Virginia's new top dog takes center stage

All things considered, Virginia’s minty fresh new governor Bob McDonnell had about as good a first few weeks as any pearly toothed pol could ask for. He gave a platitude-filled, well-received inauguration speech, threw himself a million-dollar party, and then settled into his big comfy governor’s chair and got down to the business of reversing […]

Spirit Of The Golden Juice Reissue; F.J. McMahon; Rev-Ola Records

F.J. McMahon’s exhausted yet intense murmur was not bred in ’60s folk clubs but in Vietnam, where his tour of duty did not inspire him to write songs boiling with rage. Singing as if from a distant dimension surrounded only by discreet drums and dual guitars, McMahon instead recreates the state of mind of a […]

Gary O'Connell to work on his passion: water

After 15 years as Charlottesville City Manager, Gary O’Connell is “ready for a change.” At the end of April, O’Connell will leave his post in the city to head the Albemarle County Service Authority (ACSA) as its executive director. To what may seem like a step into a minefield—otherwise known as the ongoing debate over […]

Local leaders are pumped that high-paying government work is coming to Albemarle County. But Will the Defense Intelligence Agency payoff match the promise?

O Dear Citizen of Albemarle, I know you’re excited. The Defense Intelligence Agency is here.  We’ve been hearing about them for years: Eight-hundred twenty-eight employees descending on Albemarle County like a swarm of locusts. But these locusts will be a boon, not a plague, sowing a luscious bounty. In the words of the wise men […]

Evergreen, or just lucky?

Hey Ace: Over the past few weeks, I’ve noticed an oak tree on the 250 bypass (heading east, on the left side of the McIntire Park interchange) that is still green and full of leaves. Driving west, it’s more of a greenish-brown. How does this happen in January, especially considering the winter we’ve been having?—Oak-K-Commuter-in-Charlottesville […]

University Limited to turn Alcove condos into 31-roomer

With the Landmark Hotel still serving as the city’s largest monument to failed accomodations, it bears asking whether Charlottesville needs another hotel, no matter the size. Then again, for Whit Graves, maybe size matters after all.   The Alcove condos—which sit in the thick of UVA traffic near the corner of Wertland and 14th streets, […]