Catie Ratliff, Author at C-VILLE Weekly

News

Downtown Mall toy store Alakazam announces closure

After 20 years on the Downtown Mall, Alakazam Toys will close its doors. An official closing date had not been announced at press time. Ellen Joy, who took over Alakazam in March 2019, shared the news in an August 23 social media post. “In a world that can often feel challenging, I’ve always believed in […]

Catie Ratliff | August 27, 2025

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Glenmore house explodes after suspected natural gas leak

A house explosion at 2331 Ferndown Ln. shook Keswick’s Glenmore neighborhood on August 19. One person was killed and another is recovering at Virginia Commonwealth University’s Evans-Haynes Burn Center. The blast, caused by a suspected gas leak, leveled a large two-story home with a basement, and scattered debris—including insulation, bricks, and wood—across adjacent properties. Area […]

Catie Ratliff | August 27, 2025

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Local LGBTQ+ organizers celebrate new community center

Since its May 31 opening, the Rivanna Area Queer Center, or RAQC (pronounced “rack”), has been a welcome hub for the Charlottesville-area LGBTQ+ community. While the idea of a LGBTQ+ community center was a longtime goal for local organizers, the project was expedited after the 2024 election. The volunteer team behind RAQC selected and designed […]

Catie Ratliff | August 20, 2025

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City awaits new charging plan as EVgo shutters most of its local stations

Electric vehicle ownership is on the rise in Charlottesville. But despite the increased demand for public charging stations, two of three EVgo locations in the city have been decommissioned. After quietly disabling the Barracks Road Shopping Center and Water Street parking garage locations weeks ago, EVgo confirmed their removal through the company’s EVgo ReNew […]

Catie Ratliff | August 19, 2025

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Eight years after A12, Charlottesville’s story still resonates at home and abroad

Eight years after A12, Charlottesville is still in the national dialogue. And while she wasn’t in town (or the country) for the anniversary this year, local author Deborah Baker says it has been top of mind for her as she discusses her book, Charlottesville: An American Story, around the world. “I actually haven’t heard from […]

Catie Ratliff | August 12, 2025

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UVA Board of Visitors elects Paul Mahoney interim president, search kicks off for 10th president

Following the highly publicized departure of former president Jim Ryan, the University of Virginia Board of Visitors named Paul Mahoney interim president at its August 4 meeting. As the board moves forward with its search for a permanent president, groups on and off Grounds continue to raise concerns about Ryan’s ouster, the board itself, and […]

Catie Ratliff | August 4, 2025

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Charlottesville and Albemarle Schools out more than $1 million in federal grants

Update 3:51pm July 25, 2025: The Trump administration has released $5.5 billion, the total outstanding balance of withheld funds, in grants following bipartisan pressure. More than $1 billion for after-school programs was previously released. Fund dispersal is expected to begin the week of July 28. This is a developing story. Charlottesville City and Albemarle County […]

Catie Ratliff | July 25, 2025

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UVA Health leaders exit, leaving multiple executive openings

Less than a year after the publication of a letter of no confidence, the top three executives at University of Virginia Health have all resigned. The latest departure, UVA Medical Center CEO Wendy Horton, was not named in the original complaints. The letter, published September 5, 2024, and signed by 128 UVA Physicians Group faculty, […]

Catie Ratliff | July 24, 2025

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The latest on spotted lanternflies, and a recently arrived invasive insect

July has brought more than scorching temperatures and humidity to Charlottesville. There has also been a sharp increase in spotted lanternfly sightings. First found in the United States in Pennsylvania in 2014, the spotted lanternfly is an invasive species from Asia. How the insect arrived in the country is unknown, but it likely entered on […]

Catie Ratliff | July 23, 2025

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Is the Charlottesville area prepared for a major flood?

Flash flooding has been in the headlines for nearly two weeks, following the catastrophic Guadalupe River flood in Texas earlier this month. The Texas tragedy, while thousands of miles and decades apart, is a stark reminder of the 1969 Hurricane Camille floods—with the overnight arrival of flood waters, high death tolls, and failures of emergency […]

Catie Ratliff | July 16, 2025