Tag: Kirby Hutto

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In brief: Pesticide problems, a POWF at the Pavilion, and a poll procession

Pete Myers gives us the real dirt on pesticides.

Pesticide dangers with Pete Myers

As a local biologist and founder of the nonprofit Environmental Health Sciences, Pete Myers clearly knows a thing or two about environmental health. On Thursday, October 25, from 9am to noon, he’ll join three other experts at the Paramount to give us “The Real Dirt on Pesticides” (spoiler: it’s worse than you think).

If you can’t make the forum, where attendees will also learn alternative and sustainable methods of dealing with garden pests and weeds, here are three things Myers says you ought to know about the substances created to kill:

  1. Because of wind, drift, water runoff from pesticide- sprayed fields, and the way that the sun’s heat evaporates the pesticide off the surfaces where they are sprayed, it is virtually impossible to limit their application to the pest they are being used to kill. This harms beneficial organisms, including people.
  2. Almost no square inch on the planet is without measurable amounts of pesticides, and every human has measurable levels of pesticides in them.
  3. The methods used by regulatory agencies to test for pesticide safety have deep and fatal flaws, so our understanding of what is safe, and what is not, is very limited. Among them:
  • Pesticide manufacturers submit test results, not regulatory agencies, and results are often withheld from independent scrutiny with claims of confidential business interests.
  • The tests are carried out on the ‘active ingredient,’ the one chemical thought to do the killing. But a pesticide is a mixture with  many other chemicals specifically added to the product to make it more powerful. The product as sold is never tested in the process of determining its safety.
Nikuyah Walker. Photo by Eze Amos

Quote of the week: “How civil and orderly were the community members who auctioned off black bodies in Court Square?” —Mayor Nikuyah Walker responds to a Daily Progress op-ed on bullying at City Council meetings

Mayor takes aim at Galvin… and Baggby’s?

In a Facebook response to the Progress editorial on heckling at City Council meetings, Mayor Walker accused Councilor Kathy Galvin of “white (civil) rage,” and described the “tyranny” that has ruled the city under the guise of civility: “I’m cruel and oppressive and unreasonable, but I do it in a suit and tie or a dress, while I eat Baggby’s. And I don’t yell…I slyly smirk.”

Big bucks from Bronco

Bronco Mendenhall. Photo by Jackson Smith

Bronco Mendenhall’s family ponied up $500K for new football operations center. UVA says it’s the largest gift made to the university by a head coach, but Mendenhall is also the university’s highest paid coach ever, pulling down around $3.5 million annually.

Free UVA tuition

Jim Ryan seems to be pretty popular among the students he now officially presides over, and he racked up even more brownie points at his October 19 inauguration, where he said in-state students with families earning less than $80,000 a year will be able to attend the university tuition-free.

Big tent replaced

A portable off-grid washing facility. Click to enlarge.

The bad news is that construction to replace the original fabric roof of the Sprint Pavilion will cut off all pedestrian access through the venue (and the tunnel under Ninth Street) until March. The good news is that the fabric will get a new life as a “portable off-grid washing facility,” which creates a reusable and environmentally friendly way to do laundry in refugee camps, according to Pavilion manager Kirby Hutto.

Deeds settles

State Senator Creigh Deeds settled a wrongful death lawsuit against former mental health evaluator Michael Gentry for $950,000 for allowing his son, Gus, to leave the hospital after determining he was a danger to himself and others. Gus stabbed his father multiple times before killing himself on November 18, 2013.

Need a ride to vote?

Don’t let a lack of transportation keep you from voting in the November 6 midterms.

An all-volunteer group called CAR2Vote, founded by Gail Hyder Wiley in 2013, provides free rides for voters to get an ID, submit an absentee ballot, or vote on election day. Approximately 75 drivers are on call this year.

Says Hyder Wiley about the upcoming election, “There’s a lot of pent-up frustration and polarization, and one of the best ways to make your voice heard is to vote.”

Sign up for a ride to vote at car2vote.weebly.com or call 260-1547.

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UPDATED: Anniversary prep: City on lockdown

City police Chief RaShall Brackney promises a robust police presence but people will still be able to exercise their First, Second and Fourth amendment rights. staff photo

During the weekend of August 10-12, the anniversary of last summer’s violent and fatal clashes, the city will be on lockdown—and Governor Ralph Northam has already declared a proactive state of emergency.

At an August 8 press conference attended by more than a dozen law enforcement and public safety officials, city spokesman Brian Wheeler said pedestrian access to the Downtown Mall will be restricted to two points on Water Street: First and Second Street SE.

Inside the mall security area, poles, glass bottles, pepper spray and other items used in last year’s hand-to-hand combat are prohibited—but Virginia state law makes it okay to carry firearms. Chief RaShall Brackney said another constitutional right—the Fourth Amendment—will be in force and visitors to the mall will not be searched before going to buy gelato.

Virginia State Police Colonel Gary Settles said he will have more than 700 officers in town “fully prepared to act” in the event of any violence of violations of the law. And Wheeler puts the total number of cops at over 1,000.

Interim City Manager Mike Murphy had previously announced additional measures that will affect many people in the downtown Charlottesville area during the Unite the Right anniversary weekend, including closing city parks and pools, relocating City Market, and an early closing of City Hall.

The city had already planned to close streets in the immediate downtown area. Now parking will be restricted on additional streets around Friendship Court and the western portion of McIntire Park will be blocked to traffic, and the closures will begin at 6pm Friday, August 10, and have been extended to 6am Monday, August 13.

“We understand that the city and the task fowarce are concerned with safety, however, does closing down the city out of an abundance of caution play right into the hands of the Nazis and this negative anniversary?” asks Janet Dob, a longtime City Market vendor.

She and Cynthia Viejo, the Bageladies, have had a booth at the market for more than a decade, and Dob says downtown businesses are still reeling from last summer. “Revenues were down, not just on that weekend, but longer-term, and a year later when there seems to be little recovery, we’re all hit again.”

“Nobody puts Baby in a corner,” says Viejo, quoting Patrick Swayze. Adds Dob, “That’s exactly what the city is doing—putting all of downtown in a corner and not allowing its goodness to shine.”

Adds Priya Mahadevan, who operates the Desi Dosa stall at City Market, “While I understand that they are trying to keep us safe, closing down businesses means thousands of dollars in losses for all the market vendors. Basically disrupting business is the police’s way of telling us they are incapable of ensuring the safety of people who are trying to do their work and earn a livelihood.”

After the city announced that City Market will be closed Saturday, August 11, vendors who don’t want to lose business have decided to take their booths to Ix Art Park that day. Priya Mahadevan says her Desi Dosa stall will be there. Photo by Martyn Kyle

City Market vendors have agreed to hold the market at Ix Art Park instead.

Rapture owner Mike Rodi says the street closures are “a terrible thing for Downtown Mall businesses.” But he also points out, “If we put an end to this that weekend and on Monday morning have no images to haunt us, if we pause on the anniversary, nothing happens, and there’s no will for a 2019 repeat, that benefits us.”

According to Rodi, “A lot of the business community feels it’s overkill in compensation of last year.”

A year ago, white supremacists, neo-Nazis, and counterprotesters clashed in the streets without police intervention. Heather Heyer was killed when a car plowed into a crowd on Fourth Street and two Virginia State Police pilots died in a helicopter crash. VSP have said they’ll be in town in various uniforms all week.

Rodi says he’s “disgusted” by the Virginia General Assembly, which refused to add Charlottesville to a list of cities where open carry of guns is prohibited. “While you can’t bring an aerosol can or pocket knife into a restricted area, you can bring an AR15,” he says.

“I don’t see how [the city] can do anything else,” he says of the restrictions. “If anyone gets hurt, it’s blood on the city’s hands.”

Some of the recently announced closures conflict with events on a city website called #ResilientCville, which also has a calendar. It lists a nonviolent action workshop for August 11 at Carver Recreation Center, which is now closed for the weekend.

Murphy said at the August 6 City Council meeting that the city would not be able to provide security at its parks and pools, and that it would be unable to staff some of its parks because of the number of employees who said they won’t be coming in.

And while Sprint Pavilion general manager Kirby Hutto initially said Fridays After Five would proceed, he announced August 7 that the weekly event is also canceled.

Several downtown businesses have banded together to stay open this weekend, and on Monday, August 13, when some, such as Tastings, are usually closed. A few will offer specials to encourage business—Livery Stable will have a 5-7pm happy hour all weekend, and Iron Paffles & Coffee will sell all paffles for $6. Water Street Parking Garage will also be open. (Scroll to the bottom of the story for more information.

The University of Virginia, which endured the horrifying spectacle of torch-carrying neo-Nazis marching through Grounds last year on August 11, announced plans to restrict access over the weekend to the Lawn (except for residents and attendees of a ticketed event August 11) and to the plaza on the north side of the Rotunda, where a small group of counterprotesters were surrounded by white supremacists at the statue of university founder Thomas Jefferson. Staff erected barricades six feet around the Jefferson statue August 6, but UVA Students United have planned a rally at the Rotunda’s north plaza from 7 to 9pm August 11. The group’s Facebook page says students met with Gloria Graham, vice president of security and safety, who said there will still be access to most of the plaza. University spokesperson Anthony de Bruyn confirms that access limitations only extend to part of the plaza.

The weekend ahead

Though it’s unclear whether there will be any white supremacist demonstrations in town this weekend, here’s what’s on
Charlottesville’s calendar, and a link to all city closures:

Wednesday, August 8

  • Charlottesville Clergy Collective prayer session at Market Street Park. 6 to 6:30am. Noon to 12:30pm.
  • Lawyers’ panel on free speech and anti-racism at Jefferson School African American Heritage Center. 7 to 8:30pm.

Thursday, August 9

  • Charlottesville Clergy Collective prayer session at Market Street Park. 6 to 6:30am. Noon to 12:30pm.
  • Interfaith worship service: Making Our Way Together at The Haven. 7 to 8pm.

Friday, August 10

  • Charlottesville Clergy Collective prayer session at Market Street Park. 6 to 6:30am. Noon to 12:30pm.
  • Shabbat service at Congregation Beth Israel. 6:15pm.

Saturday, August 11

  • The Hope That Summons Us: A Morning of Reflection and Renewal at UVA’s Old Cabell Hall. Ticketed event with clear bag policy. 9am.
  • Congregate Charlottesville: A Service for Repair at First Presbyterian Church. 3pm.
  • VA Students Act Against White Supremacy: Rally for Justice at the Rotunda. 7pm.

Sunday, August 12

  • Community sing-out to celebrate harmony and diversity at Ix Art Park. 4 to 6pm.
  • NAACP’s Time for Reflections and Healing forum at Zion Union Baptist Church. 4 to 6pm.
  • Better Together: Lament, Repent, Rejoice at the Sprint Pavilion. 6 to 8pm.

Open doors

Some businesses that have pledged to stay open this weekend and on Monday, August 13 are: Baggby’s, Brasserie Saison, Champion Brewery, Cinema Taco, Citizen Bowl Shop, Citizen Burger Bar,  Common House, Grit Coffee, Himalayan Fusion, Iron Paffles & Coffee, LWs Livery Stable, Mudhouse, Rapture, Splendora’s Gelato, Tastings of Charlottesville, Tea Bazaar, Ten, The Juice Place, The Nook, The Pie Chest, and The Tin Whistle Irish Pub

Updated 4:40pm August 8 with latest press briefing.

Updated 8:53am August 9 with a link to city closures and a correction on which streets will be blocked.

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Anniversary prep: City on lockdown

The city prepares for the anniversary of last summer's Unite the Right rally. Photo by Eze Amos

During the weekend of August 10-12, the anniversary of last summer’s violent and fatal clashes, the city will be on lockdown—or so it seems.

Interim City Manager Mike Murphy today announced additional measures that will affect many people in the downtown Charlottesville area during the Unite the Right anniversary weekend, including closing city parks and pools, the City Market, and an early closing of City Hall.

The city had already planned to close streets in the immediate downtown area. Now parking is restricted on additional streets around Friendship Court, and the closures will begin at 6pm Friday, August 10, and have been extended to 6am Monday, August 13.

“We understand that the city and the task force are concerned with safety, however, does closing down the city out of an abundance of caution play right into the hands of the Nazis and this negative anniversary?” asks Janet Dob, a City Market regular.

She and Cynthia Viejo, the Bageladies, have held a booth at the market for over a decade, and Dob says downtown businesses are still reeling from last summer. “Revenues were down, not just on that weekend, but longer-term, and a year later when there seems to be little recovery, we’re all hit again.”

“Nobody puts Baby in a corner,” says Viejo, quoting Patrick Swayze. Adds Dob, “That’s exactly what the city is doing—putting all of downtown in a corner and not allowing its goodness to shine.”

Adds Priya Mahadevan, who operates the Desi Dosa stall at City Market, “While I understand that they are trying to keep us safe, closing down businesses means thousands of dollars in losses for all the market vendors. Basically disrupting business is the police’s way of telling us they are incapable of ensuring the safety of people who are trying to do their work and earn a livelihood.”

Rapture owner Mike Rodi says the street closures are “a terrible thing for Downtown Mall businesses.” But he also points out, “If we put an end to this that weekend and on Monday morning have no images to haunt us, if we pause on the anniversary, nothing happens and there’s no will for a 2019 repeat, that benefits us.”

According to Rodi, “A lot of the business community feels it’s overkill in compensation of last year.”

“We’re going to be open because it feels like it’s standing up to the alt-right,” says Joan Fenton, chair of the Downtown Business Association of Charlottesville. “Nobody expects to make money. It’s really about making a statement.”

A year ago, white supremacists, neo-Nazis and counterprotesters clashed in the streets without police intervention. Heather Heyer was killed when a car plowed into a crowd on Fourth Street and two Virginia State Police two pilots died in a helicopter crash. VSP have said they’ll be in town in various uniforms all week.

Rodi says he’s “disgusted” by the Virginia General Assembly, which refused to add Charlottesville to a list of cities where open carry of guns is prohibited. “While you can’t bring an aerosol can or pocket knife into a restricted area, you can bring an AR15,” he says.

“I don’t see how [the city] can do anything else,” he says of the restrictions. “If anyone gets hurt, it’s blood on the city’s hands.”

Some of the recently announced closures conflict with events on a city website called #ResilientCville, which also has a calendar. It lists a nonviolent action workshop for August 11 at Carver Recreation Center, which is now closed for the weekend.

And city spokesperson Brian Wheeler did not immediately respond to an inquiry about why the city is closing its pools, spraygrounds and golf course for the August weekend.

Not everything is shutting down. Fridays After Five will proceed—”unless we hear anything from police that we should cancel,” says Sprint Pavilion general manager Kirby Hutto. “We think it’s important to get back to normal.”

And despite the difficulty parking, he says, “We want to give people a reason to come downtown.”

The University of Virginia, which endured the horrifying spectacle of torch-carrying neo-Nazis marching through Grounds last year on August 11, announced plans to restrict access over the weekend to the Lawn (except for residents and attendees of a ticketed event August 11) and to the plaza on the north side of the Rotunda, where a small group of counterprotesters were surrounded by white supremacists at the statue of founder Thomas Jefferson.

UVA Students United plan a rally at the Rotunda’s north plaza from 7 to 9pm August 11. The group’s Facebook page says students met with Gloria Graham, VP of security and safety, who said there will be access to most of the plaza except for barricades six feet around the Jefferson statue. University spokesperson Anthony de Bruyn confirms that access limitations only extend to part of the plaza, and that a UVA representative talked with rally organizers to gauge the appropriate safety and security measures.

Though it’s unclear whether there will be any white supremacist demonstrations in town this weekend, here’s what’s on Charlottesville’s calendar, and a link to all city closures:

Sunday, August 5

  • Cville Fights Back poster launch party at Champion Brewery. 2:30 to 4:30pm.

Monday, August 6

  • Charlottesville Clergy Collective prayer session at Market Street Park. 6 to 6:30am. Noon to 12:30pm.
  • City Council meeting and update on August 11-12 preparations in City Council Chambers. 6:30pm.

Tuesday, August 7:

  • Charlottesville Clergy Collective prayer session at Market Street Park. 6 to 6:30am. Noon to 12:30pm.
  • Why We Protest activist panel at Jefferson School African American Heritage Center. 7 to 8:30pm.
  • Documenting Hate: Charlottesville, a Frontline and ProPublica documentary, debuts at 10pm on local PBS stations and online.

Wednesday, August 8:

  • Charlottesville Clergy Collective prayer session at Market Street Park. 6 to 6:30am. Noon to 12:30pm.
  • Lawyers’ panel on free speech and anti-racism at Jefferson School African American Heritage Center. 7 to 8:30pm.

Thursday, August 9:

  • Charlottesville Clergy Collective prayer session at Market Street Park. 6 to 6:30am. Noon to 12:30pm.
  • Interfaith worship service: Making Our Way Together at The Haven. 7 to 8pm.

Friday, August 10:

  • Charlottesville Clergy Collective prayer session at Market Street Park. 6 to 6:30am. Noon to 12:30pm.
  • Shabbat service at Congregation Beth Israel. 6:15pm.

Saturday, August 11:

  • The Hope That Summons Us: A Morning of Reflection and Renewal at the Old Cabell Hall auditorium at UVA. Ticketed event with clear bag policy. 9am.
  • Congregate Charlottesville: A Service for Repair at First Presbyterian Church. 3pm.
  • VA Students Act Against White Supremacy: Rally for Justice at the Rotunda. 7pm.

Sunday, August 12:

  • Community sing-out to celebration harmony, diversity at Ix Art Park. 4 to 6pm.
  • NAACP’s Time for Reflections and Healing forum at Zion Union Baptist Church. 4 to 6pm.
  • Better Together: Lament, Repent, Rejoice at the Sprint Pavilion. 6 to 8pm.

Corrected August 3 at 9:05am with the correct location of Congregate Charlottesville’s August 11 service.

Updated August 3 at 9:25am with remarks from UVA spokesperson Anthony de Bruyn.

Updated August 3 at 11am with Joan Fenton comment.

 

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In brief: FA5 tightens up, free the nipple, another renaming and more

Photo Chris Pecoraro

Fridays new format

Treasured Charlottesville tradition Fridays After Five kicks off April 13, with a not-so-special nod to the realities of crowds gathering in the 21st century. After-Fivers will find enhanced security at the Sprint Pavilion with bag checks and fewer entrances to the area.

“Anyone in the event industry holding mass gatherings understands the shift,” says general manager Kirby Hutto. “We want to provide a safe environment.”

That means professional security will be examining bags and entrance will be limited to the Downtown Mall, Seventh Street at Market and the Belmont Bridge ramp.

And for ticketed events, attendees will walk through metal detectors.

The season will kick off with more rather than less security, says Hutto. “We don’t want to create long lines. We know people come from work with their laptop bags or with strollers.”

Says Hutto, “It’s just a recognition of the changing world we live in.”

In brief

Mayor’s speeding ticket

Staff photo

Nikuyah Walker was in Charlottesville Circuit Court April 9 to appeal a November 14 conviction for driving 43mph in a 25mph zone, but her attorney, Jeff Fogel, didn’t show. The case was continued to June 1.

 

 

More Soering defenders

Another cop has cast doubt on the 1990 conviction of Jens Soering for the double slaying of then-girlfriend Elizabeth Haysom’s parents. Former FBI special agent Stan Lapekas says he’s found documents proving the FBI did a profile in 1985 that said the killer was likely a female with close ties to the Haysoms. Bedford investigator Ricky Gardner has steadfastly denied such a profile existed.

Slowpoke schadenfreude

Thousands of the annoying drivers who hog the left lane while going below the normal speed of traffic have been fined $100 since Virginia enacted fines July 1, 2017, WTOP reports.

Topless buskers

Morgan Hopkins. Staff photo

Jeff Fogel filed a lawsuit against Charlottesville police for the August 12 arrest of Morgan Hopkins, who, amid the violence and mayhem of that day, took off her shirt. Fogel, who represented activist Veronica Fitzhugh when she disrobed at Occupy in 2011, says under state law, “the mere fact of nudity does not constitute indecent exposure,” and that shirtless men with Hopkins were not arrested.

 

 

 

“During Aug 12 Nazi rally in #Charlottesville, police ignored assaults by Nazis, didn’t arrest them. Instead, they arrested harmless hippies on the downtown mall. Thanks, CPD, for protecting the public from women’s exposed nipples! Smh”—@Jalane_Schmidt in an April 6 tweet

Hand ‘em over

Judge Rick Moore has ruled that Virginia State Police must turn over a redacted copy of its August 12 operational plan to local freelance journalists Natalie Jacobsen and Jackson Landers, who were represented by the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press. They’ve also obtained Charlottesville police plans as a result of the same Freedom of Information Act lawsuit.

Unsuccessful lobby

The city hired Troutman Sanders Strategies to lobby the General Assembly against Delegate Steve Landers’ revenue-sharing bill, which requires Charlottesville to account for the millions Albemarle pays it each year and for the two localities to meet annually to discuss economic development. The bill passed unanimously in both houses and Governor Ralph Northam signed it into law.

Teen runaway

Margie Araceli Garcia Urbina, 17, was reported missing March 3. Albemarle police say her cellphone is off,  she has not responded to attempts to contact her on social media, and she appears to have used an ATM March 3 in Opelika, Alabama.

 

 

 

 

Elder embezzlement

Renee Magruder Madel was convicted of felony embezzlement for using a power of attorney to bilk an elderly victim of thousands. She was sentenced April 3 to 10 years suspended, 30 days in jail and restitution of over $50,000.

Closure wanted

Robert Hourihan. Submitted photo

Robert Hourihan disappeared seven years ago on April 8. Last seen in Palmyra, his car was later found in a parking lot in Maryland. Police suspect foul play and are still seeking information to provide closure to his family.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Popular parks monikers

The city conducted a survey March 6-28 to rename the parks formerly known as Lee and Jackson and currently dubbed Emancipation and Justice. Led by longtime resident Mary Carey’s dislike of the name Emancipation, the survey received 7,535 submissions. Lee and Jackson were disqualified, but that did not keep Lee from receiving the most write-in votes, according to “The Schilling Show.”

Most votes

For Emancipation Park: Market Street Park

For Justice Park: Court Square Park

Weighted votes

Emancipation Park

  • Vinegar Hill Park
  • Market Street Park
  • Central Park

Justice Park

  • Court Square Park
  • Justice Park
  • Courthouse Park

Top write-in (aside from Lee and Jackson)

Swanson Legacy Park, in honor of Gregory Swanson, the first African American to attend UVA law school—after he sued the university, a case that was heard in federal court, which was located in what is now the Central Library bordering Emancipation Park.

 

Updated April 12 with the Swanson Legacy Park write-ins.

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Spaced out: Low-wage earners will feel parking pain

Rick Siebert, Charlottesville’s first parking manager, has experience installing smart meters in Montgomery County, Maryland, where he was in charge of its 20,000 spaces, 19 parking garages and 52 employees. Photo John Robinson

 

The already difficult downtown parking landscape is about to become more challenging in the next couple of years. Major construction projects like West2nd, the Dewberry Hotel and Belmont Bridge promise to further clog streets and decimate an already dwindling parking supply.

And then there’s the pilot meter program coming in August.

Hardest hit will be the minions working on the Downtown Mall whose employers don’t provide parking.

Charlottesville’s new parking manager, Rick Siebert, met March 22 with the Downtown Business Association of Charlottesville, which had an organizational coup and panicked meetings last year at the threat (unfounded, as it turned out) the Water Street Parking Garage might close, to brief the group on the future of downtown parking,

Of particular concern to merchants is the trial run of meters in the immediate mall vicinity for the 157 currently free spaces. The pilot will do away with 97 two-hour free parking spaces and install either meters or kiosks for six months.

At least for now, Siebert reassured the skittish business owners, the validation program will remain unchanged, even as the management of Market Street Garage turns over from Charlottesville Parking Center to Lanier Parking Solutions.

Downtown parking has the “illusion of being free,” says Siebert, but if the spaces are full all the time, that doesn’t help if you can’t find a space.

And for those spaces most in demand—the ones closest to the restaurant or theater or shop—he asks, “Why should we give away our highest value spaces?”

Charging $2 an hour on the street could allow a reduction of rates in the parking garages, where people don’t want to park if free surface spaces are available, says Siebert. If all goes well with the meter pilot, he’d like to make the first hour of parking free in the Market Street Garage and end the validation program entirely.

At present that plan doesn’t include the Water Street Garage because of litigation between co-owners the city and Charlottesville Parking Center. Those parties will head to mediation in late May.

Parking meter bids are due April 5. “We requested equipment to be loaned to us for six months,” says Siebert. The companies likely to provide free equipment “predict the pilot will be successful and that we may expand the program. That’s what those proposers will bet on.”

He says he doesn’t know how much the metered pilot program will cost, but there will be start-up expenses to install the equipment. For the individual meters on the blocks where only one or two spaces are available, new signage won’t be needed, but the blocks that will have pay stations will need new signs to point parkers to the kiosks, he says.

Parking study recommendations suggest paid parking from 8am to 8pm Monday through Saturday.

“I think they came up with a reasonable plan to try it for six months,” says DBAC president Joan Fenton. “If it doesn’t work, it can be adjusted before the busy season begins in October.”

If the pilot is successful, escalating the rate for peak times could be an option. “We can get more sophisticated in the coming years,” says Siebert.

And the parking meter perimeter could be expanded out a couple of more blocks, which would make the streets where many downtown employees park no longer an option.

“The most difficult issue will be to find appropriate parking for people working at minimum wage,” says Siebert. “I don’t think it will be a silver bullet. We’ll try several things.”

Under discussion are park-and-ride lots. Siebert mentioned a city-owned lot on Avon Street that can get bus riders to town in 10 minutes. More problematic is the 20-minute return on a bus that currently runs every 30 minutes.

“When you look at people downtown making little more than minimum wage, to expect them to pay $2 to $3 an hour is not feasible,” says Kirby Hutto, manager of the Sprint Pavilion.

“The metered parking doesn’t bother me,” says Hutto, who says it’s “naive” to expect that spaces will remain free.

What is more worrisome, he says, is that there’s no plan to ease the pain of losing parking in the short term from construction and the uncertainty of the Water Street Garage litigation. “There’s going to be a shortage of parking,” he says. “How are we going to accommodate demand for parking during peak hours?”

The days of the city-owned meter lot on Water Street are numbered with construction of West2nd expected to begin this summer. Also on the chopping block are the 51 spaces under the Belmont Bridge, which City Councilor Bob Fenwick says he’s counted and where many Pavilion employees park.

“We’re already hearing employers say they can’t find people to work downtown because of parking,” says Hutto.

“That is a concern,” says Siebert of the upcoming construction. He’d like to phase projects like the Belmont Bridge so all parking isn’t taken out at once.

Parking is also an issue for people coming from out of town to see a show at the Pavilion. The 75 spaces in the Water Street Garage promised to John Dewberry for his eponymous hotel are “coming out of the inventory I can sell to Pavilion patrons,” says Hutto.

Pavilion-goers need to be able to park, says Hutto, and if all the new parking coming from new developments is for private use, that doesn’t help.

Charlottesville Parking Center owner Mark Brown “actually has some good ideas about how to manage the Water Street space,” says Hutto. “With active management, we should be able to know when there’s open inventory.”

Siebert promises to leave no parking possibility unexamined. He’s ready to talk to churches and the previously uninterested LexisNexis to see if they want to share their lots. He wants to contract parking enforcement. And he’ll work with transit to tailor bus routes for park-and-ride options.

And he’s working on a survey for downtown employers to give to their workers. “We need to find out what time of day they come in and where they’re coming from,” he says.

After a contentious year between the city and Charlottesville Parking Center, and the city and Albemarle County, which threatened to move its courts because of downtown parking issues, everyone seemed to take a deep breath in 2017.

The city is implementing a parking action plan based on recommendations from the four different parking consultants it’s hired since 1986.

That includes hiring a parking manager—Siebert—to report to the department of economic development. “Parking is really a tool for economic development,” he says. “I’m glad this council has acted on the advice it’s consistently received since 1986.”

 

Bye-bye free street parking

The six-month Downtown Mall pilot parking meter program goes into effect in August.

  • Area bounded by Second Street on the west, Market Street on the north, Sixth Street on the east and either South Street or the railroad tracks on the south
  • $2 an hour, 8am to 8pm Monday through Saturday
  • Parking meters or pay stations will take cash or credit
  • The 157 spaces in the area include loading zones and 22 handicapped spaces
  • 97 two-hour spaces will get meters