Tuesday, December 6
UVA football co-captain reaches new high
Today, Tony Franklin, a defensive starter on the UVA football team, received an early Christ-mas present: a court summons charging him with possession of marijuana. The Daily Pro-gress reported that the team co-captain faces a misdemeanor possession charge, indicating that the officer found less than 14 grams and did not believe that Franklin had the intention to distribute. According to ESPN.com, through- out the NCAA approximately 25 percent of football players surveyed reported using pot. What’s the most popular sport for toking up? Riflery (no joke), with nearly half of all surveyed sport shooters reporting regular use. Woah… like, duck, dude.
Wednesday, December 7
Warner pads his image with money to colleges
No doubt hoping to cement his legacy as a popular and successful governor, Mark Warner announced that his last State budget could include $255 million for university research in the Commonwealth. UVA is looking for about $25 million from that pie to build a new cancer treatment center on Jefferson Park Avenue. The announcement comes with the news that UVA has tapped Katie Couric, a former Wahoo who now co-hosts NBC’s “Today” show, to help raise another $100 million for the cancer center. If the General Assembly approves Warner’s proposed budget, the Democratic guv and would-be presidential candidate says the $255 million will bolster Virginia’s biological sciences. No doubt Warner hopes it won’t hurt his image, either.
Thursday, December 8
Big price tag for Jefferson School
Renovations to the historic Jefferson School building could cost $30 million or more, according to estimates delivered to City Council in a work session today. Since 2002, the Jefferson School Task Force has been discussing plans for the dilapidated formerly all-black school; the group concluded that the building should be turned into an African-American cultural center that includes adult-education classrooms and a community space in the adjoining Carver Recreation Center. City Councilor Kevin Lynch repeatedly questioned whether the task force’s ideas can be financed, while some task force members suggested that the City should simply figure out a way to do the project to satisfy local African-Americans who, as Councilor Kendra Hamilton put it, “have not had a fair shake.” Jefferson School has been added to the Virginia Landmark Register, which means private investors can get tax credits if they contribute to the site’s renovation.
Friday, December 9
County hires supe while City keeps looking
“Our students live in a global community, and they will work in a global economy,” said Pamela Moran as she accepted the job of Albemarle school superintendent this afternoon. “We need to prepare our students to succeed. We need to eliminate the achievement gap.” Moran has been serving as interim superintendent since outgoing supe Kevin Castner announced he would retire in June, and reportedly she enjoys wide support among county parents and school employees. The County’s smooth transition is in contrast to the Charlottesville School Board, which has been looking in vain for a new superintendent since April. Today the City learned that the State has extended its deadline for hiring a new superintendent.
Saturday, December 10
Eco-friendly building can save some green
Today, with the completion of the first ecoMOD house, UVA and the Piedmont Housing Alliance proved that the green building movement isn’t just good for our environment—it’s good for our wallets as well. The 1,290 square foot, three-bedroom house was designed and constructed by UVA students in eight small modules at a decommissioned airport just outside Charlottesville. The modules, which were created using structural insulated panels, were then transported to 502 7 1/2 St., where they were craned onto the home’s foundation. The eco-MOD project led by UVA professor John Quale is designed to encourage modular building and show that it’s possible to create affordable, environmentally friendly homes even in dense urban areas. PHA plans to sell the home to a qualified low-to-moderate income family. Over the next few years, PHA and UVA expect to build at least two more ecoMOD houses in the Charlottesville area.
Sunday, December 11
Low temps cause minor wrecks
Temperatures were in the 40s this weekend after freezing temperatures and precipitation combined to coat Central Virginia with a glaze of ice. Thursday night’s storm prompted the usual freak-out that accompanies the white stuff in Charlottesville. Local residents’ notorious inability to drive on slick roads prompted dozens of accidents on Thursday and Friday, but luckily there were no deaths or serious injuries.
Monday, December 12
Local law center scores win for James River
Today the local Southern Environmental Law Center celebrated an agreement that requires trash barges on the James River to be watertight. A Virginia company called Waste Management wants to haul as much as 6,000 tons of out-of-state trash per day by barge up the James to a port in Charles City. Negotiating on behalf of the James River Association, the SELC encouraged Waste Management to make sure their barges don’t leak into the river.
Written by John Borgmeyer from staff reports and news sources.
City and County want Richmond’s help with growth issues Albemarle to raise roaming pooch penalty
Expect a $250 fine if you let the dogs out
As the Albemarle County Code currently stands, letting your dog off leash is considered a Class IV misdemeanor, bearing a maximum fine of $25. However, a new County amendment raises the maximum fine for a free-roaming Fido to $250.
The impetus behind this change, approved by the County Board of Supervisors on Wednesday, December 7, stems from a neighborhood dispute in the Peacock Hill subdivision in Ivy. In a letter to the Albemarle County Board of Supervisors, Phil Hightower, president of the Peacock Hill Community Association, cited “residents…plagued by an individual who lets his many dogs run loose in their yards.” The dogs, unleashed, rove through the subdivision in packs, intimidating children and disturbing the peace, he says. According to County records, the owner, Paul Gregory, has five convictions for violating the dog ordinance. Though convicted, Gregory insists that the dogs were not his, saying, “Every time there is a loose dog in the neighborhood, people assume that it is mine.”
According to Cindy Perfater, a Peacock Hill neighbor, the current $25 fine is an inadequate deterrent to make dog owners take the leash ordinance seriously. Perfater says the amendment will enable judges to enforce higher penalties on repeat offenders. A $250 fine, Perfater says, will “hurt someone’s pocketbook enough to make them wake up.”—Anne Metz
But will their pleas be muted by development bucks?
When the 2006 General Assembly session begins January 11 Albe-marle County and Charlottes-ville both will look to Richmond to help local officials manage the costs of reckless de-velopment and assist low-income residents to meet the demands of the Central Virginia housing market. Here are two items that local lobbyists will take to the General Assembly, according to City and County documents, and what they might mean for local voters.
The proposed changes may not go through, of course. Politically powerful developers and the real estate industry oppose the measures. In 2005, real estate and construction interests donated $8,404,120 to state candidates, nearly twice as much as any other private-sector interest group in Virginia.
Albemarle County The County wants the State “to provide local governments with additional tools to manage growth.” These tools include “impact fees, flexibility for proffers, adequate public facilities ordinances and transfer and purchase of development rights to manage growth.” The reasoning for this request is simple: Infrastructure costs associated with new developments are now borne by all taxpayers, rather than by those who profit the most from development.
Supervisor Sally Thomas pointed out that the County’s current annual allocation of $1 million for the purchase of development rights did not remedy the problem and said, “We would like to have the tools that support adequate public facilities such as schools and roads that match the size of a development.”
City of Charlottesville The City of Char-lottesville has requested a “Charter Amend-ment Regarding Affordable Housing” that would allow for the acquisition, construction, lease and/or sale of “Land or buildings in the city for the purpose of providing housing for low or moderate income persons or for elderly or handicapped persons.” It also calls for the allocation of grants to owners of dwellings or dwelling units “for the purpose of subsidizing, in part, the rental payments” for persons of low or moderate income.
Delegate-elect David Toscano said a similar Charter approved by the General Assembly for the city of Alexandria served as a model. He said the raising of capital for “folks who work full-time but don’t make enough to get into that first home” would complement existing programs provided by Charlottesville and the Piedmont Housing Alliance.—Jay Neelley
Council changes local car tax
That new ride will cost you
Last week City Council voted to change the way it levies taxes on your vehicle, which will likely increase most people’s personal property tax bill.
In the past, the City has assessed vehicles by using its “average loan value,” which is based on amounts that banks and finance companies value certain types of vehicles for loans. Now the City will figure taxes based on a vehicle’s “trade-in value,” the amount a dealership will pay for a trade-in.
The change means that most people will see their car tax go up; however, the hike will be less for an old car than a new car, which has a higher trade-in value. The chart below shows some specific examples of how tax bills might change for different types of vehicles.—John Borgmeyer
Do hunters get too close?
Near-miss prompts questions about the county’s “rural character”
On Saturday afternoon, December 3, UVA history professor Joe Miller sat reading a student’s paper when he heard what sounded like an explosion just over his shoulder. Shards of glass showered over him; turning around, he saw a fist-sized hole in one of his living room’s 6′ windows, which was completely spider-webbed with cracks.
“I stood up and thought, ‘Holy smoke. That’s a bullet hole.’”
Miller, who lives on a hilltop along Dry Bridge Road in Ivy, called the Albemarle County Police. Meanwhile, Miller found a warped lead rifle bullet and a copper shell casing lying on his hardwood floor. “How close they came to my head, I don’t know,” he says.
Miller and the police surmise that the shot came from one of the hunters who routinely fire at deer in the woods around Miller’s home. During hunting season, “we hear gunshots constantly,” he says.
Although his home sits in what the County has designated a “rural area” of Albemarle, Miller says so many homes have been built in the past 10 years that the “rural” description no longer fits. Ivy hasn’t seen any of the huge subdivision projects (like the ones that transformed nearby Crozet)—instead, a steady progression of new homes have turned Ivy into what amounts to a heavily wooded residential neighborhood. The abundance of both woods and tasty lawn plantings make Ivy a haven for nuisance deer. Miller wants hunters to be more careful where they point their guns, while police say hunters should never trespass to hunt because they don’t know that someone’s office might be just over the next hill. But as the County’s struggle over development continues, the incident speaks to a larger controversy over growth management in Albemarle.
County planners attempt to channel development into “growth areas” like northern Albemarle and Crozet, but it doesn’t always work. According to a recent County report, since 1997 31 percent of all new homes in Albemarle were built in rural areas.
Miller says the Board of Supervisors should recognize that “the existing hunting laws are either not adequate or not being en-forced.” His Super-visor, Sally Thomas, says the Board is un-likely to change policy. “A consequence of growth is more residential development in rural areas,” says Thomas. She says some county neighborhoods allow bow-hunters to shoot deer in their backyards, while the County has considered handing out pamphlets to new rural residents that life in “the country” is not all peace and quiet In other words, prepare for unpleasant smells, loud noises and the occasional flying bullet.—John Borgmeyer
Albemarle’s gun laws
– Shooting a gun is prohibited in residential areas, except in defense of “person or property.” Penalty for violation is between $25 and $1,000.
– Transport of loaded shotguns and rifles is prohibited, except for police, the military, or any person “who reasonably believes that a loaded rifle or shotgun is necessary for his personal safety in the course of his employment or business.”
– It is unlawful to hunt within 50 feet of a road. Violation is a Class 1 misdemeanor.
– It is a Class 4 misdemeanor to shoot across a road with a fire-arm or crossbow.
Source: Albemarle County Code, Chapter 10
Love me, build me, Chapter 2
More empty buildings that long for fulfillment
Earlysville Professional Center
Address: 395 Reas Ford Rd., Earlysville
Empty since: Technicolor moved out in December 2002
Price: Lease for $4 per square foot for warehouse space, $7-$10 per square foot for office
Status: Still vacant
Frank Ix Building
Address: Second Street SE & Elliott Avenue
Area: 324,626 square feet, 17 acres—almost as big as the Downtown Mall
Empty since: November 1999
Price: Lease built-to-suit space for $9 to $14 per square foot
Status: Currently home to 13 tenants, including three local television stations, Total Performance and the AIDS Services group
John Kluge’s stuff at auction
At Christie’s a glimpse of how the other 3 percent lives
On Friday, December 16, the contents of 91-year-old billionaire John Kluge’s Albemarle estate, Morven, goes on the auction block at the venerable New York auction house Christie’s. The approximately 550 lots up for sale are expected to bring in anywhere from $5.8 million to $8.7 million, according to Christie’s.
At an estimated net worth of about $11 billion, Forbes puts Kluge as the 30th wealthiest man in the world. He gave his 7,378-acre estate, valued at around $45 million, to UVA in 2001. He now lives in Palm Beach, Florida. The University is allowed to either use the property for educational purposes or sell it off. According to spokesperson Carol Wood, UVA does not plan on bidding in Friday’s sale and while it plans to use Morven for educational purposes, the specifics are up in the air.
The selling off of Morven’s furnishings marks the last of Kluge’s ties with the area (except for ex-wife and PVCC benefactor Patricia Kluge). The collectables up for sale span the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries, and include everything from glass and crystal to cigar shop signs and antique tables. However, according to Melissa Gagen, senior vice president and head of European furniture for Christie’s, Kluge was “very interested in looking at [the house] from an historical point of view,” and thus, since the house was built in 1820, many of the furnishings were also of that era and are considered “American classical.”
For those interested in a deal, this sale might be the place to find it. For a majority of the lots, there is no minimum price, since says Gagen, the aging Kluge is eager to sell things off. For example, one of the showboat pieces is an enormous picnic “basket” that includes two tables, fine china and crystal, and for which Kluge originally paid around $100,000, according to Gagen. The estimate for the sale is bargain-priced between $20,000 and $30,000.
Other highlights, in Gagen’s view? A Georges II walnut side table estimated at $70,000 to $100,000, Georgia O’Keefe’s “Sunflow-ers” estimated at $150,000 to $250,000, and an Indian cigar store princess estimated at $15,000 to $25,000, all of which, Gagen says, people have been “very excited” about.—Nell Boeschenstein
“The zone” explained
UVA tries to figure out what it is about Tiger Woods, anyway
Every athlete has been there. Some call it “the zone,” and you know you’re there when the 18th hole looks like a crater or the approaching baseball is the size of a ripe melon. While it might sound like pure nonsense, as it turns out, this might be why some players always seem to succeed at crucial moments, and why their athletic performances sometimes seem effortless.
According to recent research by psychologists at UVA, our minds can alter our perception of attainable goals. In the case of sports, this element of the brain can change the size of playing balls, depending on how well one is playing.
“I experience it in the sports I play,” says UVA graduate student Jessica Witt, who conducted the research. In hopes of ex-plaining this phenomenon in her softball play, as well as supporting the existing anecdotal evidence, Witt went straight to UVA’s playing fields.
She approached intramural and club softball teams and offered free sports drinks to players willing to participate in a one-minute batting experiment. The researchers recorded the batters’ hitting percentages and asked them to approximate the width of the ball on a poster bearing eight circles of various sizes. Sure enough, those with more hits perceived the ball as larger than those with lower batting averages. These results confirmed her broader claim that “reachable things seem closer than nonreachable things.”
Her findings, written with psychology professor Dennis Proffitt, will appear in a forthcoming issue of the journal Psychological Science. Someone get Tiger Woods a copy so he’ll be able to sleep better knowing that he isn’t completely crazy.—Doug Black
Summer dreams
What does June feel like again?
Weather in Charlottesville can have the peculiar effect of erasing memory. In the thick of summer, I always find that I can’t remember what winter is like. Conversely, in the middle of winter, I can never remember what the summer is like.
Luckily, a few things can remind me of certain seasons that are, at the moment, out of season. One of these memory-restoring landmarks is the massive Southern Magnolia near Brooks Hall East, which was given in honor of Mrs. Frederic W. Scott in 1980. As Southern as the humidity itself, Mrs. Scott was a Sweet Briar College graduate, president of the Martha Jefferson Hospital’s Pink Ladies organization, Miller Center board member and of course, president of the Garden Club of Virginia.
If you find yourself doubting the possibility of 90 percent humidity and heat indices in the triple digits, just visit Mrs. Scott’s lush, green Southern Magnolia on a frigid January day. The tree will remind you that so long as there are magnolias dedicated to women who to prefer to be posthumously known as “the Missus,” rest assured, the Southern summer heat will, for better or for worse, return again.—Anne Metz
Getting to know Debbie Wyatt
Dena Bowers’ defense attorney explains why she’s always taking on “The Man”
Debbie Wyatt has been one of Charlottesville’s hardest-hitting lawyers for more than 20 years. She’s taken on everyone from UVA to City and County police. She is currently representing former UVA recruiter Dena Bowers, who is an outspoken critic of the charter initiative and who was recently dismissed from her position by the Uni-versity. Typical of a Wyatt case, people have rallied on behalf of Bowers, and the University has been doing some serious damage control. Aside from Bowers, other high-profile “little guy” clients Wyatt has represented include Shirley Presley in her case against the City for guiding a portion of the Rivanna Trail through her land, and a Fluvanna man, Kerry Cook, who was shot by police during a violent encounter at Friendship Court. C-VILLE asked Wyatt why she loves to fight the power, and an edited transcript follows.—Nell Boeschenstein
C-VILLE: You seem to have a special affinity for cases that involve underdogs or people of limited resources versus “The Man” (whoever that may be at the moment).
Debbie Wyatt: It’s obviously of much more interest to me to represent an underdog because they need it more. It’s also more challenging, frankly…and fewer and fewer lawyers, for reasons I can probably understand…aren’t doing this kind of work [because] of money and it’s too difficult. [“The Man”] has endless resources, it seems, to fight you and the desire to fight you… They’ll put however much money they need into fighting.
Do you remember a specific moment when you knew that this was the kind of work you wanted to do? What set you on this course?
I’d like to say that seeing To Kill a Mockingbird, reading that book, but to be quite honest I’m not sure that that was the moment. I remember reading Tales of Hoffman, which was about the trial of the Chicago Seven. The law-yers, the judges, everybody was out of control. Why that would have attracted me, I don’t know.
What legal issues interest you in particular, philosophically speaking?
The ones that get me going are run-of-the-mill civil rights. I don’t like seeing governmental bullies… I see [bullying] most frequently with law enforcement. Now, certainly not all law enforcement, but that’s certainly an occasion when bullying happens… Cer-tainly, the biggest bully in town is UVA… It is the 800-pound gorilla here, as I think was just demonstrated with Ms. Bowers.
Do you feel like there have been negative repercussions for taking on these powerful local institutions? What price, if any, have you paid?
I’m always doing things that make people hate me… I think that there are, unfortunately, some judges who are sufficiently conservative and “good old boys,” that I may have a harder time [than other lawyers]… [I also] had to tell my second son that he should probably not apply to the University of Virginia, that he would very likely be turned down, being my son.
Can you recall a particularly memorable case and why was it memorable?
I represented a fellow ac-cused of rape, sodomy, malicious wounding… It was amazing to me the close-mindedness of the community. They couldn’t even listen to me articulate why I didn’t think he was guilty… He was innocent and he was convicted… Fortunately, they granted the appeal; fortunately, we won the appeal…and [the case eventually] got dropped. That’s 20 some years ago and to this day that man will call up and cry.
Santa drops by the jail
Local couple organizes gift drive for inmates’ children
When Holly Heilberg’s eldest son served five months in jail for a driving violation, the Albemarle resident witnessed first hand the strain that having a family member in jail puts on a family.
“I didn’t feel I could enjoy life until I knew he was out,” she says. “It weighs on your heart all the time.”
Heilberg describes her-self and her husband, David, as “middle class,” and they were able to send their son books and CDs while he was incarcerated. However, she was affected by the financial hardship she saw other families bearing and vowed to do something to help them once her son was released.
“It costs money for someone to be in prison,” says Heilberg. “If they want to make a phone call or write a letter they have to pay… It’s an extra financial burden just to stay connected with the person inside prison.”
Heilberg’s fulfilling the vow she made to herself by organizing a gift drive to collect Christmas presents for the children of inmates at the Albemarle-Charlottesville Regional Jail. It’s up to the inmates to nominate their children for eligibility, then Heilberg will find a volunteer willing to buy their kids presents, each present worth around $20. While she hadn’t received the children’s wish lists by press time, she already has about 20 volunteers ready to donate and hopes “to double that number” by the time the presents are given out.
The Heilbergs are planning to present the gifts in the jail auditorium on December 23. Although the Heilbergs are Jewish, in the holiday spirit, David plans to dress up as Santa and a friend has offered to play a Christmas elf.—Nell Boeschenstein