KKK imperial wizard Richard Wilson Preston is charged with firing a gun August 12.
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Two ponytailed Unite the Right participants represented by the same Blairs, Virginia-based lawyer had different fates in their January 4 bond hearings in Charlottesville Circuit Court.
Judge Humes Franklin granted 52-year-old Baltimore resident Richard Preston, an imperial wizard of the Confederate White Knights of the KKK who was filmed firing a gun during the August 12 Unite the Right rally, a $50,000 cash bond with the instruction to not leave the state, possess a firearm or “engage in any assemblies, if you will.”
Defense attorney Elmer Woodard called on Billy Snuffer Sr., the imperial wizard of the Rebel Brigade Knights of the True Invisible Empire, who testified he had a “trailer down on the farm” in Martinsville, where he would allow Preston to live pending his three-day trial in May.
Snuffer, who told the judge he owns Snuffer’s Auto Repair in Buchanan, offered to give Preston a job while out on bond, but it is unclear whether the judge will allow Preston to leave the trailer for matters other than court and to meet with his attorney, who also represents several other white nationalists, including “Crying Nazi” Chris Cantwell.
In a separate hearing on the same day, Jacob Goodwin, a 22-year-old from Arkansas who allegedly participated in the Market Street Parking Garage beatdown of DeAndre Harris, was denied his shot at getting out of jail.
Goodwin, wearing all-black clothing, black goggles, a helmet and carrying a shield on August 12, can be identified in widely circulated videos of the attack, but Woodard told the judge his client was simply walking to his car in the garage when he encountered two groups of people “exercising their First Amendment rights with great vigor,” and unintentionally became involved in the scuffle.
“I was walking and DeAndre Harris come sprinting at me,” Goodwin testified. “He come at me, kind of bounced off my shield and I kicked him.”
On a small scrap of paper, Woodard offered to the judge an address apparently near Richmond where a friend identified by the prosecution as Eric Davis had invited Goodwin to live, if granted bond.
When Franklin asked how long Goodwin had known the Central Virginia resident, the Arkansas man first said four months, but quickly changed his answer to about a year. No one could determine whether Goodwin’s friend, whom he said he met at a “political meeting” in Kentucky and roomed with in hotels, lived in a house or apartment near Richmond, or whether he has a criminal record.
As Franklin was in the process of denying the request for bond, Matthew Heimbach—a co-founder of the Traditionalist Worker Party and Holocaust denier often considered to be the face of a new generation of white nationalists—approached the defense and whispered for several seconds before a deputy ordered him to sit down.
“Apparently someone in the courtroom has the answer to your questions,” interjected Woodard, but the ruling had already been made, Heimbach had already retaken his seat next to Unite the Right organizer Jason Kessler and Franklin said he was done with that hearing for the day.
Edwin Roa, founder of Zabor Dance, leads weekly salsa lessons at The Ante Room. Photo by Eze Amos
By Natalie Jacobsen and Jessica Luck
From swing to salsa, ballroom to hip-hip, tango to tap, Charlottesville’s dance scene is alive and kicking. Over the last few decades as the groups have grown in popularity and size, the communities themselves have transformed: They’re safe spaces to not only master the steps of a dance, but to enjoy the company of others and become a part of something larger than yourself.
Two to tango
Dave Chesler paces the waxed floors, chandelier lights flicker overhead and vinyl scratches on the speakers. His feet count out beats methodically, breaking only when he springs into action to save a couple from a misstep. Laughter ruffles the curtains, and maintains the warmth in the dim room.
Chesler and his wife, Betsy, inherited the Charlottesville Tango dance club roughly a decade ago from founders Marcel Yutz and Gloria Rockhold.
“We used to carpool and drive to D.C. or Richmond solely to participate in milonga nights,” says Chesler. (Milonga, the name of the weekly dance party at Charlottesville Tango, is also a more relaxed version of the dance.) The mileage and gas money, along with growing local interest, prompted them to open up a studio dedicated to Argentine tango in The Glass Building on Second Street.
Participants in the Charlottesville Tango dance club meet once a week for the milonga, a weekly dance party. Photo by Eze Amos
The students Chesler has attracted over the years speak softly, yet fervently, coaxing newcomers to learn not by observing, but by stepping onto the dance floor. Most students estimate it has taken a few years to be comfortable with the steps. Chesler says it takes months to be at ease with dance patterns, though even he is still striving for “mastery.”
“The temperament of society is to get immediate results in anything we set out to do. Tango, and especially Argentine tango—which we practice here—will never have immediate results,” says Marianne Kubik, a participant of more than five years. “It takes time.”
Kubik is an associate professor of movement at UVA, and though she has experience in both ballroom dancing and theater, she has no interest in being a tango instructor. “I want this all to be for me,” she says. “It is a truly social dance. We are all friends, and feel like family here.”
It shows: Halfway through the night, the group rallies around a student who is celebrating her birthday—they pause to watch her blow out candles on the chocolate raspberry fudge cake, and several take turns leading her in birthday dances.
There is a delicate, yet electric feeling to the group. Hushed conversations and chuckles intertwine with heels pivoting and skirts twirling. Any awkwardness participants had seems to have been checked with their coats at the door. Eye contact between two people is all that is needed for a partnership to form. The dancers make it look easy and fluid; followers move with their eyes closed, trusting leaders to direct them.
Dave Chesler and his wife, Betsy, inherited the Charlottesville Tango dance club 10 years ago from its founders. Photo by Natalie Jacobsen
“Argentine tango is a dialogue. It is a conversation going on between two people. Often when you begin [the conversation], you will not know where it will go,” says Betsy Chesler.
That is evident when a set of three songs come to a close and intermission music cues everyone to change partners: No two dances are alike.
Marijke Durieux, a participant of more than three years, urges all learners to dance as both a follower and leader, “to get a better feel” for the layers of the dance. “Don’t be intimidated by the moves—think of it like a new way to walk.” She demonstrates the importance of balance in the upper body, and how to shift your weight between your feet, then how to correspond to your partner’s weight and shifts.
The Cheslers have frequented Argentina, studying the dance over the course of the last decade. They describe tango as “basically another way to walk,” and say specific steps don’t necessarily exist without years of pattern studying. Sliding steps turn into pivots that keep couples moving around the room in a sweeping circle.
“Argentine tango is not as rigid and structured as German or other European styles. We emphasize not following strict, traditional patterns,” says Chesler.
The Cheslers and other instructors and group leaders take turns hosting events, including sessions with visiting instructors from Argentina. About once a month, the whole group visits Richmond, where the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts hosts the popular Third Fridays: Tango After Work night. Dancers from Harrisonburg, Lynchburg and Staunton regularly visit Charlottesville for the weekly milonga—couples from Richmond make the weekly trip too. Entry to the milonga is a $10 donation, and it’s $5 for Tuesday night lessons. “The money is to cover rent,” says Chesler.
Lessons are paced differently, much slower. Teachers demonstrate how to read your partner’s direction and interpret body language. The Cheslers are patient, and guide their students in understanding new techniques; they’re relentlessly hands-on until they see a student’s feet grasp a movement. Transitioning and style are taught as well; then, it’s up to the students to make it their own.
Dr. Kamilla Esfahani, a resident physician at UVA, has a background in ballroom, but was attracted to tango a few months ago because of the energy and unpredictability of the dance. “I attended a few lessons, but the best way to learn is at these milonga; have some wine, put on your heels and get out there!”
She sees missteps as miscommunication, and laughs her way through any accidental crisscrossing. “As a partner, we communicate with our feet, not verbally. It’s important to listen to one another in order to make the dance flow.”
Betsy Chesler agrees. “Many followers close their eyes because a single distraction will break the connection, and both will lose their synchrony.”
It, indeed, does take two to tango.
Add some zest to your life
“Zabor—it mixes ‘sabor’ (‘to know’ in Spanish), ‘saber’ (flavor) and zest,” says Edwin Roa, lead instructor of the Charlottesville Salsa Club and founder of Zabor Dance. He and several locals, including Butch Bailey, started the group 17 years ago, and just celebrated their 1,000th gathering this December.
The Colombian native bought a space above the Second Street Gallery and called it The Dance Spot to “unify the dance community—without a label.” Dozens of classes teaching all forms of dance, such as belly dance, hip-hop and ballroom, are held there weekly. Although Roa is more invested in salsa, he flits among other dance communities to “stay in touch” and be supportive.
“Initially I hated the idea of teaching, but I saw a gap in social dances here in Charlottesville and created a fusion, a balance between lessons and just having fun,” says Roa.
He sees salsa as “invigorating” and “alive,” comparing it to other dances: “Many ballroom styles are like calligraphy, which can look beautiful, but have silly words written. Salsa is more like composition—it is rich, detailed, even though it may not look perfected.”
Zabor Dance hosts weekly salsa nights at The Ante Room. Photo by Eze Amos
He likes the exposure that shows such as “Dancing with the Stars” have brought to general audiences, but also takes issue with the showmanship. “If everyone goes and choreographs and dances the same way, it’s boring. It should be about the movement and culture of the dance, not music and costumes.”
His lessons, which always accompany salsa nights an hour prior to the party, include a dash of such history, elaborating on the combination of jazz with Latin dance that created salsa, and basic movements to get the participants roused. He speaks vivaciously to about 30 grinning faces, the youngest of which is 8-year-old Liliana. He has seen his students grow up, and bring their children to his salsa nights over the years.
The lessons and party are now held at The Ante Room, after hopping from place to place around Charlottesville over the course of the last decade. They start out easy: with tapping, then walking side-to-side, to counting steps of four and dancing in a square shape. The music is upbeat, and Roa keeps the class interactive. He doesn’t strive for flawlessness with his students, but embraces the differing nuances of their steps and styles. “I want you to bring your own ingredients, and show me the flavor of your dance,” says Roa. He reminds everyone there is no such thing as a mistake.
Students learn how to direct their energy through their chest and shoulders, and channel direction with their hips, creating the iconic rocking motion that makes salsa recognizable. He teaches the ways to count, and what steps to fall back on if you feel overwhelmed.
Liliana volunteers to demonstrate moves throughout the class, as her father, Victor Mambuja, watches. “I like coming [because] it is fun,” she says. “I do gymnastics too, which is like dancing.” Mambuja says they have only been coming for a few weeks, but it was all her idea. “She looks forward to it every week. It has helped her improve her rhythm and balance.” She tugs on his hand, pulling him to the floor.
All ages are welcome at the salsa nights. “We strive to create a completely safe space,” says Roa. “If anyone feels discomfort, I encourage them to speak up.” Intolerant of misbehavior, he has—though rarely—shown troublemakers the door. He feels this is especially important after this summer. “People try to come here to forget their everyday problems. We want to empower everyone who joins us,” he says. Roa led a salsa event in front of the LOVE sculpture on the Downtown Mall shortly after August 12, to “bring levity” back to the community center.
“UVA does not offer formal partner classes, that’s why the local social groups like salsa are so important to the community,” says Roa. Nearly 50 regulars participate weekly, with larger events bringing in hundreds.
Butch Bailey mans the DJ computer and control panel while Roa teaches. He has been loyal to Roa, joining him every week. “Salsa is really good for you—it’s therapeutic. You can find a number of studies that believe this dance postpones [onsets of] dementia,” says Bailey. “The friendships I have seen made here are for a lifetime.”
The lesson wraps up, and the music dims, cuing the party. Rambunctious dancing across the floor begins almost immediately, with people spinning and holding hands. The walls vibrate from the music, and the floor shakes with every heart-pounding step. Leaders project momentum through their chests, and followers respond, as if questions are being posed and answers shared. Feet become seemingly obsolete as partners learn to properly read each other’s language with their upper bodies and hands.
Throughout the night the dancing never ceases—it’s well past midnight when the floor starts to thin. High spirits and energy are palpable, as is the sweat.
Simone Buckman, a UVA researcher and Charlottesville native, has been practicing for the last four years. “I used to try going in New York City, but their clubs are very elitist; so when I found Edwin I was elated—it is so liberating here. Look around and see how many nationalities, socio-economic statuses and ages are present. There are so few communities within Charlottesville that have such representation, that are so welcoming and inclusive,” says Buckman.
“Starting out seems scary at first,” she says, “but salsa is all about making yourself vulnerable before freeing yourself.”
Hop to it
About 20 smiling pairs twirl around the dance floor as the beginning notes of “For All We Know” by the Boilermaker Jazz Band fill the air. The smooth sound of the clarinet beckons dancers in and out of steps, with the leads setting the pace for their partners with arm and body movements. The windows around the main room at The Front Porch are already fogged over, and someone has propped the front door open to let in the cool night air. If you close your eyes and listen to the leather-soled shoes hitting the floor in time to the eight-count rhythm jazz music, it’s easy to imagine you’ve been transported to another place, another time. Perhaps 1935 and the Savoy Ballroom in Harlem, New York—one of the first racially integrated ballrooms, and the birthplace of the swing dance known as the Lindy hop.
The Lindy hop, which started as an African-American improvisational dance that fused together dances before it such as jazz, tap and the Charleston, plays off the spontaneous nature of jazz music because couples don’t rehearse steps beforehand. It’s a true partner dance in which the lead and follow pay attention to each other’s movements and have a conversation with one another—and with the music. The solid eight-count rhythm of a song works as a base structure for both musicians and dancers: You know what to expect and you can play around within that framework.
Jim McGuire, left, has been dancing the Lindy hop for three years, and says he loves not only the dance but the community surrounding it. Photo by Eze Amos
The local Lindy hop dance scene was built up much in the same way the dance itself saw a resurgence on a worldwide scale. A popular dance in the late ’20s and up to the early ’40s, Lindy dance troupes such as Whitey’s Lindy Hoppers, started by Herbert “Whitey” White at the Savoy, toured extensively around the country and even appeared in films such as The Marx Brothers’ A Day at the Races. But the Lindy hop dropped out of mainstream culture during World War II, when many of its fans were drafted, and dance clubs segued into jazz clubs filled with the less movement-friendly sounds of bebop and cool jazz. Rock ’n’ roll exploded on the scene later, but in the 1980s, groups of dancers in New York, California, London and Sweden all sought out original Lindy hop dancers to come out of retirement and teach them how to do the exuberant dance they had only seen on film.
In 2009, a small group of Lindy hop enthusiasts in Charlottesville formed SwingCville to offer classes in a variety of vintage dances including the Lindy hop, Balboa and Charleston. The group’s member base is fairly transient, with many college-age students and recent grads. And the nonprofit is all volunteer-run: Everyone from the person who takes money at the door of the weekly or monthly dances to teachers to the club’s organizer do it because they love it.
SwingCville General Manager Jim McGuire initially tried swing dancing at his sister’s wedding, when one of her friends taught the wedding party some moves. McGuire, who admits he doesn’t have a great sense of rhythm, says he was terrible that first time on the dance floor. He tried ballroom a few years later but wasn’t a fan of the more prescribed structure with dramatic lines. In 2012, the Charlottesville native moved back to his hometown and three years later he got up the courage to try swing once more. He arrived about 15 minutes early—he’s often early—for the two-hour Lindy hop crash course SwingCville offers to teach beginners the basics, and he stared in disbelief as he watched people learn The Big Apple, a complex, choreographed jazz line dance. “Oh my god I don’t belong here,” he thought to himself. But he stayed for the lesson (which was much easier, he adds) and hasn’t stopped dancing since. He knew he was really into the Lindy hop when he started practicing on his own. While he made eggs for breakfast he’d do the basic rock step, triple step, triple step moves he learned in the weekly classes. Three weeks ago, after a workout at the downtown ACAC, he put in his earbuds, put on some jazz music and practiced dancing by himself on the rooftop of the building in 40-degree weather. He says whenever he learns a new step, like a kick ball change, he has to practice it “a million times” before he can use it during a dance.
Stephen Johnson is one of the volunteer teachers with SwingCville who leads classes in the Lindy hop, Balboa, Charleston and other vintage dances. Photo by Eze Amos
“I wish people weren’t as scared—I know it’s intimidating,” McGuire says. “It’s so rare that we try things we’re not good at anymore. I wish I would see people try it more—there’s such joy in what we do.”
Katie Dillon is a lifelong dancer—she grew up doing ballet, tap, jazz and hip-hop. But she was still nervous for her first Cat’s Corner weekly dance with SwingCville three years ago because she’d never done a partner dance before. Dillon had moved in with her mom after college and was looking for a way to interact more with the Charlottesville community and to get back into one of her favorite hobbies. She says she fell in love with swing dance from the first class and has only missed a few sessions in the last couple of years.
“It was something about the atmosphere that clicked with me,” she says.
Dillon got more involved with the Lindy hop community and joined other local dancers as they journeyed around the region to take dance workshops and participate in large events like Lindy Focus—the mecca of workshops and late-night dancing to live bands that takes place the week of New Year’s Eve in Asheville, North Carolina. McGuire’s done the same, and he praises the open and friendly Lindy hop community—when traveling for work he’ll often look up people in the local scene and enjoy a night of dancing and an invitation to crash on their couch before heading back home.
Dillon recently started teaching Lindy hop classes, and says it has caused her to become even more passionate about the dance and to pay attention to what her body’s doing and how she’s connecting with the other person.
“[This community] has really changed my experience living in Charlottesville,” Dillon says. “I’m glad I found them because it’s a really open, friendly, supportive and encouraging community of people.”
At the Wednesday night dance lesson in mid-December at The Front Porch, teachers Jim Hughes and Sheila Herlihy have dancers walk in a circle around them to warm up before splitting them into groups of leads and follows to learn the basic back-and-forth rock step and quick-time triple step, and get tips on hand placement (leads should place their hands on the follow’s back, and the follow drapes her arm over the lead’s left shoulder; their right hands are clasped). After the leads and follows pair up, Herlihy counts down a 5…6…5, 6, 7, 8 so that the dancers can put their new knowledge into action. After the session, dancers high-five each other and the leads rotate in a clockwise direction. There are no set partners; after each lesson you try what you just learned with a new person.
When the group adds tuck turns in which the partners rotate away from each other in a spin during the triple steps and then come back together, Herlihy praises them. They successfully completed the two main rules in Lindy hop, she says: Don’t get hurt and have fun.
As the class winds down, more people begin to trickle into the room and line up on the walls on either side of the room or lean against the stairs waiting for the social dance to start. Once class is over, Brian Richards, one of the DJ coordinators for SwingCville, puts on the first selection for the evening from the Boilermaker Jazz Band, and the dance floor fills with people. First-timers dance with veterans and teachers dance with students, although no teaching is done during social dances, McGuire says. The focus is on being in the moment—and having fun.
“Lindy hop is playful. There’s an exuberance to it that I really identify with,” McGuire says. “As you watch people who are into different dances, they’re into it for different reasons, and a lot of it has to do with the way it makes you feel.”
Nikuyah Walker was elected mayor January 2, beating out Kathy Galvin, right, who cast the single "no" vote against Walker.
Photo by Eze Amos
The first meeting of the new City Council January 2 went into uncharted territory with formerly behind-the-scenes decisions—the new mayor and vice mayor—made publicly, and for some on the dais, uncomfortably. New councilors Nikuyah Walker and Heather Hill were elected mayor and vice mayor, respectively, while the airing of the grievances allowed some rebukes and score settling among councilors.
Senior Councilor Kathy Galvin wanted the mayor’s job, and she had several supporters endorse her during public comment, to catcalls from some attendees. Ultimately she didn’t have the votes, and she ended up being the single “no” in Walker’s 4-1 election as mayor.
With City Manager Maurice Jones leading the meeting—and calling disruptive citizens to order—the councilors made statements, nominations and expressed concerns about their fellow officials.
Hill, who nominated Galvin, her North Downtown neighbor, acknowledged that Galvin’s experience on council might not be enough. “We need a new direction,” she said, and pointed to Walker.
The concern with Walker for Hill—and for Galvin and former mayor Mike Signer—was Walker’s unwillingness to meet and make nice with her new colleagues on council before the January 2 meeting.
Walker explained that she planned no meetings before the new year, and that she found congratulatory emails sent by Signer, whose resignation she repeatedly called for last year, and Galvin “not authentic.”
Said Walker, “I’m comfortable with making people uncomfortable.”
“I am considering voting for Nikuyah Walker,” said Signer. “It’s awkward to talk critically about your potential colleagues going forward for a two-year or four-year term. That’s the reason this decision is done beforehand.”
He wondered whether Walker would be able to work with him. “You’ve said some very hard things about me personally,” he said.
“While you were talking about removing the personal,” replied Walker, “I don’t think people understand how difficult my campaign was, and you, in particular, made it very difficult.”
Days before the election, the Daily Progress ran an article headlined, “Emails show Walker’s aggressive approach.” Signer admitted sharing emails that demonstrated Walker’s “profane attacks” against staff.
Said Walker, “Talking about official council business is one thing,” but she said she didn’t feel it was necessary “to pretend” the congratulations were sincere. When Signer pressed her about whether she could get past their previous interactions, Walker reminded him that she did speak to him when he entered the room.
“There is no returning back to normal,” said Wes Bellamy, who nominated Walker and defended the unruly City Councils of the past year that have led to the meetings being suspended.
“I haven’t been grandstanding,” said Galvin, nor does she “seek the limelight,” a barb that seemed pointed toward Signer, who was taken to the woodshed by his fellow councilors after the Unite the Right rally for forgetting that the mayor’s role is ceremonial and to lead the meetings, but otherwise is an equal with the other councilors. “The way I’d be as mayor would be the way I’ve been as councilor.”
Signer seemed to have his own ax to grind with Galvin, and said the long emails she sends to city staff were burdensome and caused “friction.”
“I will never stop asking questions,” said Galvin, who suggested her colleagues relied on her detail-oriented efforts. “I will never vote for anything I do not understand.”
Galvin asked Walker whether she could do the job as mayor with all the reading involved, which Walker supporters Dave Norris called “condescending” and Jalane Schmidt said was “patronizing.”
“I would venture to guess that [Walker] knows more about the budget than many people who have served on council,” says Norris, a former mayor. “I thought her response was perfect: ‘There is a learning curve and I’m up for it.’”
And Walker offered her own critique of Galvin’s performance on council: “Kathy, you appear to listen but you don’t hear.”
Once Walker was elected mayor, Bellamy lost the job of vice mayor when fellow incumbents Signer and Galvin threw their votes to Hill, giving her a 3-2 win.
Signer appeared still sore that Bellamy voted December 18 against the plan to give Atlanta developer John Dewberry a tax break to get the derelict Landmark Hotel finally under construction again. “It’s hard to work consistently when assurances are broken,” he said to Bellamy, a characterization Bellamy disputed.
“There was definitely a Festivus feel to it with the airing of the grievances,” says Norris, referring to a “Seinfeld” episode. “Overall it was very positive. You definitely got a sense of councilors’ strengths and weaknesses.”
The public process to elect a mayor was unprecedented, but fit in with Walker’s pledge to bring transparency to how government is run, says Norris. “It’s messy. It’s awkward at times. And to restore trust in government, one way to do that is to bring more decision-making to the public.”
He’s enthusiastic about Walker and Hill being the new faces of City Council. “There was a lot of frustration about the direction of the city,” says Norris. “I think it’s a good move to put fresh faces of people who are unencumbered. The election was anti-incumbent.”
Schmidt applauds the “uncomfortable” public process of choosing a mayor, and notes, as did Walker, that minorities are used to feeling uncomfortable every day. Having Walker front and center on City Council—“That’s going to be uncomfortable for people used to calling the shots,” says Schmidt. ”And people who have been made to feel uncomfortable now have a voice.”
She also says Walker could be a calming effect on the “rambunctious” council meetings.
Walker was blunt about taking the job of mayor and said it would be a challenge. She said she learned a lot from running a campaign, and intends to do that with her new part-time position. “I will figure it out,” she vowed.
City’s first black mayor elected 44 years ago
Charles Barbour, photographed in 2006. Jen Fariello
When Charles Barbour was elected to City Council in 1970, he gave Democrats a 3-2 edge in an era when Republicans were still on council. And in 1974, he was elected the city’s first black mayor.
Barbour was one of two councilors who voted to close Main Street and turn it into a pedestrian mall in 1974. The controversial decision passed 2-0 because the other councilors had to abstain because of conflict-of-interest concerns. His fellow yes-vote, Mitch Van Yahres, called him “the father of the Downtown Mall,” and Barbour dedicated the mall in 1976.
He didn’t always vote with his fellow Dem councilors, though, and saw himself as more of a swing vote.
Then, like today, race was an issue, and Barbour took stands on divisive issues. He got the city to stop having events at Fry’s Spring Beach Club because in the early ’70s, it was segregated, and he pressed to have two black Charlottesville School Board members rather than one.
Skiing, snowboarding, skating or tubing: on your feet or on your rear, straight or in circles,
down the hill or up and over the obstacles—however you like to slide and however you like your winter sports, Wintergreen Resort in Nelson County’s Rockfish Valley has a hill, a park, a rink, and a great white way for it. The four-season resort boasts 130 slide-able acres with 24 ski and snowboard slopes and trails, two terrain parks, the state’s largest tubing park, and a snow park for young kids. If it’s cold, there is joyful motion on Wintergreen’s 11,000 acres, situated on the eastern slopes of the Blue Ridge Mountains.
“The breadth of recreational opportunities at Wintergreen makes it one of the most varied and complete resorts in the country,” says Rod Kessler, the new General Manager of Wintergreen Resort. “The possibilities for what can be done to maximize the guest experience here were too intriguing to pass up.”
Makin’ Snow Wintergreen’s state-of-the-art computerized snow system, dubbed Snowpower, was installed during the winter of 2002 and 2003 and has been upgraded frequently since. The super system uses some 40,000 linear feet of pipeline, more than 400 snow guns, and 45 weather stations.
Capable of converting 8,000 gallons of water per minute into snow, this complex system makes twice as much snow twice as fast as the previous system, giving Wintergreen’s snow sports surfaces a uniform depth and consistency of snow quality from the top of the slopes to the bottom. The system also allows the resort to recover more quickly from rain or unseasonably warm periods, making possible its extended snow sports season. It also makes Wintergreen the East Coast’s only resort with an automated snow making system that covers all its slopes.
As is typical for this part of Virginia, this year’s long term weather forecast calls for a prolonged cold wave beginning right around mid-December. Wintergreen’s snow season begins then and runs through mid-March. But how often can snow fans really expect to find the stuff?
“The science of snowmaking depends on temperature, humidity, wind speed and direction, adiabatic lapse rate, and more,” notes Wintergreen spokesman Mark Fischer. (The adiabatic lapse rate—for those of us who were liberal arts majors—is the rate at which atmospheric temperature decreases with increasing altitude in conditions of thermal equilibrium). “But as a rule of thumb, if it’s 27 degrees Fahrenheit outside, Wintergreen slopes will be white.”
Snow Play Wintergreen hosts about 200,000 total visitors a year, and skiing is by far its most popular winter sport. About 75,000 visitors come to ski. Another 25,000 come to snowboard. Twenty-eight percent of Wintergreen’s snowy terrain is considered suitable for beginners, while 16 percent is more difficult; 44 percent is more challenging yet, and 12 percent is for experts only.Ski slopes include the Cliffhanger, a double-black-diamond expert hill, and Outer Limits, a 2,000-foot single-black-diamond. Eagles Swoop and Tyro are for intermediate skiers. Upper & Lower Dobie are for beginners.
Wintergreen’s Terrain Park is the place to hone freestyle ski skills. It’s progression of more than 40 features is designed to accommodate a variety of skill levels. Frequent changes to the layout of those features keep it challenging even for daredevils. On any given day the park might feature tabletops and fun boxes, spines and hips, straight, rainbow, and s-rails, battleships and down-kinks. A dedicated lift takes users back up the slope fast—but not as fast as they go down!
Virginia’s largest tubing park, the Plunge, is built on a hill longer than three football fields. Tubing fans (ages 6 and up, and at least 42 inches tall) zoom down this “Scream Machine” at speeds up to 30 mph, then take a conveyor lift back up and do it again.Slide, glide and spin fans can enjoy the 45×90 foot Shamokin Ice Rink located in the heart of the mountain village, just off the Blue Ridge Terrace. Refrigerated by a 125-ton chiller, it accommodates up to 60 people at a time.
Fun While Learning Wintergreen Resort offers ski and snowboard instruction for all ages and ability levels based on the American Teaching System. The five-week Mountain Mornings ski program for kids ages 3-6 includes approximately two hours of on-snow time per lesson, a four-hour lift ticket, and rental equipment. Parents are encouraged to ski for free, or relax in the Terrace Café while their kids learn. The Treehouse offers half and full-day programs for kids 4-14, plus childcare for kids 2 and a half to 12. The Childcare + Snowplay for ages 3 and up is a full-day program offering an hour of introductory ski instruction, plus arts, crafts and group games.
Ridgely’s Rippers offers a full-day program for ages 4-12with approximately four hours of ski lesson instruction, lunch, snacks and hot chocolate. The Ridgeley’s half-day program includes approximately two hours and fifteen minutes of instruction and one snack break. Children who are four will take longer breaks throughout the day, so their time on skis may vary depending on participation levels.
Mountain Explorers is for kids ages 7-14, skiing at intermediate level 4 and above. Each participant must be able to ski on their own proficiently and be able to ride Blue Ridge Express and Big Acorn chairlifts without assistance. The full-day program includes approximately four hours of advanced ski lessons, lunch, snacks and hot chocolate. The half-day program includes approximately two hours and fifteen minutes of instruction and one snack break. Children must have completed all levels of Ridgley Rippers, or have one of our instructors evaluate their skiing prior to being enrolled in Mountain Explorers.
Mountain Explorers Pro is a five-day program for intermediate-advanced skiers ages 7-14, which offers the same level of instruction as is found in the Mountain Explorers single-day program. A Mountain Explorers pass may be used on five consecutive days or any five days throughout the season. This program is designed to help young skiers develop skills that are compatible with joining the Wintergreen Freeride and Race Teams, while offering a fun, supportive, social atmosphere.
Kids, in Action Childcare for ages 2½-12, have an exciting day in the Treehouse enjoying arts and crafts, group games, music and stories. Childcare + Snowplay is a full-day program for ages 3 and up; kids get one hour of introductory ski instruction at a designated time slot and enjoy arts, crafts and group games the rest of the day. Rental equipment and a slope-access pass for the duration of lessons are included.
Kids Night Out lets parents have a night out from 6:00 to 10:00 p.m. while their children, ages 4-12, are provided for. Limited snacks are included; dinner is available for an extra charge.
Competition More experienced and intrepid snow sporters can try a variety of seasonal competitions, including the Freestyle Double Cross and the Winter Terrain Park Series (three rail jams and two slope styles), and NASTAR (National Standard Race), the largest public grassroots ski race program in the world. Wintergreen’s NASTAR race course is open to skiers Saturday and Sunday afternoons from noon to 2:00 pm, weather permitting.
Improvements Kessler arrives as Wintergreen is undertaking major improvements. The Stoney Creek Fitness Center has been completely renovated from “wall to wall and floor to ceiling,” Fischer says. “This included adding lots of new natural light from a full wall of windows and completely refurbishing the locker rooms.”
The Wintergarden Fitness Center has been greatly expanded in both size and scope of equipment. “The addition extends into a lush wooded environment,” says Fischer, “with treadmills, elliptical machines, and stationary bikes facing the windows so users can feel like they are outside while working out in a fully climate-controlled environment.”
Projects currently under construction include the first floor of the resort’s Mountain Inn—the gateway building at the top of the mountain—where a new café, a new 24-hour convenience outlet, a renovation of the lobby reception area, and new membership and realty offices have recently been completed.
Next summer Wintergreen will begin construction of a new members’ ski locker room, renovations of the administrative offices and ski patrol facilities, and the creation of day-lodge and lounge spaces. In addition, part of the retail space in the Mountain Inn will be converted for use as a skier day-lodge space in the winter and a lounge/meeting space the rest of the year. More improvements will be announced early this year.
Wintergreen’s four seasons of mountain recreation attract homebuyers year-round. In addition to its winter offerings, the resort’s amenities include 45 holes of championship golf, an award-winning tennis program with 22 courts, a full-service mountaintop spa, 37 miles of hiking trails, three pools, a lake for swimming and fly fishing, and four places to eat. “The tennis program is highly respected, with our tennis camps rated in the top ten in the world,” Fischer says. “Our tennis program hosts top players for exhibition matches which our tennis members enjoy watching.”
Forty thousand square feet of indoor and outdoor function space plus audiovisual services also make Wintergreen a popular spot for banquets, weddings and conferences. In partnership with The Wintergreen Nature Foundation (TWNF), the resort supports and promotes wildlife habitat preservation and environmental education.
Year-Round Living First and second homebuyers, attracted by Wintergreen’s natural beauty and abundant sporting opportunities (including golf, tennis, swimming and hiking in the warm months), can choose to live either “on the mountain” or in the Stoney Creek community in the valley below. Roughly 85 percent of homes on the mountain are second homes.
In Stoney Creek—where residents enjoy a range of activities including 27 holes of golf, an outdoor pool, tennis courts, and twenty-acre Lake Monocan Park with amenities—that proportion is reversed.
Both communities are close (no more than 45 minutes) to Charlottesville with its rich history, art and culture, foodie scene and intellectual vitality associated with the University of Virginia, and within day-trip driving distance to larger East Coast urban centers
The region’s cheaper home prices have special appeal to retirees and second home buyers and sales are up significantly in recent years.Sales of Wintergreen townhomes have increased over 100 percent, those of single family homes have increased 68 percent, and the average price of a condominium has dropped about 15 percent due to the addition of morelower end condos. Single family home sales in the valley community of Stoney Creek have increased as well.
“Nearby Stoney Creek is something that a lot of people don’t really know about,” REALTOR®Francesca San Giorgio notes. “It should be a bedroom community for Charlottesville; it’s less than 30 minutes to UVA. Every home is a custom home and you have the opportunity to live in the mountains or on the golf course. They’re priced well, from the mid-250Ks to a million dollars.”
Ten townhomes, 61 condos, and 112 single family homes are currently available on the mountain and in the valley. “If one were to compare standing inventory to the total number of homes, condos and townhouses within Wintergreen and Stoney Creek, it would demonstrate a vibrant and resilient real estate market at Wintergreen with a small percentage of properties for re-sale,” Fischer says, adding “People are again discovering Wintergreen.”
You can spend a day driving Route 151, the “Brew Ridge Trail,” sampling beer, wine, cider and whiskey. You can spend the night at a bed-and-breakfast and make it a weekend. You can ski down Eagles Swoop at Wintergreen, hike up Spy Rock in the George Washington National Forest, or wax nostalgic at the Walton’s Mountain Museum in Schuyler, and at the end of the day you can dream.
Nelson County is the kind of place that entices people just looking around to, oh . . . buy a farm and open a cool business. People like Trish Becker who went to school here in the 70s, and came back in 2005, bought an old historic church, and opened up a restaurant and concert venue. Folks like Francesca San Giorgio who moved here from California in 1999 and bought a farm with a bed and breakfast. Both now sell homes in the county, helping other people find dreams properties like they did.
Named for Thomas Nelson Jr., the third Governor of Virginia and one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence, Nelson County is bounded by the Blue Ridge Mountains to the northwest, and the James River to the southeast. It was first populated by Sioux, Iroquois, Monacan and Saponi tribes. Some Native American descendants still live there.
Today Wintergreen Resort is a mainstay of Nelson’s economy, bolstered by rejuvenated agri-business: farms, orchards, breweries, wineries and cideries. Portions of virgin land, preserved as part of the George Washington National Forest and Shenandoah National Park, attract tourists from across the country.
Scenic Loop Perhaps the best way to see Nelson for the first time is to drive or bike the 50-mile scenic loop comprising Route 151, Route 664, the Blue Ridge Parkway, and Route 56. You’ll pass through Piedmont foothills, cross the Rockfish and Tye rivers, and wander through the Blue Ridge Mountains. You’ll see Crabtree Falls, a spectacular series of waterfalls beginning at a height of 1,214 feet. In the spring you’ll admire azaleas, rhododendrons, and mountain laurel, and in the fall, glorious foliage.
History “Local and Virginia history are drivers for Nelson’s tourism program,” said Maureen Kelley, Director of Nelson’s Economic Development and Tourism office. “These destinations dot the rural landscape of Nelson that visitors find so inviting. History lovers can find lodging in historical settings as well; many were constructed in the 1800 and 1900s.”
The Walton’s Mountain Museum in Schuyler(population 2,000) is the boyhood home of Earl Hamner, Jr., creator of The Waltons TV show, a hit program for nine seasons about a rural family in the 1930s and ‘40s. The home and grounds look as they did in Hamner’s days, with displays that include Hamner’s manuscripts, John-boy’s signature glasses, a moonshine still, and samples of the area’s soapstone, once the town’s chief product.
Oakland Museum, Nelson’s museum of history, is located in a former home and tavern that was built in 1838, and listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The museum houses exhibits on rural electrification and the effects of Hurricane Camille, a Category 5 hurricane that hit the county hard in 1969.
The Rockfish Valley Foundation Natural History Center, on the Rockfish Valley Highway at the intersection with Route 627 in Nellysford, is dedicated to preserving the natural, historical, ecological and agricultural resources of the Rockfish Valley. The Center is located in the former Wintergreen Country Store, now on the National Register of Historic Places and originally constructed in 1908, with additions from the 1920s.
A restored, early 19th century courthouse anchors the historic district in Lovingston (population 520 in 2010), a town dating to 1807, now the county seat.
Nelson Living Why do people move to Nelson? For the beauty, sure, but also because there is so much to do. “The music scene here is just phenomenal,” Becker says. “We have an incredible number of musicians. A lot of our musicians build their own instruments.”
Kelley has been here over 30 years, and boy does she agree. “There is so much to see and do as a resident. I don’t think I’d want to live anywhere else,” Kelley says. “I love the people, as well as their stewardship of the environment. I love the fact that Wintergreen is on the mountain andyet we have the beautiful Rockfish Valley and the Shenandoah Valley on the other side. I love the roads; I love the opportunities for outdoor recreation; I adore all the wonderful culinary businesses as well as the attractions.”
“It’s really different here,” San Giorgio says. “You have cultured people, but yet in the country. That’s a wonderful thing.” Many of her clients, she notes, like being close to the cultural offerings in Charlottesville and Staunton, while being just two and a half hours from Washington D.C.
“I think people love that. And also it’s affordable coming from somewhere else. I just spent a week in California—you think of the million dollar price range. Wow! Now I see why people come to Virginia or move away from Charlottesville: because they can afford a lot more acreage and a nicer house here in Nelson.”
Nelson is most definitely not suburbia, Becker emphasizes. “Not only that, but you can still buy pretty good tracts of land for a good price. The county is not like the parts of Virginia where everybody has bought everything and everything is high dollar. You can have the kick back experience without all the [tourists] staying—they come and they leave. So if you buy property here, you’re pretty much guaranteed to keep it the way it is.”
“Vacation homes are a real biggie” in Nelson, Becker says, and “a lot of people get good deals for investment property.” Wintergreen has a variety of homes, from cabins to ski lofts to condos. A lot of people from Washington will buy a condo and lease it for vacation rental; that way it pays for itself and they can use it for their families two or three weeks a year and it doesn’t cost them.”
For starter homes, “people have quite a choice. You can get a little…house on a couple of acres for $40,000 to $60,000. And a big thing for real estate here, especially for first-time home buyers, is the USDA Loan programs [that] are available around the whole county. For a young family—say somebody who’s just had their first or second child—they can get into a home no funds down pretty much.”
For young families, for second career dreamers, for active retirees, Nelson County beckons.
Alderman Library will lose all its 2.5 million books during its $160 million renovation. The number of books that will come back worries some bibliophiles.
Staff photo
UVA has long desired a makeover of its 1937 research library, and with General Assembly funding for the $160 million project likely in 2018, plans are surging ahead—leaving some faculty and students uneasy about whether Alderman’s 2.5 million book collection will make it back to the library once renovations are complete.
And while plans are not complete, Alderman’s low-ceilinged, rumored trysting-spot stacks will not be part of its new look.
“There’s no way to bring them up to code,” said university librarian John Unsworth at a December 13 meeting about the project. The vintage wiring and plumbing are safety hazards, he says, and the low ceilings make it impossible to install sprinklers.
“It’s not as though a library has never burned on this campus,” he said, referring to the great Rotunda fire of 1895.
As part of the preparation, the size of the Ivy Stacks has doubled, and most of Alderman’s collection will relocate there, with 750,000 tomes staying on Grounds in Clemons Library.
“I’m very interested in hearing from students and faculty,” said Unsworth about the selection criteria for keeping books in open stacks. “No research facility worth its name keeps all its books in open shelves.”
It’s that criteria—and earlier plans that touted more open space and chairs and fewer books—that concerned some at the December meeting.
One suggestion from an attendee was for administrators to proactively reach out to grad students—and not hold meetings such as this when they’re gone.
“What was striking were the professions of administrators that they wanted to be open,” says UVA English professor David Vander Meulen. But of the actual plans, he says, “So much of it remains uncertain in my mind.”
He’s concerned about the “fast and furious” timeline to get the project ready to go to the Board of Visitors in the spring, which put planning for July through December 2017, says Vander Meulen.
He notes that UVA commissioned a study from Brightspot, the company that wanted to remove the books from New York’s iconic public library on 42nd Street and ship them to New Jersey—until the outcry of activists and authors like Salman Rushdie halted the process.
“I wasn’t thrilled with that part of our process,” said Unsworth of the Brightspot study at the meeting. “We’re not working with them now.”
To do the renovation, the university has chosen HBRA Architects, which remodeled Yale’s libraries. Its architects will be at UVA January 24 and February 7 to gather input from the community.
“We need to be a big part of that input!” writes UVA alum and visiting scholar John Bugbee in an email to rally “librarophiles.”
Vander Meulen is dubious about how much input the renovation will get from those not on the library committee. “It sounds like we have two days when the architects are here,” he says.
UVA English professor Elizabeth Fowler advised attendees how to articulate to the architects what the books at Alderman mean to faculty and students. “They want vision and meaning,” she said.
Unsworth has said Alderman could end up holding more books than it currently houses.
The collection will move in 2019 and construction will begin in 2020, according to the timeline, providing “several years of disruption,” says Unsworth.
Teacher Robyn Davis requested the city’s only trailer, aka learning cottage, for her preschoolers at Greenbrier Elementary, and says they can be a little louder and feel part of a smaller, age-appropriate community. Photo courtesy of Beth Cheuk
By Natalie Jacobsen
Recent Charlottesville City Schools data suggests a trend among its elementary schools: Non-resident students, typically from Albemarle County and colloquially referred to as “county kids,” are surpassing resident students in transfer rates across the school system. And that’s putting city kids in standalone modular classrooms to handle the excess capacity, says a former Charlottesville School Board chair.
Not so, says city schools spokesperson Beth Cheuk. “We have exactly one trailer.” Or “learning cottage,” as it’s known in educationese.
The enrollment of non-resident students is not new. “In 1983, enrollment for resident students was declining,” says Charlottesville City Schools Superintendent Rosa Atkins. School administrators calculated how a tuition-based program would boost the bottom line and the school board approved the enrollment of non-resident students.
For the 2016-2017 school year, of 292 transfer students, 210paid tuition: $1,337 a year for K-8 students and $1,701 for high school students (additional siblings get a price break). The 82 children of city employees don’t pay tuition.
“One of our goals is to keep expanding, and that means accepting non-resident students,” says School Board Chair Juandiego Wade. “If out-of-district kids want to come to our schools and pay tuition, we will welcome them.”
Within the city, students may transfer to another school—if that school’s principal agrees.
“Most of the time, [transfers are requested] for child care reasons,” says Atkins. “Maybe their babysitter or after-school care is located in another school zone, and the parents want their child to stay with the same sitter or facility.” Transportation can be another factor in granting a transfer, and non-resident students do not have a city bus option, she says.
Last year, Greenbrier Elementary reached capacity—a maximum of 24 students per classroom—and installed a $70,000 trailer-like classroom outside of the school at the request of a preschool teacher, says Cheuk.
“The modular classroom is very modern, clean and even has a better bathroom than the school,” says Wade. “We are one of the fastest-growing districts in Virginia, and using these modulars is not uncommon.”
Seven classrooms in elementary schools were added this school year.
Former school board chair and city councilor Dede Smith says that was to accommodate the incoming non-resident students.
Cheuk puts that number at two additional classes to accommodate non-resident students, whose enrollment is flat. She says the school system’s 3 percent growth is fueled by residents, not non-residents, whose numbers are declining.
Smith contends the learning cottage at Greenbrier houses city kids, and not a single “county kid.”
“The preschool classes are held there,” she says. “They are isolated from the rest of the school. Even the school doors automatically lock, so the students stand outside after class, waiting for someone inside to let them back in so they can go home.”
Smith also expresses concerns for the in-district student transfers who were rejected.
“Last year, of the 65 resident transfer requests, 33 were by white-identified students, and nearly 100 percent of requests were granted. Of the 27 black-identified students, that acceptance rate dropped to under 50 percent.” The other five “Asian” or “unidentified” students were accepted.
“That is unacceptable,” says Smith. The city “is blatantly telling resident kids that they are not a priority, especially black students.” Of all city students, 42 percent are white and 33 percent are black.
“For what it’s worth, we do not ask a student’s race on the transfer application,” says Atkins. However, information on a student is accessible by any principal. “Last year was an anomaly in the acceptance rates,” she says. “In some cases, some families applied more than once, so some numbers are repetitive.”
“Saying we prioritize by race is disrespectful in my eyes and goes against everything I stand for,” says Wade.
In 2013-2014, 100 percent of black students’ and 98 percent of white students’ transfer requests were granted, and more recently in the current 2017-2018 year, 100 percent of white students were allowed to transfer, while 89 percent of black students were, according to the city.
“When you make decisions like we do, not everyone is going to like it,” says Wade. “I’m willing to take the hit. We do our best to reach every student.”
A lot of a student’s success depends on parents, says Wade: “Some economically disadvantaged homes may not be able to provide a quiet space or materials or parental help with homework.”
“More and more pressure is put on families, even though they may not be able to provide,” says Smith. City schools need to take responsibility and provide more resources for those who do not have it at home, she says. “But first, they need to return to prioritizing the resident kids, as their application policy suggests. They need to spend their budget on helping these students excel, not buy trailers to make room for non-residents.”
By the numbers
Charlottesville City Schools
Budget: $78.5 million
Resident students: 4,313
Annual spending per student: $16,840
Non-resident transfer students: 292
Tuition: $1,337 for K-8 , $1,701 for high school students
The Martin Agency, the originator of the state’s famous “Virginia is for Lovers” campaign, was awarded two contracts from the Virginia Tourism Corporation the same day the Richmond Times-Dispatch published allegations of sexual harassment from 17 former Martin employees.
Three weeks ago on December 15, the Virginia Tourism Corporation awarded two contracts totaling $600,000 annually to the Martin Agency. The big dog of Richmond ad shops will be VA Tourism’s advertising agency of record.
On the same day, the Richmond Times-Dispatch published allegations of sexual harassment and other workplace abuses at Martin from 17 former employees. The long-standing macho culture was so overt at least one employee likened Martin to “Mad Men.” By the time Virginia Tourism announced the contracts, the agency’s longtime chief creative officer was already one week out of a job for what the company called accusations of “inexcusable” behavior.
Some 23 agencies bid for the tourism bureau contracts. Presumably, as the originator of the state’s most famous campaign, “Virginia is for Lovers,” Martin had a sizable advantage going in. I can see that. The iconic heart was a game-changer for the state.
But among the many lessons imparted by the #MeToo movement is this: Sexual harassment and mistreatment that drives women out of the workplace, as was reported at Martin, robs everyone involved of potential. One way or another, the product on the outside reflects what’s present—or missing—on the inside.
Evidently, Rita McClenny, Virginia Tourism president and CEO, didn’t get the memo. McClenny told the RTD she had “no concerns whatsoever” about the sexual harassment claims. “That was environmental to the agency and really has no impact on the business,” she said. SMH.
And McClenny wasn’t the only one sticking her foot in it at that moment. I write, of course, of Ralph “Bipartisan” Northam, whose blatant disregard for the issues that carried him to victory was on full display in his December 16 interview with the Washington Post.
While the rest of the nation understood his rout of Ed Gillespie as a referendum on Trump’s policies, Virginia’s new Democratic governor, who twice voted for George W. Bush, saw something else. Campaign advertising notwithstanding, Medicaid expansion wasn’t the imperative he’d made it out to be as a candidate, he revealed to the Post. Controlling costs and making allies of Republicans—those were the big objectives, he said, sounding not at all like a man who’d won the governor’s mansion by nine points thanks to energized liberal voters. So much for rallying the base. SMDH.
All the double-talk in Virginia and elsewhere in these United States reminds me of the great George Carlin. He did a set at the Paramount in January 2007 about a year before he died at age 71. He was working on new material for what would be his final HBO special. The counter-cultural social critic and comedian had served in the Air Force and started his career as a straight-laced, clean-shaven jokemeister until Lenny Bruce and Richard Pryor woke him up. From the 1960s onward, clad in jeans, he kept vigil on the absurdities of politics and language. The view never improved.
By the time he got to Charlottesville, Carlin’s had become the comedy of exhaustion. Doublespeak, complicity, blind spots, abuse of privilege—that’s some rough terrain to mine for a punchline. Tempting though it might have been, Carlin didn’t let himself become enchanted by the promise of one party over another, either. Hypocrisy is the ultimate act of bipartisanship, he’d say.
“Government,” Carlin warned from the Downtown Mall on that strangely warm winter night, “is interested in its own power, keeping it and expanding it wherever possible.” LMAO.
Ten days after former chief Al Thomas abruptly retired, City Manager Maurice Jones named an interim police chief while he searches for a permanent department head. Former Chesterfield chief Thierry Dupuis rose through the ranks and led that city’s 600-man force for 10 years, retiring September 1.
“It sounds like it will be the first new council meeting in many years (decades?) where the vote for mayor is not a foregone conclusion.”—Former mayor Dave Norris writes in an email. [Nikuyah Walker was elected mayor Tuesday after C-VILLE went to press]
Change of venue
Unite the Right organizer Jason Kessler wants to move his perjury trial from Albemarle County, where he’s charged for filing a false statement to a magistrate. A motion to move will be heard January 19.
Survey says
A survey randomly distributed to 5,000 UVA students in December shows that 25 percent of its 2,726 respondents say sexual assault and misconduct are “very” or “extremely” problematic at the university, where 12 percent of female undergrads reported being sexually assaulted in the 2016-2017 school year, which is down from 39 percent in a 2015 survey.
Cops cleared
A Virginia State Police investigation found that three Charlottesville police officers who fired at J.C. Hawkins Jr., 32, and killed him October 19 after he robbed and sexually assaulted a woman on Riverside Avenue, used reasonable force and will not be charged. The report indicated Hawkins wanted police to kill him and that he pointed a gun at the officers. The officers were not identified, but will be after an internal Charlottesville Police investigation, according to Deputy Chief Gary Pleasants.
Lee’s latest look
Tim Michel
The shrouded Confederate general December 31 was sporting an American flag, chain and a sign that read, “I think it wiser not to keep open the sores of war. Commit to oblivion the feelings engender,” a quote attributed to Robert E. Lee after the Civil War.
Tragic year end
Charlottesville police
Molly Meghan Miller, 31, had already been missing 24 hours when law enforcement was notified December 30 that she’d left home on a bitterly cold night wearing only a sweatshirt. Police searched for her, and on New Year’s Day used bloodhounds—with no luck.
Her mother, Marian McConnell, told NBC29, “It’s all very concerning circumstances.”
Around 5:30pm January 1, Charlottesville police reported finding her body at the 1,149-square-foot home at 922 King St. that she shared with fiancé Anson Parker, a 2015 City Council candidate and employee at the University of Virginia.
“At this time, there is no reason to believe there is any threat to the public,” says a police release. “More details will be provided when appropriate.” Several sources have stated Miller’s death was likely a suicide, but police had not released further information at press time.
eze amos
The year in Google
Not only did we become #Charlottesville in 2017, but the city also trended on Google’s top searches August 13, the day after the deadly Unite the Right rally, and was the second most popular protest search after “NFL national anthem protests.”
Top 5 related topics
Nazism—political ideology
White supremacy
Vice magazine
Nationalism—political ideology
White nationalism—political ideology
Top 5 related queries
Antifa Charlottesville
Heather Heyer
Heather Heyer Charlottesville
Unite the Right Charlottesville
Rally in Charlottesville
But the searches weren’t all about white supremacists. The No. 3 trending Google search on December 28? Virginia Cavaliers football, Navy Midshipmen football, Military Bowl and Bronco Mendenhall.
By Nathan Alderman, Shea Gibbs, Jackson Landers and Caite White
Much in the way that giving directions to a newcomer will never not be thrilling (or is that just us?), recommending an essential dining experience is also a rite of passage: It ups your townie cred and, if you’ve steered the novice correctly, shows off our local culinary aptitude. The food scene here continues to change and grow, but what follows is an abbreviated list of dependable recommendables—those classic Charlottesville foods that make us excited to keep eating here indefinitely. They’re just as good now as they were the day we found them (once someone steered us in the right direction).
All in one
Deli-Egg at Bodo’s
Bodo’s Deli-Egg isn’t just delicious. It also solves a problem.
“You get to a point where you’re slicing deli meat, and you have an undersized heel you don’t want to use for a sandwich,” says Scott Smith, co-owner of the venerable bagel vendor.
Bodo’s didn’t come up with the idea—it’s an old New York Jewish deli trick—but Smith and his team have taken it a step further. Because they’re not kosher, they’ve added ham, capicola, salami and Swiss, muenster and provolone cheese to the traditional deli egg mixture of pastrami and corned beef.
The result is one of Bodo’s most popular items. Indeed, the sandwich shop sells so much deli egg, they end up using far more cured meat than just the stuff that comes from the unused ends.
Smith says most folks are straight down the middle with their egg sandwich orders—Deli-Egg on an everything bagel is most popular. But some add more meat and cheese, usually bacon and cheddar, or balance out the richness with some punchy pepper spread.
Smith’s pro tip? Try the Deli-Egg a couple times before you make up your mind about it. The meat and cheese contents can vary depending on what’s available to chop on any given day.
Caff up
Cup of coffee at Mudhouse
Panama, Ethiopia, Colombia, Nicaragua—wherever there are good beans, there’s John and Lynelle Lawrence, the brains of Mudhouse’s successful operation for more than two decades. They get coffee from all over the world, bring it back to Charlottesville and roast it downtown, just up the street from their flagship mall shop. And their hard work continues to pay off, with plenty of buzz from locals and national press, too, like a recent Roaster of the Year award from Roast Magazine.
That’s so cheesy
Stumble Down Mac ‘N’ Cheese at The Virginian
“My chefs don’t need a gym membership,” says Bo Stockton, general manager at The Virginian. “They just carry the mac prep upstairs all day.” He’s joking—probably—but the beloved Corner appetizer does require between 35 and 50 pounds of pasta, roughly 15 pounds of potatoes and more cheese than Stockton cares to guess at, every single day.
Fourteen years ago, owner Andy McClure wanted to create a distinctive twist on macaroni and cheese, combining ultra-twisty cavatappi pasta with spicy pepper jack. Head chef Ernesto Salazar added a cheddar potato cake on top for extra crunch, and diners have been demanding it ever since.
“We get told about how people shared their first date over a mac app,” Stockton says, “while there is a photographer taking their picture eating a mac app because they are getting married that weekend.” Just don’t ask him to explain the Stumble Down name. “People have created their own meaning for the name,” he says, “and we like to think that is special!”
Hungry for more? Read the full list of our favorite iconic Charlottesville eats in the current issue of Knife & Fork!
