Inching closer Albemarle County staff is recommending the Board of Supervisors consider adopting an ambitious climate goal: to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 45 percent by 2030 and reach net zero by 2050, aligning themselves with the same goals as the city. Last month, county staff gave the Board of Supervisors a second update on […]
charlottesville city council
Party favors: Dems question Mike Signer’s support of independent Bellamy Brown
When Mayor Nikuyah Walker was elected to City Council in November 2017, she became the first independent candidate to claim a seat since 1948. A few weeks ahead of the 2019 election, another independent is making headway among prospective voters—and current councilors. Bellamy Brown raised more than double the amount of money between July and […]
In brief: UVA hospital makes amends, a yak on the run, and more
Kinder, gentler health care UVA Health System says it will revamp its financial aid guidelines and sue fewer patients after facing a massive backlash from a Washington Post story about the university’s proclivity to go after nonpaying patients. A Kaiser Health News report revealed that from 2013 to June 2018, the state-owned health system sued […]
Honored or demeaned: City Council seeks Native American advice on respecting Sacagawea
More than two hundred years after she departed North Dakota as a member of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, Sacagawea of the Shoshone tribe is at the center of controversy in Charlottesville—again. At issue is her depiction in a statue on West Main, where she crouches at the feet of Meriwether [...]
Staying social: Public officials take different strategies to social media
When Rory Stolzenberg accepted an appointment to the Charlottesville Planning Commission last October, he hoped to play a role in how the city government shapes its citizens’ way of life. What he didn’t expect is just how much weight his words would now carry online. The 27-year-old software [...]
The virtues of incivility: Looking closer at the City Council candidates
Despite the refrain from all quarters that the defining issue of this year’s City Council election is housing, this election is a referendum on the status quo. In what feels like hundreds of candidate forums, the five candidates in the Democratic primary for City Council have spent more energy [...]
This Week, 5/22
It’s a few weeks to primary day (June 11), and here in heavily-Democratic Charlottesville, the question of who will represent us next year will largely be determined now, not in November. Among the Democrats, the choices in both the state delegate and City Council races offer strikingly similar [...]
Working the system: Galvin has a history of supporting the status quo
Councilor Kathy Galvin won’t be sitting on the dais in City Hall much longer. Instead of running for re-election to council this year, she’s currently campaigning as a progressive candidate for the House of Delegates. The planks of her platform are “a sustainable future,” “an equitable future,” [...]
Council candidate Pinkston says he works well with others
A UVA facilities project manager jumped into the race for City Council February 6. Brian Pinkston said to dozens at The Haven, “I’m running for City Council because I want our city to recapture this vision of the common good.” He was introduced by former vice-mayor Meredith Richards, who noted [...]
In brief: Robo designated driver, Thanksgiving casualties, Bigfoot erotica and more
Tony the self-driving shuttle Perrone Robotics cranked up the driverless vehicle heat last week with the awkwardly acronymed Tony—TO Navigate You—which will soon be autonomously tooling around Crozet. In a partnership with Albemarle County and JAUNT—Jefferson Area UNited Transportation, another [...]
In brief: Interim imbroglio, Miller Center imbroglio, gunman imbroglio and more
Infighting implodes council The hiring of an interim city manager, an event that usually takes place behind closed doors, has become heated and public, with reports of shouting at a July 20 closed City Council session. Mayor Nikuyah Walker has gone on Facebook Live twice to express her concerns [...]
Napoleon v. Bellamy at City Council
Kerfuffles certainly aren’t new at City Council meetings anymore, but the one June 18 between Pat Napoleon and Wes Bellamy jolted awake anyone who may have been dozing during public comments. Napoleon is the founder of Rise Charlottesville, and has been collecting signatures to remove those on [...]
Campaign collection: Supporter files warrant in debt against council candidate
On February 22, Jim Moore, a supporter of two-time City Council candidate Kenneth Jackson, sent out a Facebook message to a long list of recipients titled “Help Ken,” seeking payment from supporters for an overdue $2,000 loan to avoid taking Jackson to court on March 20 (after C-VILLE went to [...]
Abrupt exit: Chief’s retirement, Pleasants’ fill-in raises questions
After initially refusing to confirm reports that Charlottesville police Chief Al Thomas had resigned and was packing his office on Monday and would be out of the building by 5pm, the city issued a release Monday afternoon that said Thomas would be retiring, effective immediately. The hasty [...]
Public record: The community reacts to the Heaphy report
Following the tragic climax of Charlottesville’s summer of hate on August 12, City Manager Maurice Jones ordered an independent review of the city’s handling of the July 8 KKK rally and the Unite the Right rally that left Heather Heyer dead and dozens injured when a neo-Nazi plowed into a crowd [...]
Not partners: Heaphy promises ‘arm’s length’ investigation
When City Manager Maurice Jones introduced the man hired to investigate the events of Charlottesville’s summer of hate, he listed former U.S. attorney Tim Heaphy’s “critical eye,” his experience with law enforcement and investigations, and then he described the city as “partnering” with Heaphy. [...]
Woodshed moment: Councilors rebuke and restrict mayor
Charlottesville City Council now has a mayor on restriction. Council is made up of five elected equals, with the mayor playing a largely symbolic role, and that was a lesson Mayor Mike Signer appears to have forgotten. On August 30, his fellow councilors held a three-hour closed door meeting to [...]
Council coup: Angry citizens take over meeting
Barely 30 minutes into its August 21 meeting, City Council was in chaos. Three demonstrators were reportedly arrested, city officials left the chamber and the meeting’s video and audio feeds were cut off as protesters stood on the dais holding a banner that read, “Blood on your hands.” The [...]
Two more independents join City Council race
So far, seven people seem eager to devote their Monday nights to City Council meetings. The race for two open seats now held by Bob Fenwick and Kristin Szakos, who is not seeking another term, has drawn three Democrats—Fenwick, Heather Hill and Amy Laufer—for the June 13 primary. Traditionally [...]
‘Insufficient’: Kessler petition to oust Bellamy thrown out
Jason Kessler chastised reporters on his way into court today and spoke disrespectfully to the special prosecutor who requested that Kessler’s petition to remove Vice-Mayor Wes Bellamy from office be dismissed because it lacked enough signatures. Kessler, who burst into the local [...]
Szakos won’t seek third term on City Council
If it seems like we just finished an election, well, we did, but in Virginia, it’s never not an election year. In Charlottesville, the two seats on City Council currently held by Kristin Szakos and Bob Fenwick are up for grabs, and Szakos says she won’t be seeking another term. “Eight years is [...]
Resident won’t take alleged constitutional rights violation lying down
The man who lay down in front of the dais and was dragged out of a City Council meeting June 20 after calling Muslims “monstrous maniacs” has filed a lawsuit against the city, claiming his constitutional rights were violated. Albemarle resident Joe Draego, 64, has been a regular at [...]
Parking garage ‘soap opera’ leads city to reject Brown’s offer
Mayor Mike Signer and City Councilor Kathy Galvin insist there is nothing personal in the city’s dispute with Mark Brown over control of the Water Street Parking Garage. In meetings with reporters July 6 after the city rejected Charlottesville Parking Center’s June [...]