The Army Corps of Engineers needs to be convinced that there aren’t better ideas than the Western Bypass, Sean Tubbs reports for Charlottesville Tomorrow. The news organization learned about this by a FOIA request. The road will impact about three acres of wetland and seven thousand feet of stream frontage, and the Corps’ job is to make sure that this causes as little harm as possible, which means providing a permit only for the solution to the transportation problem at hand that has the least impact on those resources. Although some studies along these lines have been performed, they were done two decades ago, and are quite possibly no longer meaningful. The Corps wants to know why they decided not to use grade-separated interchanges, and what parts of the Places29 project are actually going to happen. VDOT’s rushed approval process provided no time to deal with concerns like these, requiring that they be handled as they’re raised, rather than anticipating them. It’s possible that VDOT will conduct another study, although it’s also possible that they’ll persuade the Corps that it’s not necessary.
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 #
-
Archive for Sideblog »
Off-topic: why does everyone always make a point of saying “this was obtained through a FOIA request” ? Why does a reader care or need to know?
“Why does a reader care or need to know?”
It’s somewhat helpful To me, since it signals the transparency of the process. It means the agency did not actively work to make this information public, except when required to legally.
I make sure to mention it whenever applicable, and I do it for a couple of reasons. The first is to demonstrate that this wasn’t a case of just rewriting a press release—Charlottesville Tomorrow was actively seeking out information, actually practicing journalism, and they deserve credit for that. The second is to remind people that they can just ask government for information, and government is obliged to provide that. I’m a fan of FOI laws, and I like to call up when they’re being used. :)
Why others often point it out, I can only speculate.