resources and other trails. But what stood out most was the abundance of mixed-use development along them. Around one corner, a cozy coffee shop. Down a flight of stairs, a live guitar performance. A few steps further, a river overlook. Then back on a bike — heading to work or home.

In Greenville, our hotel was within walking distance of the Swamp Rabbit Trail. Since opening in 2009, it’s become magnetic. Members of our delegation talked about it daily — sharing stories or planning walks. During a break, I strolled over, crossed the Reedy River on the expansive Liberty Bridge, and set up with my laptop in a café along the trail, watching people stroll, jog, and zip past on their way to destinations unknown.

Both the Swamp Rabbit Trail and the BeltLine are now mature networks. Breweries, food halls, apartments, offices, government buildings, parks, and more have sprung up as a direct result of their presence. And development continues along these vibrant human corridors.

How We Can Leverage This Moment to Solve Richmond’s Toughest Issues

Trails connect people. The Fall Line Trail will bring us physically closer and help us better appreciate the fragile, beautiful nature of life by letting us see our neighbors’ lived experiences. That’s the starting point — but it’s far from the finish line.

In Atlanta, we visited housing developments built from decommissioned FEMA trailers. In Greenville, we explored Unity Park. Promised 83 years earlier to residents of a historically Black neighborhood, the 60-acre park finally opened in 2022 after decades of underinvestment and industrial use. Greenville also embraces a housing-first policy — a likely reason why we saw virtually no homelessness on its streets.

It’s clear that cities prioritizing connectivity through trails reap significant benefits. Perhaps proximity fosters more agreement on solutions. Perhaps development along trails generates enough tax revenue to fund those solutions. Perhaps both factors combine to reduce friction and accelerate interventions that improve quality of life for everyone.

Could Richmond Become a Blue Zone?

Lugbill’s legacy lives on through the Sports Backers team as they aim for Fall 2028 completion. As we imagine what Richmond could look like three years from now, our vision should include becoming a Blue Zone. 

A Blue Zone is a geographic area where residents live significantly longer than average. The first was identified in Sardinia, Italy, in 1999. Others, including Okinawa, Japan, and Loma Linda, California, have held the title since 2005. Common traits include multi-generational living, locally grown food, walkability, fewer fast-food options, and clean, fitness-rich parks. Residents in these places eat less, move more, and maintain stronger social connections.

America’s Healthiest City began in 2023 as a grassroots initiative to help Richmond believe it could become one of the healthiest regions in the world — and to move toward solutions that make that vision real by 2033. It won’t be easy. Nearly three years in, we’re still working toward a way to measure our progress. But people are tackling that challenge — and others are building the solutions that will help us reach the goal, like Sports Backers pursuit of the trail.

I asked current Sports Backers Executive Director Will Dixon what he thought would be the future impacts the trail would have on Richmond. “The Fall Line is transforming how our region moves, connects, and thrives,” said Dixon, “Every new section, like the recently completed stretch from Ashland through Hanover and into Henrico, creates opportunity for improved connectivity, economic development, and health across Central Virginia.”

The Fall Line Trail is a gift to our region — one that helps us see our neighbors as human, regardless of allegiances. A gift that encourages movement and creates spaces for connection and collaboration. A gift that will help transform today’s toughest issues into tomorrow’s solvable challenges.

My hope is that Richmond becomes a Blue Zone someday. If the trail isn’t the catalyst that makes this vision a reality, it’ll most certainly be one of them.