Tag: Albemarle County

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Lingering questions

Niko the pit bull in a cage
After hours on July 15, Albemarle County’s Animal Protection Unit seized Niko from the SPCA and took him to an undisclosed location to be euthanized. PC: Staff photo

Nearly two weeks after Albemarle County seized a pit bull named Niko from the Charlottesville Albemarle SPCA after hours and euthanized him, against his owners’ and the SPCA’s wishes, questions remain about how and why the decision was made. County officials have thus far refused to disclose the location or provide proof of a humane euthanization process. 

“No records responsive to this request exist,” reads the county’s response to a FOIA request for any contract with or receipts from a veterinarian related to Niko’s euthanasia, and for the name of the veterinarian and veterinary practice that performed the euthanization.

“This lack of transparency is consistent with what we’ve experienced the entire final stages of this case,” says attorney Elliott Harding, who represented Niko’s owners during a lengthy court battle over the dog’s fate. “It’s unsettling because the narrative that is being delivered by the county should be subject to corroboration in formal records requests such as this.”

The county did not respond to C-VILLE’s second request for corroboration of the euthanization by press time on Tuesday. 

C-VILLE Weekly’s FOIA request also asked for written documents exchanged between Albemarle County police and county executives about the dog, as well as emails between the SPCA and county police or leadership. Of the nine total documents provided in response to those two queries, three appeared to contain conversations concerning Niko, including a discussion of a meeting on July 5. That email thread refers to a person who will be present and has the most up-to-date information on the case, but whose name is redacted, with the county citing attorney-client privilege. 

One email thread naming Niko begins with a citizen asking, “Why was he murdered in such a cruel and unprofessional manner? Who is responsible?” and was circulated between county officials. Emails between county officials discuss the county’s statement released on July 15, and include a plan to have the county spokesperson be the single point of contact for questions about Niko. C-VILLE’s request for information about other options considered for Niko was responded to with a single document, entirely redacted under attorney-client privilege.

The county did provide a police report describing a neighbor’s complaint that Niko had bitten their dog in 2013.

The Niko saga began in late 2014 when the dog arrived at the Charlottesville Albemarle SPCA by court order after Albemarle County Circuit Court Judge Cheryl Higgins ruled that he had killed a neighbor’s cat, labeled him a “dangerous dog,” and removed him from his owners’ care. Albemarle County General District Court had already attached that label. According to a county press release issued on July 15, the day after the euthanization, Niko had previously injured two other dogs and subsequently injured a third while at the SPCA in 2016.

For the next seven years following the court’s ruling, his owner Toni Stacy fought to save Niko. Harding helped find numerous possible placements and repeatedly asked the county for guidance on desired conditions that would enable the dog’s release.

“We wanted to know what types of special qualities in a rehoming situation they would want to see for Niko,” Harding says. “And we never heard back, at least I didn’t, even when I asked for follow-up.”

In the spring, the Virginia Court of Appeals issued a final disposition in the case. The ruling meant that Albemarle could choose how to “dispose” of Niko. Harding says euthanization is just one of multiple options available under state code for “dangerous dogs,” a less serious label than “vicious.”

“Most of the options all include rehoming him or sending him to some type of qualified organization,” says Harding, adding that euthanasia should be a last resort.

In a July 15 interview, county spokesperson Emily Kilroy said the decision was made by county leadership in the interest of public safety since Niko had a history of biting other animals.

That explanation didn’t satisfy Harding.

“I don’t know whose public they’re concerned about because he could have been sent all the way up to New York if need be,” he said in a July 15 interview. “In fact, there was one organization in northern New York that actually ultimately called us back and said, ‘You know what? We won’t take him because he’s not dangerous enough. We only work with extremely dangerous dogs.’” 

Harding said any placement would have come with a liability waiver for the county, and notes that the county is full of other dangerous dogs who, despite their aggression towards other animals, can be kept safely with proper supervision.

The decision to euthanize Niko upset not only Niko’s owners but the SPCA, which issued its own press release.

“The SPCA opposed the decision to euthanize Niko, played no role in that decision, and did not participate in the euthanasia itself,” the statement read.

Harding and one of Niko’s owners, 15-year-old Madelyn Wells, spoke about Niko at the July 20 Albemarle County Board of Supervisors meeting. “In life and living, humane alternatives should be the presumptive outcome of this county and the people in this county and the way they view animals and second chances,” Harding said. “I don’t think the decision and the way that it was implemented last week reflects that.”

Wells, who grew up as the court battle over Niko carried on, told supervisors that the thought of his final moments haunt her.

“It makes me sick to my stomach that he went through that alone,” she said. “I just wanted our dog to live.”

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Get online

Thanks to a $2.3 million state grant, more than 1,000 Albemarle County homes and businesses will be getting fiber broadband very soon. Photo: Albemarle County

For years, some Albemarle County residents have lacked adequate access to high-speed internet. CenturyLink customers continue to experience broadband and telephone outages, sometimes lasting for days or even weeks. And for many residents, CenturyLink is their only option.

But for some, better internet and phone service is on the way. Thanks to the 2021 Virginia Telecommunications Initiative, the Albemarle Broadband Authority—in partnership with CenturyLink—received a $2.3 million state grant last year to bring fiber broadband to more than 1,000 homes and businesses in the county.

“In this project we are addressing accessibility. We’re taking sub-broadband speeds and bringing them up to fiber speeds,” said Albemarle Broadband Program Manager Jason Inofuentes during a webinar on the initiative last week.

In recent years, expanding broadband access has been a priority for Albemarle. The county’s  Broadband Accessibility and Affordability Office was created in 2021 to move forward with those goals, and the county expects to achieve universal internet access by 2025. State investment like the Virginia Telecommunications Initiative will help.

On March 31, Tilman Road, Meriweather Hill, and Snow Hill Lane residents will be able to order the fiber optic service on Q.com, or by calling Quantum Fiber. It will take two to three weeks to set up the service.

“What that launch date represents is that the path for the fiber along the road, in front of your house, through your neighborhood—it’s done,” said Inofuentes. “That is when somebody can string another piece of fiber, connect to this, and service is ready to go.”

Quantum currently offers speeds of up to 200 megabits per second and 940 megabits per second, costing $49 a month and $65 a month, respectively. Up to around 650 feet of fiber is available to residents for free. Those who need additional fiber can pay around $1.55 per foot.

“A lot of homes get covered under that 650 feet,” said Trish Stipanovich, CenturyLink’s Virginia field operations manager. “There are some larger lots that will have that extended [drop]…but you will be given an option on whether you want to proceed [or] not.”

The new fiber optic service first launched on Jones Mill Road and at Old Garth Heights in January. Over the next seven months, service is expected to expand to Gilbert Station Road, Advance Mill, Fray Road, Milton Hills, Box Holly Lane, Taylor’s Gap Road, Campbell Road, Cobham (Keswick), and Stony Point Road.

Before installing the fiber optic cables, Quantum will send a technician to each customer’s house to measure the amount of footage needed for the property. Miss Utility will then locate and mark the public utilities on the land, like electric and gas lines. 

“If you do have private utilities on your land, such as electric fences, private wells, and propane lines, you are responsible for contacting Miss Utility 811 to have those utilities located…so that the 811 that we do for the [public] utilities we locate are done in concert with whatever utilities you may have,” said Stipanovich. “When the droppers come, they will be able to see all of the markings.”

Stipanovich encouraged residents to check if service will be available in their neighborhood. Those who live outside of the service area can let Quantum know they are still interested in ordering fiber optic, and provide their contact information on the project’s website. “We’ll connect with you when we have more information,” she said.

CenturyLink plans to share more updates on the project next month. Questions can be directed to ABBA at (434) 296-5891 or baao@albemarle.org. 

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Going green

Grassy field located on Panorama Farms on a sunny day with hay bales in the background
The Murray Family hopes to open a 20-acre natural burial ground at Panorama Farms, their property in Albemarle County. PC: Supplied photo

In 2009, Dr. Latham Murray of Earlysville passed away at age 59 at his childhood home, Panorama Farms. His family decided to take care of the funeral themselves, building him a homemade coffin and burying him in their family cemetery. Without knowing it, they had given him a natural burial, free of toxic embalming chemicals, exotic wood caskets, concrete burial vaults, and other elements of traditional funerals known to harm the environment.

After performing more natural burials for their parents, Jean and James Murray, the next generation of Murrays now hopes to add a natural burial ground to their Albemarle farm, giving other members of the community the option to say good-bye to their loved ones in a greener way.

“This is a profoundly meaningful way to care for and respect the dead,” says Chris Murray. “This would be a wonderful thing for the community.”

During a green burial, the deceased are typically placed in a simple wicker or woven casket, or covered with cotton shroud or blanket, all of which are biodegradable and allow for natural decomposition. After they are lowered into the ground and buried under several feet of soil, their graves are marked with a flat stone marker or native plants, in lieu of concrete or plastic memorials. Some natural cemeteries even offer organic burial pods, which turn decaying bodies (or ashes) into trees.

“My parents were enthusiastic environmentalists. This is a way to maintain their legacy of environmental stewardship,” adds Murray, whose family has owned Panorama Farms for nearly 70 years.

According to the Green Burial Council, there are currently around 250 green cemeteries in the U.S., including three in Virginia. With the approval of the Albemarle County Board of Supervisors, Panorama Farms could become the first green cemetery in the Charlottesville area.

The 20-acre burial ground would also help raise revenue to sustain and preserve the family farm.

This is a profoundly meaningful way to care for and respect the dead.

Chris Murray

Natural burials have been the norm in Jewish and Muslim communities for thousands of years, and were common in the United States until the Civil War, when wealthy Northerners started paying for their deceased soldiers to be embalmed and shipped home. After he was assassinated in 1865, Abraham Lincoln was embalmed and paraded across the country, leading to the birth of the modern American funeral industry, reports the Smithsonian. 

“We’re essentially going back to that principle in Judeo-Christian tradition, which is literally ‘dust to dust,’” explains Murray. “The current conventional funeral and burial practices, the body basically never turns to dust.”

Natural burials cut out dangerous embalming fluid—a known carcinogen. And they’re greener than cremation, which releases nearly 600 pounds of carbon dioxide into the air and can vaporize harmful metals from dental fillings or surgical implants. They also save money, costing an average of $2,000 to $3,000, compared to the average $9,000 traditional American funeral.

According to Murray, the board of supervisors has until March 2022 to rule on the special use permit application, but the family hopes to hear back by late summer. 

“We love the idea—but it’s not a slam dunk until we actually get the special use permit,” says Murray.

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Webb wanes: Democratic candidate comes up short in red district

In Virginia's 5th Congressional District, Dr. Cameron Webb fell to Bob Good in a highly contested race. PC: Eze Amos

President-elect Joe Biden swept to an easy victory in Virginia last week, carrying the state with 53.9 percent of the vote to Donald Trump’s 44.2 percent, according to data from the Virginia Department of Elections.

In the 5th Congressional District, Democrats weren’t so successful. Dr. Cameron Webb, UVA’s Director of Health Policy and Equity, fell to Bob Good, a Liberty University athletics administrator and Campbell County Supervisor. Observers around the country noted that Webb ran a sharp campaign while Good fumbled through multiple comical scandals, including a committing a potential campaign finance violation by auctioning off an AR-15 rifle at a rally. Heading into election night, FiveThirtyEight called the district a tossup.

Ultimately, however, Good earned 210,986 votes (52.4 percent) to Webb’s 190,313 (47.3 percent).

The huge, largely rural 5th District has voted for a Republican by a comfortable margin ever since it was drawn into its current form in the last round of redistricting. Four different Republican candidates have run in the 5th since 2012, carrying between 52.4 and 60.9 percent of the vote each time.

The map above shows the margin of victory for Cameron Webb and Bob Good in each of the 5th District’s localities.

Though Webb lost to Good by 5.1 percent, there’s evidence to suggest Webb’s campaign did swing some voters into his camp. Webb outperformed Biden, earning around 7,000 more votes than the president-elect in the 5th District.

Still, that wasn’t enough to overcome the challenges presented by the gerrymandered district.

Two years ago, Democrat Leslie Cockburn lost to Republican Denver Riggleman by 6.6 percent in the 5th. In 2020, Webb managed to flip two of the district’s 23 localities, turning Nelson County and Fluvanna County from one-point losses into one-point wins. Webb also expanded on Cockburn’s 2018 performance in Albemarle, the district’s largest locality, winning 68.2 percent of the vote, compared to Cockburn’s 64.6.

Overall, Webb improved on Cockburn’s 2018 vote share in 15 of 23 localities—but he didn’t improve by more than 3.6 percent in a single locality, and he lost ground in some places.

Webb wasn’t able to make serious inroads into the district’s most populous red localities. In Pittsylvania and Fauquier counties, the district’s two largest localities outside of Charlottesville-Albemarle, Webb won 32.2 percent and 42.1 percent of the vote, respectively. For comparison, in 2018 Cockburn won 30.8 percent in Pittsylvania and 42.4 percent in Fauquier.

“It has truly been an honor to run to represent this district in Congress,” Webb wrote in a statement conceding the race on Tuesday. “This campaign has been a battle of ideas about how to best serve the people of our district and I cannot give enough thanks to everyone who made it possible.”

“Tonight is a victory for the conservative values that founded and sustain this nation, for biblical principles, the sanctity of life, religious liberty, free market capitalism and the importance of faith and family,” Good wrote after his victory.

Democrat Mark Warner also ran ahead of Biden, winning re-election to the U.S. Senate with 55.9 percent of the vote. Two Virginia Dems who flipped red seats in 2018 hung on to their districts this time around. In the 2nd, Elaine Luria beat Republican Scott Taylor for the second time in two years, widening her margin of victory to 5.4 percent, and in the 7th, Abigail Spanberger beat Delegate Nick Freitas by about 8,000 votes.

Virginia Republicans have now lost four straight presidential elections, four straight senate races, and two straight governor’s races. (Not that we’re counting.) Last time Republicans won statewide office was in 2009, when Bob McDonnell was elected governor, and he wound up being charged with a felony and narrowly avoiding prison. This year, the party ran Freitas—last spotted losing to far-right Confederate enthusiast Corey Stewart in the 2018 senate primary—in a winnable congressional race. Republicans don’t have much time on their hands if they want to right the ship before the next governor’s race next November.

Further down the ballot, Virginians overwhelmingly voted to pass an amendment to the Virginia constitution that will reform the way the state draws U.S. congressional and state legislative districts. The amendment places the responsibility for drawing district lines with a bipartisan commission comprised of citizens and legislators of both parties, rather than allowing the majority party to draw lines however they prefer. Some House of Delegates Democrats opposed the measure, claiming that it wasn’t a strong enough reform, but the proposal passed with the support of 65.8 percent of voters.

In a perfect world, new lines will be drawn in time for the 2021 House of Delegates elections. It’s possible, though, that a census delayed by coronavirus could mean new data isn’t available until the 2022 congressional races.

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Early birds: Charlottesville and Albemarle see record-setting turnout

Several area residents waited to vote outside the Charlottesville City Hall Annex on Monday. PC: Staff photo

By Geremia Di Maro

There’s a line outside the City Hall Annex. Volunteers wearing cardboard posters of ballots circle cheerfully. This year, election season started early.

In Charlottesville, as of October 26, about 14,500 people have voted—a huge increase from the 3,394 total absentee ballots cast in 2016. Roughly 33,000 ballots have been cast this year in Albemarle County, where just 7,317 absentee ballots were cast in 2016. Two million Virginians, and more than 60 million Americans, have already pulled the polling lever.

“In Virginia, this was always going to be a very high-turnout election year,” says Miles Coleman, associate editor for Sabato’s Crystal Ball at UVA’s Center for Politics. “I think we saw some evidence of that even if you look at some of the off years—when Governor [Ralph] Northam was first elected in 2017—the turnout in northern Virginia really was much more than we were used to seeing.”

Virginia is among several states across the country that have sought to make early voting easier during the COVID-19 pandemic. The commonwealth has removed the requirement that mail-in ballots be signed by a witness, and allowed all voters to take advantage of curbside voting, for example. Other initiatives to make voting easier originated in the Democrat-controlled General Assembly this year. The legislature extended the deadline for when absentee ballots can be accepted and lifted long-standing restrictions on absentee voting, which required voters to claim one of several listed excuses to be eligible to vote early.

In Charlottesville, an average of 325 to 400 voters per day have cast their ballots in-person at the City Hall Annex since early voting began, according to Melissa Morton, Charlottesville’s director of elections and general registrar. Morton says the average wait time to vote in-person has been between 15 and 30 minutes, but adds that Fridays have been especially busy, with wait times as long as 45 to 75 minutes.

“We only had two voters who refused to wear masks,” says Morton. “Other voters, and our staff, offered the person a mask but he refused. After the voter voted, our staff disinfected the voting room.”

As of October 24, the City’s Walker Precinct, which makes up the northernmost portion of Charlottesville, was leading in early voter turnout with 2,222 ballots cast. The Venable and Buford precincts, where many off-Grounds UVA students reside, have seen the lowest turnout totals so far with 732 and 879 ballots cast, respectively. This trend generally mirrors the early voter pattern of 2016, although significantly more early votes have been cast across all precincts in Charlottesville this year.

Meanwhile, in Albemarle County, General Registrar of Voters Jake Washburne says early voting turnout so far has represented “a paradigm shift in voting behavior” for the County. Six-hundred to 850 voters have turned out each day to vote in-person at the 5th Street County Office Building. Washburne adds that most people have so far only had to wait five or 10 minutes to cast their ballots in-person.

“Even if the pandemic had not struck, I think we would’ve seen a significant increase in the number of people who would early vote [this year],” says Washburne. “But come COVID, that was like the one-two punch—I think a whole lot of people are concerned about going to a crowded polling place on Election Day with the virus still about.”

One caveat to the voting explosion is that new-voter registrations have declined sharply in Albemarle County compared to previous cycles. Washburne says that in 2016, 3,500 voters registered in the county between August and the registration deadline. That same time frame this year has seen just 1,800 new registrants. Washburne speculates that this decline, which has been especially notable in the precincts near the university, is the result of pandemic-hampered voter registration efforts and students re-registering to vote in their hometowns if they are taking online classes from home.

Nonetheless, voter registration and get-out-the-vote activism has continued on Grounds, says Kiera Goddu, a UVA fourth-year and president of the University Democrats.

“I’ve been taking one first-year [student] at a time—masked and windows down—to the Albemarle registrar’s office, and there have been other drivers who’ve been doing the Charlottesville registrar’s office so that students can vote early in-person and just kind of have it checked off,” says Goddu. “Especially during that period when [COVID-19] cases were at their worst at UVA, and students were most panicked that they wouldn’t be able to stay in their [on-Grounds] housing situation.”

Goddu says the University Democrats have also hosted limited in-person voter registration events twice a week since September. Setting up camp outside the Observatory Hill dining hall, the group registered almost 100 new voters in a single day just before the registration deadline earlier this month.

It’s hard to be sure what all this early voting will mean for election outcomes. Although preliminary estimates show that the surge in early voting across the country may favor Democrats, Coleman says he’d “be cautious [about] reading too much into the early vote.”

“It’s sort of the same way on election night—you don’t want to project a result when there’s only a small fraction of the vote that’s in,” he says.

“The Democrats, of course, have been telling their voters to vote earlier. Contrast that to Trump, who’s very, shall we say, skeptical of the early vote,” says Coleman. “What if it’s a rainy day? What if the virus gets much worse this next week before Election Day? So the Republicans, specifically Trump in encouraging his voters to wait, it could pay off, but it’s also a very risky strategy.”

In Virginia, early voting will continue through Saturday, October 31. On Election Day, polls open at 6am and close at 7pm.

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Coronavirus News

Slowing the spread: City and county adopt local COVID-19 restrictions different from state guidelines

Charlottesville City Council recently approved new COVID-19 restrictions, which are stricter than those mandated by Governor Ralph Northam on July 1, when the state moved to Phase 3 of reopening. PC: Eze Amos / Mark Warner Flickr

By Emily Hamilton

On August 1, residents of Charlottesville and Albemarle became subject to a new set of coronavirus restrictions: in-person gatherings of more than 50 people are banned; restaurants and other venues such as wineries, breweries, and distilleries can operate at only 50 percent capacity; and face coverings are required in indoor public spaces. The state’s Phase 3 guidelines, which have been in effect since July 1, allow in-person gatherings of up to 250 people, and stores, restaurants, and bars have no capacity limits, as long as social distancing is enforced.

The new local rules, which were approved July 27 and will last for 60 days, are more strict than the current statewide guidelines, and demonstrate the power localities have been given in crafting policy to contain COVID-19.

As of August 3, the Virginia Department of Health reports 775 cases of coronavirus in Albemarle and 495 cases in Charlottesville. Much of the support for both ordinances comes from concerns surrounding the impending return of UVA students. As the community prepares for the influx, Charlottesville and Albemarle government leaders recognize the potential for a surge.

“Part of…the motivation for this is that nothing would be worse for the economy than for UVA students coming back…to be a super spreader event,” said City Councilor Michael Payne at the July 27 emergency meeting. “And to prevent that, I think, is a decision worth making.”

The Charlottesville and Albemarle County ordinances reflect the difficulty that local governments face as they mitigate the damage the pandemic has wrought upon their communities. Although Virginia entered Phase 3 more than a month ago, recent actions reflect the state’s piecemeal approach to virus control.

In late July, Virginia Beach Mayor Bobby Dyer wrote a letter to Governor Ralph Northam asking the state to impose harsher restrictions after cases surged in that area. Dyer requested that the governor mandate restaurants and bars close early, among other rules. Northam quickly assented, making the rules official the following day.

Historically, Virginia is no stranger to friction between state and local jurisdictions. Localities in Virginia generally do not have much power, thanks to the Dillon Rule, which limits the powers of local governments only to those expressed by the state government. Localities aren’t allowed to do things like ban firearms or (until this year) remove monuments.

In times of crisis, localities have a little more say. Although Charlottesville and Albemarle’s new guidelines depart from those set by the state, the ordinances are in line with the expectation for local governments to protect their citizens during a crisis. The city’s ordinance cites the continued state of emergency along with the fact that the COVID-19 pandemic remains a “disaster” under Virginia Code. In Northam’s executive order declaring the state of emergency, he stated that local governments have the power “to implement recovery and mitigation operations” to fight the virus.

At the July 27 Albemarle County Board of Supervisors meeting, Bea LaPisto Kirtley, who represents the Rivanna District, expressed her confidence in the board’s decision to move forward with the local ordinance. “I would hope that the public, our county, our citizens, our community, would look at this as what I call a Phase 2.5,” she said. “I think we’ve made a lot of adjustments that fit our community, that fit us, and then will help us help our businesses help keep our citizens safe.”

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Coronavirus News

In brief: Happy trails, activists arrested, and more

The new bridge over Moores Creek plugs a gap in the Rivanna Trail. PC: Stephen Barling

Closing the loop

The Rivanna Trail has encircled Charlottesville for more than 20 years. Earlier this month, the trail became a little more complete, when a 140-foot-long pedestrian bridge was lowered into place over Moores Creek, closing one of the few remaining gaps in the trail’s 20-mile loop.

Local environmentalists expressed enthusiasm about the bridge, which was paid for by Albemarle County and the developers working on rehabbing the old woolen mill that overlooks the river.

“This is economic development that focuses on making the community a better place for all,” said Piedmont Environmental Council community organizer Peter Krebs in a press release praising the bridge. “By providing more places to walk and bike, and everyday access to nature, projects like this support residents’ health, productivity, and prosperity.”

                                                              PC: Stephen Barling

Photographs from the middle of the 20th century show that a wooden footbridge once crossed the creek near where the new bridge sits, but the woolen mill changed hands multiple times over the years, and the original bridge disappeared.

Because the pandemic has upended much of our regular forms of recreation, and made gathering indoors unsafe, the Rivanna Trail has had a significant increase in use in recent months. A trail counter from earlier in the spring noted that this year, the trail has seen around four times as much foot traffic as the same period last year.

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Quote of the week

“Nothing would be worse for the economy than UVA students coming back [and causing] a super spreader event.”

—City Councilor Michael Payne, on Charlottesville’s emergency ordinance

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In brief

Richmond arrests

Protests continue in Richmond, and police continue to arrest people willy-nilly. This week, journalists for VCU’s student paper The Commonwealth Times, as well as two activists with Charlottesville ties and large social media followings, Molly Conger and Kristopher Goad, were among those detained on dubious grounds. Conger was held overnight, and after her release, tweeted that the police “are trying to break our spirits, but they’re only proving our point.”

Travelers grounded

Charlottesville-based educational travel company WorldStrides, one of the larger employers in town, filed for bankruptcy last week. Meanwhile, some UVA students received mailers this week from the study abroad office, advertising future trips. That’s optimistic, as most nations have banned American travelers from entering.

Paul Harris PC: UVA

Tenure reversed

UVA made national news earlier in the spring when it unexpectedly denied two well-qualified Black faculty members tenure. Now, the school is eating crow: last week, Dr. Paul Harris, an assistant professor of education, announced that the decision had been overturned, and his tenure case had been approved by provost Liz Magill.

Mask mandate

As the number of coronavirus cases continue to rise, Charlottesville and Albemarle County both decided on Monday to revert to certain Phase Two guidelines. Beginning August 1, masks will be mandatory in public, indoor capacity for restaurants will be capped at 50 percent, and gatherings of more than 50, excluding spontaneous demonstrations, will be prohibited.

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In brief: Black at STAB, a win for Webb, and more

Black alumni and students at the St. Anne's-Belfield School have anonymously shared their experiences online, including microaggressions from teachers and uses of racial slurs by other students. PC: Skyclad Aerial

Private protests

For decades, students in collared shirts and plaid skirts have strolled across St. Anne’s-Belfield’s well-manicured lawns. But even this historic bastion of prep has felt the effects of our transformative moment, at least in a small way.

After the murder of George Floyd, a group of STAB alumni, led by Sophia Hunt, created a petition with a list of demands for the administration, including publicly condemning racial violence, acknowledging the presence of racism in the community, hiring a full-time global diversity and inclusion officer, and diversifying the faculty, board of trustees, and student body.

Meanwhile, students have begun calling for change on the Instagram page @blackatstab. On the account, Black alumni and students have anonymously shared their experiences, including microaggressions from teachers and uses of racial slurs by other students.

When asked for a statement, STAB did not address the Instagram page, instead directing C-VILLE to an email in which the school says it’s “launching a series of dialogues within our entire community.”

STAB declined to release a detailed breakdown of its student body’s demographics, only sharing the statistic from its website that 32 percent of students are “of traditionally under-represented groups.” Elsewhere in town, The Covenant School’s student body is 87 percent white, and Tandem Friends School is 78 percent white. The city public school district is 42 percent white.

(The phenomenon isn’t unique to Charlottesville: Nationally, 69 percent of private school students are white, though just 51 percent of the country’s school-aged population is white, according to research from the University of California Los Angeles.)

Piper Holden, one of the STAB alums who started the petition, says she felt like the message was received. “But obviously this isn’t over,” she says. “I’m really hoping to see those changes. But we’re going to have to wait and see.” — Claudia Gohn

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Quote of the week

“November Cook Political rating: Lean R. But if
you’re looking for an upset, this is one to watch.”

—Election forecaster Dave Wasserman, on the race for Virginia’s 5th Congressional District

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In brief

Fireworks frenzy

People have been launching fireworks around town for weeks—and it’s not just happening in Charlottesville. In New York City, the fireworks have been so prevalent that conspiracy theories have started circulating about their origins. If you haven’t had your fill of fireworks, the city’s annual Fourth of July show hasn’t been canceled. But instead of gathering in McIntire Park, you’re advised to stay socially distant and look toward Carter Mountain, where the show will go on, beginning at 9:15pm on Saturday.

Dr. Cameron Webb PC: Supplied photo

Webb wins big

In case you haven’t heard, UVA doctor B. Cameron Webb picked up a landslide victory in last Tuesday’s primary for the Democratic nomination to represent the 5th District in the House of Representatives. If Webb beats Bob Good in November, he’ll be the first Black physician to serve in Congress. 

Absentee action

With the pandemic keeping people away from the polls, 49 percent of primary voters in Charlottesville cast absentee ballots last week. (In the March presidential primary, just 7 percent of local votes were absentee.) This election could be a valuable test run for a November contest that might see large numbers of absentee votes—in this election cycle, Virginians requested 118,174 absentee ballots and submitted 87,052 a return rated of 74 percent.

Johnny Reb on the run

Legislation allowing localities to remove or recontextualize Confederate monuments goes into effect today, July 1, and Albemarle County is wasting no time—the Board of Supervisors will discuss the removal of the Johnny Reb statue outside the county courthouse at its meeting this evening. The statue could legally come down as early as September. More hurdles still remain before Charlottesville can begin the same process.

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Coronavirus News

In brief: Masked melons, summertime sadness, and more

Cooling off in the city’s splash gardens is a thing of the past, thanks to a recent announcement that all Charlottesville pools and spraygrounds will be closed this summer. PC: Ron Paris

Goodbye, summer

Monday is Memorial Day, the traditional start to summer, but this year, much of the city’s outdoor recreation space will be off limits. Last week, Charlottesville Parks & Recreation closed all city pools and spraygrounds for the summer, and canceled camps. In addition, other outdoor facilities, including basketball and tennis courts, picnic shelters, and the Sugar Hollow Reservoir, will remain shuttered until further notice. In Albemarle County, all swimming lakes will be closed, along with playgrounds and ball fields.

“Our decision at this point is based on public safety and health, and our staff and keeping our staff safe,” says Todd Brown, Charlottesville Parks & Rec’s interim director. Where parks are open, both the city and county will employ monitors to ensure visitors are social distancing.

Under Phase One of Governor Northam’s reopening plan, which began May 15, pools are allowed to open for lap swimming, and private facilities like ACAC and Fry’s Spring have done so. But city and county officials say the decision to keep public pools closed has to do with staffing.

“We don’t have a year-round staff for lifeguarding, and so it’s really difficult to recruit seasonal lifeguards when we don’t know when they would be able to start work,” says Emily Kilroy, the director of communications and public engagement for Albemarle County. Brown noted that the city did not start training lifeguards in March, as it usually does, and that carried weight in the decision.

“With things being delayed in terms of the different phases…that uncertainty, it goes against being able to plan on how to open and operate pools so that you’re keeping people safe,” says Brown.

Amy Smith, assistant director of the county’s Parks & Recreation department, says “park ambassadors” will be stationed at the county’s swimming lakes this summer, to make sure no children make their way into the water. But how to keep kids with no other options for cooling off away from other, unguarded bodies of water—like the Rivanna River—is less clear.

“We know that there is going to be a reaction to this action, and that could also cause negative impacts elsewhere,” says Brown. “And we are concerned about that, too.”

______________________

Quote of the Week

“I am hopeful that our students will be back in the classroom this fall.”

—Governor Ralph Northam, at a press conference on Monday. (So are we, Ralph. So are we.)

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In brief

Sour grapes

Listening to the President these days, you’d think the pandemic is over. But don’t tell that to Charlottesville’s Trump Winery, which soft-opened this week behind a set of complicated social-distancing requirements. While Trump has famously declined to wear a mask in public, they’re mandatory for servers at his winery, and recommended for guests.

Budget bristles

City budget officials have their work cut out for them, as staff projects a $5.4 million loss in revenue this year. That’s made some in City Hall grumpy: This week, The Daily Progress wrote a story about the city-county revenue sharing agreement, but City Manager Tarron Richardson (whose job is to talk about the budget) didn’t like the coverage, and said at Monday’s council meeting that he was “too upset to talk about it right now.”   

Seedy suspects

On the evening of May 6, two people walked into a Louisa Sheetz wearing unusual face masks: hollowed-out watermelons with holes cut out for their eyes. According to the Louisa Police Department, the pair committed larceny, though it’s unclear exactly what they took. Police arrested one of the suspects—20-year-old Justin Rogers—on May 16, and charged him with wearing a mask in public while committing larceny, underage possession of alcohol, and petit larceny of alcohol. The second melonhead is still on the loose.

Major makeover

After many years of residents protesting against its dilapidated conditions, Crescent Halls will undergo major renovations starting this fall—but not without a huge price tag. At a May 18 meeting, the Charlottesville Redevelopment and Housing Authority announced that the project—which also includes the redevelopment and construction of new units on South First Street—would cost $26.94 million for construction, about $4.3 million more than last year’s estimates. To pay the bill, CRHA plans to secure additional funding from the Virginia Housing Development Authority, as well as private donors.

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Coronavirus News

Ground zero: Local hospitals, health department prepare for coronavirus spike

UVA hospital has been providing medical screening for a variety of diseases as a precaution for the ongoing COVID-19 epidemic. PC: Zack Wajsgras

In just a matter of days, the number of confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus in the Thomas Jefferson Health District has jumped from one to 16, including four in the City of Charlottesville and six in Albemarle County. While the first case was initially thought to be travel-related, it’s now unclear how the individual, a staff member at the UVA women’s center, came in contact with COVID-19, according to the health department. The department is also investigating how the remaining ten individuals contracted the virus, and who else they could have exposed to it. 

With the number of coronavirus cases in Charlottesville only expected to grow, local hospitals are taking extensive measures to prepare for an influx of patients, as well as to assist those currently seeking testing and treatment. In some parts of Italy and, most recently, New York City, an exponential spike in cases has overwhelmed local health care systems, leading to critical shortages of beds and ventilators. 

According to spokesman Eric Swensen, UVA Health System is postponing most clinical visits and surgeries scheduled between now and April 6, with the exception of urgent care, in order to “conserve our resources” and “build capacity to be able to care for folks when they need it.” To minimize the potential spread of the virus, patients at UVA hospital are no longer able to have visitors (with some exceptions). 

UVA staff is also screening everyone before allowing them to enter any facilities, he adds. “If you’re a visitor and are showing any kind of respiratory symptoms or possible exposure to coronavirus, we’re not going to allow you into our clinic or medical center.”

Swensen says there’s been a significant number of people calling UVA health care providers, as well as the UVA health call center, with questions and concerns about coronavirus. In order to prevent the virus from spreading, he urges those who think they may have the virus to call their primary care provider (or, if they don’t have one, the Virginia Department of Health hotline), and not rush to the emergency room. A doctor will then screen them over the phone for common symptoms of the coronavirus—fever, cough, and difficulty breathing—and ask about their travel history and potential exposure to the virus. If they meet the CDC criteria for testing, a doctor can send them to UVA’s referral-only coronavirus clinic. 

In light of the severe national shortages of coronavirus tests, UVA health is now one of the few institutions across the country that has created its own tests, with a goal to have results within one to two days, Swensen says. Due to this increase in testing capacity, it expects to see a spike in local confirmed cases of the virus in the upcoming days. 

“Depending on the severity of their symptoms…not everyone necessarily who gets coronavirus will need hospital care,” Swensen adds. “The first case in Charlottesville is an example of this, where that person is being evaluated and cared for from home.”

According to a news release, one of the other local residents diagnosed with the virus, a UVA student living off-Grounds in Albemarle County who may have contracted it while traveling, is also currently in isolation.

Sentara Martha Jefferson Hospital has taken similar steps to prevent the spread of COVID-19 within its facilities. The hospital has a “fair amount” of ventilators and isolation rooms available, says Vice President of Medical Affairs Paul Tesoriere, and is working with the government to get more testing kits. 

“We’ve identified different areas that we will expand into if we get into a situation where we get a significant influx in patients,” says Tesoriere, “areas that are not being as utilized because the virus has cut down on some procedures or visits.”

A task force meets several times a day to address daily needs and long-term plans.

The TJHD is working closely with both UVA and Sentara, as well as other community partners, to oversee the area’s pandemic response effort and investigate the cases in Charlottesville. But it generally does not supply testing kits or personal protective gear, including masks, goggles, and gloves. Due to the mass shortage of such gear, local doctors and nurses are currently hosting an Equip Cville emergency supply drive (see page 9), collecting donations from businesses, labs, and schools, in partnership with Support Cville. 

“We are working on compiling a list of those in the community that need PPE, and any extra we have we will make sure to get to the appropriate individuals in appropriate health care settings,” says TJHD’s Public Information Officer Kathryn Goodman. “[However,] the demand for [PPE] is unprecedented, and suppliers do not have the inventory to keep up with demand. Local health care providers trying to purchase critical supplies are competing with all providers across the county…efforts like [Equip Cville] are essential to the long-term success of what will be a lengthy response.”

But tests, investigations, and supplies alone will not bring an end to the coronavirus pandemic, Goodman adds. Social distancing, or self-quarantining, is equally as important. 

“We know that there will be cases in this community, and so we’re asking people to stay home as much as possible so that we can prevent and lower the number of cases we see in the area,” she says. “If people do have to go out in public, stay six feet away from one another. [But] if people can just stay home, that’s the best thing we’re going to be able to do to prevent the spread of this.”

When to call your doctor

Symptoms of COVID-19 can range from very mild to severe (or, in some cases, may not occur at all), and usually appear within two to 14 days after being exposed to the virus. They include:

  • Fever
  • Tiredness
  • Cough
  • Shortness of breath
  • Difficulty breathing

If you are experiencing these symptoms, and know or suspect that you’ve been in contact with a person who has COVID-19, or have traveled to an area with a COVID-19 outbreak, you should call your primary care doctor. If you don’t have one, you can also call your local emergency room, urgent care clinic, or a coronavirus hotline:

Contact your doctor early if you’re 60 or older, or have underlying chronic medical conditions, even if your symptoms are mild. Seek medical attention immediately if you’re experiencing any of these emergency warning signs of COVID-19:

  • Difficulty breathing or shortness of breath
  • Persistent pain or pressure in the chest
  • New confusion or inability to arouse
  • Bluish lips or face

Updated 3/25 to reflect accurate number of local coronavirus cases