by Jon Baliles
There has been a lot of chatter this week about Monopoly doing a Richmond version featuring notable places and landmarks to replace the well-known properties like St. James’ Place, Reading Railroad, and Boardwalk.
According to Em Holter at the Richmond Times-Dispatch, the creators of Monopoly want to hear from YOU about what to include in the 22 spaces that make up a Richmond Monopoly board.
“…Hasbro licensee Top Trumps USA, which is tasked with creating the board, will need to hear from Richmonders just what those signature sites are. The company is asking residents to land on chance, draw a card and submit their ideas at richmond@toptrumps.com as to what they would like to see featured on the Richmond Monopoly game before March 20.”
How many jokes can you make using “Stop. Do not pass go. Do not collect $200,” in reference to Richmond?
Ohhh, the possibilities are endless. I can imagine the snarky replies already submitted and soon to be, and it will probably have the Hasbro people wondering just what they have done.
According to Hasbro executive John Marano, “This is a board game built by Richmond, for Richmond. I want them to be proud and I want them to be involved, because at the end of the day, that’s what makes it successful for us.”
The company has done city-specific boards in other cities like Pittsburgh, Kansas City, San Diego, Philadelphia, Boise, Portland, and Sacramento. J.C. Poma, vice president of community relations for Richmond Region Tourism said, “We’re so excited to see what you come up with for this great board game.”
The selections for that board will be interesting for sure when the game is released this fall, but few maps or boards will ever be as funny as the 2015 Judgmental Map of Richmond — when you could still laugh at stuff like that. Maybe Monopoly will top that (but I doubt it from a humor perspective), so get busy and submit your suggestions to Hasbro before March 20!
Jon Baliles is a former Richmond City Councilman. This is an excerpt from the original article posted on his blog, RVA 5×5. It is posted here with permission.
