JoAnn Robertson has had enough. She was appalled at conditions facing elderly and disabled residents at Crescent Halls who spent the summer without air conditioning. Now she’s calling for a boycott of City Council in protest of its new public comment rules that went into effect in February—and that already have drawn a lawsuit. At […]
JoAnn Robertson has had enough. She was appalled at conditions facing elderly and disabled residents at Crescent Halls who spent the summer without air conditioning. Now she’s calling for a boycott of City Council in protest of its new public comment rules that went into effect in February—and that already have drawn a lawsuit. At […]
To forestall the inevitable confusion of people looking for Market Plaza on Market Street, the future Water Street home of City Market has been renamed West2nd. Under a broiling sun September 8, developer Keith Woodard announced the $50 million mixed-use project’s new moniker. “We’ll still have a market, we’ll still have a plaza at West2nd,” […]
Mayor Mike Signer and City Councilor Kathy Galvin insist there is nothing personal in the city’s dispute with Mark Brown over control of the Water Street Parking Garage. In meetings with reporters July 6 after the city rejected Charlottesville Parking Center’s June 24 proposed settlement of the escalating controversy over the fate of the garage the city co-owns with Brown, […]
Gun control debate dominated the June 20 Charlottesville City Council meeting as members of opposing sides of the issue cited the Second Amendment—“the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed”—and the Declaration of Independence’s inalienable rights to “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness” that victims of gun violence […]
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 […]
City Council heard from around three dozen people at its marathon five-hour April 18 hearing on the statue of General Robert E. Lee and the forming of a blue ribbon commission on race, memorials and public spaces. Much like the citizens that spoke before them, the councilors found themselves split on how to move forward. […]
The battle between Charlottesville Parking Center owner Mark Brown and the city got more heated with an April 6 letter from Brown that said the entity that runs the Water Street Garage is in default and one of his remedies is to terminate the complicated agreement between the parking center and the city and […]
The Charlottesville park bounded by Jefferson, North First, Market and North Second streets isn’t the only Lee Park under heavy scrutiny. Last July, a group of folks in Dallas led a demonstration at Oak Lawn’s Lee Park to demand that a General Robert E. Lee statue be removed and the park renamed. Activists felt called […]
Vice-Mayor Wes Bellamy’s March 22 press conference at Lee Park to advocate removing the General Robert E. Lee statue and changing the name of the park drew Confederate supporters such as Virginia Flaggers, who at times shouted down speakers. “When people come to this park, they should never feel uncomfortable,” said Charlottesville High School ninth-grader […]
A new policy proposed by City Council for those who wish to comment at regular meetings aims to make the process more inviting, but it has some doubting the new rule’s integrity. Currently, a sign-up sheet is made available an hour before the start of each meeting and those hoping to speak must wait in line […]