Author Archive for Waldo Jaquith

Page 82 of 549

Real Estate III Becomes a Better Homes & Gardens Franchise

Published by Waldo Jaquith on April 8, 2010 in Business. 63 Comments

Better Homes & Gardens Real Estate, a national real estate conglomerate, has brought local real estate agency Real Estate III into its national franchise, they’ve announced in a press release. Their website has already been overhauled to reflect the news, being announced right now at an event at The Paramount. The company will travel under the name of “Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate III,” presumably a brief stop on its way to becoming, simply, “Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate.” Real Estate III was founded by Frank Kessler forty years ago. BH&G is acquiring for its network local real estate agents all across the nation, adding up to 125 offices in fifteen states. With the awful housing market, a lot of real estate agencies are hurting, making this the perfect time for a big company to gather up a bunch of comparatively small ones.

9:25 PM Update: The apparent marketing director for Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate III is insistent that they haven’t been sold, but won’t say what has actually happened. She would like you to know that I’m “obviously living la la land,” and suggests that they should “call their lawyers.” When she deigns to inform me of what this transaction is properly called, if not a “sale,” I’ll update this blog entry accordingly.

10:50 PM Update: Bryan McKenzie kind of explains this in Friday’s Progress. It’s still not clear what has transpired here, but my capacity to care is limited, so suffice it to say that Real Estate III has a new name, BH&G probably gave them some money, and they got something in return, but nobody’s saying what, and it involves entering into a franchise agreement with BH&G. I’ve updated this story to reflect that.

Parkway Shooter Suspect Arrested

Published by Waldo Jaquith on April 7, 2010 in Crime. Closed

Ralph Leon Jackson, a 56-year-old man from Stuart’s Draft, has been arrested and charged with the attempted murder of a couple on the Blue Ridge Parkway yesterday. Police found him thanks to an anonymous tip, and had a SWAT team seize him at his house around dawn this afternoon. He’s made “incriminating statements,” say police, but there’s still no understanding of why he shot two complete strangers. If he’s the guy, a lot more information should be coming out over the next few days.

City Council Sets 95¢ Tax Rate

Published by Waldo Jaquith on April 6, 2010 in Government, Politics and Taxes. Closed

Council will hold the real estate tax rate at 95¢, Rachana Dixit writes in the Daily Progress. The same as the current rate, that means that, due to declining property values, the city budget will decrease by $1.7M in $141M. That puts the tax rate at 85% of its high in recent history, $1.11 in 2001.

Manhunt at Afton

Published by Waldo Jaquith on April 6, 2010 in Crime. 5 Comments

Bajillions of cops are looking for a shooter on the Blue Ridge Parkway, lots of media outlets are reporting. They’re looking for a white male with long, gray hair driving a red sedan. He’s shot two people (possibly three, that’s not clear), both of whom are hospitalized at UVA. One of the victims is known to be an 18-year-old female; nothing more is known about the male victim. Based on the search that reporters have seen police conducting, they appear to believe, or have believed, that there’s a third victim that they need to find. Federal, state, and local police have closed the parkway between miles 0 and 13.

5:30pm Update: Courteney Stuart has a lot more information now. There are just two victims, the second being a 27-year-old male, Tim Davis, who is the host of WNRN’s “The Boombox” show using the name “DJ Prolapse.” The female victim’s brother says that they were shot in the back by a shotgun-wielding man in a car, out of the blue. The assailant got out of the car and pushed the two over the side of Rock Point Overlook, throwing rocks down on them. After he left the two for dead, the woman climbed back up and stopped a car, who helped. Davis is in critical condition, having fallen more than a hundred feet in addition to being shot. Police say they’re looking for a white guy in his fifties with long, gray hair.

City May Cut McIntire Recycling Center Funding

Published by Waldo Jaquith on March 30, 2010 in Government. 29 Comments

The city is looking at eliminating funding for the McIntire Recycling Center, Rachana Dixit writes in today’s Daily Progress. Many of the materials that people can drop off there are collected curbside by the city, making the facility largely redundant. It’s jointly funded by the county, via the Rivanna Solid Waste Authority, since folks in the county need to drive their recyclables to McIntire. The catch is that it’s not clear that the facility could continue to exist without city funding, which would eliminate recycling for many Albemarle residents.

Sideblog