After two days of heated public meetings regarding the district’s handling of sexual assault allegations against a former elementary-school staff member, the Albemarle County School Board requested Superintendent Matthew Haas’ resignation on June 11. Michael J. Swiney, 37, started as a social and emotional learning coach at Woodbrook Elementary School in December 2021. For unknown […]
As Albemarle’s population continues to grow, the official policy is to concentrate development in about 5 percent of the county. Staff in the county’s Community Development Department are working on a new initiative to focus infrastructure to locate jobs, housing units, and other uses for what it refers to as activity centers. “Weldon Cooper [is] […]
Like many organizations and companies across the county, the Charlottesville Redevelopment and Housing Authority applied for federal loans to keep payroll checks flowing in the early days of the pandemic. The CARES Act, signed into law in March 2020, created the Paycheck Protection Program as a lifeline for businesses and other organizations at a time […]
“My hope,” Congressman John McGuire says of HR1, the budget bill he voted for last May, “is that it’ll put jet fuel on our economy.” “There’s a lot of incentives for energy,” he says. “You know, we were on the way to being energy-independent in President Trump’s first administration, and then as soon as the […]
Primary care is where better health begins. It’s where a parent brings a child for immunizations, where a physician catches high blood pressure before it becomes a crisis, where someone with diabetes gets the support they need to stay on track, and where prevention becomes real for families in our communities. When primary care works […]
One of Charlottesville’s most prolific developers has added another high-profile property to its portfolio by purchasing a parking lot where the City Market operates on Saturdays for seven months of the year. “Woodard Properties has acquired the surface lot at 100 E. Water St., converting our leasehold interest in the property into ownership,” said CEO […]
When Katharine DeGeorge and Jeremy Kent bought a house on 7.86 acres in May 2022, previous owner David A. Powell signed an affidavit stating he knew of no violations of county ordinance nor any issues related to securing permission to build on the property. That turned out not to be true, and the couple is […]
School’s out for the summer, but Charlottesville’s investment in education continues. In a June 5 statement, the University of Virginia announced a $43.4 million gift to its School of Education and Human Development to support the creation of a local early childhood learning center. The donation is the largest in the education school’s history. Official […]
We’re so back. Tourism spending in Charlottesville and Albemarle surpassed pre-pandemic levels in 2024, as visitors poured $989.8 million into the regional economy. With Monticello and other historic sites celebrating the United States’ 250th anniversary, and the Downtown Mall marking its 50th year, the area’s aiming to boost that haul past $1 billion in 2026. […]
If you attended the June 1 Charlottesville City Council meeting, you may have been surprised when Councilor Michael Payne said, “there are a number of boards and commissions with vacancies,” and even more boards with terms expiring soon. City website data shows that Council appoints roughly 160 positions (excluding ex officio and city departmental appointments) […]