This is the moment you've all been waiting for, folks. In fact, this is the moment we here at BW have been waiting for too. And while we know this whole blog thing ended, like, three days ago, we just had to interrupt your tears to bring you this happy news:

WE GOT A BRICK PLAQUE!
WE GOT A BRICK PLAQUE!
WE GOT A BRICK PLAQUE!

Wheeeeee!

This is such a happy ending to a lovely little story. Chris Weatherford (holla!) dropped off our trophy this afternoon and, not minutes later, a crowd of C-VILLE coworkers swarmed around it. Bricktern isn't in the office until later today, but we can't wait for him to find out the good news!

There are so many people Brick Watch would like to thank, but we're hoping by this point they know who they are. If you're unsure, drop us a line and we'd be happy to tell you if you played a part in the success of BW. We're not even kidding.

Hey there, bricknuts. Have we got a story for you! Last night, as we said they would, City Council met to review the Mall rebricking project. Here are a few quick things Jim Tolbert, director of Neighborhood Development Services, said that we found the most interesting:

• At their most productive, brick masons laid over 10,000 per day.

• During the project, crew members uncovered a phone line in a wooden conduit. Of course, they didn't connect to anything, but they were in perfect condition.

• The project maintained access to all businesses. There was not one business that was closed for a day (due to the rebricking) on the entire Mall.

• The project was on time (it took four months), and after all the bills are paid, it will be 10 to 15 percent under budget.

• All but one of the workers on this project have already been placed with other jobs or have interviews.

• There are a few things left to finish:
-Fountains
-Benches
-Planters
-Bike racks (this week!)
-Fire lane bricks
-Tree lights (today! There was a guy up in the tree in front of the C-VILLE office this afternoon.)

After relaying all of these facts, Jim presented a select few with brick plaque. A select few, we might add, that did not include yours truly. We won't name names, but did any of the people who received the plaques tirelessly write a blog about bricks for four months? No, we think not. Did any of them work nights and weekends, finding connections between bricks and you fine, faithful readers? No, sir. Did they care for, nurture and love the bricks to the very tips of their keyboard-wielding fingers? Sure didn't. But we did. And where is our plaque? In someone else's hands.

But we don't want to leave you on this sour note. Luckily, Charlottesville has one more chance to get in Brick Watch's good graces. On May 29, there will be a rededication of the Downtown Mall in a tent (yeah, we don't know) at 4:45pm. Brick Watch will be there, eagerly anticipating the presentation of our very own special plaque. We'd like it tied with a bow (brick red is preferred, but any color will do), and we'd like "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" to be sung in the background. By Elton John.

See you there, bricksters. And Elton? Wear your red glasses. We don't want to clash.

Hi, brickers. Writing to you now is a little like drunk-dialing an ex. We know we shouldn't do it—it only brings up those old feelings—but we miss you. And there's so much left to say. Such as...

Tonight, City Council will enter its City Hall chambers at 7pm to discuss, among other things, how well the rebricking project went. The council will discuss the goals they set forth at the beginning of the project and how those goals turned out.

City Council's goals were as follows:

—To complete a quality revitalization of the Downtown Mall;
—To complete this revitalization on time and on budget;
—To do the work without too much disruption to Downtown businesses.

BW is pretty sure the Council will find that the project was an unparalleled success. We're also pretty sure they should add a segment to this evening's brick dockett. This segment would, of course, include a viewing of all Brick Watch videos, and some highlights of our brilliant brick coverage. To culminate the segment, they should ceremoniously hand Chris Weatherford a key to the city. (Not the real one, but the obscenely large, fake kind.) There would be laughter! There would be crying! There would be cheers. But most of all, since it's a City Council meeting, any emoting would have to be taken in turns.