Where is Richmond?
Richmond is the county seat of Fort Bend County. It sits on the Brazos River. The Handbook of Texas places it about 15 miles southwest of Houston. Rosenberg grew about three miles to the west. The 2020 Census counted 11,627 residents. The Census lists 4.91 square miles of land area.
How did Richmond develop?
In early 1822, William W. Little and 12 to 15 men camped near the present city. Other members of Stephen F. Austin’s Old Three Hundred followed. A log fort at a bend in the Brazos became the center of a settlement called Fort Bend. Settlers left during the Runaway Scrape of 1836.
In early 1837, R. E. Handy and William Lusk founded the town of Richmond. They named it after Richmond, England. The Republic of Texas incorporated the town in May 1837. When Fort Bend County was formed later that year, Richmond became its seat. Mirabeau B. Lamar lived on a plantation inside the present city limits. Erastus “Deaf” Smith and Jane Long are also tied to the town’s early history. Black residents, allied with white Republicans, held local political control until 1889. That year, after the Jaybird-Woodpecker War, white residents took control.
Who governs Richmond, and who provides services?
Richmond is a home-rule city with a commission-manager form of government. The commission has five members: a mayor and four commissioners elected at large. An appointed city manager and staff run city programs.
The Fort Bend Subsidence District requires the city to shift part of its groundwater use to other sources: 30 percent by 2016 and 60 percent by 2025. Richmond built a surface water treatment plant to meet that rule. Community Impact reported in 2018 that the plant would produce 2 million gallons a day. The Richmond-Rosenberg Local Government Corporation acts for both cities on a regional water system.
Which school districts serve Richmond?
Lamar Consolidated ISD serves Richmond. Richmond and Rosenberg formed the district in 1946.
What permit, property and flood rules apply in Richmond?
The city’s Building Department issues permits and schedules inspections through the MyGovernmentOnline portal. The permit office is in the City Hall Annex at 600 Morton Street. The city has adopted the 2024 International Building and Residential codes and the 2023 National Electrical Code. A residential rental registration ordinance took effect January 1, 2023. The Unified Development Code dates from 2015. The Fort Bend Central Appraisal District appraises property in Richmond.