City lawyer: Condemnation of Water Street Garage has begun

How many lawyers does it take to schedule a hearing? Well, if it has anything to do with the highly contentious battle between the city and Mark Brown’s Charlottesville Parking Center, that would be five attorneys in Charlottesville Circuit Court today to set a date for CPC’s petition for the appointment of an emergency receiver. During the hearing, the […]

Local social media celebrity arrested again

Bryan Silva, the Vine and Facebook star notorious for broadcasting his January SWAT standoff on Jefferson Park Avenue to thousands of followers, has been arrested on a capias advising that he failed to comply with the Offender Aid and Restoration program. Around 1pm on June 14, Charlottesville police spokesperson Steve Upman says Silva turned himself […]

Against the grain: C’Ville-ian Brewing’s mea culpa

“Out of 56 places in Charlottesville to get beer, we’re rated number 56,” says Chris Kyle, the new manager of C’Ville-ian Brewing Company. “Dead last in all categories.” That’s a strange thing for a business to admit, but the folks at C’Ville-ian have started a process of redemption akin to a 12-step recovery process. They […]

Blue Ribbon commissioners identified

Nine members appointed to serve on Mayor Mike Signer’s Blue Ribbon Commission—created to make a recommendation to City Council on how to treat race, memorials and public spaces after a major controversy regarding the General Robert E. Lee statue in Lee Park—now have about half a year and $10,000 to make it happen. “I think […]

In brief: STAB sex scandal, sacred corn and more

St. Anne’s-Belfield sex scandal Former coach LeRoy Tyvienne Hurd, 36, was sentenced to three years in prison June 8 for using a computer to solicit a 17-year-old student in 2014, despite the alleged victim, now 19, sending a letter to Judge Cheryl Higgins with her wishes he not be prosecuted, according to the Daily Progress. The […]

Escalation clause: City threatens eminent domain of Water Street Garage

In this week’s episode of Charlottesville v. Mark Brown over the Water Street Parking Garage, the city makes an offer to buy Brown’s shares of the garage. If he declines, it plans to initiate eminent domain proceedings, according to the city’s outside attorney. “For months Mark Brown has been trying to bully the City into […]

Stopped light: Long wait at downtown signal triggers questions

On Water Street, buses regularly back up at a traffic light at Third Street SE that has the Water Street Parking Garage on one side and a half street dead-ending on the Downtown Mall on the other. Water Street traffic can idle at this light for nearly a minute, by this reporter’s count. The Charlottesville […]

Demolished: Historic eyesore eatery spot gets new day

For more than 20 years, a gutted structure at the intersection of U.S. 250 and 240 near Crozet has stood in mute testimony to the collision of county regulations and an entrepreneurial dream. That era ended June 7, when the remaining shell came down. Current owner Bill McKechnie estimates all traces will be removed by […]

Landmark Hotel boasts a new look

The west side of the Downtown Mall’s Landmark Hotel has a new look. Thanks to the work of Dysturb, “a community of freelance photojournalists who place current international journalism in public spaces,” and the Magnum Foundation, a nonprofit photojournalist organization, the wall now sports images depicting climate change from around the world. The movement, entitled […]