Fredericksburg native Buck Cox proposes to construct a research and education hub on the banks of the Rappahannock.
By Cathy Jett
CONTRIBUTOR
Fredericksburg native Henry “Buck” Cox’s dream is to build an environmental research and education hub in Fredericksburg that will attract tourists, boost the economy, and help protect the Rappahannock River.
Making the retired environmental engineer and entrepreneur’s proposed RIVERE Ecological Center on the banks of the Rappahannock a reality will take more funds than the nonprofit has already raised.
On Tuesday, RIVERE’s environment consultant Lori Blanc gave a presentation during the City Council’s work session about the center and asked if Fredericksburg would serve as one of two locality partners in the nonprofit’s application for a GO Virginia Region 6 planning grant of up to $100,000.
She also asked if the City would provide guidance to help RIVERE become “a community treasure” and support the City’s goals and standards.
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“Our goals at the RIVERE Ecological Center align with many aspects of your stated future vision of the city in this comprehensive plan,” said Blanc. “We’d like the RIVERE Ecological Center to be a place that the city embraces as an asset to the community.”
The grant would go toward hiring a firm to analyze the proposed center’s economic impact. Stafford County also will be asked to be a locality partner in the grant application, she said.
Blanc’s presentation began with a short video narrated by Cox, who described how looking for crayfish and salamanders in the Rappahannock inspired his decision to become an environmental engineer. He then warned that the Fredericksburg Area Metropolitan Planning Organization Fredericksburg estimates this area will experience nearly 73% population growth by 2050.
“The more you build impervious surfaces, the more water is going to rapidly make it into the Rappahannock and it’s going to cause ever-increasing flooding, and we’re going to have to get out in front of this problem,” he said. “Fortunately, we have long-standing impactful organizations already working to protect the Rappahannock.”
Cox added that the RIVERE Ecological Center would be a place where Friends of the Rappahannock and others “can accelerate the impacts of their work.”
“Scientists and entrepreneurs can come together to tackle environmental issues. Educators can engage students in research, and people of all abilities can experience the river in ways they never could before,” he said.
To help achieve those goals, RIVERE would offer a coworking, collaborative space for researchers, educators and tech companies focused on testing and improving water quality sensors and environmental education through technology. The data would be shared and could be used to create immersive educational experiences, which Blanc likened to the popular “Van Gogh: The Immersive Experience.” It had a more than $40 million economic impact in Charlotte, N.C., alone.
The RIVERE Ecological Center would be built with the highest level of green building certification and would generate income through coworking memberships, space rentals and job creation, Blanc said. It would also promote ecotourism by holding conferences and a variety of events.
Council members said they wanted to know more about RIVERE’s business plan and if Stafford was on board with participating in the grant request. Blanc said the business plan was on the nonprofit’s website and that it would be making the same request to Stafford officials.
City Manager Tim Baroody said that he would ask if the county was ready to sign on.
The grant process is expected to take about a year. If RIVERE receives the funding, it will then begin a fund-raising campaign.
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