“No pipeline.” “Climate action now.” “That awkward moment when you burn your own planet.” On December 6, a crowd of about 70 sign-carrying protesters gathered at Charlottesville’s Free Speech wall to demand the city and state government take immediate action against climate change. Carrying their handmade posters, musical instruments, and reusable water bottles, the activists […]
You wouldn’t notice the cameras if you didn’t know what to look for—but once you see the first one, the others are easy to spot: black balls hanging from telephone poles like sinister Christmas tree baubles. Rosia Parker noticed the camera near her house in Westhaven when the city installed it over the summer. She […]
The campaign to take down Charlottesville’s statues of Confederate generals Stonewall Jackson and Robert E. Lee has taken on a new tenor with the election of a Democrat-majority government in Virginia. The Monumental Justice Virginia Campaign, a new organization dedicated to removal of the statues, launched with a press conference at the Free Speech Wall […]
On January 1, three new Charlottesville City Council members will officially begin their terms. Michael Payne, Sena Magill, and Lloyd Snook will join current councilors Heather Hill and Mayor Nikuyah Walker as Wes Bellamy, Mike Signer, and Kathy Galvin ride off into the sunset. Magill and Payne say their priorities continue to be the issues […]
“By failing to fund affordable housing in your city, you are quite literally causing and creating homelessness,” said Alliance for Interfaith Ministries director Kimberly Fontaine at the Planning Commission’s public hearing for the city’s Capital Improvement Plan last week. The Capital Improvement Plan covers non-recurring projects that last for five or more years and cost […]
A central stretch of Emmet Street, from Arlington Boulevard to Ivy Road, may see some improvements thanks to the state-funded Emmet Street-scape project. Plans for the renovations were on display at a public design hearing last week. New bike lanes, an expanded sidewalk, handicapped-accessible crosswalks, and better landscaping are all in the future of this […]
What do Johnny Depp, California Congressman Devin Nunes, and Confederate statue defender Edward Tayloe II all have in common? This year, they all filed defamation lawsuits in Virginia. Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for allegedly defaming him in a Washington Post op-ed in which she wrote about being a victim of domestic violence. Nunes […]
The Charlottesville Department of Social Services oversees a broad array of programs; everything from Child Protective Services to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, Medicaid, and more. In its November 18 annual report to City Council, the department’s advisory board highlighted some of the complicated challenges CDSS faces, along with its dedication to internal improvement. Medicaid […]
For Lillian Mezey, installing solar panels on the roof of her family’s home wasn’t just about saving money—“We just care a lot about environmental issues,” Mezey says. That’s part of the reason Mezey was so frustrated when the homeowners association that governs her neighborhood rejected her request to install the panels. Mezey, a psychiatrist at […]
Rose Ann Abrahamson has seen nearly every depiction of her ancestor Sacajawea in the United States. “This statue in Charlottesville is the worst we have ever seen,” she told City Council at a meeting on November 15, referring to the statue of Lewis, Clark, and Sacagawea on West Main Street. The imposing monument depicts the […]