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To amend City Code § 2-86, concerning license to use non-City real property, to allow the Chief Administrative Officer to enter into license agreements or similar documents to use real property owned by a railroad corporation to allow the existence of, install, perform work on, or operate public utility or public works infrastructure on, over or across such property, to extend the period of time for which the City is permitted to use real property owned by a railroad pursuant to such license agreements from five days to perpetual, and to permit the Chief Administrative Officer to delegate the authority to enter into such license agreements to the Director of the Department of Public Utilities or the Department of Public Works.
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THE CITY OF RICHMOND HEREBY ORDAINS:
§ 1. That section 2-86 of the Code of the City of Richmond (2026) be and is hereby amended as follows:
Sec. 2-86. License to use non-City real property.
(a) The Chief Administrative Officer, on behalf of the City, may enter into license agreements or similar documents to permit the City to use real property not owned by the City, provided that (i) the period of time for which the City is allowed to use the real property is not greater than five days, unless the property is owned by a railroad corporation and the purpose of the City’s entry onto and use of the property is to allow the existence of, install, perform work on, or operate public utility or public works infrastructure, in which case the period of time for the City’s use of the property may be perpetual, (ii) the license agreement or similar document does not grant the City a leasehold interest or other property interest in the real property, and (iii) the City Attorney has approved as to form the license agreement or similar document prior to the Chief Administrative Officer's signature thereof.
(b) The Chief Administrative Officer may delegate to the Director of Public Utilities or the Director of Public Works the authority granted under subsection (a) of this section, when the Director of Public Utilities or the Director of Public Works deems it necessary to use real property owned by a railroad corporation to allow the existence of, install, perform work on, or operate public utility or public works infrastructure.
§ 2. This ordinance shall be in force and effect upon adoption.
DATE: August 10, 2026 EDITION: 1
TO: The Honorable Members of City Council
THROUGH: The Honorable Dr. Danny Avula, Mayor
THROUGH: Odie Donald II, Chief Administrative Officer
THROUGH: Tanikia Jackson, Deputy Chief Administrative Officer, Finance and Administration
THROUGH: Alfred Wiggins, DCAO of Operations
THROUGH: Letitia Shelton, Director of Finance
THROUGH: Meghan Brown, Director of Budget and Strategic Planning
THROUGH: Robert Vincent, Sr. Director of Department of Public Works
THROUGH: Scott Morris, Sr. Director of Department of Public Utilities
FROM: Laura Bendernagel, Deputy Director Sr. of Department of Public Utilities
RE: License Agreements between Railroads and the City for DPU and DPW Infrastructure
ORD. OR RES. No.
PURPOSE: To amend City Code section 2-86 to allow the Chief Administrative Officer to enter into license agreements or similar documents to use real property owned by a railroad corporation to allow the existence of, install, perform work on, or operate public utility or public works infrastructure on, over or across such property, to extend the period of time for which the City is permitted to use real property owned by a railroad pursuant to such license agreements from five days to perpetual, and to permit the Chief Administrative Officer to delegate the authority to enter into such license agreements to the Director of the Department of Public Utilities or the Department of Public Works.
BACKGROUND: There are hundreds of instances where Department of Public Utility and Department of Public Works infrastructure crosses railroad property. This infrastructure includes major utility pipelines, combined sewer regulators, roads, and bridges. In some instances, the infrastructure was built through mutual agreement without the agreements being formally recorded. There is currently a need to maintain, repair, and renew this infrastructure, as well as construct new infrastructure to support the City’s Combined Sewer Overflow program.
Railroads now require entities to enter into long-term or perpetual license agreements to cover existence of the infrastructure on their property, as well as temporary access agreements for inspecting, performing needed work on, maintaining, operating, and constructing new infrastructure. Each agreement generally requires negotiation with the railroads that balances risks to both parties. Reducing the time to approve on the City’s side prevents delays associated with critical infrastructure work, keeping critical infrastructure repairs and construction on schedule, minimizing interruption to services provided to residents, and keeping the City in regulatory compliance.
Perpetual license agreements are desired because DPU and DPW infrastructure remain in place for hundreds of years, with appropriate maintenance, repair, and renewal. Setting limits on the license agreements will result in a large level of effort to track and renegotiate new license agreements, each iteration of which would require additional fees by the railroad and potentially changes in terms. Since the railroads own the land, the City has little to no negotiating power against changes in terms at renewal. If the City and Railroad cannot agree to new terms, the infrastructure in place becomes at risk of removal by the railroad, or inaccessible to the City for critical maintenance, repairs and renewal. Since railroads cut through the City, finding alternative routes around the railroads to avoid crossing would likely be impossible, while in the interim, infrastructure failures would cause risks of life/safety service disruptions.
COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT: No specific community engagement has been performed around agreements with railroads since the agreements are solely between the City and railroad companies.
STRATEGIC INITATIVES ALIGNMENT: Facilitating establishment of agreements aligns with the goal of A Thriving and Sustainable Built Environment in the current Mayoral Action Plan, execution of the DPU and DPW CIP program to maintain safe and reliable service, and the goals of many DPU and DPW infrastructure plans, including but not limited to the RVA Clean Water Plan, Combined Sewer System Final Plan, the James River Bacteriological TMDL, and the requirements of the 2020 CSO Law (SB 1064).
FISCAL IMPACT: Passage of the ordinance does not result in added cost. Establishing railroad agreements will allow DPU and DPW to make more timely repairs and modifications to critical infrastructure, which will reduce project costs for emergency repairs and facilitate spending on grant funding, which should overall reduce costs to the City.
DESIRED EFFECTIVE DATE: Upon adoption
REQUESTED INTRODUCTION DATE: September 14, 2026
CITY COUNCIL PUBLIC HEARING DATE: September 28, 2026
REQUESTED AGENDA: Consent Agenda
RECOMMENDED COUNCIL COMMITTEE: Governmental Operations Standing Committee
AFFECTED AGENCIES: Department of Public Utilities, Department of Public Works
RELATIONSHIP TO EXISTING ORD. OR RES.: None.
ATTACHMENTS: None
STAFF: Robert Stone, Deputy Director, DPU
Jeff McBride, Director of Water and Administration, DPU
Daniel Rifenburgh, Director of Richmond Gasworks, DPU