The blade blazes: Final step in Paramount restoration complete

  Hundreds of people, many sporting “The Blade” pins, crowded in front of the Paramount Theater December 15 for the finishing touch in the refurbishment of the 1931 historic venue: the lighting of the blade. Margie Shepherd remembers going to the Paramount shortly before it closed in 1974 for a double-bill, a midnight screening of […]

It’s baaack: Belmont Bridge design RFP goes out

More than a decade after a 2003 study determined the Belmont Bridge was deteriorating and needed to be replaced, and more than six years after a company was chosen to design the bridge and whose vision was resoundingly rejected by the community, Charlottesville is again seeking bids to design the bridge. A warning to any […]

Gun shy: In Nelson, citizens have no say in ammo warehouse

Nelson County’s Route 151 in the Rockfish Valley has been called the “Napa Valley of the East Coast.” But some residents fear that appellation will change with the newest development on its scenic byway: a massive 84,000- square-foot ammunition and firearms distribution warehouse that has an indoor firing range. Neighbor Harold McCauley says he received […]

Tree-lovers can dig it

You can never really have too much canopy. That’s why around 20 volunteers were in the median of Route 20 near Interstate 64 on a toasty December 12, digging compacted soil and planting nine swamp white oaks, part of a plan to forest the median with white oaks, tulip poplars and Kentucky coffee trees. The […]

Two forced-out editors: Can journalism survive in a vertically integrated world?

The future of journalism is a perennial concern for those who work for—and love—newspapers, so the chance to hear former New York Times executive editor Jill Abramson and former New Republic editor Franklin Foer report from the frontlines following their highly publicized 2014 ousters drew around 100 local print-media-lovers to UVA’s Harrison Auditorium December 3. […]

Jesse Matthew in court for motions hearing

The Jesse Matthew hearing December 7 was the last court appearance in the charges stemming from the murder and abduction of UVA student Hannah Graham for outgoing Commonwealth’s Attorney Denise Lunsford, and the man who defeated her in November and will take over the capital case, Robert Tracci, was in the Albemarle courtroom. Tracci hugged Gil […]

Another slaughter: Senate rejects gun restrictions

Within a few days, Colorado Springs and San Bernadino became the scenes of the most troubling trend in America: The mass murders of unarmed citizens by gun-wielding killers. The day after Syed Farook, aided by his wife, Tashfeen Malik, mowed down 14 of his coworkers at a holiday party, the U.S. Senate blocked legislation to […]

The blade has landed at the Paramount

The last piece of the recreation of the historic Paramount Theater was hoisted into place Thursday morning when the 33′ blade was secured to the front of the theater. “This is giving me chills,” says Jane Belisle, one of the onlookers gathered on the Downtown Mall around 9:30am to watch a crane hoist the 3,000-pound Blade into […]

SWAT PTSD: Albemarle police sued for false imprisonment

How many cops does it take to check on a man when his employer is concerned that he hasn’t shown up for work? At least a dozen, by Benjamin Marshall Burruss’ estimate. According to his November 19 lawsuit filed in federal court, Albemarle County Police held Burruss for two hours in his truck after he […]

Three votes: Will Signer be the new mayor?

When City Council meets for the first time January 4, the five councilors will vote for a new mayor, which typically is already a done deal, and rumor is Mike Signer, incoming city councilor, has the three votes necessary to secure the mayorship. Signer, understandably, declined to confirm he has the job in the pocket, […]