Following along the banks of the James River, the neighborhood of Old Manchester has a rich, dark past.  For centuries, the large industrial buildings in the area served as warehouses storing tobacco and other manufactured goods awaiting shipment; these same buildings now house remodeled condos and apartments.  Before Manchester was one of Richmond’s centers of industry, its fertile land was farmed by slaves.  Located along the river in Manchester is the Richmond Slave Trail, a historic path used to transport slaves in and out of the city.  Directly across the river is Richmond’s Shockoe Bottom, a tourist-driven area once housing slave jails, warehouses and burial grounds.  Shockoe Bottom’s future and economic importance are current topic of civic debate, with numerous redevelopment proposals being considered. One of these plans proposed the building of a sports complex on top of former slave markets.  This debate is deeply complex and contentious because it not only touches on the historic importance of the physical land but it also speaks to the larger, and maybe even national, dialogue of race and identity.