The thirty year old brickwork on the Downtown Mall is long overdue for replacement, Seth Rosen writes in today’s Progress, and the city plans to spend $1.72M to replace the bricks over the next four years. The two automobile crossings are in particularly bad shape — the physical infrastructure was never meant to routinely handle anything heavier than pedestrians. An employee in the city engineering department told me, many years ago, that the contractor who installed the brickwork in the first place failed to meet the spec, which dramatically shortened the lifespan of the surface. The brick replacement is just a small part of the $7.5M in planned improvements, which will include “buying new street furniture, upgrading underground utilities, adding new lighting and improving the surrounding landscaping.”
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The 400th episode of the Simpsons, “You Kent Always Say What You Want,” aired last night, and it contained a mention of Charlottesville. Our cameo is as a faux ice cream flavor. Fred Weaver provides this clip:
Cool!
There’s a new candidate for City Council: Peter Kleeman intends to run for City Council as an independent, Charlottesville Tomorrow reports. Kleeman, a Democrat, unsuccessfully sought the party’s nomination for Council in 2000. He’s a transportation planning consultant, downtown resident, ardent environmentalist and, by way of disclaimer, a good friend. He’s in the process of collecting the required 125 signatures from registered Charlottesville voters, in order to get his name on the ballot. Though many Republicans won’t see this particular independent candidate as providing any real choice come the November elections, the fact is that a) he’s running and they’re not and b) he’s a Democrat, but he’s hardly of Charlottesville Democrats.
The effect that his entry will have on the election, particularly if a credible Republican ends up running, will be mighty interesting to watch.
Charlottesville resident Grant Brownrigg has declared his candidacy for the school board, Matt Deegan reports for the Progress. Brownrigg is the creator of the Grantland business comic, has served on the school board’s discipline task force, and has three kids in city schools. He and Alvin Edwards are the two candidates to declare thus far, leaving the board two candidates short of the four required to fill the open seats. The filing deadline is June 12.
Albemarle Democrats held their nomination caucus last night, Liesel Nowak reports in the Progress, and nominated Larry Claytor for sheriff, Lindsay Dorrier for reelection to the BoS, and Debbie Shipp for Clerk of Court. Claytor and Dorrier both enjoyed landslide victories among the 400 caucus members. Now the three — and the other uncontested nominees — will go on to attempt to win the general election. This promises to be the most colorful Albemarle election in years, with an impressive and impassioned lineup of candidates and enough of a smattering of independent candidates to make things unpredictable.
Charlottesville Tomorrow provides video and audio highlights from the caucus.
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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