Albemarle’s three high schools are preparing to spend $600k apiece to install synthetic turf, Brandon Shuleeta writes in today’s Daily Progress, and not everybody is happy about it. There’s the obvious mixed economic message being sent, although that’s reduced by the anonymous donor who chipped in $325k/school, and some folks just don’t like the idea of playing on synthetic turf. There are concerns about some nasty chemicals found in the fake grass, a problem that the federal government is of two minds about the seriousness of. The Board of Supervisors has agreed to spend $225k to help get together enough money for the turf, leaving the schools $163k short.
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News and meta-news about Charlottesville, VA, since 2001.
The Chamber of Commerce has endorsed the establishment of a regional transit authority, the Progress reports, in a move that should surprise anybody following local politics. The Chamber has historically been pretty far to the right—it was just a few years ago that they suggested that government shouldn’t establish a minimum wage—so supporting the creation of a new government entity and a new taxation structure to support it is a sign either of how badly the state has failed to fund transportation or how far that the Chamber has moved to the left.
This leaves Del. Rob Bell in an awkward position, since he opposes allowing citizens to hold a referendum to determine if they should fund a transit authority. Bell surely doesn’t want to go up against the Chamber, especially not on something this large, so he’s likely left having to justify a 180° on this.
Nelson County has bootstrapped an Ivy-based local-food distribution hub, Erin McGrath writes in the Nelson County Times, providing $10,000 towards its establishment. The non-profit would serve the Thomas Jefferson Planning District (Nelson, Albemarle, C’ville, Fluvanna, Greene, and Louisa), functioning as a badly-needed middleman between farmers and final points of sale like restaurants and grocery stores. It’s the idea of Charlottesville’s Kate Collier and Marisa Vrooman, who figure it’ll take $300,000 to get started. Next they’ll be asking the BoS for $80,000. It’s definitely not a good time to asking any government entity for money, but if they can demonstrate that a significant economic gain will result from enabling this trade, it might be a smart investment for TJPD members.
In today’s Progress, Rachana Dixit explores the difficulties of calculating the cost of housing in a college town. Looking at the raw numbers, about half of the city is spending more than a third of their income on housing, which is trouble. Except for students, for whom that’s a reasonable thing to do for a few years. Knowing how much people are paying for housing is important, because it’s a key method of determining the fiscal health of the population and the appropriateness of our housing stock. It’s good that we all see the problem of these data—now we’ve got to solve it.
The Albemarle Board of Supervisors has asked county staff to prepare a budget with a real estate tax rate of 77 cents, Brandon Shuletta writes in today’s Daily Progress, an increase from the current 71 cents. Declining property values require a tax hike in order to maintain existing services. Ninety cents would keep county revenue level, while 74.5 cents would keep taxpayer payments the same. Every member of the BoS had their own figure in mind, but they ultimately decided on 77 cents, with supervisors Ken Boyd and Lindsay Dorrier (the two conservative members of the board) both dissenting.
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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