Back on stage

After over a year of empty stages, music lovers finally have something to look forward to. Last month, Governor Ralph Northam lifted all social distancing and capacity restrictions, meaning live music will soon be back at several Charlottesville venues. On June 18, the newly renamed Ting Pavilion will reopen with the return of Fridays After […]

New view?

Earlier this month, Jennifer McArtor went online to enroll her kids in Mountain View Elementary’s after-school program for the upcoming school year, only to find out she could not register her rising fifth grader. Through another parent, she was surprised to learn that her daughter might be transferred to Walton Middle School, 10 minutes down […]

Put it in reverse

After years of heated debate and public backlash, Charlottesville City Council seems to have decided to shelve a proposed multi-million dollar downtown parking garage, opting to explore cheaper—and potentially greener—options.   During a May 25 work session, the councilors discussed how the city should fulfill a 2018 promise to provide 90 parking spots to Albemarle […]

Squad drama

Last December, 32-year-old Jamarcus “Buck” Washington was found dead in the South First Street public housing complex, a victim of rising gun violence in Charlottesville’s predominantly Black neighborhoods over the past year. Pained by his friend’s murder, Pertelle Gilmore contacted his mentor Herb Dickerson, and recruited a handful of people in the city’s Black community […]

Finding the answers

While serving as a magistrate judge in Virginia’s 23rd judicial circuit, Ashley Reynolds Marshall heard a case that made her rethink her entire career. An undocumented woman, who had fled violence in Honduras, needed protection from her abusive husband. Marshall offered to have the husband kicked out of the house and issue a restraining order, […]

Slow and steady

After over a year of debate surrounding Charlottesville’s stolen slave auction marker, the Historic Resources Committee began meeting with descendants of enslaved laborers, seeking their input on how to best pay tribute to the thousands of enslaved people bought and sold in Court Square. The memorial’s story serves as an example of the process of […]

Now hiring

For nearly a year, a “now hiring” sign hung at the entrance to Baggby’s on the Downtown Mall. With the arrival of the coronavirus vaccine, owners Jon and Erin LaPanta hoped that applicants would start rolling in—but none came. “Now that business is coming back, we’ve had to turn business away,” says Jon LaPanta, who […]

Heating up

Two weeks ago, Pertelle Gilmore received an urgent phone call—there was a conflict going on at the Westhaven public housing community. Joined by a few other members of the B.U.C.K. Squad, he rushed to the scene to urge everyone involved to stand down and put away their guns. But while the violence interrupters talked to […]

Open doors

While the daily decrease in coronavirus infections offers a light at the end of the tunnel, the nation’s economy continues to struggle to recover from the ongoing pandemic. Millions of Americans remain unemployed, including over 60,000 Virginia residents. Now more than ever, many are looking to start a new job or career, but may not […]

Going green

In 2009, Dr. Latham Murray of Earlysville passed away at age 59 at his childhood home, Panorama Farms. His family decided to take care of the funeral themselves, building him a homemade coffin and burying him in their family cemetery. Without knowing it, they had given him a natural burial, free of toxic embalming chemicals, […]