Willow Lawn Civic Association
Bringing our community together!
Details about our Civic Association coming soon!
WLCA Committees
The following Committees have been established to serve our Civic Association. If you are interested in helping with one or more of these groups, please contact the Chairperson listed. (Click on the Chair’s name to link to their email.)
CITY RELATIONS: Co-Chairs Kim Waldron and Travis Kuhn
Work with the community and the WLCA Block Representatives to present neighborhood issues to the City of Richmond.
NEIGHBORHOOD SAFETY: Chair Lirys Crawford
Focus on neighborhood safety by identifying traffic concerns and encouraging a more walkable and bike able Willow Lawn.
COMMUNICATIONS: Co-Chairs Lisa Mears and Lisa Plotkin
Help with the website, blog posts, the WLCA Facebook page, and other marketing needs.
COMMUNITY OUTREACH AND SERVICE: Chair Maureen Stengel
Support and work with local charitable organizations through direct outreach, volunteer opportunities and donations.
SOCIAL OUTREACH: Co-Chairs Amanda Ketterlinus and Gary Mears
Manage and support neighborhood and community events.
Local History
Perhaps the most well-known aspect of our neighborhood is its proximity to Willow Lawn Shopping Center, Richmond's very first shopping center (!), which opened in 1956 with stores including Safeway, Giant Food, G.C. Murphy, J.C. Penny, Peoples Drug and Woolworth's--it was Richmond's first shopping center. In the late 1980s, the shopping center was acquired by Federal Realty Investment Trust, which enclosed part of the space and incorporated more stores and a food court. In the 1980s, as more malls opened in Richmond, Willow Lawn lost many of its anchor stores. In 2005, Federal Realty Investment Trust renovated the mall, reopening part of the formerly enclosed spaces to be open-air again. Willow Lawn underwent another renovation in 2011.
Cool fact: Did you know there is a waterway under Willow Lawn Drive?
(Source and history photos can be found here: https://newsvirginian.com/remember-these-stores-at-willow-lawn-33-photos-from-the-times-dispatch-archives/collection_ce3669b9-f4aa-54d1-8670-ebe0fcfc8277.html#1)