Residents of the Westhaven public housing project are fighting to keep several of their sycamore trees. City residents including City Councilor Maurice Cox and housing authority board member Joy Johnson have been working through channels both political and practical to prevent the trees from being cut down. The city wants to remove them because they’re destroying nearby sidewalks; Westhaven residents admire the large trees, and don’t want them to go. The story is in today’s Progress.
News and meta-news about Charlottesville, VA, since 2001.
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Police announced this afternoon that their investigation into what was initially believed to be a fatal fire on Rugby Avenue is now a homicide investigation. #
The Virginia Supreme Court has denied George Huguely’s appeal. His second-degree murder conviction will stand, WRIC reports. #
In a carefully worded story, and not citing specific sources, WTVR reports that forensic evidence belonging to Jesse Matthew Jr., the main suspect in the disappearance of Hannah Graham, matches forensic evidence collected during the investigation of Morgan Harrington’s 2009 murder. #
In the wake of Hannah Graham’s disappearance, and the evidence that came from private security footage, city officials are revisiting the question of installing security cameras on the downtown mall. #
Both Charlottesville Registrar Sheri Iachetta and former Electoral Board member Stephanie Commander have turned themselves in to the police on
foursix and four felony counts of embezzlement, respectively. #Ten years ago, the National Institutes of Health budget doubled and schools like the University of Virginia built massive new research facilities. A decade later, those buildings remain largely underutilized. NPR visits UVA in this story on the effect of federal binge and spurge spending in the sciences. #
In 2012, Council approved a new student housing complex on West Main—now some council members are questioning whether what they were shown matches what was built. #
The Architectural Review Board has approved a bike-themed mural on West Market, below the McGuffey Art Center, although at least one member expressed concerns that it might look like the bicyclists were riding away from Charlottesville’s downtown. #
City Police Chief Tim Longo is meeting with city leaders to work on protocols regarding the use of military surplus police weapons in Charlottesville. #
A 100-year-old Colonnades resident received military honors for her service in the WWII Women’s Army Corps #
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Trees, especially mature trees, enhance property value in real estate because they improve a neighborhood’s visual appeal. That’s a no-brainer, so I had to read this article twice to make sure I understood what it was saying — that because the trees were affecting the sidewalks and were hanging too close to the buildings, they were affecting the Charlottesville Housing Authority’s ranking on some unnamed “national scorecard”.
Is that justification enough to cut down a perfectly healthy tree that’s been around for half a century, let alone *more than one* such tree? I bet you if these trees were in our public parks, the city would find the money to redesign the walkways before it would hack down the trees. I hope that bringing public attention to the matter will help the CRHA come to its senses about what’s truly in the best interests of Westhaven residents.
Sidewalks that have been damaged by tree roots to the point of becoming a real safety hazard are a problem all over Charlottesville.The trees on West Main next to Union Station are causing problems as are the Sycamores on Market Street next to Lexis Publishing. There are many other problem areas. There may be other solutions besides cutting down the trees, I don’t know. I am trying to find out. If there aren’t though, then the trees should be removed AND replaced with a variety of tree that is deeper rooted and will not cause the expensive and hazardous damage.
Kevin Cox
Here’s an interesting link on a possible solution.
http://deeproot.com/whatis.html
It might not work with large Sycamores. The city’s aroborist probably knows.
Kevin Cox
Unfortunately this issue is just a symptom of a larger problem that has plagued the local housing authority ever since the selection of their director 3 years ago. Meaning, the housing authority director consistently makes important decisions without consulting with residents first. This happens time and time again. Unfortunately our housing authority is not alone in this but the attitude of the current director toward residents has been unacceptable and needs to change.