Neighbor raises concerns about VMFA expansion, property acquisitions and zoning enforcement

A First District resident used the public-comment period to raise land-use and transparency concerns about the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts (VMFA) expansion and related property acquisitions.

Thomas Courtney told the council that the VMFA Foundation, a private entity affiliated with the museum, had amassed nearly all properties on the 2800 to 2900 block of Grove Avenue and that the foundation has been operating a bed-and-breakfast that "serves no educational purpose for the museum." He said the foundation manages "over 300,000,000 endowment and investments separate from public records, FOIA disclosure," and alleged the foundation and the museum had proceeded on certain construction steps instead of seeking amendments to an existing special-use permit.

Courtney said the foundation's private attorney also sits on the city's code refresh committee, creating a potential advisory conflict, and that the zoning administrator had advised the foundation in ways that circumvented neighborhood processes. He said the Board of Zoning Appeals in March 2025 had told VMFA entities to do a better job communicating with the neighborhood.

Courtney asked council to request "immediate proactive dialogue and a clear timeline for information sharing from the VMFA and its foundation." The comment was offered during the public-comment period; no formal council action on the request was recorded in the meeting minutes.

Council did not respond with a formal vote or direction during the meeting; Courtney's remarks were entered into the public record as part of the evening's comments.