In brief: Unregulated militia, the sixth man and more

August 12 bills killed After white supremacists invaded Charlottesville with violent clashes that left activist Heather Heyer dead and the community traumatized, legislators carried bills to the General Assembly to give localities more muscle in avoiding such gatherings in the future. Attorney General Mark Herring also wrote a couple of bills to combat white supremacist […]

Budget boon: Part-time councilors want full-time staffers

One sign of a healthy economy is when local government adds new positions, and Charlottesville City Manager Maurice Jones has several in his proposed $179 million budget for fiscal year 2019, including 2.5 full-time positions to help city councilors with policy and communications. That $225,000 allocation adds a new research and policy employee and gives […]

Tarps off: Statue lawsuit looks headed to trial

In the latest court hearing on the lawsuit stemming from City Council’s vote a year ago to remove the statue of General Robert E. Lee, the tarps covering Lee and his Confederate general buddy, Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson, weren’t the main reason for the court date. But the judge’s ruling that the shrouds must come down […]

In brief: Medicaid expanded, Building Bridges crashed and more

Medicaid expansion clears House For Terry McAuliffe’s entire term as governor, Medicaid expansion for 400,000 uninsured Virginians remained out of grasp. Last week, after Republican Delegate Terry Kilgore broke rank in favor of expansion, the House voted 68 to 32 in favor, with local delegates Rob Bell, Steve Landes and Matt Fariss in the no […]

Tar Heel transplant: Jeff Richardson jumps into county exec role

When Jeff Richardson got a call and an invitation to apply for the open county executive position in Albemarle County, the Tar Heel state transplant says his only tie to the area was a three-week leadership program at the University of Virginia about 15 years ago. “Those training opportunities had a profound impact on my […]

DOA: Gun safety bills die in subcommittee

Andy Goddard has been going to the General Assembly since 2008, the year after his son was shot four times in the 2007 Virginia Tech massacre. In his 11th year monitoring the legislature and how it deals with mass murders and guns, not much has changed. “It’s the same old thing,” says Goddard, who’s the […]

County budget basics: How to spend $430 million

Albemarle County Executive Jeff Richardson, who took the job November 6, went before the Board of Supervisors on February 16 to propose his first budget, which is nearly 8 percent higher than the one for the current year. He’s recommending $428,500,374 for fiscal year 2019, a $13.5 million increase. Per usual, the biggest slice of […]

Steven Meeks has left the building

The controversial president of the Albemarle Charlottesville Historical Society abruptly resigned February 11 after cleaning out his office in the city-owned McIntire Building. In a “hastily written note,” says Will Lyster, a historical society director, Steven G. Meeks resigned from the organization he’s headed for about a decade. The board asked Lyster to step in […]