Critic Barbara Rich dies

Longtime local reviewer Barbara Rich did not mince words, even in death. “She did not ‘pass,’ she died,” reads her obituary, which did not note how old she was. Rich, who died December 8, wrote for most publications in town, and in the 1990s was a theater critic for C-VILLE Weekly. Her most notable review […]

New Close-Hart led kitchen to craft modern Mexican cuisine, Hamiltons’ Sandwich Lab whips up a locally sourced banh mi and more local restaurant news

Junction’s function Even chef Melissa Close-Hart seemed surprised when she revealed the concept behind the new Belmont eatery she’s opening with The Local owner Adam Frazier: It’ll be called Junction and serve up modern Mexican with a touch of “cowboy cuisine” thrown in. Close-Hart said she’s never cooked Tex-Mex professionally—hence the surprise—but said it’s something […]

Two young men killed in separate crashes

Albemarle High grad Riley M. Cole, 22, died Thursday afternoon, December 11, on Route 20 in Buckingham on his way home from his first semester at Longwood University, according to his obituary. Virginia State Police say Cole was traveling north in a 1997 Infiniti when he ran off the road, overcorrected and hit a southbound […]

Local energy nonprofit to start selling carbon credits

Charlottesville’s Local Energy Alliance Program (LEAP) announced this week that it’s entering the “voluntary carbon market,” and will be selling carbon credits generated by energy-saving weatherization projects to individuals and companies that want to buy their way to a smaller carbon footprint. According to a statement released Monday, LEAP’s Save a Ton Program will issue […]

City Council okays Market Plaza

City Market came one step closer to a permanent home by 2017 after City Council unanimously approved a permit for Market Plaza on December 1. The nine-story, L-shaped structure and plaza will occupy the parking lot used by City Market since 1993 and now owned by developer Keith Woodard. Market Plaza will house up to […]

The Hairstons on Yardley’s last list

Pulitzer Prize-winning book reviewer Jonathan Yardley bowed out this week after 33 years as a critic with The Washington Post. On his list of 30 favorite books, he included local author Henry Wiencek’s The Hairstons. Published in 2000, the nonfiction account of a Virginia family’s white and black sides “is a milestone in the history […]

Preschooler handcuffed and shackled in Greene

An allegedly out-of-control 4-year-old prompted a call to the Greene County Sheriff’s Office in October, according to a report by Hawes Spencer on WVTF radio. The child apparently raised a ruckus in a pre-K classroom at Nathanael Greene Elementary School in Stanardsville when he allegedly threw blocks, climbed over desks, and hit, scratched and kicked […]

ARTS Pick: Amahl and the Night Visitors

Ash Lawn Opera’s seasonal offering Amahl and the Night Visitors is the perfect excuse to bundle up in formal attire and take in a show. The popular 60-minute holiday story about three kings stopping by en route to Bethlehem is performed in English and accessible to the whole family. The cast features 16-year-old Georgia Castleman, who […]

ARTS Pick: Holiday Spotlight

Break away from the repetitive carols and TV reruns by checking out the day-long local lineup at the 13th annual Holiday Spotlight. Get jazzy with Dr. Jeff Vaughan and Greg C. Brown, tap into your Appalachian roots with the Skyline Country Cloggers (below) or spice up your night with the Latin flair of Zabor Dance […]

ARTS Pick: Let There Be Light

PVCC’s Visual Arts Department ushers in the longest nights of the year with its illuminating December tradition Let There Be Light. For one night only, curator James Yates and a slew of local artists will show their outdoor exhibit on the grounds surrounding the V. Earl Dickinson Building. The eighth installment of the winter gala […]