The population of the Charlottesville area grew by 11.4% since 2000, adding 20,000 residents, the Progress reports. The area included in this is Charlottesville, Albemarle, Fluvanna, Greene and Nelson. Urban areas in the state have been growing the fastest, while rural areas have seen population declines. (The Progress inexplicably labels Danville and Petersburg as “rural,” despite Danville having a larger population and size than Charlottesville, and Petersburg having nearly the same size population and being twice the size of C’ville.)
News and meta-news about Charlottesville, VA, since 2001.
Monthly Archive for January, 2008
Homeowners all over Albemarle are getting a welcome notice in the mail today, informing them that their assessments won’t be undergoing their normal annual ginormous increase. Residential assessments are increasing by just a fraction of a percent, Jeremy Borden writes in the Daily Progress, with the Samuel Miller district faring the best, with an average 1.18% drop.
Not coincidentally, Borden and Barney Breen-Portno also write that the county’s budget is a bad situation, what with the crappy housing market that’s caused the level assessments. The county was planning on a 2.4% increase in housing starts. Now it’s looking more like 1.6%, and it looks like belt-tightening time. (Or we’ll be buying a new, smaller, sleeker belt.)
Raelyn Balfour has been found not guilty of involuntary manslaughter in the death of her infant, Rob Seal writes in the Progress. The wrenching trial sought to determine whether Balfour, who forgot to leave her nine-month-old son at daycare and instead left her in the car, had committed a crime. The Iraq veteran worked at the Judge Advocate General School, which is where the incident took place.
I’m not sure that anybody wanted to see this woman in prison.
The Hook is apparently in the same mood as C-Ville Weekly right now, and finds themselves looking back at the city’s history in the current issue. Dave McNair features a series of then-and-now photos of West Main Street, using Duncan Brown’s 1979 shots of the street. I know a lot of cvillenewsers enjoy a good look back at the C’ville that was just as much as I do, so y’all will get a kick out of the photos of the Duck Inn, Expresso International, the Cotton Exchange, and a bunch of others.
Via a pair of comments on The Hook’s blog, see also Duncan Brown’s complete collection of 1979 West Main photos, his 1980 downtown photos, and whole mess of photos of Main Street from 1976, taken by John Shepherd. These are some great photos. I was unborn/an infant/a toddler in these few years, so it’s the first time I’ve seen some of these places that I’ve heard so much about.
In this week’s C-Ville Weekly, Will Goldsmith surveys Charlottesville’s not-yet-historic buildings from around town. It’s prompted by the city’s plan to track down individual historic properties around town and designate them as such. The list includes Kmart, Fry’s Spring Service Station, the old JNB at Barracks Road and the old Coke bottling plant, along with a mess of others. Bonus: great pictures by local photoblogger Eric Kelley.
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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