After control of the downtown amphitheater was turned over to Coran Capshaw a few weeks ago, it was unclear what the future of Fridays After 5 would be, or if it even had a future at all. But after a meeting last week between the Charlottesville Downtown Foundation and a representative of Capshaw’s, it appears that all is well, if uncertain. The two parties agree to work together to continue the free weekly concerts, but it’s not clear whether they’ll continue to happen every single Friday, who will book the acts, and other logistical issues. It is clear, though, that the mission of Fridays After 5 will continue to be to support area non-profits. Lisa Provence has the story in the current issue of The Hook.
News and meta-news about Charlottesville, VA, since 2001.
Author Archive for Waldo Jaquith
Page 358 of 549
Metro(politain), the restaurant that started it all for the restaurant biz downtown, is closing down in a week. Owners Tim Burgess and Vincent Derquenne, who also own Bizou and Bang!, are ending the restaurant’s 13-year-run due to a decline in business that their 2002 renovation and renaming couldn’t solve. The two report that they’re doing well with their other restaurants, but the large number of restaurants downtown means that something has to go. Metropolitain, after opening in 1991, was so popular and well-reviewed as to kick off the trend of opening fine dining establishments downtown that continues to this day. (C&O Restaurant, to give credit where credit is due, is the granddaddy of them all.) Courteney Stuart and Hawes Spencer have the story in this week’s Hook.
Portico Publications, the Charlottesville partnership that owns C-Ville Weekly, has used the proceeds of their recent sale of Blue Ridge Outdoors to purchase the Columbia, South Carolina weekly, Free Times. The 17-year-old weekly has a circulation of 35,000, and appears to be quite similar to C-Ville Weekly. Richard Karpel, executive director of the Association of Alternative Weeklies, believes that this physically-distant purchase indicates that Portico is looking to build up a chain of weeklies. South Carolina’s The State has the story.
The Jefferson School Task Force, searching for some organizations to occupy the Jefferson School, recently settled on the central branch of the Jefferson Madison Regional Library as a potential occupant, despite the library’s lack of need to move or interest in doing so. However, an engineering report has shown that the school simply isn’t constructed in a manner that would permit it to hold the many tons of books that are housed in the library, making it a no-go without extensive structural modifications. What hasn’t been discussed publicly thus far is the possibility of moving JMRL’s administrative offices to the Jefferson School, given that they are in need of a centralized location for coordination of the branches, in order to free up space at the central branch. Elizabeth Nelson has the story in today’s Progress.
Two weeks ago, City Council voted to turn over the downtown amphitheater to Coran Capshaw (DMB manager, local real estate guy, etc.), loaning him $3.4M to overhaul the current amphitheater layout and create a covered venue, as a part of the redesign of the east end of the Downtown Mall. Capshaw has agreed to hold 50 events there each year, which the city estimates will fatten city coffers by $150k-$200k each year. Notably, there is no requirement that the amphitheater continue to be available to the Charlottesville Downtown Foundation for Fridays After Five, but instead stipulates that some sort of a cheap or free weekly event take place each week. Finally, Capshaw has been given naming rights, so the downtown amphitheater could become “The MusicToday Pavilion,” if he saw fit. Lisa Provence has the story in the current Hook.
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 »
Recent Comments