Charlottesville City Council has approved a new budget, although not without much debate. The four democrats on Council voted in favor, and Council’s lone Republican Rob Schiiling voted against it. Councilor Kevin Lynch accused Schilling of “grandstanding” in his opposition, with Schilling saying to Lynch and Councilor Maurice Cox: “you and others have been very rude, and I’m not engaging with you right now.” The new budget raises trash sticker fees to from $1 to $2/bag, car stickers to from $20 to $30 each, and a meals tax increase from $0.03 to $0.04, while lowering the real estate tax rate from $1.11 to $1.09. Elizabeth Nelson has the story in today’s Progress. 11:30am Update: Be sure to read the comments to see Schilling’s dissenting opinion.
Monthly Archive for April, 2003
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Just a couple of weeks before the big spring event, the ABC doesn’t intend to grant a liquor license to Foxfield, where underage drinking, public drunkeness and disorderly conduct has been an ongoing problem. Reports WVIR: “ABC officials say if that injunction is not granted, Foxfield would be out of options and would not be allowed to have alcohol on its property.” Foxfield president Benjamin Dick is “demanding a special independent investigation targeting ABC board members,” he said in a statement yesterday. This is all particularly baffling given that Foxfield doesn’t appear to need a liquor license, because they do not provide any alchol at the event, although some disagree with that assessment (see comments). An ABC hearing is scheduled for the 15th.
Jese Crosson, jailed since December on charges of home invasion and a shooting, has been charged with attempting to put out a hit on the victims of the crimes. The 18-year-old, from his jail cell, is said to have tried to hire somebody to kill the two Greene County men that he’s accused of shooting and the woman that he’s accused of raping at gunpoint. Crosson has now been put in solitary confinement and cut off from visits. Reed Williams has the story in today’s Progress.
Park Street resident Stan Tatum is tired of those darned kids and their wicked ways, WINA reports. They’re always running around the mall, shouting obscenities, and Tatum demands that something be done. The police have agreed to increase their presence downtown, hopefully to tell these children to walk at a more reasonable pace. In times like this, we must ask ourselves: what would T. Herman Zweibel do?
Indie writes: Vanity Fair Magazine has a sizable article in its May issue entitled “The Black Widow of Virginia.” It’s about the owner of Mt. Athos (a large estate in Orange County) who was a “duPont relative” and well-known community member. He was found dead in November 2001 with a stomach full of drugs. Speculation started swirling immediately after that put his second wife, a former hospice nurse, in the center of the drama. Side note: For all interested in celebrity comings and goings, mentions of Albemarle celebs are made briefly to describe what this area is kind of like. The article also mentions that former county residents Jessica Lange and Sam Shepard apparently have purchased a farm in Orange recently. As a backdrop to this murder mystery, the article also details nicely the southern traditions that are part of the fabric of local country life. Michael Shnayerson wrote the story.
Sideblog
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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