The Memphis Rockabilly Band performing in a rainstorm at the last edition of High on the Hog (2006) in Libby Hill Park

As I was walkin’  -  I saw a sign there
And that sign said – no tress passin’
But on the other side … it didn’t say nothin!
Now that side was made for you and me!
– From Woody Guthrie’s “This Land Is Your Land”

For a generation of music-loving Richmonders the second Saturday in October always meant another edition of High on the Hog — the annual outdoor, pork-worshipping party staged in Libby Hill Park. The last of those rock ‘n’ roll themed parties was in 2006.

Over the 30 years of HOTHs, which functioned as reunions for regular attendees, some number of them must have paused over their barbeque sandwiches to appreciate Libby Hill Park’s famous elevated view of the James River winding away from Downtown Richmond toward the Chesapeake Bay.

Countless celebrations and festivities have taken place in that public park since its original days of being named Marshall Square, after Supreme Court Chief Justice John Marshall. Following the Civil War the name was changed to Libby Hill Park, after Luther Libby who lived adjacent to the park. Libby is remembered by history buffs for his nearby warehouse that was used by the Confederacy as prison during the Civil War.

Speaking of history, the story goes that in the 1700s the look of the James from what is now Libby Hill Park was so reminiscent of a similar view of the Thames in Richmond, England that Virginia’s capital city got its name from that resemblance.

With its 115-year-old Soldiers and Sailors Monument, rolling hills and quaint park house, Libby Hill Park has been the setting for many a picnic lunch and moonlit stroll. Tourist buses drive to the park religiously.

It’s all about The View.

Chuck Wrenn, the impresario who booked the entertainment for the HOTH parties, lives with his wife and two daughters on East Franklin Street, facing the park. “I was married in that park,” he said.

No doubt, many others are carrying memories of a special moment associated with the same vista.

HOTH parties, Frisbee-golf games and inner tube rides down snow-covered slopes aside, my own most vivid recollection of that park comes from a late afternoon with a girlfriend. In the early-1980s, for the benefit of my zoomed-in Super 8 lens, she was doing cartwheels, landing smoothly on her hands, then feet, then hands. As I panned to follow her, my camera angle had the shimmering light on the river in the background.

“This view belongs, not only to near-by residents, but to tourists and visitors from around the world,” said Tom Layman, who also lives close to the park.

Yes, the good folks who live in the houses near the park, like Chuck and Tom, have been happily sharing The View with the rest of us, all along.

Will that change soon?

Will a proposed high-rise condominium and hotel development, Echo Harbour, eventually be interposed between Libby Hill Park and the James River? Will old postcards, wedding photos and Super 8 clips be all that preserves The View for future generations to appreciate?

USP Echo Harbour LLC owns the riverfront land on which the proposed $160 million mixed-use project would be built. USP Echo Harbour is based in Falls Church. Interestingly, it is a company owned by entities ultimately controlled by the Unification Church founded by Sun Myung Moon.

In much the same way the same Unification Church also controls/owns the Washington Times and a sprawling array of properties, nonprofit foundations, for-profit holding companies, etc. Its worldwide business interests are vast and somewhat mysterious. Over the years, through various channels, Moon’s money has been quite helpful to ultra conservative causes and politicians in America.

The City of Richmond’s plan for the site where the condos and such would go doesn’t call for buildings 10 to 14 stories tall. Current zoning doesn’t allow for such buildings. So, USP Echo Harbour needs the City to change its collective mind about what ought to happen on Dock Street.

A campaign to convince City Council to give USP Echo Harbour what it wants has been underway. The developers have pointed at the money Richmond should rake in from new tax revenues. They’ve talked about the jobs their project will create. There’s nothing new about that tactic. True or false, all developers sing that same basic tune when they want special favors from governments.

It’s then up to the government, in this case City Council, to decide what is the greater good.

If the City allowed a hog farm to be established where the GRTC bus barns are now that would create jobs, too. No doubt, the promoters of such a ridiculous notion could blue sky the story of how the hog farm would impact the neighborhood.

Ken Burns’ newest PBS documentary, “The National Parks: America’s Best Idea,” tells the story of how the USA wisely saw fit to protect some of its most beautiful views. Beginning with Yellowstone National Park, in 1872, America led the world in establishing parks owned by rich and poor citizens, alike, and protected by the government.

Isn’t Richmond looking at the same sort of problem America faced when it opted to establish national parks, rather than let hard-charging developers build whatever they liked and put up no trespassing signs?

Boiled down to its essence, it’s a choice: Should Richmonders go on preserving a cherished view of the James River that benefits the entire community? Or, should we stuff more money into the Unification Church’s holding company’s coffers, hoping a few bucks will fall our way?

Wasn’t this spectacular view of our river made for you and me?

– Reprinted from a piece I penned for Richmond.com that was published on Oct. 13, 2009. I shot the photo, too.