Author: ashley-kinney

Almost four years after the project was initially approved by the UVA Board of Visitors, construction on the Ruth Caplin Thrust Theatre began this week. The two-story, $13.5 million addition to UVA’s current drama facilities will connect to the Culbreth Theatre lobby and box office, also slated for renovation and expansion. The Caplin building will offer 300 seats and a stage designed to accomodate dance performances and film events.

While some trees will have to be removed during construction, they will be replaced with mature trees once work is completed. (The projected completion date is May 2012.) UVA Today reports that special measures are being taken to protect one large white oak tree at the top of the hill during the construction process.

And what about protecting the Drama Department’s current production of Evita? Don’t worry; construction noises will not interrupt “Don’t Cry for Me, Argentina.” Construction will take place between 6am and 5pm on weekdays, with occasional work on Saturdays.

Last Thursday, the UVA Board Of Visitors approved an 8.9 percent increase in tuition and fees for undergraduate students. Virginia students will pay $11,576 in tuition costs, while out-of-state students will pay $36,570. The increase is attributed to a continued decline in state support as well as the loss of federal stimulus fund dollars.

According to UVA Today, the number of undergraduate students that receive financial aid has risen more than 11 percent during the past six years, to roughly 35 percent.

Local residents may now hop a flight to the Windy City and make it back before the stroke of midnight. Beginning June 9, American Airlines will offer two daily round-trip flights between the Charlottesville-Albemarle Airport (CHO) and the Chicago O’Hare Airport (ORD), the third busiest airport in the world. The airline offers 515 total daily flights from O’Hare. Additionally, a Charlottesville passenger may now fly to Chicago for the day and return to CHO by 11:40pm EST. Chicago was selected as CHO’s newest destination over six other competitors via a survey by the city’s Office of Communications.

Last Monday, American Airlines officials notified CHO that aircraft for the new service were available. (The airplanes, 44-seat Embraer jets, can operate without the  multimillion dollar extended runway project currently in progress at CHO, which will not be completely constructed and paved for 2 to 4 years.) Airport Authority Executive Director Barbara Hutchinson hopes that competition among the three airlines currently serving CHO and American Airlines will bring the cost of airfare down.

The United States Census Bureau released the 2010 census results for Virginia yesterday. As a state, Virginia grew by more than 900,000 people in the past decade. Cooper Center Demographer Qian Cai, who analyzed census data with UVA’s Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service, says she was most surprised by the explosive growth in Northern Virginia—a 55 percent increase since 2000.

Since 2000, the population of Albemarle County has grown by 14,784 people, a 17.6 percent increase. This increase is due in part to a migration of 10,737 people to the area over the past decade. The county population now totals 98,970. Each racial group showed an increase in its population since the 2008 count.

The findings in Charlottesville city had a few key differences from the county figures. The population of Charlottesville has also grown over the past 10 years, and now totals 43,475 people. This is also partly due to migration, which accounted for 2.7 percent of the growth, but has more to do with natural population growth, which accounted for 5.7 percent of the growth. Most racial groups showed an increase in their numbers since 2008, but some did not. The white and black populations decreased slightly, each group dropping between 100 and 150 from their previous numbers.

These findings follow certain statewide trends, particularly the increase in the Hispanic population. Across Virginia, the Hispanic population has grown by 92 percent in the past decade. Not all locations in Virginia enjoyed the same growth as Albemarle County and Charlottesville; the Southside and Shenandoah Valley showed a decrease in their populations. When asked if these people might be migrating to the Albemarle or Charlottesville area, Cai explained that through the American Community Survey data that information may be available in the future, but not at this time.

What did you find most compelling about the census count results? Post your thoughts below.

Despite chugging far beyond everyone’s expectations, Charlottesville’s daily Amtrak passenger train service may not survive past 2011. The train, which began service on October 1 of last year, travels from Lynchburg to Charlottesville and then onto DC. According to the Daily Progress, the train is more than doubling officials’ expectations and brought in almost $6.4 million in the past year.

In a press release,  the Department of Rail and Public Transportation (DRPT) said, “Virginia has no dedicated source of state rail operating funds today. Governor McDonnell and the General Assembly authorized up to $6 million in Rail Enhancement funds to support operating costs in FY 2011, but there is not sufficient funding identified beyond FY 2011.”

In essence, the state does not even have the funding for the train in 2011, which is why it pulled $6 million from the Rail Enhancement fund. That was the first signal of danger for Meredith Richards, founder of Cville Rail.

The state allocated $10.6 million over three years for this train. However, allocation does not equal appropriation, and the state needs more funding to keep the train going. (The train costs about $5.48 million each year for its four daily trips from Lynchburg to DC and back.) The state and Amtrak are currently in negotiations over how much the state will fund in 2011, says Richards.

While it is currently unclear how severe this threat is, Richards and DRPT are striving to ensure the train stays operational. Richards says it would be “counter-intuitive, irrational for the state not to continue this train.” 

Senate Resolution 63, sponsored by Senator Yvonne Miller, has DRPT researching how other states fund their trains and report back to the General Assembly. Richards also expects DRPT to propose the establishment of a rail operating fund at the next General Assembly session, which may be another solution. Whatever the solution, Richards says, we need a “sustained, dedicated source of operating funds” to keep the train rolling.

UVA astronomers, with the help of NASA’s Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE), have confirmed the discovery of a new star. According to UVA Today, this star is a cool brown dwarf star. These stars are characterized by a mass so small they are unable to burn hydrogen into helium, which leads them to burn out over time.

Last December WISE was launched into space on a 12-year, $320 million mission. The explorer uses infrared light to photograph images of space, which are color-coded by wavelength. Brown dwarf stars have a green tint, due to the methane in their atmosphere.

"Until now, the coolest brown dwarfs ever found have a temperature of about 450 degrees Fahrenheit, about the temperature of a hot oven; but WISE is hot on the trail of even cooler ones, ‘room temperature’ brown dwarfs," UVA Astronomer Mike Skrutskie told UVA Today.

For this study, UVA astronomers used the infrared camera system at the University’s Fan Mountain Observatory and the Large Binocular Telescope in Mount Graham, AZ, of which UVA owns a share. This is the first confirmed brown dwarf star to be spotted using WISE. The WISE team already has more brown dwarf candidates and expects to find and confirm many more.

Beware to “fancy” drivers. Albemarle’s red light cameras are operational today. These cameras are strategically placed at treacherous intersections and are meant to track cars running red lights.

The first intersection in the county to receive these cameras is where Route 29 North meets Rio Road. The timing of yellow lights at this intersection has also been shortened.

Drivers have a 30-day warning period (which began today at 1 am) to get used to this change. Drivers will be mailed but not fined if the camera captures them running a red light. After that 30-day period, drivers will be subject to a $50 fee. Drivers should also know that these cameras will not photograph the inside of vehicles and are said to be more cost effective and efficient than placing traffic officers at the intersections.

Charlottesville police responded to a reported robbery last night on the 1200 block of Grady Avenue. According to police, a black man between 6′ and 6’2" tall, around 250 pounds and armed with a tear gas gun entered the Grady Avenue Quik Mart and demanded money. 

NBC29 reports that after he obtained money, the man pulled the trigger on his gun, which released tear gas. The two clerks from the Quik Mart who were sprayed with the tear gas were examined and subsequently released from Martha Jefferson Hospital. The suspect reportedly wore black clothing and a black mask. Anyone with information related to the robbery may contact Charlottesville Police here.

Circuit Judge Cheryl Higgins ruled in favor of Albemarle County in the matter of the McInitre Park YMCA. The main issue of contention in the suit filed by the Charlottesville Area Fitness Club Owner’s Association, was the decision by the Albemarle County Board of Supervisors to set aside $2.03 million for the YMCA.  The CAFCOA also claimed that the county violated the Virginia Public Procurement Act by not allowing other clubs to bid on the Piedmont Family YMCA’s aquatic services. 

The suit was also filed against the city of Charlottesville, which has agreed to allocate $1.25 million to the YMCA and lease acreage in McIntire Park. Judge Higgins has not set a hearing date for that suit yet.

Kurt Krueger, chairman of the YMCA board, told the Daily Progress, “The YMCA is continuing its fundraising efforts and looks forward to bringing the community a much-needed YMCA as soon as the city suit is dismissed.”