Cville Tomorrow News

Facing new Loudoun traffic circles, some find it hard to shift gears

11/30/09 * Washington Post [full story]

Two months after four roundabouts opened to traffic, some drivers still don't understand how to maneuver through the new traffic pattern at routes 50 and 15 at Gilberts Corner, the latest attempt to ease worsening congestion on Washington's periphery.

"Even though we have two signs at every entrance and the big, six-foot-tall word 'YIELD' hanging on the pavement, people sometimes still fail to yield," said Kenny Robinson, who managed the project for the Virginia Department of Transportation. "So we're going to put in bigger yield signs."

Still, he says, it's only a matter of time before people learn. So ubiquitous are roundabouts in Europe, supporters say, that some don't need yield signs at all.

Albemarle readies for green grant

11/30/09 * Daily Progress [full story]

Despite an economic recession that has Albemarle County officials wondering how to pay for education without teacher layoffs, the county is expecting an increase in environmental and energy efficiency funding, courtesy of the federal government.

Albemarle officials expect to receive a $406,000 federal block grant in the next few weeks, through federal stimulus funding.

Sarah Temple, the county’s environmental manager, said the grant would be used to save energy costs and improve the environment.

Early-birders take flight to region’s shopping hubs

11/28/09 * Daily Progress [full story]

A sense of order and calm that can only come from experience belied their anxious excitement as they waited for the door to open and the Black Friday battle to begin.

“I’ve been doing this for years and I always come to Charlottesville,” said Wanda Sutherland, of Shenandoah, who came to the Fashion Square Belk for the first shopping skirmish of the Christmas season. “I left home around 1:30 a.m. and drove over U.S. 33. I saw lots of deer, but I like to come to Charlottesville for this. There’re more stores to go to — that’s how it seems — and I can shop in Harrisonburg anytime.”

It’s that sort of tradition that has made the day after Thanksgiving the kickoff to the holiday shopping season, with retailers offering limited-quantity, high-demand items as bait to pull shoppers into their stores. Traditionally, a strong showing of shoppers seems to solidify a retailer’s reputation as a shopping destination and to building consumer momentum for the rest of the season.

Building on Jefferson: UVA moves forward with the past

11/26/09 * The Hook [full story]

When visiting dignitaries tour The Lawn at UVA, says Richard Guy Wilson, Chair of the University’s Architectural History Department, they are often struck by how “wrong” everything looks. Indeed, as Wilson points out, the Lawn’s Pavilions are a clash of architectural styles that are perhaps more noticeable to those unfamiliar with Thomas Jefferson’s brand of genius.

“Sorry, I have to say. This is the way it is,” says Wilson. “Jefferson knew the rules of architecture, but he broke the rules.”

And he broke them, Wilson explains, to create an architectural experience for students that would teach them as much as their professors did.

Halsey Minor is misunderstood… Everything you’ve heard is wrong

11/26/09 * The Hook [full story]

He has just lost another lawsuit— this time a $21.6 million judgment for Merrill Lynch— but Halsey Minor vows that legal setbacks won’t deter his quest to complete the Landmark Hotel, an incomplete eyesore that holds the promise of topping the Omni as the most luxurious lodging on the Downtown Mall.

In a recent series of telephone interviews, the man who founded internet giant CNet and whose riches soared to $355 million around the turn of the century alleges that everything the public has been told about him in recent days is wrong.

Minor says he’s not to blame for the Landmark mess, he’s not broke, and he’s not going to let go of the hotel without a fight— even if it means millions in legal bills.

Fraud dismissed: But Halsey Minor wins refiling right

11/26/09 * The Hook [full story]

“The truth is out there,” said the lawyer fighting for a right to re-file the high-profile hotel collusion lawsuit by internet millionaire Halsey Minor against developer Lee Danielson.

“Well, whatever the truth is,” responded Judge Edward Hogshire, “right now it’s just a broad brush of allegations.”

“We need more time to flesh all this out,” explained Minor’s lawyer, Ryan C. Berry. “Give us leave to amend.”

Report: Overhaul public housing

11/26/09 * Daily Progress [full story]

In a draft master plan to improve public housing in Charlottesville, consultants are calling for all of the city’s 376 public housing units to be substantially rehabilitated or replaced.

The draft was released Wednesday, and the Charlottesville Redevelopment and Housing Authority Board hopes to approve a final version by mid-January.

“We’re coming to the end of a master planning process that’s going to produce a framework for revitalizing public housing,” said Mayor Dave Norris, who sits on the authority’s board.

Daly named official director of Charlottesville parks, recreation

11/26/09 * Daily Progress [full story]

Charlottesville has promoted Brian Daly to be its new director of parks and recreation.

Daly, who had been serving as acting director since January, has more than 22 years of experience in the field.

The position came open when former director Mike Svetz left for a similar position in Goodyear, Ariz.

Authority’s exhibit to highlight evolution of public housing

11/26/09 * Daily Progress [full story]

The Charlottesville Redevelopment and Housing Authority will be showcasing a public housing exhibit next week.

The exhibit, “Neighborhood ReGeneration: The Evolution of Public Housing in Charlottesville,” will include work from the housing authority’s consultants. Consultants have prepared a draft plan to address the city’s public housing needs.

The exhibition will be unveiled from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Dec. 4 at the Charlottesville Community Design Center at 100 Fifth St. NE and will hang at the design center until the end of January.

New NPR, Radio IQ studio set to open

11/26/09 * Daily Progress [full story]

National Public Radio member WVTF-FM and Radio IQ will have a grand opening of their newly constructed radio studio from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Dec. 5 at 216 W. Water St. near the Downtown Mall.

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The 1,780-square-foot space, formerly known as the “Green Building,” will be equipped with state-of-the-art technology for conducting recorded and live interviews — a step up from the current satellite operation. The roughly $300,000 project was supported by a mix of private donations and public contributions, including a donation of building space by Bill Atwood of Atwood Architects.