Via Charlottesville Tomorrow, I see that the Woodbrook Neighborhood Blog has a long piece about how the neighborhood is divided over an Eagle Scout’s project to build a bench and a bridge over a county-owned lagoon as a part of a trail on public land. Blogger Dan Gould conducted a bunch of interviews, talked to county employees, took a bunch of photos, and even took an informal survey of landowners who live nearby. A lively discussion has ensued in the comments section. It’s a great piece of work about a parochial matter, the sort of thing that would surely have no place in a regional publication, but that anybody who lives in the Woodbrook area surely finds very interesting.
News and meta-news about Charlottesville, VA, since 2001.
Monthly Archive for April, 2013
Charlottesville Republicans have managed to find a couple of candidates for Council, Aaron Richardson reports for the Daily Progress. After sitting out the last few elections, the party has put forth Buddy Weber and Mike Farruggio as their two candidates for the November election. Weber is the chair of the city party, and Farruggio is a career city police officer. Weber cited mismanagement of public housing as a particular concern, while Farruggio is opposed to the new stormwater utility fee. Five Democrats are seeking one of two nominations; the winners will go on to run against Weber and Farruggio in the general election.
Democrat Jaymie “Brad” Sheffield is running for Board of Supervisors, The Daily Progress reports, challenging Republican incumbent Rodney Thomas for the Rio District. Sheffield is the assistant director at JAUNT. He holds a masters degree in planning from UVA. The election is in November.
Judge Paul Peatross has awarded Biscuit Run’s investors another $20M in state tax credits, K. Burnell Evans writes for The Daily Progress, bringing the price of the “donation” of the 1,200 acres to the state to a grand total of $40.5M.
The land was sold to the state for $9.8M, after the investors were left holding the bag on the worthless parcel when the real estate bubble collapsed, having paid $46.2M for the land at the height of the real estate craze. The project’s investors were banking on getting a lot of state tax credits (which can then be sold) in order to avoid personal financial ruin, since they presumably took out some big loans to cover that $46M, which they’d have to make payments on until they’d repaid the balance. But they didn’t get the money they needed—the state awarded them just $11.7M in conservation tax credits, because what land was worth in 2005 was rather more than what it was worth in . So they sued the state, demanding $19.48M, which is precisely what they just got. The investors’ appraiser claimed that the land was worth a stunning $87.7M—almost twice what they’d paid for it at the height of the bubble—and their attorney today says that the appraisal was vindicated by today’s court ruling, crowing that it “pretty much body slams” The Hook for their critical coverage of the appraisal.
I suppose it’s possible that the state appeals this ruling, but short of that, this now puts the taxpayer cost of this “donated” land at $33,750 an acre. For comparison, Rivanna Farm is on the market for $22,500/acre right now, and they’ll toss in a 10,000 square foot Georgian mansion at no extra charge.
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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