Author Archive for Waldo Jaquith

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Council Votes for Dredging; Pipeline Loses

Published by Waldo Jaquith on September 21, 2010 in Development, Politics and Weather. 15 Comments

City Council has voted 5-0 in favor dredging the Rivanna Reservoir rather than building a pipeline, Hawes Spencer writes for The Hook. The vote was held just before midnight, after dozens of speakers—two to one in favor of dredging—expressed their support for one plan or another. The plan also includes increasing the height of the existing Ragged Mountain dam by thirteen feet.

This unanimous vote represents a pretty enormous turn-around for Council, which had been all about the pipeline just a few years ago, and did a 180° on this after a great deal of study and community input. This looks like a big victory for Mayor Dave Norris, who at least appears publicly to have been the guy who turned around opinion on what to do about our long-term water supply.

10:30 PM Update: City spokesman Ric Barrack points out that the pipeline is still in the plan, which is a pretty important correction. It’s just no longer the plan.

Norris Promotes Dredging in Advance of Vote

Published by Waldo Jaquith on September 19, 2010 in In Brief. Closed

With Council due to vote on the water plan Monday night, the mayor has written on his blog what he wants to happen. He’s a dredging man.  #

I Miss the Rain

Published by Waldo Jaquith on September 19, 2010 in In Brief. 2 Comments

We’re in one of the most rain-starved parts of the southeast right now.  #

Elementary Students Shown 9/11 Imagery

Published by Waldo Jaquith on September 19, 2010 in Education. 22 Comments

All of the kids at Broadus Wood Elementary were shown a slideshow of the September 11th attacks last week, Brandon Shulleeta writes in the Progress, and some parents aren’t happy that they weren’t notified in advance. It included photos of airplanes hitting the Twin Towers—photos that most television networks stopped broadcasting within a couple of weeks of the attacks—and was shown to children as young as five years old. Principal Kendra King said in a statement (she declined to be interviewed) that she’d notify parents in the future, but if she apologized, that didn’t make it into the Progress.

This is what the kids were shown:

Kuttner Wins X-Prize

Published by Waldo Jaquith on September 16, 2010 in Business and Transportation. 4 Comments

Oliver Kuttner’s X-Prize team has won the top award, the AP reports. The $10M prize is being split three ways, with Kuttner’s Edison2 team getting $5M, a North Carolina company getting $2.5M, and a Swiss team getting the remaining $2.5M. Kuttner has no intention of manufacturing and selling the car in its present form, but he does intend to plow the winnings into R&D to create a consumer-friendly version. Over one hundred teams entered the contest, which is funded by Progressive Insurance, spending two and a half years building and testing their cars.