When David Mitchell bought 120 acres 10 years ago off U.S. 250 in Crozet, he wanted to maintain much of its rural character and planned a subdivision with 13 clustered homes, with his own on a 60-acre preservation tract on the banks of Lickinghole Creek Basin. But he wasn’t the only one who found the […]
Environment
Smoke in the air
The faint smell of smoke surrounding the city Tuesday morning is coming from two large wildfires in Nelson and Amherst counties, according to Charlottesville Fire Department Chief Andrew Baxter. The situation in Nelson County, referred to as Eades Hollow Fire, is currently consuming between 300 and 500 acres of private land just north of Lovingston, […]
Bellair Bambis: Resident blames UVA for increased deer population
Matt Bowen came upon a juvenile buck “in its last throes” early Sunday morning, September 4, on Canterbury Road in his Bellair neighborhood. He contacted Albemarle County Animal Control to humanely dispatch it, and the next day, found the deer at the same spot, albeit with a bullet hole in its neck. Bowen, a doctor, […]
Point of view: Power line rebuild draws discord
City and county residents heavily criticized Dominion Virginia Power’s plans to rebuild area transmission lines at a recent public hearing, and a Rockbridge County man, who has filed suit against the power company after a similar rebuild in his area, says locals’ concerns are justified. “They [...]
UVA students join March on Mansion protest
Four “brides” decked out in distressed wedding gowns joined the March on the Mansion demonstration July 23 to protest Governor Terry McAuliffe’s relationship with the fossil fuel industry. UVA third-year Maria DeHart was one of four women sporting glitzy wedding dresses that were caked in [...]
Wildfire aftermath: Shenandoah’s path to rehabilitation
By Rebecca Bowyer When a visitor journeys up Skyline Drive and looks out over the portion of Shenandoah National Park recently ravaged by wildfire, black scars, charred trees and the smell of soot linger—but, almost unexpectedly, a majority of the area is green. The Rocky Mountain wildfire was [...]
This land is your land: Efforts to save Fulfillment Farms continue
In April, C-VILLE reported on the potential razing of historic buildings at Fulfillment Farms in Esmont. While a demolition permit is currently on file, and the structures could be bulldozed at any time, a group of concerned citizens has come together to make a final plea for preservation. In [...]
The ghost deer: Fry’s Spring residents fawn over neighborhood visitor
The Charlottesville neighborhood of Fry’s Spring has an unofficial mascot: a pale white deer that pops up in residents’ backyards, surprising and delighting them. “I saw it out the window,” says Virginia Rieley. “I went outside to see if I could get a closer look. I was surprised when I went [...]
Running at Ragged? Public weighs in during third meeting
On a pleasantly wet Wednesday evening in late April, 60-odd people congregated at Trinity Presbyterian Church for the third public meeting about the Ragged Mountain Natural Area and its future. One of the many issues to be decided is who gets to use the park, now restricted to hikers and [...]
Living Picks: To-do this week
Nonprofit Friends of the Library book sale Leaf through thousands of books and other media at the 51st annual spring book sale to benefit the special programs and projects of Jefferson-Madison Regional Library. Saturday, April 2-Sunday, April 10. Free, 10am-7pm. Gordon Avenue Library. 1500 [...]
Spreading the words: The Virginia Festival of the Book
Every March thousands gather in Charlottesville for the Virginia Festival of the Book, now in its 22nd year, to celebrate storytelling and literacy. With most events free of charge and open to the public, the festival encourages book-lovers from all over to attend readings and panels, to see [...]
Trash talk: One local wants litter removed from the Rivanna
It’s been nearly three months since Albemarle County resident Scott Fox first noticed a number of plastic bags littered across the bank of the Rivanna River behind his house, caught on rocks and tree limbs in the water and trapped below the water’s surface. Fox, who lives in a small, A-frame [...]
Dominion to dump in Virginia rivers
The State Water Control Board officially approved Dominion’s permit to dump wastewater into two Virginia rivers January 14. The wastewater will come from coal ash pits at the Bremo Power Station on the James River and the Possum Point plant on the Potomac River. The board took two separate [...]
What’s bugging you? Little-known wheel bug makes startling appearances
Leslie Lovelace, manager at Ivy Corner Garden Center, knows wheel bugs, also called “assassin bugs,” only by their reputation. Co-workers have told her to be careful if she ever sees one with its distinctive spiked half wheel of gear-like cogs high on its thorax. Rumor (and entomology websites) [...]
Honorable discharge: Will toxic water be dumped in the James?
Environmental groups and concerned citizens worry that Dominion’s intentions to dump millions of gallons of wastewater per day into the James River won’t go swimmingly. Alleging that the wastewater potentially being discharged from a Fluvanna County power station will contain coal ash and toxic [...]
Playing dirty: Atlantic Coast Pipeline accused of eluding soil rules
Soil collecting may be an inherently dirty business, but the United States Forest Service is now calling into question the ways in which soil in the Atlantic Coast Pipeline’s path has been collected and recorded. In a November 5 letter to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, a supervisor [...]
People’s Climate Movement brings Dominion pipeline into question
On Wednesday, October 14, the People’s Climate Movement called environmental activists to Charlottesville’s Downtown Mall to rally on climate change. Dominion Power’s potential installation of a pipeline that would run throughout Virginia wildlife areas was the big issue, and the free speech [...]
Dominion to lessen noise of pipeline’s compressor
The people of Yogaville, who were once worried about noise pollution from the Atlantic Coast Pipeline’s compressor site proposed just six miles away, may now be able to continue living peacefully. According to Carla Picard, Dominion Energy’s external affairs manager for the Atlantic Coast [...]
Update from Nepal: Charlottesville native discusses relief work post-quake
It’s been about two-and-a-half months since a 7.9 earthquake rocked the small, South Asian country of Nepal April 25. Though news coverage has dissipated and camera crews have long since returned home, the era of rebuilding the devastated capital city of Kathmandu and surrounding areas has only [...]
Pipeline’s new path: Puts it in someone else’s backyard
The newest proposed route for the 550-mile Atlantic Coast Pipeline, announced July 15, would avoid a pending historic district around Wingina in southern Nelson County, but cut through a state wildlife management area along the James River. On July 14, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commision [...]
ARTS Pick: Music for the Mountains
Neighbors, musicians and foodies from across the Commonwealth will gather at Music for the Mountains to raise funds in an effort to push back against the Atlantic Coast Pipeline and its anticipated damage to Virginia’s mountains, water, farmlands and landowner rights. Speakers and info tables [...]
Hydrilla attack: Lake Anna battles invasive aquatic weed
Lake Anna has shown great hospitality to an unwanted guest for over two decades. Hydrilla, an aquatic weed not to be confused with the mythological nine-headed marsh serpent Hydra, has festered in its waters since 1990. The bad news (for some) is it’s spreading again. The good news (for all) is [...]
More lawsuits: New pipeline route brings new legal wrangling
As local landowners continue to deny Dominion access to their private land, the power company proposing the controversial $5 billion natural gas pipeline is attempting to force its way onto additional properties, at least one with historically significant assets, with a slew of fresh lawsuits. [...]