Podcasts about thomas jefferson health district

Today’s episode of the show comes to you with support from the Piedmont Environmental Council, the usual sponsor of the Week Ahead newsletter. Every week they support my research into what’s  happening at various meetings across the Thomas Jefferson Planning District so that the entire community can know what decisions are coming up. That’s consistent with their mission, and advances mine to make sure as many people as possible know what’s going on. Thanks to PEC for helping me get started this year. The week begins with the Virginia Department of Health reporting another 2.599 cases of COVID-19 this morning, and the seven-day average for positive tests is 12.3 percent today. That’s a total of 12,260 new cases since our last newsletter on Thursday. The seven day average for new daily cases is at 3,612 a day. We all now wait to see if there is a corresponding spike in cases related to Christmas gatherings, similar to the one seen after Thanksgiving. The cold weather is also a likely factor that has led to more cases being spread due to  more people gathering together indoors. To give you a sense of perspective, the average number of new daily cases for the month of July was 874 a day. That number rose to 1,062 a day in October, and climbed to 1,899 in November. To date in December, the figure is 1,938 cases a day including today’s numbers.This Friday, the division of the Virginia Health Department in charge of public health in our community will officially become known as the Blue Ridge Health District from the Thomas Jefferson Health District. Here’s a bit why from their press release in early October. “This change reflects the District’s commitment to ensuring that public health services are inclusive and welcoming to all off of the communities served,” the release releases. “Blue Ridge Health District  also aligns with other health districts in Virginia [which are] majorly named after regional geography.” Either way, they’ve continuing to lead the response in a community that has had 7,297 cases of COVID and 91 fatalities. There has not been a death reported since Christmas Eve. Since Thursday there have been 258 new cases reported in the district. That’s 112 in Albemarle, 38 in Charlottesville, 30 in Fluvanna County, 22 in Greene County, 46 in Louisa County, and ten in Nelson County. So far, 41,709 people in Virginia have been vaccinated so far according to the Virginia Department of Health’s new vaccination dashboard.The Blue Ridge Health District will have one more community testing event on Wednesday in Crozet at Henley Middle School from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Call 434-972-6261 today and tomorrow to register for the free event. Details about other testing opportunities can be found here. *A Louisa County man is dead following a shooting early Sunday morning in the 900 block of a public housing complex on South First Street. It’s the second homicide in that area in two months. When Charlottesville police responded to the scene, they found 32-year-old Jamarcus B. Washington dead.  For more context, read Nolan Stout’s Daily Progress article. *Today and this week in meeting, singular, the Board of Trustees for the Jefferson Madison Regional Library meets at 3 p.m. today on a Zoom call. On the agenda is the welcome of a familiar face to represent Albemarle on the Board. Tony Townsend was appointed by the Board of Supervisors earlier this month. He previously served on the board earlier this century, including a stint as its president. Trustees will also talk about the library system’s response to COVID-19. JMRL shut down in-person shortly after the pandemic began in order to limit community spread. Gradually they restored circulation services to curbside appointments, but now patrons can access all facilities, but on an appointment-only basis. JMRL Director David Plunkett will conclude the meeting with his report. Earlier this year, Plunkett acknowledged the system could change its name as well in the near future. In August, he reminded trustees that JMRL’s mission statement recently changed to reflect a more inclusive attitude. Director David Plunkett said JMRL’s mission statement was updated to reflect an awareness of the system’s problematic past. (August 6, 2020, Community Engagement)“The public library of today strives so hard to be free and open to the public, but that was service wasn’t available for Black families for a long time in the area here so that by your bootstraps story about public libraries being a cornerstone of education for Americans to improve their lot in life wasn’t available for Black families,” Plunkett said.(watch the meeting)*As mentioned in the top of the audio version, today is the third day of Kwanzaa, and today’s candle is to be lit for the principle of Ujima, or collective work and responsibility. I would have liked to have had a soundbite from an interview with someone on this, but I don’t, and I have to get this thing posted for the day. But, I want to say that in 2021 I hope to broaden the kinds of sounds I’m able to bring you each day. The pandemic certainly awoke my sense of responsibility to others. I’ve taken a leap of faith to pursue the kind of work I feel I’m supposed to be doing to help as many people as I can. I don’t profess to speak for everybody but I do come from a position of wanting life to be as meaningful and fulfilling for as many people as possible. So, let’s think about collective work and responsibility today, especially at a time during this pandemic. This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Entrepreneur Crystal Napier and Stephanie Duncan, Chief Sales & Marketing Officer at Harmony Harvest Farm, joined me live on The I Love CVille Show! We featured Judy Junes Pointer's Paparazzi Accessories today on “Crystal Napier's Spotlight” presented by Renee's Boutique LLC. Stephanie Duncan told us about the upcoming Harmony Harvest Farm Holiday Market. The I Love CVille Show headlines (Wednesday, October 28) 1. This is how the Thomas Jefferson Health District will distribute the covid-19 vaccines. https://www.cbs19news.com/story/42925763/tjhd-makes-plans-for-covid19-vaccine-distributions 2. Governor Ralph Northam is pushing for marijuana legalization in Virginia. https://roanoke.com/news/local/gov-ralph-northam-to-push-for-marijuana-legalization-during-upcoming-general-assembly-session/article_c695e532-282b-11eb-8aa4-eb76076cf56c.html#tracking-source=home-top-story 3. Durty Nelly's craigslist: $75,000 https://charlottesville.craigslist.org/bfs/d/charlottesville-historic/7232112592.html 4. This is how popular seeing Santa in Richmond, Virginia during covid-19 has become: https://richmond.com/entertainment/extra-432-legendary-santa-tickets-at-the-childrens-museum-of-richmond-on-sale-today/article_b7b7fa40-37ba-5c9a-bcd8-51caeae6358e.html#tracking-source=home-top-story 5. New restaurant opening in Charlottesville, Virginia https://www.nbc29.com/2020/11/17/new-restaurant-heading-into-draftsman-charlottesville/ 6. There is no Las Vegas betting line for the Abilene Christian at UVA football game on Saturday at 4 pm in Scott Stadium. https://www.espn.com/college-football/game/_/gameId/401248275 7. Covid-19 restrictions means very few fans in the stands for Central Virginia https://dailyprogress.com/sports/with-new-covid-19-attendance-restrictions-central-virginia-athletes-prepare-for-a-winter-of-playing/article_5621e002-2845-11eb-8fe1-976915d954f8.html#tracking-source=home-top-story 8. First positive test for The Washington Football team. https://richmond.com/sports/professional/washington-football-team-reports-first-positive-coronavirus-case-shuts-facility/article_812acc0e-0baa-5d7c-9acd-2b08559c6508.html#tracking-source=home-breaking 9. UVa's Ty Jerome has been traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder. https://dailyprogress.com/sports/uva-men-s-basketball-notebook-ty-jerome-traded-to-thunder/article_641cfa66-284f-11eb-9447-b358b1e9983a.html 10. University of Miami football reschedules last three games due to covid https://www.espn.com/college-football/story/_/id/30332216/acc-reshuffles-schedule-amid-miami-covid-19-issues The I Love CVille Show airs live before a worldwide audience Monday – Friday from 12:30 pm – 1:30 pm on The I Love CVille Network. The I Love CVille Show is powered by four generation strong Intrastate Inc., trusted limo company Camryn Limousine, the talented Dr. Scott Wagner of Scott Wagner Chiropractic and Sports Medicine, custom home builder John Kerber of Dominion Custom Homes and entrepreneur Patricia Boden Zeller's Animal Connection – All Natural Store for Healthy Pets.

Greetings and are you ready to alight your bonfire? For it is Guy Fawkes Day, and today we remember remember the fifth of November! Oh wait. What’s that? I’m being told that this is America, and it’s a different kind of November 5th, with the presidential election still not quite resolved. What will happen today? Who knows? But, we’re in history, and this is the Charlottesville Community Engagement newsletter and newscast for today.*Seventh District Representative Abigail Spanberger will most likely return to Congress having been re-elected in a close race against Republican Nick Freitas. With all precincts in and at least 89 percent of mail-in and early voting ballots in, Spanberger got just over 5,000 more votes, or 50.5 percent of the vote. However, Freitas is not ready to concede.“Our campaign will be waiting until the canvass officially concludes on Friday, at which we will be making an appropriate statement,” Frietas wrote on Twitter.  Spanberger declared victory last night.“It has been the honor of my life to serve our community in Congress, to represent the people of our ten counties and I thank you all for putting your trust in me again and re-electing me for another two years,” Spanberger said. “As we celebrate tonight I know there are many who cast a different vote and who volunteered for a different candidate and I know they are disappointed. I hope over time I will earn your trust as a representative even as we disagree.”As of this recording, neither of the candidates for the presidency have won the required number of electoral votes. Spanberger addressed voters in a live stream Wednesday evening*There are another 1,366 cases of COVID-19 reported today by the Virginia Department of Health. The seven-day average for new daily cases is now at 1,288. The seven-day rate for positive cases has increased to 5.8 percent for all of Virginia. In the Blue Ridge Health District, there are another 19 cases today with seven from Charlottesville, five from Louisa, four from Albemarle, two in Fluvanna and one from Greene. It has been two weeks since a new fatality has been reported in the district. The seven-day average for positive PCR tests has decreased to 1.9 percent in the district. All of Virginia’s health districts are considered to be at moderate or substantial community transmission, with higher burdens reported in the Central, Southwest and Near Southwest regions. The director of the Roanoke and Alleghany Health Districts has called for high schools in those communities to halt contact sports due to increasing numbers of COVID cases. Dr. Cynthia Morrow cited “core indicators” from the Centers for Disease Control that are in the red zone. As of yesterday, Alleghany had 462.8 cases per 100,000 people over the past 14 days. The positivity percentage over 14 days was at 15.7 percent. The Roanoke district’s numbers were 497.5 and 10.8 percent respectively.How is your part of Virginia doing? Check the CDC page for your locality.  “We are for the second week in a row in high burden, increasing trends of substantial transmission,” Morrow said during a press briefing yesterday. “In addition, the contiguous regions to us are also in high burden, increasing trends of substantial transmission. We are about as high risk right now and with these metrics we really should be operating at phase 1, phase 2 practice.”Morrow said she talked to school superintendents in the area on Tuesday.“They asked us how we felt about close contact sports such as wrestling and even basketball  and we have to say that we would applaud any effort that they have to reduce transmission by not having those sporting events,” Morrow said.  For the city of Charlottesville, the metrics are currently much lower, with 201.6 cases per 100,000 and  the positive percentage over the past 14 days is at 1.1 percent. For Albemarle County, those numbers are at 112.2 and 2.1 percent. *A subcommittee of the city’s Housing Advisory Committee gave an initial review Wednesday of a draft affordable housing plan put together by consultants as part of the overall Comprehensive Plan update known as Cville Plans Together. City Council and the Planning Commission will hold a work session on the 133-page draft plan on November 10. Subcommittee members were asked to give initial impressions. Christopher Murray represents the development community and he said the plan didn’t seem to address economic issues.“The supply and demand element that is not acknowledged is the cost of land itself, the availability of land,” Murray said, adding it calls for a land bank but doesn’t contain enough information about land trusts.Ridge Schuyler, dean of community self-sufficiency programs at Piedmont Virginia Community College, said the plan should also acknowledge ways for households to create more wealth. “It’s not just the cost of housing but its the amount of income you have to afford that housing and besides one throwaway sentence there was no focus on economic opportunity and helping people earn more income,” Schuyler said. Among other things, the plan calls for a dedicated $10 million a year in capital funds for affordable housing projects. Last month, the city gave the final approval of $3 million in funds for public housing renovation and redevelopment as well a final approval for a $5.5 million forgivable loan to the Piedmont Housing Alliance for the first phase of the redevelopment of Friendship Court.  In all there are to be four phases “The document does a good job of highlighting [Charlottesville Housing and Redevelopment Authority] and public housing redevelopment but does not once mention Friendship Court redevelopment and I think that’s a gap,” said Piedmont Housing director Sunshine Mathon. “I would like to get into a little bit about the proposed $10 million a year because I think there are some nuances to that number that we should flesh out and make sure we are all clear on.” Realtor S. Lisa Herndon wanted more emphasis in the plan on pathways to home ownership. “I definitely believe 100 percent believe that there are multiple ways to create home ownership especially looking at subsidies and I truly am against simply just having a great focus on redeveloping public housing,” Herndon said. “I think that is a model that truly needs to be rethought of.” Chris Meyer said he was concerned about a call in the plan for seeking state legislation to allow for rent control. “I was a little concerned when I saw a lot of new suggestions on regulations of landlords and rental properties including a cap on home rentals or regulated rental prices and other things,” Meyer said. “I did like though that they started talking about helping tenants engage in those processes.” City Councilor Michael Payne said he wanted to see more information in the plan about land banks and land trusts.“I think the funding is also a really important question especially in light of our budget challenges and given the election results in the Senate I also think that the likelihood of additional money from the federal government is also a lot lower,” Payne said. You can watch all of the HAC Policy Subcommittee meeting here. Learn more about the plan *The city has hired a community development director from Georgia to serve as its next Director of Neighborhood Development Services. Parag Agrawal currently works in Milton, a city of about 40,000 people in Fulton County. Before that he served in similar positions in Rhode Island and Bridgeport, Connecticut. “Parag is a experienced development professional who has a breadth of experience that’s very needed in the Neighborhood Development Services department,” said interim city manager John Blair. Agrawal said he looks forward to beginning work on November 30. “The Department has an excellent team of staff members who are very committed, dedicated, and knowledgable and are working on some very important projects that will make our city more sustainable and more affordable,” Agrawal said. “I will say that the city of Charlottesville is such a great city because the residents of Charlottesville are so actively engaged.” Agrawal replaces Alexander Ikefuna who was demoted in February but will remain with the city. Parag Agrawal begins work in Charlottesville on November 30 *There are two meetings today. The Natural Heritage Committee will see a presentation on wildlife corridors from the Virginia Transportation Research Council from one of the state’s leading experts on reducing vehicle collisions. Earlier this year, the General Assembly passed legislatio n to create a Wildlife Corridor Action Plan to identify locations where steps can be taken. (meeting info)The Thomas Jefferson Planning District Commission will meet at 7 p.m. They will be introduced to a new search tool that’s designed to help people find affordable housing. That’s a project of the TJPDC’s Regional Housing Partnership. According to the executive director’s report, there will be a discussion on altering the name of the TJPDC. The Thomas Jefferson Health District will become the Blue Ridge Health District on January 1. The Jefferson-Madison Regional Library system could also soon get a new name.“We have in the past considered both a change from Thomas Jefferson as well as change from Planning District Commission to either Regional Commission or Regional Council,” Boyles wrote. “Should you desire staff to pursue options, we could report back to you in February.”And while not strictly a government meeting, the Center will have a virtual presentation from the owners of the Ragged Mountain Running Shop on their walk last year across England. That begins at 4 and is open to all. (info)Thanks for reading. Want to support this work? Support my research by making a donation through PatreonSign for a subscription to Charlottesville Community Engagement, free or paidPay me through Venmo This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s edition is made possible through contributions through Patreon or subscriptions through the newsletter. Your support enables the research and the writing and helps us all create a community resource. After two days where the number of new cases COVID-19 were below the seven-day average, the Virginia Department of Health has reported 1,844 cases this morning. The statewide seven-day average for positive cases remains at 4.8 percent for a second day. Seeing a potential anomaly, I contacted the VDH and got this response. “The case count reported on Thursday, October 8, includes 689 cases that should have been reported on Wednesday, October 7, but were not because of a surveillance system reporting issue,” reads a notice posted on the website. “A reminder: cases are not reported on the day the patient became ill, but on the day they have been classified as meeting the case definition for COVID-19.  In order to observe the spread of illness most effectively, please review the  charts that show cases by date of symptom onset.” Likewise, the number of new cases in the Blue Ridge Health District is also higher than the seven-day average, with 64 cases. In Charlottesville, there are another 35 cases, above the city’s average of 21 new cases. In Albemarle, the new cases reported today is 19, above the county’s average of 13 cases.  (A reminder: the Blue Ridge Health District is the new name for the Thomas Jefferson Health District, effective January 1. )The University of Virginia reports 217 active cases as of Tuesday, with 190 of them students. Twenty-one percent of quarantine rooms are in use, and eight percent of the isolation rooms are in place. *The Albemarle County School Board will be briefed tonight on a plan to return kindergarten through third grade students to in-person class for two days a week. What is known as “Stage 3” would involve around 4,000 students, or 2,000 students a day. Virtual learning would continue for most pupils, though optional in-person access would be extended to English learners, special-education students, and “students exhibiting a lack of engagement in the virtual experience.” This stage would also allow athletics and extracurricular activities to recur upon individual approval. Slides provided in advance of the meeting state there would be no more than 12 students in each classroom at any time. One of the metrics the School Board will be asked to take into account a dashboard provided by the Centers for Disease Control with core indicators including the total number of new cases per 100,000 in the past 14 days, and the percentage of positive  tests during the past 14 days. On the dashboard, the former is colored in the “higher risk” category and the latter is in the “moderate risk” category.  Dr. Denise Bonds of the Blue Ridge Health District has issued a statement about the recommendation by Superintendent Matthew Haas to proceed to stage 3. "The value of in-person education for preK - 3rd grade is critical to this age group's overall development and growth. Providing the opportunity for students to return at this time is important and the current public health conditions in the community support a decision that enables parents and guardians to send their children to school for in-person instruction. The public health considerations that are being met and support this decision include the implementation of masking and distancing policies, widespread access to testing, quick turnaround for results, and as of right now lower community transmission among Albemarle County residents than in July. Based on the current public health conditions and Albemarle County Public School's plan for minimizing risk within school settings, the Thomas Jefferson Health District supports a decision to implement a hybrid teaching model for preK - 3rd grade."  Read the slides for more information. *The Albemarle Board of Supervisors has adopted a plan that offers a wide array of strategies to help the community reduce greenhouse gas emissions in order to meet the ambitious goals of a 45 percent reduction by 2030, and to be “net zero” by 2050. “The list of strategies and actions that make up the heart of the plan were developed from ideas suggested by the community,” said Greg Harper, the county’s chief of environmental services. “At its most reductive level the plan is a list of strategies and actions designed to contribute to the mitigation of global climate change through decreases in community-wide greenhouse gas emissions and increases in carbon sequestrations in the county’s landscape.” The vote on the plan was unanimous, but Supervisors also gave notes to staff on what they’d like to see improve. Supervisor Ann Mallek said she was concerned the plan did not adequately cover one area. “I am worried that solid waste seems to be completely set aside in here except for some mild-mannered paragraph, so if that’s coming in some way, that’s great, but if there is a way to focus on very specifically cutting the use of single-use plastic,” Mallek said.The next step is for the county to conduct a new inventory on greenhouse gas emissions. The last was conducted in 2008. Supervisor Donna Price said the plan demonstrated how many of the county’s plans and initiatives can work together if coordinated.“My hope is that we will collect objective data and metrics that will allow us to provide detailed analysis of the progress and shortcomings for future improvement to the plan,” Price said. Supervisor Liz Palmer suggested that the plan should also help inform what legislation the county seeks in the General Assembly. “There’s a lot of things we could be doing if we had help from the state,” Palmer said. Notably, Palmer would like Virginia to encourage glass recycling by requiring beverage producers to participate in programs, thereby increasing the potential market. Supervisors also approved a rezoning for the Albemarle Business Campus, a proposed mixed-use development across from the county’s office on 5th Street Extended. *Charlottesville City Council has agreed to keep an advisory board intended to provide guidance on how Charlottesville Area Transit is operated. Garland Williams is the director of CAT."I do think that we need to particularly look at how it is constructed," Williams said. "I think it doesn't have the mix that we need to have it move to more of a regional model. There's no individual from the business community at all."  Williams said there is an opportunity to use the CAT Board to figure out how the agency might secure more funding in order to become a regional model. CAT is in the running for a planning grant, while the Thomas Jefferson Planning District Commission is seeking funding from the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transit for a vision plan for regional service, including a transit plan for Albemarle County. Two other transit agencies in our community are Jaunt and the University Transit Service. Garland Williams explained some of how transit works currently in the region. "You don't have oversight over the University Transit System, but you have total ownership over CAT and I think we just need to position CAT that we really dive into it and figure out how we can position an advisory group of peers and individuals in this region to really put CAT in the position to put CAT to go to the legislature three to five years from now and say, this is what we want because we've done the hard work and we want potentially to position ourselves like Richmond to get dedicated funding for CAT for the region."Council discussed the matter at an October 6 meeting where they discussed the future of various boards and commissions. There is also a Regional Transit Partnership that has been meeting for three years. The next scheduled meeting is on October 22. Councilors Lloyd Snook and Nikuyah Walker are the city's representatives. Council will meet with the Albemarle Board of Supervisors and top University of Officials on October 28. *In meetings today, the PLACE Design Task Force meets at noon for a gathering that includes another discussion of its own future. On Tuesday, Council opted to convert this board to a staff-advisory panel. (agenda)The Charlottesville Police Civilian Review Board meets at 6:30 p.m. (meeting info)Correction time! In the Building Goodness Foundation segment yesterday, I used the incorrect word to describe the disposition of the group's international projects. They paused those projects and hope to resume them when they can. This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Tuesday, October 6, 2020Today’s edition is made possible through contributions through Patreon or subscriptions through the newsletter. Your support enables the research and the writing, and I am deeply humbled and thankful to those who have stepped up to date. Thank you!*The director of the Thomas Jefferson Health District told the Charlottesville City Council last night that COVID cases at the University of Virginia do not appear to be spreading to people not affiliated with the school, but the recent rise in cases is a cause for concern. “We have not seen a large number of cases amongst community members that we’ve been able to link back to students,” said Dr. Denise Bonds. “That being said, we are seeing more cases among individuals who work at UVA either as faculty or over in the hospital and they are our community really but they also affiliated with UVA.” Since UVA announced a return to in-person classes on August 28, Charlottesville has added 758 new cases and Albemarle added 366 cases. Dr. Bonds said she could not rule-out cross-spread, but contact tracing has linked UVA cases back to other UVA staff, faculty or personnel. She said she and her staff work with UVA Health and she is supportive of the school’s efforts to place further restrictions on person to person contact.“They are beginning to think about the cold weather and what’s going to do that to what where their students go and hang out,” Bonds said. “I think they are trying to be very proactive about it but this is not the only University town and it’s not the only University town seeing an increase in cases amongst University students.” Charlottesville Mayor Nikuyah Walker said she wanted to know the extent UVA was considering the safety of people who transfer infected UVA students to quarantine and isolation rooms. “What does the cab driver know about this transport and how are we protecting them?” Walker asked. “I just think in those conversations with the University if we’re just making sure that we’re covering everybody that’s involved in this situation.” Dr. Bonds said she would follow up. She also encouraged everyone to wear masks, even when outdoors in part aerosol droplets still carry outside. She also said it was important for people to get a flu shot. “It’s really important particularly this year for everyone to get a flu shot,” Bonds said. “The symptoms of flu and COVID overlap significantly and we really need everyone to be protected against the flu. It’s a very effective way of either preventing yourself from getting the flu or certainly reducing your flu symptoms.”Dr. Bonds also encouraged people to begin to think through their holiday plans. For more on Council’s briefing, look for a new episode of the Charlottesville Quarantine Report later on today. *The Virginia Department of Health reported another 625 cases of COVID-19 today, with another ten cases in the Thomas Jefferson Health District. That’s the lowest one-day total since September 15 when three new cases were reported. The district reported another two fatalities with one in Charlottesville and another in Louisa. There have been 73 deaths to date in the district and 3,291 deaths in the state since March. *Speaking of the local health district, its name will change to the Blue Ridge Health District effective January 1 according to a news release sent out this morning. “Changing our name is symbolic of the deeper work we are doing as an organization to create an inclusive, equitable environment for our staff and clients and to acknowledge and address the impact of racism on health,” said Dr. Denise Bonds, TJHD District DirectorBonds requested permission to change the name last fall. Only two other health districts in Virginia refer to a person while the rest refer to geography, Lord Fairfax and Mount Rogers. The move continues a trend in our area away from naming things after Thomas Jefferson. *City Councilor Lloyd Snook paid tribute to John Conover at the beginning of the City Council meeting last night. Conover died last week after a long career of community services, including serving on the board of Live Arts. He served one term in Council from 1980 to 1984 and during that time helped prevent the Virginia Department of Transportation from widening a bridge on Ridge Street that would have led to a four-lane highway running south from downtown.“He noted that we already had a history of running four-lane roads through Black neighborhoods like Preston Avenue and Ridge-McIntire and Fifth Street Extended, and we should not do it again even if only for a few blocks because he did not want Ridge-McIntire and Fifth Street Extended to be shown on maps as a cut-through between U.S. 29 and I-64,” Snook said. For more on the life and times of John Conover, read Bryan McKenzie’s article in today’s Daily Progress. *A nonprofit organization of developers has announced a new program to help cover the cost of building repairs for low-income residents, small businesses and others struggling during the pandemic. The Building Goodness Foundation is seeking $300,000 for C’Ville Builds, which seeks to finish 25 projects between now and the spring of 2022. So far they’ve collected about a third of their goal. *A pilot project to increase space for pedestrians and cyclists on the Belmont Bridge is now in its second week. The city’s bicycle and pedestrian coordinator said there has been initial support. “There has been a lot of enthusiasm for the pilot,” Said Amanda Poncy. “We received a number of thank you emails before the barrels even went up. We [have] also installed count equipment and will be further evaluating over the coming weeks.”Construction of a new replacement for the Belmont Bridge is currently scheduled to begin next year. *2020 has been an atypical year for Charlottesville’s City Market, but the market has placed second in a contest held by the American Farmland Trust.  According to a news release, more than 1,250 markets across the country entered. The market will receive $500. “In 2020, the Charlottesville City Market had to make several operational changes due to COVID-19 and switch from an in-person downtown shopping experience to a pre-order and pick-up model at several locations throughout the year,” wrote City Market Manager Justin McKenzie in a release. “The market staff would like to thank the vendors and loyal customers for continuing to make the market a success during these trying times.”The City Market usually operates on a city-owned parking lot downtown. The market will likely not do so again until physical distancing measures are repealed. *Today in meetings, the Albemarle County Planning Commission will have a virtual public hearing on a rezoning to expand the Forest Lake Shopping Center. Charlottesville City Council will hold another meeting at 4 p.m. to discuss the future of Boards and Commissions. This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s Patreon-fueled shout-out is for me to say… "Early voting is underway for all registered voters. Vote in-person or request a ballot by mail. Register to vote by October 13. Visit elections.virginia.gov/registration/voter-forms"*The city of Charlottesville has now had almost as many COVID cases as Albemarle County, despite the latter having twice the population. According to data from the Virginia Department of Health posted this morning, Charlottesville added 16 new cases for a total of 1,380 to date, whereas Albemarle added 15 new cases for a total of 1,383. Since August 29, Charlottesville has had 758 residents test positive for COVID-19 whereas Albemarle has added 366. Up to that date, Albemarle had 1,022 cases and Charlottesville had 648 cases. The rise in cases is believed to be attributed to the return of students to the University of Virginia. UVa began virtual instruction shortly after the pandemic and students were sent home after spring break, but many began to come back to apartments in early August. The return of students who live off campus to Charlottesville was one reason cited by administration officials for beginning in-person classes.“The vast majority of our students will be here in Charlottesville, living in private houses and apartments, regardless of whether classes are all online or not,” wrote President Jim Ryan in an August 28 announcement that classes could meet in-person. “By welcoming our students into classrooms and on Grounds – with adequate testing, rules about gatherings and mask-wearing, and enforcement – we will be in a better position to monitor what’s happening and to contain any outbreaks.”UVA has not updated their official COVID tracker since Friday afternoon, when they reported 270 active cases, as defined as someone with a positive test result in the past ten days. Of that number, 252 are students. Other information on the website is likely out of date by now. Statewide, there are another 687 new cases of COVID today, and a total of 42 new cases in the Thomas Jefferson Health District. To date, Fluvanna County has had 384 cases, Greene has had 239 cases, Louisa has had 312 and Nelson has had 110 cases. The seven-day average for positive tests statewide is at 4.8 percent for the second straight day. The figure is 5.2 percent in the Thomas Jefferson Health District for the second straight day. *Five of the eight Republican challengers running for U.S. House seats in Virginia have not disclosed financial assets on forms required by the Ethics in Government Act of 1978. One of three Democratic challengers has also not disclosed their assets on the form according to information retrieved from the Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives.Candidates are required to file the disclosure forms once their campaign has raised more than $5,000. Three of the Republicans filed the required documents, but did not disclose any assets. That includes 5th District challenger Bob Good who lists salary and liabilities information, but lists no assets. His Democratic challenger Cameron Webb did list assets, including retirement and savings accounts.  Third District Republican John Collick, 4th District Republican Leon Benjamin and 1st District Democrat Qasim Rashid also filed forms but listed no assets. There are no online records of either Second District Republican Scott Taylor or 11th District Republican Manga Anantatmula submitting the form. Incumbent members of Congress are required to file periodic reports on their financial transactions. Read previous coverage of this topic on CBS19 and on the Rappahannock News.In all, Virginia has eleven districts and ten of them are contested this year. Only the 5th District race is a contest between two newcomers, as incumbent Denver Riggleman was not renominated for a second term by his party. *Former City Councilor John Conover has died, according to reports on social media. Conover was elected in 1980 and served one term during a time when Albemarle and Charlottesville entered into a revenue-sharing agreement to prevent further annexation of land by the city.  Conover was an attorney with the Legal Aid Justice Center who was also an elected member of the Thomas Jefferson Soil and Water Conservation District. *Today in meetings, the Albemarle Architectural Review Board reviews a new three-story building including a coffee shop on U.S. 250 east of Exit 124, as well as an updated design for a redesign of the Albemarle Square Shopping Center for a new Aldi. Charlottesville City Council meets at 6:30 p.m. and has a public hearing on how to spend $4.1 million in a second round of CARES Act funding. There’s also a review of the Home to Hope initiative, a project to help people released from prison reenter society.  The Louisa County Board of Supervisors meets at 5 p.m. For more information, check out this week’s Week Ahead newsletter on local government meetings.  Interested in learning more about our feathered friends? At 3 p.m., Schuyer Lawson will lead a discussion at the Center on what equipment you need to become a birdwatcher and what science citizens can contribute to the field. Lawson is a Ph.D. Candidate in the School of Public Health at the University of Buffalo. Visit the Center’s website to register. This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s Patreon-fueled shout-out: "Early voting is underway for all registered voters. Vote in-person or request a ballot by mail. Register to vote by October 13. Visit elections.virginia.gov/registration/voter-forms"There will be more money available for rent and mortgage relief in our area. The regional organization that provides support to local governments in our area has received a third round of $450,000 from the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) to go to people in need. Christine Jacobs is the housing coordinator for the Thomas Jefferson Planning District Commission. “The way that it works is as they front us the first tranche of money, and then we report to them with a remittance report, “Jacobs said. “Based on our usage, we continue to qualify for funds based on that demand.” Jacobs said as of September 24, the Rental and Mortgage Relief program has written $535,000 in checks to individual households in the district. “We’ve served 308 and households to date,” Jacobs said. “But a couple of those are folks that are returning for a second or third month of support.” Jacobs said the DHCD has increased the amount of rent relief they will pay to 100 percent of arrears. In all, about a $1 million in funding will be distributed in the first two rounds of the program, which includes surrounding counties. The program was announced in July. Jesse Rutherford is on the Nelson County Board of Supervisors.  “It’s amazing how quickly $1 million just went poof!” Rutherford said. The TJPDC is working with Nelson County on a grant to revitalize the unincorporated town of Lovingston as well as a plan to bring more broadband internet to the county through fiber. “In today’s times, it’s kind of nice to have some good or exciting news,” Rutherford said. “You don’t really get it too often. So Lovingston is one thing to look forward to, and fiber.”The TJPDC’s Board of Directors met last night. The representative from the Greene Board of Supervisors gave an update on the water supply plan battle between that county and the governmental entity it shares with Madison and Orange counties. “We are currently in litigation with the Rapidan Service Authority, our water authority,” said Dale Herring. “Basically we have asked them to allow us to withdraw and they have said no. And they have barred the Greene County representatives from voting or speaking on topics and they are making decisions related to the water rates and water projects in Greene county.” Herring said Greene plans to move forward with impoundment of White Run to create a new reservoir for an urban water supply. Terry Beigie of the Greene County Record has a story yesterday about a second lawsuit the county is filing against the Rapidan Service Authority. *There are another 966 new cases of COVID-19 in Virginia as reported this morning, and another 49 cases in the Thomas Jefferson Health District. That’s another 16 cases in Albemarle and another 24 cases from Charlottesville. The statewide seven-day average for positive tests is at 4.5 percent for the third straight day. Calculations for the Thomas Jefferson Health District were not available at production time. There are now 250 active cases at the University of Virginia according to the official COVID-19 tracker, with 235 of those students. In all, 33 cases were reported yesterday with 28 of them students. The number of quarantine rooms in use increased to 30 percent and the number of isolation rooms in use remained steady at five percent. *The University of Virginia’s Center for Politics took another gaze into Sabato’s Crystal Ball yesterday, before news broke that the president of the United States and the First Lady tested positive for COVID-19. Prior to that the biggest election news of the week had to do with Tuesday’s debate. “It was the worst, most awful presidential television debate in American history and you’re talking to an old guy here and watched everyone live and in real time including the four Kennedy-Nixon debates in 1960,” said Larry Sabato. “I remember it well because I had to beg my parents to stay up.” Sabato also called the debate the worst advertisement for American democracy. To watch the rest of the event, visit the Center for Politics’ YouTube channel. *This October is the first-ever Pedestrian Safety Month recognized by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. According to the agency’s website, the reduction of available light at dusk is a major reason to raise awareness. “From September to February, over 30% of pedestrian fatalities occur between 6 p.m. and 8:59 p.m.,” reads the website which offers tips for both motorists and pedestrians.  The Virginia Department of Transportation has a Pedestrian Safety Action Plan which aims to decrease the amount of people struck by vehicles each year. In 2018, pedestrians 12 percent of all traffic deaths in Virginia. One of the goals of the action plan is to identify road improvements as part of the Highway Safety Improvement Program. This week, the city of Charlottesville began a pilot project on Belmont Bridge to increase the amount of space for pedestrians and cyclists. *Live Arts will have another studio visit on Facebook Live as part of their Forging Ahead season. Darryl Smith will speak with painter Sarah Boyts Yoder about her work. According to the materials, her work reflects “a visual lexicon of symbols that she has generated over time, her colorful, abstracted works articulate how space extends and collapses all around us in liminal celebrations of cacophonous graffiti.” This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s show is brought to you by the generosity of supporters who have made a monthly contribution through Patreon or signed up for a paid subscription through Substack. Thank you for supporting community journalism and the launch of this new venture. Now, on with the information.*There are another 450 new cases of COVID-19 reported by the Virginia Department of Health today. That’s the lowest number since July 6, when 354 cases were reported. However the seven day average for new daily cases is 747. The statewide seven-day average for positive PCR tests remains at 4.5 percent today. In the Thomas Jefferson Health District there are another 46 cases, bringing the seven-day average for new cases to 42. That’s another 28 cases in Charlottesville and 15 in Albemarle. Charlottesville’s seven day average for new daily cases is 22 while that figure in Albemarle is 15. The district’s seven-day average for positive PCR tests is also at 4.5 percent today.The University of Virginia reported another 45 cases yesterday, with 42 of them students. The officials COVID tracker lists 224 active cases, with 214 cases of those students. The number of people in isolation rooms has dropped to five percent and the number of quarantine rooms remains steady at 29 percent. Some of those quarantine rooms are in local hotels, as reported by Raghda Labban and Ava MacBlane in the Cavalier Daily yesterday in a story about what life has been like for the students in residence halls where outbreaks have occurred. The Cavalier Daily also has a story today by Sierra Martin about how coursework and examinations are changing during an academic term in which only one quarter of classes have an in-person component. Last week, UVA President Jim Ryan imposed a five-person limit on students gatherings on and off Grounds to help slow the spread of COVID. If cases were to become less manageable at UVA, there is another level of further mitigation that could be triggered. The in-house publication UVA Today has a Q&A with officials about the “Short-Term Restricted Operations” that would include ending in-person classes. * Charlottesville City Council has reiterated a desire to remove the Lewis and Clark and Sacagewea statue from the intersection of West Main Street. The topic came up during a work session on the future of a road improvement project for the street, which has seen construction of at least seven multistory buildings in the past ten years. The statue is within the first phase of the project, which runs from Ridge Street to 6th Street NW and has a cost estimate of $17 million. That’s the result of an urban design study that began in 2013 and was approved by City Council in March 2016. The work will involve removing the slip lane that allows vehicles to travel south onto Ridge Street in favor of a public park. Council discussed how to move forward with removing the statue, and directed staff to proceed with cost-reductions through a “value-engineering study.” “Being one of the newbies I was not around during any previous discussion but part of what I want this project to do is to connect the University of Virginia to downtown at a bike and pedestrian level in a way that is inviting,” said City Councilor Lloyd Snook. I’ll have a longer story and podcast about this available for paid subscribers shortly. *This weekend, Charlottesville public works crews will begin using street sweepers to clean selected roadways in Albemarle County’s growth area. This is a pilot program where the county is paying to use city resources in order to avoid having to purchase their own machines. A quick web search reveals that the cost of a used 2016 model is $170,000. According to an email from the county’s director of Facilities and Environmental Services, the work this weekend will attempt to sweep the John Warner Parkway, Rio Road East and West, Hydraulic Road, Georgetown Road and Barracks Road. “Combined those roads are the longest of the three work areas, and the widest, so it will be a challenge to complete the work in a single weekend,” said Lance Stewart “It also represents the kind of assumption we want to test as part of the pilot – how long it will take per lane mile of busy commuter roads.” In addition to making bike lanes safer, street sweeping helps remove sediment and debris that would otherwise enter into the watershed as pollutants. They are considered one of several dozen Best Management Practices (BMP) in the long-going quest to improve water quality in the Chesapeake Bay. *This weekend, the Jefferson Madison Regional Library will add Sunday hours back at the Central branch downtown. However, the library doors will remain closed and items will be circulated through curbside pick-up. The goal of opening from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. is to give additional opportunities for those unable to some during the week or on Saturday. "This is the ONLY Sunday service in JMRL, so it is a crucial piece of customer service for working families,” said David Plunkett, the system’s director. *In meetings today, The Thomas Jefferson Planning District Commission’s Board of Directors meets at 7 p.m. with two items related to pandemic relief. That includes a vote on an agreement with the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development and an update on the Rental and Mortgage Relief Program administered by the TJPDC. As of September 22, the program had received $664,704 in funds and distributed $565,000 in relief. The TJPDC uses 15 percent of the funding to cover its internal costs. In Albemarle, 165 households have received a cumulative $240,087 in funding with another 291 applications pending. Ten were denied. In Charlottesville, $45,778 has been distributed to 32 households with another 171 pending. Twelve were denied. You can see the details in the packet. (agenda packet)You can also find out how Tuesday’s presidential debate may have affected predictions about the outcome. The Center for Politics at the University of Virginia will take another gaze into Larry Sabato’s Crystal Ball at 2 p.m. in an event that can be watched live on the center’s YouTube channel. This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s show is brought to you by the dozens of people who have decided to help pay for it through either a monthly contribution through Patreon or a subscription through Substack. Thank you for supporting community journalism and the launch of this new venture.* The Virginia Department of Health has launched a new dashboard to give the public a better glimpse into how the pandemic is affecting different parts of the state. The COVID-19 website now has daily updates for how each region of the state is doing, a weekly update on something called “transmission extent” and metrics offered by the federal Centers for Disease Control to guide decisions about school reopening. Dr. Laura Forlano is “The composite picture, or the description, or the picture that’s created when one considers all of this information together with local context is intended to help inform local and state decisions about how to respond to the pandemic,” said Dr. Laura Forlano, the Deputy Health Commissioner for Population Health. “For example, a high level of transmission necessitates increases in case investigation, or contact tracing, or more testing or more focused testing in certain populations.” Forlano said the data can also be used to help guide decisions for when more stringent limits might be placed on gatherings. For instance, UVA has now limited that number to five while in-person classes continue, and both Albemarle and Charlottesville have ordinances in placethat are more stringent than other parts of Virginia. Forlano said there were some ways the dashboard should not be used. “It should not be used to take one indicator alone to make a very complex decision,” Forlano said. “It should not be used to compare concretely with other localities in absence of more detailed information or local context.” One of the measures is Region Metrics. The Thomas Jefferson Health District is in the Northwest Region, where cases have been decreasing for 14 days and percent positivity has been declining for 23 days. However, the number of cases among health care workers has been increasing for nine days, with 5.9 percent of active cases.Weekly transmission extent is another measure and was last calculated on September 26. The Northwest Region is considered “at moderate community transmission.”  That’s the middle category among five ranging from “At minimal” to “at substantial.”*The University of Virginia updated its COVID-19 tracker Monday afternoon, adding 81 new cases from the weekend. For Friday, they reported 41 new cases, the exact same amount reported on Thursday. For Saturday UVA reported 23 cases and 17 for Sunday. The number of quarantine rooms in use is at 30 percent and the number of isolation rooms at nine percent. The latter is for students and staff who tested positive. There are currently 240 active cases, 229 of which are students. The Virginia Department of Health today reported another 923 cases. The seven-day average for positive tests dropped to 4.6 percent, down from 5.5 percent a week ago. The Thomas Jefferson Health District reports another 24 cases, with nine from Albemarle and eleven from Charlottesville. *Some Charlottesville residents who request mail-in ballots from the registrar received materials that did not include the actual ballot. According to a press release, a clerical error lead to “a small number” of the 8,968 ballot requests being sent out prematurely.“Ballots were mailed in three batches,” reads the statement. “The second-half of the smallest third batch was inadvertently labeled “ready” before Envelope A, containing the ballot, was inserted. This issue has affected a small number of voters in Johnson, Buford, Venable and Alumni Hall precincts.” Those who did not receive the ballot are asked to call the registrar at 434-970-3250. So far, Charlottesville had 2,060 people vote in person as of close of business Monday. As of yesterday morning, Albemarle had 4,501 people vote in person and mailed out 18,356 ballots. “We’re getting a really good turnout at the county office building and we’re getting very good marks from the voters as to the way we are doing it, keeping it efficient and keeping it safe,” said Jim Heilman, secretary of the Albemarle Electoral Board. He gave an update last night to the Pantops Community Advisory Committee. “The first six days we had this, we average 766 people a day.” The deadline to apply to vote by mail is October 23. The last day to register to vote is October 13. *Charlottesville City Schools will not return to in-person instruction until at least November 9. Last week, news emerged about a scenario that had contemplated returning kindergarten through 3rd grade students to school in mid-October. However, school spokeswoman Beth Cheuk sent an email to families with an update. “The committee met again this week, and again, they discussed topics such as data, instructional models, timelines, and more -- but they did not generate any specific recommendations,” Cheuk said. She recommended people visit the committee’s website for up to date information. The School Board meets on October 1. Meanwhile, the Virginia Department of Education continues to leave decisions up to localities.“We remain committed in our recommendations that the decisions to alter K-12 programming including decisions about in-person instruction, school closures or hybrid learning be handled at the most local level possible,” said Holly Coy, assistant superintendent for policy, equity and communications.” *Today in meetings, the Charlottesville City Council will hold a six-hour work session on the city’s Strategic Plan, which is a policy document intended to guide city staff in their operations. This meeting was to have taken place two weeks ago, but was delayed following the resignation of City Manager Tarron Richardson. There will be two more six-hour work sessions in late October, but Charlottesville Mayor Nikuyah Walker said at the September 21 meeting that they may need to make further changes in the future. “Since we’re going through a leadership change, we may have to reconvene after the new city manager is hired and have this discussion as a team,” Walker said. The facilitator for the event is Selena Cozart of the Institute of Engagement and Negotiation at the University of Virginia. The meeting begins at 11 a.m. and runs until 5 p.m. (meeting info)The Albemarle Economic Development Authority meets at 4 p.m. It is the first meeting for one new member appointed following the resignations of three others this summer.On the agenda is a third update of a performance agreement between the EDA and the developer of the Woolen Mills as well as an update on the Albemarle Business Campus. The latter goes before the Albemarle Board of Supervisors on October 7. (meeting info) (Zoom link)*One correction, during yesterday’s story on the Thomas Jefferson Soil and Water Conservation District, some incorrect numbers were given. The actual number of acres in riparian buffers protected is 2,944 and the amount of stream bank restoration is 261. District Director Anne Coates said they will surpass 3,000 and 300 respectively in the near future. This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s Patreon-fueled shout-out comes from a contributor who wants to say: "Early voting is underway for all registered voters. Vote in-person or request a ballot by mail. Register to vote by October 13. Visit elections.virginia.gov/registration/voter-forms to do so today.”*The seven day average for positive test results in Virginia has dropped to its lowest level yet with 4.7 percent reported by the state Department of Health. That’s down from 5.7 percent a week ago. Over the weekend, the state passed the two million mark for the number of PCR tests conducted. On Saturday the VDH reported 975 new cases, 736 on Sunday and 449 this morning. In Charlottesville, 78 new cases have been reported since Friday, with 41 in Albemarle. In Charlottesville, the seven-day average of new cases per 100,000 is 40.7. In Albemarle that figure is 9.9 today, and statewide the figure is 9.1 today. The seven-day average for positive tests in the Thomas Jefferson Health District is at 4.1 percent. That number was also 4.1 percent last Monday and increased to as high as 4.9 percent in the last week. The University of Virginia reported 41 new cases of COVID-19 on Friday afternoon, and will not update their official tracker with the weekend’s results until later on today. Later this week residents of two residence halls will receive follow-up tests, including Hancock where the University reported 16 cases among 115 residents on Thursday. There have been no new updates on the the UVA Facebook page since. Last week, President Jim Ryan announced a five-person limit on gatherings for students on and off Grounds as well as mandatory mask use. * Water that fell on the Charlottesville region this weekend is slowly finding its way into the Rivanna River, and one major overarching environmental goal of the last century is to prevent as many pollutants from going along for the ride. On Friday, a governmental agency that seeks to promote awareness of the Rivanna River’s watershed gathered virtually for an online conference. Anne Coates is the director of the Thomas Jefferson Soil and Water Conservation District, part of a nationwide network formed nearly a hundred years ago when few considerations were given to how land was used and the air was thick with sediment windborne from poorly managed properties across the country. “We were formed in the 1930’s in response to the dustbowl,” said Anne Coates, the TJSWCD’s director. “[President] Roosevelt sent letters to all the Governors nationwide asking them to set up local legislation that would allow for what he considered to be for important local influence. He wanted local landowners to work with local directors and decision makers to really determine what the resource concerns were in their area and not have their federal government tell them they needed to do something specific.” Nationwide there are 3,000 such districts, and the Thomas Jefferson Soil and Water Conservation district is one of 47 in Virginia. The local district dates back to 1939 and consists of elected and appointed officials in Albemarle, Charlottesville and surrounding counties, with direct election of ten of its board of directors. Coates said our district focuses mostly on agriculture, though residential property owners can also qualify for funding in some situations. The goal is to reduce the amount of nitrogen, phosphorus and sediment that makes it way into the Chesapeake Bay, which is where rain that falls here ends up. They do that by helping to pay for projects like keeping livestock out of creeks and streams. “Most of our programs are voluntary programs, certainly our agricultural program is, and that’s been primarily, the success of the program is because it’s voluntary based,” Coates said. Coates said partnerships between the government and landowners have resulted in protection of over 3,000 acres of riparian buffers and 300 miles of streambank in the district since 1998. In Albemarle County, that number is 122 miles of streambank. *Over six months have passed since the beginning of the pandemic and that’s enough time to get some sense of how the sudden change in the economy affected the local real estate market. Dr. Lisa Sturtevant is chief economist for Virginia Realtors and she was the first speaker in a series the Thomas Jefferson Planning District Commission is putting on to promote its Regional Housing Partnership. She set the stage by describing where the sales market is at the moment.“We’ve gone through a really dramatic downturn in the economy and we are now in sort of a period of recovery,” Sturtevant said. “And we’ve heard all sorts of different letters for how the recovery may happen. A V-shape, a W-shape, an L-shape. And the latest letter is K and this K shape recovery is one way to think about how some people are benefitting in this recovery more than others.”Sturtevant said some sectors of the economy were hit harder than others, with sharp decreases in the hospitality sector. Still, Virginia and the nation have seen four straight months of job growth, and in August the unemployment rate was 6.1 percent.“But keep in mind last year at this time the unemployment rate was about three percent,” Sturtevant said. She said the number of people who applied for benefits hit a peak in March and April, and then tapered down. “And in mid-September, about 186,000 Virginians were receiving unemployment which is well below where we were this spring but well above where a typical economy would be,” Sturtevant said. Sturtevant said the housing market has improved faster than the rest of the economy. A lack of supply is increasing sales prices across the state.“Inventory, though, supply, remains the major constraint and COVID has exacerbated what was already a tight housing market in just about every regional housing market across Virginia,” Sturtevant said. “We’ve seen similar trends in the Charlottesville area where inventory has been on the decline really for five or six straight years and in August, the number of active listings was down by about 43 percent compared to a year ago.” The next installment of the Regional Housing Partnership’s Speaker Series is set for October 22 and the topic is Regional Housing Strategies and Policies. *Today in meetings, the Charlottesville Redevelopment and Housing Authority meets at 6 p.m. with updates on safety and redevelopment efforts. There’s still no date for when ground will break for new public housing units at South First Street or when work to renovate Crescent Halls will begin. However, a redevelopment update in the meeting packet has a lot of details about what needs to happen first. Interested in parks and greenways in the Pantops area? The Community Advisory Committee for that part of Albemarle meets at six and has an update from parks planner Tim Padalino.  (meeting info)Interested in Albemarle history? You might consider the Albemarle Historic Preservation Committee will begin its regular monthly gathering at 4:30 p.m. They will get an update on the Crozet Master Plan and potential conservation easements. There will also be a further discussion of new historical markers in Albemarle as well as potential policy options to increase historical preservation efforts in the county. (meeting info) This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Support for this program comes from the many people who have decided to fund it through a monthly contribution through my Patreon account. For $25 a month, you too can have me read a shout-out! Support also comes from those who have paid for a subscription through this newsletter service. Either way, thank you!  Over 3,540 Albemarle voters have already cast their ballot in early voting, according to county registrar Jake Washburne. Jim Heilman, a member of the county’s electoral board, gave an update to the Places29-Rio Community Advisory Committee last night as part of their monthly meeting. There are 39 days including today until November 3, the final deadline for voting in this year’s federal election. Early voting is underway across Virginia and local election officials are trying to get the word out about what has changed in this pandemic year. “We have basically a perfect storm of an election this year,” said Jim Heilman, a member of the Albemarle County Electoral Board. “All presidential elections are a storm for sure but this one has a lot of added things to it. We have a whole raft of new election laws.”These include expanded early voting and no-excuse absentee voting. Heilman said the electoral board is not seeing a spike in new voter registrations. “Voter registration is something that normally is spiking right now in a presidential year, but it’s not spiking here,” Heilman said. “It’s going up but it’s not spiking, and I think the main reason for that is because the normal ways of getting voter registration up by door-to-door registration drives and registration drives at concerts, Fridays after Five, none of those are happening.” Heilman and the rest of the electoral board and staff are recommending people vote in advance to avoid large crowds on election day. There is a pandemic after all. “However we do want to assure our voters that all 30 of our polling places will be open, and that we are making out best efforts to make that they are safe and clean on election day,” Heilman said.If you still need to register to vote, visit this site. *There are another 941 cases of COVID-19 reported today by the Virginia Department of Health, for a total of 144,433 since the pandemic began. At some point, Governor Ralph Northam and First Lady Pamela Northam will be among that number, as both tested positive for COVID-19 yesterday. That means they will be isolating for ten days. “As I’ve been reminding Virginians throughout this crisis, COVID-19 is very real and very contagious,” said Governor Northam in a release. “The safety and health of our staff and close contacts is of utmost importance to Pam and me, and we are working closely with the Department of Health to ensure that everyone is well taken care of.”Contact tracing is now underway. Another 23 deaths are reported today, but that figure represents a continuing update as death certificates come into the VDH. The seven day average for positive PCR test results has dropped to 5.1 percent. Statewide, there is an additional case of the Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children, for a total of nine to date. There are another 48 cases in the Thomas Jefferson Health District with 25 new cases in Charlottesville, and 18 from Albemarle. Looked at another way, there are 52 new cases per 100,000 people in Charlottesville, and 16.6 new cases per 100,000 in Albemarle. The seven-day rate for positive tests is now at 4.9 percent, up from 4.7 percent. The University of Virginia reported another 22 cases yesterday, all students. The official number of active cases is now at 238, and that means people tested at UVA who were positive in the past ten days. *Many who live in this region are unaware the confluence of the Rivanna and James Rivers in Fluvanna County is sacred ground for the Monacan Nation. Now the National Trust for Historic Protection has named the site known as Rassawek as one of its 11 most endangered places. “Researchers verified Rassawek’s location in the 1880s, the 1930s and the 1980s,” reads a Preservation Virginia blog post on the announcement. “It is the Monacan equivalent of Werowocomoco, the Powhatan capital now planned to be a national park.”The James River Water Authority has planned to locate a pump station on the site as part of an effort to bring public water to Zion Crossroads. In August, public pressure from the Monacan Nation and others led the Authority to hit pause on the planning process to explore previously discarded alternatives. The next meeting of the James River Water Authority is October 14. (read Allison Wrabel’s Daily Progress article from August)*Every part of the Earth contains plants that are home to that specific region. Some of these have fruits that make their way into the rest of the world, if they are a product that can be sold. But, what about the rest of the ecosystem from which that food comes from? Enrique Salmónis an ethnobotanist whose work is based on the belief that “all life-forms are interconnected and share the same breath.” That’s according to the materials for a presentation the Virginia Festival of the Book offered yesterday on Salmón’s book, Iwígara: American Indian Ethnobotanical Traditions and Science. He said he often gives his students this example. “I ask them, ‘well, how many of you like guacamole?’ And of course most of them will raise their hands although there are always a couple that don’t like the texture of avacado,” Salmón said. “I ask them where does guacamole come from, and most of them will know that it’s avocado. And then I ask them what does an avocado tree look like, and that’s when only one or two hands will go up and then I ask when do you pick avocados and most of the time, they don’t really know.”Salmón is head of the American Indian Studies Program at Cal State University-East Bay, in Hayward, California. The event can be watched on the Virginia Festival of the Book’s Facebook page.  *There are two meetings today both under the auspices of the Thomas Jefferson Planning District Commission (TJPDC). The TJPDC’s Regional Housing Partnership begins a fall speaker series. At 11 a.m., Dr. Lisa Sturtevant, chief economist with Virginia Realtors, will talk about the impact of COVID-19 on the Charlottesville Area housing market. (register)The Rivanna River Basin Commission will hold its annual conference at noon, this time virtually. There will be an update on the Chesapeake Bay Watershed Improvement Plan (WIP), a presentation on Best Management Practices for Stormwater Management, and updates on local efforts to improve water quality. You can listen to the 2018 conference here.  (more info and registration)If you made it to this point, I thank you. You are also likely someone who would be interested in filling out this survey I am doing as part of a course I am taking with the Community Investment Collaborative. As I launch this new venture, I am seeking ways to understand more about how what people think about news and information. This is my first ever attempt at market research, and if you have a moment, I’d love to get your thoughts. This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s installment comes to you thanks to the Charlottesville Podcasting Network. Bringing you audio from the community since 2005, and getting ready for another 15 years and beyond. *There are another 902 cases of COVID-19 reported in Virginia today, above the seven-day average of 862 new cases per day. In the Thomas Jefferson Health District there are another 35 cases, and the seven-day average for new daily cases is now at 40. The University of Virginia’s COVID-19 official tracker added another 15 cases yesterday, and lists 221 active cases. That’s defined as “new cases with a positive test during the past ten days” and these numbers only cover tests “administered or provided through UVA.” The tracker did not alter the number of isolation and quarantine rooms in use. There were still listed as seven percent and 26 percent respectively. On Tuesday morning, residents of the Hancock dorm were ordered to participate in prevalence testing according to an article in the Cavalier Daily. Later that day, President Jim Ryan imposed a five-person or less gathering limit. “Testing residence halls is part of our ongoing asymptomatic prevalence testing program,” said UVA spokesman Brian Coy. “In some cases that’s in response to a known uptick in cases in a residence hall, in some cases it’s wastewater indications or some other factor.”*The Virginia Department of Health also monitors water quality in the state’s rivers and lakes. An advisory remains in place for the Middle Pamunkey Branch of Lake Anna due to the ongoing presence of a harmful algae bloom. However, an advisory for the Upper North Anna Branch has been lifted due to water samples that show levels of algae have dropped to safer levels. According to a release, “some harmful algae, called cyanobacteria, can cause skin rash and gastrointestinal illnesses, such as upset stomach, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea.” (VDH release) *Operations at branches of the Jefferson-Madison Regional Library are supported by a group called the Friends of the Jefferson-Madison Regional Library which raises funds for books, equipment, and other essentials for a successful system. However, the pandemic has meant the main event has not been possible to put on. Peter Manno is the manager of the Friends of the Library.“What we’ve had for over 50 years are some pretty well renowned and wonderful book sales that now are spring and fall, for a long time they were spring only, and that is 90 percent of our funding,” Manno said. “The libraries closed down just two weeks before our traditional spring sale.” That has meant that the basement of the Gordon Avenue Library has been filled with books donated by members of the community. The fall sale has also been canceled, but Manno said the Friends have held two Pop Up Sales and will have another this one Sunday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Gordon Avenue Library. “It’s a big change from our usual book sale where you would come in and you would browse the books, handling them, they would be individually priced on the inside,” Manno said. “Obviously that’s not going to fly for safety reasons.”Instead, volunteers have pre-packaged and sealed bags with at least five books from a specific genre for $5 a bag. “For this sale coming up we have mystery, literary fiction, popular fiction, sci-fi/fantasy, biographies, young adult books, and books for preschool aged kids, pre-literate kids, picture books fundamentally,” Manno said, adding that the first two sales exceeded expectations. The Friends of the Library have not been accepting new books since March, but Manno said they may be able to do so in the future. Visit the library website for more information. *Tonight, Live Arts continues its Forging Ahead Season with two short plays that will be livestreamed beginning at 8 p.m. The Locally Sourced series consists of material created by members of the Live Arts Playwrights Lab, and will be made available without a ticket. The theater company asks that people contribute what they can or purchase a season pass. For a list of what’s on tonight, visit the Live Arts website. In meetings today, the Places29-Rio Community Advisory Committee meets at 6 p.m. They will see the same presentations from Jim Heilman of the Electoral Board and Brad Sheffield of Jaunt on that agency’s ideas for on-demand transit.   (meeting info) This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Support for this program comes from the many people who have decided to fund it through a monthly contribution to Patreon. For $25 a month, you too can have me read a shout-out! Support also comes from those who have paid for a subscription through this newsletter service. Either way, thank you for all who have contributed so far!  *Students at the University of Virginia are now under rules that are stricter than those in Albemarle County and Charlottesville. President Jim Ryan announced yesterday that gatherings are limited to five people or less and that masks are to be worn at mostly all times."Over the last few days we've become more concerned about the spread of COVID-19 within the UVA community,” Ryan said. “Some of this has been driven by a rise in positive cases in our community. But we've also gotten reports of a few large student gatherings, both on and off Grounds as well as reports about inconsistent adherence to masking and distancing guidelines. This has caused concern among our public health experts who worry we may be headed in the wrong direction and that if we don’t get back on track quickly, we could end up in a situation where have to severely restrict where students can go or risk running low on isolation or quarantine space.”The UVA COVID-19 Tracker reported yesterday that 26 percent of quarantine rooms are in use and seven percent of isolation rooms. Seven new cases were reported for Monday, all students. The number of active cases is listed as 224. According to the tracker, these are “new cases with a positive test during the past ten days who require isolation or quarantine. The Cavalier Daily reported yesterday that a fifth dorm was placed under testing. The 5-person-or-less restriction on gatherings applies to students on and off grounds. “Students will still be able to gather outside safely including on the Lawn, but will have to do it in groups of less than five or fewer,” Ryan said. “If this limit is not respected we may have to consider additional restrictions including curfews.” A third restriction involves who can visit the students. “We’re going to ramp up enforcement of our travel and visitor policies for students, which should be simple to understand and easy to follow,” Ryan said. “Please do not leave Charlottesville over the next two weeks and do not invite visitors to come to town. This is to protect people outside of this community as well as to prevent more of the virus being brought back to Grounds.”Ryan said in-person classes would continue. Watch the whole video on UVA Today. *The Virginia Department of Health reports another 580 cases of COVID-19 today, the lowest one-day total since July 6. That brings the seven-day average for daily new cases to 890. The seven-day average for positive tests remains at 5.5 percent for the second straight day. In the Thomas Jefferson Health District there are another 16 cases reported today, with a seven-day average of daily new cases now at 53. Another death has been recorded in Nelson County for a total of 69 since the pandemic began. *The Rivanna Water and Sewer Authority’s Board of Directors met yesterday, and it was perhaps the last meeting in the area to be chaired by Dr. Tarron Richardson, whose tenure as Charlottesville City Manager is over at the end of the month. Richardson was honored with a resolution for his time serving on the RWSA, and he ended up chairing his final meeting. “Dr. Richardson, on behalf of this board, we want to take this opportunity to give you a heartfelt thanks not only for your service not just to the city and the community, but also to this Board,” said Albemarle County Executive Jeffrey Richardson. Richardson tendered his resignation to City Council earlier this month. *Albemarle County has launched another initiative to help businesses cover some of their pandemic-related expenses. The Safe Spaces and Places Grant Program is intended for those companies that have spent money to expand to outdoor operations or otherwise be able to serve customers during the pandemic. This could include tents, sanitizing stations, outdoor furniture, space heating, and other items that could help slow the spread of COVID-19 while allowing business to continue. Others include extended WiFi and computer systems to allow easy payment through cards.  Qualifying purchases may have occurred between March 1st and the end of this year, and payouts are up to $25,000. “Only non-residentially zoned parcels are eligible to apply,” reads an inquiry form for the project, which will be administered by the Community Investment Collaborative on behalf of the Albemarle Economic Development Authority. “Costs will be reviewed for reasonableness and applicants must certify that expenses are in response to the COVID-19 crisis.” Albemarle will hold a webinar on the program on September 25 at 1 p.m.  The inquiry form closes on October 2. (inquire) (attend the webinar)This morning, Albemarle County also launched another initiative for residents struggling with hardships due to the pandemic. The Board of Supervisors voted earlier this summer to allocate over $1 million in funding from the federal CARES ACT for emergency financial assistance. “Albemarle County residents experiencing lost wages or earning ability as a result of reduced hours or loss of employment due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic can apply for funds for rent/mortgage assistance, utility payments, groceries/prescriptions, or childcare,” reads a press release for the program. “Residents are eligible for a one-time payment for rent/mortgage assistance that will be allocated based on the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Developments program guidelines determined by the household size or up to $1,000 per household for emergency funds for all other expense types,” it continues.The funds are being disbursed in partnership with the United Way of Greater Charlottesville. To apply, call 434-326-0950, 9 am - 6 pm, Monday-Friday.    Para Español - marque 434-373-0930, 9 am a 5:30 pm, de lunes a viernes. Other languages are available upon request. *In meetings today, the Ridge Street Priority Neighborhood Task Force will meet virtually at 4 p.m. The group is made up of people appointed to review potential projects to be paid for through a federal program known as the Community Development Block Grant, or CDBG. Each year, the city selects a neighborhood to receive funding, and for this year and the next two, the Ridge Street Neighborhood has been chosen. City Council discussed whether some of the $150,000 could be used for housing issues. City Councilor Michael Payne asked this question:“Could that pool of money should the Ridge Street Task Force receive applications and vote on it, go to things related to homelessness services or public housing or other things that may be connected to housing in some way?” Payne asked.“The Ridge Street, or the priority neighborhood funding typically goes to funding public infrastructure improvements to better improve that community,” said Erin Atak, the city’s grants coordinator. “It really depends on the type of activity that they are looking to fund.” Previous projects funded by CDBG funds through this process include sidewalk improvements in the 10th and Page neighborhoods, as well as intersection improvements on Monticello Avenue and a partial streetscape on Cherry Avenue. One thing for the task force to keep in mind is that the city received $6.1 million in Smart Scale funding for a project at the four-way intersection of Ridge Street, Cherry Avenue, Elliot Avenue and Fifth Street Extended. However, that project doesn’t have an anticipated construction start time until 2028. Speaking of Smart Scale, the area body that makes decisions about regional transportation projects meets at 4 p.m. On the agenda of the Charlottesville-Albemarle Metropolitan Planning Organization is a new design for a reconfiguration of the intersection of U.S. 29 and Fontaine Avenue into something called a “modified continuous flow intersection.”  (MPO agenda)There will also be a discussion of the needs for electric vehicle charging stations in the community. “MPO staff would like guidance on developing a network of key stakeholders to assess and build strategies for supporting the use of electric vehicles in the TJPDC region,” reads the Action Item section of the memo on the topic. (learn more) This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s installment comes with support from the Charlottesville Podcasting Network. Celebrating 15 years of audio from the community and planning for another 15 and beyond.  There are another 872 cases of COVID-19 reported by the Virginia Department of Health, just below the seven-day average of 928 new cases per day. The seven-day average for positive test results has declined to 5.5 percent from 5.7 percent yesterday. The Thomas Jefferson Health District reports another 15 cases, lower than the seven-day average of 53. There is another COVID-19 related death, this time of someone in Louisa County. The University of Virginia updated their COVID-19 tracker Monday afternoon, three days after last giving new official numbers for the ongoing outbreak. They reported 50 new cases on Friday, 15 cases on Saturday, and seven on Sunday. That’s a total of 562 cases since August 17, with 508 of them students. However, a more useful number tracks active cases which are defined as “new cases with a positive test during the past ten days who require isolation on or off Grounds.” More than a quarter of the quarantine rooms are occupied, and seven percent of isolation rooms are occupied. Quarantine is defined as “for those who may have been exposed to someone who has tested positive for COVID-19” and isolation is “for those who have tested positive for COVID-19.” As many as four residence halls have been identified for testing, with residents of Leferve being told Sunday they would need to go through tests after early detection measures raised the alarm. “The University will continue to conduct wastewater and prevalence testing throughout the UVA community in order to detect cases as early as possible and take action to limit the spread of the virus,” reads a message posted to UVA Facebook page on Sunday.*Total enrollment is down this year in Albemarle County School by five percent according to figures presented yesterday to the Places-29 Hydraulic Community Advisory Committee. However, School Board Chairwoman Kate Acuff said the decline is higher when you include only elementary school pupils. There were 6,483 students in the county’s 15 elementary schools on September 30, 2019. That number on September 9 was 5,856, a 9.7 percent decline. (presentation)“Two thirds of the drop in enrollment are elementary school kids,” Acuff said. “[They] are the ones who probably have the most difficulty navigating in virtual education and of the elementary kids, half of them are kindergarteners, or would have been kindergarteners.” Albemarle County Schools are currently in stage two, which means mostly all students are receiving virtual instruction. A move to stage three would be a hybrid model for pre-K  through 3rd grade students and officials are currently studying whether conditions merit that change. “Under this protocol, Dr. Haas, the superintendent, is obligated to make a recommendation halfway through a term about whether we should move to another stage or stay where we are,” Acuff said.  The Places29-Hydraulic CAC was also presented with plans from Jaunt for their on-demand transit project. CEO Brad Sheffield has been visiting many elected and appointed bodies to get feedback on the idea.“This is really not a big jump for us,” Sheffield said. “It’s more of a slight evolution of where we are headed with the types of services that we want to provide and how we want to be able to provide those quickly.” Sheffield said Jaunt and other transit agencies are currently experiencing lower ridership and reduced revenues due to being fare-free. But he added that the goal is to make transit work better for people in the future, especially those who may qualify for subsidies. “We want to make sure that the customers just don’t have to worry about where or how to get to their locations or even about what to pay,” Sheffield said. “If there are different programs or different types of services that they are eligible for, and that helps cover the cost, that’s what this type of platform would answer for them almost immediately.”Sheffield said data collected through pilot projects will help improve the overall transit system. *The Wintergreen resort in Nelson County will open the winter ski season on December 11. “In addition to following all CDC and local regulations, Wintergreen will require face coverings, will make the necessary changes to allow for physical distancing, and will closely monitor employee health including requiring employees to stay home if they are sick,” reads a September 14 letter from Rod Kessler, Wintergreen’s General Manager. If there is a need for enforcement limits on a given day, priority will be given to season pass holders. The resort is also giving anyone who has already purchased a pass the opportunity to defer it to next year. *More than 70 miles of railway between Charlottesville and Clifton Forge will get an upgrade thanks to $13.7 million in federal grants announced yesterday. Funding for the Buckingham Branch Railroad North Mountain Subdivision will cover the cost of upgrades to 14 at-grade rail crossings, improve bridges and new drain systems in the tunnel that runs through the mountains at Afton. Senators Tim Kaine and Mark Warner announced the funding from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements Grant. Last year, the state of Virginia and CSX reached an agreement to purchase the railway, which will continue to be operated by Buckingham Branch. “The benefit of the suite of projects reduces maintenance costs on [Buckingham Branch Railroad],” said Haley Glynn with the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation. Part of the work also includes eliminating some clearance restrictions. “While removal of the clearance restrictions benefits freight services, maintaining class track safety standards and installing continuous welded rail allows passenger speeds up to 60mph, improves signal reliability, and results in a noticeably improved ride quality for passenger trains, including the Amtrak Cardinal Service which operates over this segment 3 days per week,” Glynn said. *Yesterday, the Albemarle Architectural Review Board took a look at several projects including a new Sheetz in the northwest corner of the intersection of U.S. 29 and Airport Road. That project had to undergo several changes including a smaller  fuel canopy. “I think that the prominence of this site, it’s elevation above U.S. 29 maybe does make it more of a concern here that it is across the street or in some other locations where we have looked at larger canopies where grade effectively mitigates the appearance,” said ARB member Dade Van Der Werf. They have also been asked to reduce the number of fuel dispensers from eight to six.  Lee May is engineering and permit manager for Sheetz and he said that might be an issue. “Operating 600 of these locations, we’ve learned over time what works and what doesn’t work and whenever we drop to six its really important they be spread out to serve the same volume of customers,” May said.The ARB asked May to reduce the width of drive aisles in order to help move the building closer to the street, a key design guideline in Albemarle County. The ARB also reviewed an application for a redesign of the southern portion of Albemarle Square to make way for a new Aldi store, which would feature a corner tower with the trademark logo. The building was formerly a Fresh Market, and before that a Circuit City building. Frank Hancock is another ARB member who favored the design. “It works surprisingly well with the existing architecture and I think it’s more successful than the Fresh Market in its response and connection to the Rio Road corridor,” Hancock said. The ARB will hold another work session on the Aldi after a more refined design is submitted. *Today in meetings, the Rivanna Water and Sewer Authority meets at 2:15 p.m. items include an agreement between the RWSA and the University of Virginia to study ways to boost wastewater capacity on campus, and a presentation on how the water and wastewater systems operated by the RWSA work. (meeting info)The Greene County Board of Supervisors meets at 7:30 p.m. One item is a public hearing on through truck restrictions on Fredericksburg Road (Route 609) between U.S. 29 and U.S. 33. There is also a presentation on a new Post Office facility near Dyke, an update on CARES Act funding, and a progress report on the Business Disruption Grant Program. There’s also first reading on a resolution to begin review of the county’s Comprehensive Plan. (agenda) *If you are enjoying this newsletter, please consider support in one of two ways. Pay for a paid subscription, which will give you additional content here and there. Or fund my general research through Patreon. For $25 a month, you can suggest a shout-out for a charity, nonprofit, cause, or general idea. Thank you to all who have supported this work so far! This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s Patreon-fueled shout-out is for Abundant Life Ministries, “working hard to create a better future for the Charlottesville community.”*As the week begins, the statewide seven-day average for positive COVID test results is 5.7 percent, down from 7.2 percent last Monday. Over the weekend, the Virginia Department of Health added 2,436 new cases with 953 on Saturday, 856 on Sunday and 627 this morning. There have been 3,021 deaths, with many of the ones reported last week actually having happened earlier in the pandemic and not reported until now. There were 137 cases of COVID-19 added over the weekend in the Thomas Jefferson Health District, with 64 on Saturday, 54 on Sunday and 19 reported today. Two more deaths have been reported since Friday for a total of 67. The University of Virginia’s COVID tracker has not been updated since Friday, despite reports in the Cavalier Daily that day that as many as four residence halls have had their populations tested due to positive tests and early detection in wastewater. *With the end of September approaching, Albemarle and Charlottesville are coming closer to the first nine-week period of the public school year. Last week, news came out that Charlottesville City Schools have put together a committee to help “plan a safe return to in-person learning.” Slides distributed after a meeting last week show that one option is to return pre-K through second grade as early as October 13 for four days a week. Older students would begin in-person instruction soon after. (reopening slides)“A survey will be sent to families next week regarding their intent to remain on a virtual schedule or plan for their children to return to school with the proposed plan,” reads one of the slides.Krissy Vick, the school’s community relations liaison, sent an email to parents that said the slides were a starting point for the committee’s discussion. “Returning to in-person instruction will take time, information, and multiple revisions to a plan,” Vick said “The School Board will vote on the final plan. Keep in mind that we will continue to offer families the choice for all-online learning -- and to the greatest degree possible, we will allow staff this choice, also.”The next scheduled School Board meeting is on October 1. *Habitat for Humanity of Greater Charlottesville has broken ground for the redevelopment of the Southwood Mobile Home Park off of Old Lynchburg Road in Albemarle County. Habitat purchased the site in 2007. Dan Rosensweig is president and CEO of Habitat.  “See, thirteen years ago, this community was facing a deeply uncertain future,” Rosensweig said. “Like a lot of trailer parks in the nation, it’s underground infrastructure had basically passed its useful life.” Rosensweig said there was also development pressure on the property and residents asked the owner at the time to sell to Habitat. The organization was working on redevelopment of the Sunrise Trailer Court in Charlottesville. Now Habitat has been working with Albemarle County on a multiphase effort to redevelop the site without displacing residents. “We come up with a plan of development that within the next ten years or so is going to turn this wonderful community of people into a wonderful community of people who are here, new people who are joining the community, new homes, and a little downtown core,” Rosensweig said. Albemarle Supervisors voted on a rezoning last year that paves the way for the first phase, which will take place along Old Lynchburg Road and does not involve any of the existing trailer homes. Scottsville District Supervisor Donna Price was not on the board when the rezoning happened, but she is supportive of the funding Albemarle has committed to the project. “When I think of Southwood, I think of the core values of non-displacement and sustainability,” Price said. “When I think I see Southwood, I see a representation of an essential public-private partnership that will produce a neighborhood consistent with Albemarle County’s Comprehensive Plan.”*In a time of restaurant closings, one space on the Downtown Mall is set to reopen tomorrow. The Champion Hospitality Group will take over the Commonwealth Restaurant with a new space called Passiflora. The new restaurant will offer “a Baja-Mediterranean-inspired menu of small plates.” According to a release, the restaurant will open for dinner with limited indoor and outdoor seating, following CDC guidelines for safe social distancing. Last night, Bashir’s restaurant in the same block had a farewell dinner to mark its impending closure. *Today in meetings, the Albemarle Architectural Review Board meets at 1 p.m. (meeting info)Sheetz is building a convenience store in the northwest quadrant of the U.S. 29 and Airport Road intersection and needs design approval. The ARB did not grant an approval at its June 1 meeting. (materials for meeting)The ARB will hold a third review of a new auto dealership at 1300 Richmond Road on Pantops as part of a development that includes a Holiday Inn Express and a storage facility (materials for meeting)The ARB will review signage for the redevelopment of the former John Deere dealership at 2415 Ivy Road (materials for meeting) The ARB will take a look at the new Aldi that is planned for Albemarle Square in the former Fresh Market (and former Circuit City) space (materials for meeting)The Places29-Hydraulic Community Advisory Committee meets at 5-30 p.m. They will get an update from Albemarle County School Board Chairwoman Kate Acuff, an update on voting from Jim Heilman of the Albemarle County Electoral Board, as well as an update on the office buildings coming to the corner of Georgetown Road and Hydraulic Road. (meeting info) City Council meets at 630 p.m. For those details, take a look at yesterday’s Week Ahead Newsletter. This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s Patreon-fueled shout-out is for Abundant Life Ministries, “working hard to create a better future for the Charlottesville community.”*The University of Virginia has recorded 52 positive tests on its COVID-19 tracker after three days of only reporting single digit numbers. All of the cases are from students and that brings the total to 430 positive cases since August 17, with 382 of them students. The Cavalier Daily reports that the high number is due to a testing machine being “temporarily offline.”“The large number of cases include a number who were tested earlier in the week and do not represent a sudden spike over the last 24 hours,” said deputy spokesman Wes Hester in a statement.Changes will be made to the UVA dashboard today, according to the Cavalier Daily. Students in the Balz-Dobie dormitory remain in mandated quarantine while waiting for test results after five residents tested positive. Those five tests were not reflected in the 52 cases reported Thursday, but UVA announced this morning that follow-up testing yielded another ten cases in Balz-Dobie for a total of 15. “In accordance with the University’s COVID-19 Prevention, Detection, and Response Plan, students who tested positive have been notified and are being placed in isolation housing,” reads an update on UVA’s Facebook page “All students with positive tests are doing well. Their close contacts, including roommates, are being placed in quarantine housing.Statewide there are another 1,242 cases of COVID-19 this morning, and a total of 77 new cases in the Thomas Jefferson Health District. Of that figure, sixty are reported as being from Charlottesville and eight are from Albemarle. That may represent the cases at the University of Virginia. There are only five new cases from Fluvanna County, which has seen a spike this week due to a test of all inmates and staff at the women’s prison there. *Early voting starts today at registrar’s offices across Virginia and runs for 46 days through November 3. What will the results be?“Three words --  we don’t know,” said UVA presidential prognosticator Larry Sabato on a Center for Politics webinar Thursday. “That’s why your crystal ball is being more cautious than certainly we were in 2016 and frankly more cautious than some are being this year. This is an unprecedented presidential election. We have never had a presidential election during a pandemic.” Sabato said there has also not been a presidential election during such a severe downtown in the economy. He said different models published in recent weeks by the Center for Politics show different results. “Alan [Abramowitz] believing that Biden will win fairly handily and Jim [Campbell] projecting a close popular vote which to me says that Trump will win the electoral college in all probability,” Sabato said. “The fact that these two very able political scientists could produce results so different should suggest to all of us that while we love to jump to conclusions and we love to jump to conclusions and we love to fill in and color a map and not leave any states out, we really ought to express a little bit of humility.” Episode 5 of the Sabato’s Crystal Ball - America Votes 2020 is available for viewing on YouTube.*A nonprofit group that matches caring adults with children that need guardians is seeking new families. Community Attention Foster Families works in Albemarle, Charlottesville and Greene County and trains people to become “compassionate caretakers” who support vulnerable children. Those sessions take about 27 hours to complete and prepare families for the experience. “Becoming a foster parent is an incredible way to give back to our local community,” said CAFF Recruitment Specialist Nicole Hawker,  in a press release. “You have the opportunity to empower children and youth as well as their biological families towards hope, healing and family restoration.”Hawker will lead an informational session on foster care on Monday. If you or someone you know is interested in participating, send her an email at CAFFinquiries@charlottesville.gov.There were 218 children in foster care in the three communities as of the beginning of this year. *Tonight is the launch of Live Arts new season, albeit an atypical one that is being streamed on Facebook rather than at the theater on East Water Street. The Forging Ahead Season will begin at 7 with a “coffeehouse” hosted by Shelby Marie Edwards and with live performances from  Amrita Shankar, Johnny Butcher, Monica Edwards, and Nathaniel Star. The event is free but Live Arts will request viewers to pay what they can and to purchase a season pass. (watch) This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Support today comes from Soul House Love, Charlottesville's Guide to Alternative Wellness. This Friday, Soul House Love is taking reservations for a New Moon Ceremony in a gorgeous outdoor location, with powerful guided meditations to cleanse your energy. Visit soulhouselove.com for more information and to reserve your spot.*There are more positive cases reported from the Fluvanna Women’s Correctional Facility today and the first cluster of cases has been reported at the University of Virginia. Of the 84 new cases reported in the Thomas Jefferson Health District today, 48 of those in Fluvanna County. Yesterday there were 41 new cases in Fluvanna. Testing has been conducted at the women’s prison this week, including all inmates and staff.  “The facility will conduct internal contact tracing for the women in the facility,” said Kathryn Goodman, spokeswoman for the TJHD. “Once the contact tracing on the inmates are completed, they share the information with TJHD. It would be a challenge for us to speak with the inmates so this is the best practice for these types of facilities. TJHD will conduct the contact tracing on staff as we do with any other cases.”There has been another COVID-19 death in Albemarle, for a total of 20 in the county and 63 in the district. There were 26 cases reported in Charlottesville.The Cavalier Daily reports there is an outbreak at a University of Virginia residence hall with testing revealing that five students tested positive. The 188 students in the Balz-Dobie dormitory have been told to quarantine while waiting for the results of tests that were conducted last night. It is unclear whether these cases are captured in the COVID-19 tracker, which was updated yesterday to add another five cases for a total of 378 total positive cases since August 17. The outbreak was also detected through monitoring of wastewater.  The Virginia Department of Health is reporting another 1,101 cases of COVID-19 today, and another 36 deaths. The higher-than-usual death rate stems from a data backlog according to officials. The statewide seven-day average for positive tests is at 6.7 percent today, down from 6.9 percent yesterday.   Before the news was announced, the Albemarle Supervisors were briefed by officials from the TJHD, including Ryan McKay. (download the presentation) “We’re certainly seeing increased number of cases among students,” McKay said. “We’re beginning to see some cases that are occurring on Grounds. Working with UVA, we meet with them on a daily basis to make sure we are communicating regularly, with transparency between what we’re seeing in terms of numbers, what they’re seeing, and then how we’re trying to support students.” McKay told Albemarle Supervisors that the area is moving towards more community transmission in urban areas. “And I think this is largely attributable to case counts that have been seen and positivity rates certainly in Harrisonburg and Rockingham County,” McKay said. “We are seeing increased numbers here in Charlottesville.”*The Virginia Senate has passed legislation requiring most utilities to develop debt repayment plans for those who have not been able to pay for electric, gas, or water service. The legislation sponsored by Senator Jennifer McClellan (D-9) was approved 24 to 12 with one abstention. (bill)*The Virginia Department of Historic Resources today will meet to consider nominations for two area properties to be listed on the Virginia Landmarks Register and the National Register of Historic Places. One is Jackson P. Burley High School on Rose Hill Drive.“Opened in 1951 as a joint high school for African-American students in both Charlottesville and Albemarle County, Burley graduated its last high school class in 1967,” reads the Burley nomination. “Burley is great, and that it continues to function as a school is I think fantastic and I can say as a coach in the city schools and at Charlottesville High School, I wish the student athletes would go over there and walk the halls at Burley and see the accomplishments of back in the fifties and early sixties,” said Jeff Werner, the city’s historic preservation planner. “It’s just an extraordinary place.”The other is River View Farm, which is now known as the Carr-Greer House at the Ivy Creek Natural Area. “River View Farm was established by Hugh Carr, born enslaved, with an initial down payment on land in 1870 near the confluence of Ivy Creek and the Rivanna River,” reads that nomination. “By the time of his death in 1914, Carr had amassed a farm totaling 108 acres, and was among the largest African American landowners in Albemarle County.” The State Review Board meets at 1 p.m. (agenda)*The Jefferson Madison Regional Library has announced it will reopen some library branches for limited hours by appointment, and that curbside service hours will be extended at the others. The in-person hours wil bel offered at rural branches in outlying counties. “JMRL has worked hard to be able to re-open some doors, and is looking forward to the opportunity to serve the people of Greene, Louisa, and Nelson inside library buildings again,” said JMRL director David Plunkett in a statement. “The Library knows that the people in these communities need access to the resources in their local libraries, and are glad to be able to offer these again on a limited and safe basis.” Beginning Monday, the limited in-person appointment services can be used for up to 45 minutes by five individuals at a time. This is a move to tier 3 service, down from tier 4. Additional curbside service will come to Northside and Crozet libraries beginning on September 28. Call for more information. Louisa County Library: 540.894.5853Greene County Library: 434.985.5227Nelson Memorial Library: 434.263.5904In local meetings today, The Albemarle Natural Heritage Committee meets at 5 p.m. Among the items on the agenda is a discussion of using volunteers to clear out invasive species in county parks. (meeting info) (agenda)The Places 29 North Community Advisory Committee meeting that had been scheduled for tonight has been canceled. The 5th and Avon Community Advisory Committee meets at 7 p.m. The group will get an update on the High School Center II that is planned for county-owned property off of Mill Creek Drive near Monticello High School.  (meeting info)The Charlottesville Human Rights Committee meets at 6:30 p.m. (meeting info)At 2 p.m., the Center for Politics at the University of Virginia will take a look at Sabato’s Crystal Ball in a virtual event. (watch) This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s Patreon-fueled shout-out is for Abundant Life Ministries, “working hard to create a better future for the Charlottesville community.”* A mass testing event at the Fluvanna Women’s Correctional Facility has resulted in the biggest one-day rise of COVID-19 cases in that county. That’s according to a spokeswoman for the Thomas Jefferson Health District, which reports 41 cases in Fluvanna this morning. “The uptick in Fluvanna County cases is due to point prevalence testing done at the Fluvanna Women’s Correctional Facility,” said Kathryn Goodman, spokeswoman for the TJHD.  Overall, the district reported 60 cases today, with 12 from Charlottesville and five from Albemarle. Statewide, there are another 845 cases of COVID-19 in the Commonwealth as reported by the Virginia Department of Health this morning. The statewide seven-day average for positive tests has dropped to 6.9 percent today. UVA reported another four cases yesterday, and their COVID-19 tracker now states that eleven percent of quarantine rooms are in use, up from eight percent the day before. *Governor Ralph Northam pointed to declining positive testing rates statewide as a sign of good news in the pandemic, but urged continued caution yesterday. Last week, Northam ended restrictions in the Hampton Roads such as early closings for restaurants after two and a half weeks of declining positive test rates. “We however continue to keep an eye on some other regions in Virginia,” Northam said. “For example, Southwest Virginia is seeing more new cases per day per on average, 229, than any other region in our state, even Northern Virginia.” Northam said southwest Virginia has fewer hospitals and medical capabilities so the Department of Health is monitoring the situation closely, even with declining positive test rates there. He said the rate was 8.1 percent on Tuesday. The governor urged people to continue following physical and social distancing guidelines, and to wear masks indoors. He also announced that more than half a million people have downloaded the COVIDWISE tracking app. “We estimate that’s around 12 percent of Virginians between ages 18 and 65,” Northam said. The State Corporation Commission has agreed to extend a moratorium on utility cut-offs through October 5. The moratorium had been set to expire at midnight, six months after it was first issued. In a release the SCC indicated there would be no further extension. “The mounting costs of unpaid bills must eventually be paid, either by the customers in arrears or by other customers who themselves may be struggling to pay their bills,” reads the statement.  “Unless the General Assembly explicitly directs that a utility's own shareholders must bear the cost of unpaid bills, those costs will almost certainly be shifted to other paying customers.”“The budget I sent to the legislature includes a moratorium on utility disconnections, a repayment plan structure, and a debt forgiveness program,” Northam said. Yesterday the Virginia Department of Health reported 96 deaths, the result of a data entry backlog. Health Commissioner Norm Oliver commented on this at the press conference.“Occasionally there will be a spike as we have in this number, and that just represents catching up with death certificates which come in much later than what we get from the hospitals,” Oliver said. “If you look at a different graph which is the deaths recorded by the date of death, you’ll get a much better picture of the course of the disease and you’ll see that we had a peak earlier in the year and it has been leveled off and we have been in the low teens for many weeks now.” More from the Governor’s Press Conference will be in the next installment of the Charlottesville Quarantine Report. *Early voting season begins this Friday, and Governor Northam said yesterday that the Department of Elections has received 790,000 requests for absentee ballots by mail. Jim Nix is a member of the Charlottesville Electoral Board. “People have been getting the word on voting early either in-person or by mail,” Nix said on the September 15, 2020 edition of C’Ville 360. “We already had as of yesterday morning about 6,500 requests for ballots by mail which is astounding.”Normally in a presidential year we would have fewer than 2,000 through the whole cycle according to Nix. Melissa Morton is Charlottesville’s registrar.“Currently my team is processing and preparing the absentee mail ballots to go out this Friday on September the 18th,” Morton said. “We have approximately 9,000 mail ballots that  will go out.” Morton said a dropbox for absentee or early ballots will be installed this week and social distancing measures are being placed inside her office for anyone who decides to vote in-person. You can watch the rest of the program here. *In meetings today, the Charlottesville Housing Advisory Committee meets at noon and the Albemarle Board of Supervisors meets at 1 p.m.  The latter group has a long day ranging from a discussion of a special exception to the county’s home stay ordinance for a property at 2405 Northfield Road, and an update on long range planning in Albemarle. There are several public hearings in the evening, including a developer’s request to reduce the scope of an intersection onto Route 20 south of Piedmont Virginia Community College. There’s also a renewal of the COVID-19 ordinance passed in late July, and a hearing on a county-initiated amendment of the zoning ordinance to place more restrictions on the use of fill dirt in the rural area.* Before we go today, one small correction from yesterday. All of the PTO’s for Charlottesville city schools have come together to raise funds for supplies for virtual learning, and a press release yesterday announcing a matching opportunity gave the incorrect total raised so far. The actual amount was $56,500 but hopefully by now that figure has increased already! If you want to learn more, click through to the link. This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Usually this is the spot where there’s a Patreon-fueled shout out, but the cupboard is bare today. $25 a month gives you four mentions in the newsletter and newscast! There is a large spike today in the number of COVID-19 deaths reported by the Virginia Department of Health. The agency lists 2,839 fatalities today, a rise of 96 over yesterday. “Regarding the death data for Tuesday, September 15, 2020, there is an existing data backlog,” reads a disclaimer posted on the site today. “VDH is working diligently to identify COVID-19 related deaths using vital record death certificate information.” There are another 943 cases statewide and the seven-day testing rate decreased to 7.1 percent from 7.2 on Monday. The first person from Nelson County has died due to COVID-19, according to new data released this morning for the Thomas Jefferson Health District. The two other deaths are one individual from Albemarle and another from Louisa County. The district reports only three new cases today, with no new cases in Albemarle. That’s the first time that has happened since June 17. The University of Virginia has reported a total of 369 positive cases since August 17, with 321 of those as students. The UVA COVID Tracker is not updated on weekends. Governor Ralph Northam is expected to address Virginia and the press at a news conference today at 2 p.m. *Last week, a subcommittee of the University of Virginia’s Board of Visitors got an update on several new projects, including the 60,000 square foot home of the School of Data Science. They also got details on the 223,000 square foot UVA Hotel and Conference Center. Both are part of first phase of the Emmet / Ivy Corridor, a future section of the UVA campus that the UVA Foundation has slowly been acquiring over the years. Renderings presented to the Buildings and Grounds Committee depict a pond in the southeast corner of the precinct, a pond fed by streams that will be daylit throughout the site. It has now been two years since the Cavalier Inn was demolished to make way for the new era for this part of the community. *A joint fund to help improve the virtual learning experience for low-income students has received a potential boost from two area philanthropists. The Charlottesville City Schools Reopening Fund is powered by the city’s Parent-Teacher Organizations and raised $56,500 in its first month of operations. Now the Bama Works Fund of the Dave Matthews Band and the Smith Family’s “Always Am” Fund will each chip in $25,000 if an additional $25,000 can be raised by the community. You can donate here. “School-level committees have begun authorizing expenditures for headphones, manipulatives, books, supplies for home classrooms, assistance to families for virtual learning center tuition, and more. To ensure resources are directed equitably, distribution percentages are based on each school’s population of students receiving free and reduced lunch,” reads a press release that went out this morning. “The use of the funds are determined by individual school level committees comprised of a PTO representative, teacher, administrator, and an equity committee representative.” *Tonight, the Albemarle Planning Commission will hold a work session on how applications for new neighborhoods calculate the number of vehicle trips they will generate. The Albemarle Board of Supervisors received a briefing on September 2 on the“traffic impact analyses” (TIA) that go into land use planning.“TIA’s are also sometimes referred to as traffic impact statement, and they evaluate a proposed project’s effect on the transportation system,” McDermott said. “They are done for rezonings and special use permits and they are requested when a development would substantially affect transportation on public roadways.”  These studies can also help developers and planners come up with ideas for ways to mitigate the impacts on the new development, currently usually discussed in terms of proffers. “They have to be specifically attributable to the development that is proposed, they have to be reasonable, and they are offered by the applicant, so we can’t require those,” McDermott said. The meeting begins at 6 p.m. In another work session, the president of Jaunt will give a presentation on the on-demand service his agency will pilot in the coming months. (agenda) (presentation)In other public meetings, the Charlottesville Board of Architectural review will consider two applications to alter two Individually Protected Properties, or IPPs. These are structures protected by historical protection or design ordinances which require review by the BAR. In one case, an applicant seeks permission to demolish outbuildings on a historic property in Fifeville that dates back to the 1860’s. In the other, another applicant wants to build a new apartment building on the sideyard of an historic building in the Rugby neighborhood. (Fifeville staff report) (Rugby staff report)  *Live Arts continues to prepare for the beginning of their Season Launch this Friday. The move to all virtual performances, for now, begins with a Coffehouse featuring performances from  Amrita Shankar, Johnny Butcher, Nathaniel Star, and Monica Edwards. The event begins at 7 p.m. on the Live Arts Facebook page. This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s Patreon-fueled nonprofit mention is for Abundant Life Ministries, “working hard to create a better future for the Charlottesville community.”*Over the weekend, the Virginia Department of Health reported another 2,931 cases of COVID-19, with 1,300 on Saturday, 874 on Sunday and 757 this morning. There have been another 32 deaths for a cumulative total of 2,743 since the first fatality was recorded on March 16. The seven-day average for positive tests dropped to 7.2 percent this morning from 7.5 percent on Sunday. In the Thomas Jefferson Health District there have been another 84 cases reported over the weekend, with 46 reported Saturday, 17 on Sunday, and 21 today. Over the weekend, the VDH launched a new tool on their COVID-19 tracker which provides more detail. For instance, Albemarle has a seven-day average of seven new cases a day, and 2.8 new cases per 100,000 residents. In Charlottesville, the seven-day average is 19 new cases a day and 29.1 new cases per 100,000 people. The UVA COVID-Tracker has not been updated since Friday afternoon, with data reflecting through September 10. As of last Wednesday, there have been 321 positive cases since August 17 with 276 of those as students. As of last Wednesday, eight percent of quarantine beds were in use, and one percent of isolation beds. *On Saturday, a small crowd watched in Court Square as the At Ready statue was removed from its place atop 5th Street outside the Albemarle County Courthouse.  The now-removed statue was erected in 1909 and was for many years a protected war memorial. The Albemarle Board of Supervisors voted to begin the process to remove it in early July, just days after a new law went into effect that removed that protection. Albemarle County live streamed the entire event and here is Siri Russell, the director of the Office of Equity and Inclusion.“You may hear the sound of the crane backing up as the Johnny Reb statue starts its first movement off of the pedestal and away from Court Square,” Russell said. “This certainly is not the end of the day but it is a moment that many watching have been long awaiting.” On Sunday, community members gathered to celebrate the space as one of renewal. Read Katherine Knott’s coverage of that event in the Daily Progress. *Meanwhile, the University of Virginia Board of Visitors (BOV) met late last week and voted to support removal of the statue of George Rogers Clark on University Avenue on the Corner. The statue was a donation from Paul Goodloe McIntire in 1920.“At the time the statue was erected, it was described by the Alumni News as Clark ‘explaining the futility of resistance,’ which supports a popular sentiment at the time of the natural superiority of white Americans over Native Americans and other nonwhites, which is not a view endorsed by members of the University community now,” reads the adopted resolution. The BOV also agreed to remove the name Curry from the School of Education and Human Development, and to re-contextualize the statue of Thomas Jefferson near the Rotunda. They also agreed to drop the name Withers from Withers-Brown Hall at the School of Law.  (full BOV meeting packet)*The COVID-19 pandemic began six months ago, and since then many people's lives have been transformed due to the uncertainty, the economic slowdown or they have had to stay within lockdown to avoid getting the virus. The Center for Nonprofit Excellence has been recording a series of conversations with area leaders on Hope and Resilience. Ridge Schuyler is the Dean of Community Self-Sufficiency Programs at Piedmont Virginia Community College.“You know, it has been quite the journey for all of us and a friend of mine, their analogy was that it was like we got hit in the head with a rock,” Schuyler said. “And now we’re standing up, we’re still dazed, they’re still blood coming into our eyes but we’re still standing.” Schuyler said the crisis will continue to unfold slowly as the search for a vaccine goes on, but the last six months have shined a light on inequities in our community. “I spend a lot of time my trying to figure out what can I do to help us address not just the crisis of the moment with the long-term impacts of the pandemic,” Schuyler said. You can hear the rest of that interview at this link on my SoundCloud page. * This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s Patreon-fueled shout-out is for Abundant Life Ministries, “working hard to create a better future for the Charlottesville community.”*Today the Virginia Department of Health reports another 1,115 cases of COVID-19 and another three deaths. The seven-day average for positive tests dropped to 7.5 percent. There are another 53 cases reported in the Thomas Jefferson Health District, with 34 of those from Charlottesville and eleven from Albemarle. Yesterday, the University of Virginia updated its COVID-19 tracker with data from Wednesday, and reported another 25 cases for a cumulative total of 282 since August 17. Of those, 238 are students. The tracker also reports six percent of quarantine rooms are in use, as well as one percent of isolation rooms.  *Charlottesville may soon be close to hiring someone to run the department that oversees planning within the city’s 10.4 square miles. Earlier this year, the director of the Neighborhood Development Services was demoted as part of a reorganization ordered by City Manager Tarron Richardson and a new person has not yet been hired. City Councilor Lloyd Snook gave this update on the process at Thursday’s meeting of the PLACE Design Task Force.“There is a person, and some of you may have been involved with the interview process, who had some video interviews and zoom interviews and apparently where we stand with that right now is that that person would like to come to Charlottesville actually physically before deciding to take the step,” Snook said. “This person has familiarity with Charlottesville over thirty years but not currently.”  Snook told PLACE he has been frustrated by an inability to enact many of his campaign platforms because of COVID-19 and because of “difficulties of what’s been going on in City Hall.”  (watch the PLACE meeting)City Council is having a special meeting at 1 p.m. today to discuss a personnel matter.*Last night a local group that promotes tech companies in the Charlottesville area handed out its annual awards at a virtual gala. Chiedo John, a software engineer at GitHub, served as the master of ceremonies for the Charlottesville Business Innovation Council’s 2020 celebration of the tech community. The first award went to Ting for Business of the Year. “Ting has been serving Charlottesville for over five years and from our inception, CBIC has been our conduit to the start-up, innovator and technology infrastructure that fuels the Charlottesville business community,” said Kara Chandeysson of Ting while accepting the award. The Educator of the Year Award went to Dominique Morse, youth entrepreneurship facilitator of Albemarle County's Murray High School and Community Middle School. “To you that means a person that comes in and works with your children on design and also taking those designs and potentially turning that into a business or just thinking about the entrepreneurial aspect of how something I’m doing in school can affect the community,” Morse said. The CBIC Entrepreneur of the Year went to Cynthia Adams of Pearl Certification.“We make home value visible through a platform that collects data on energy efficient and renewable features so that homes can appraise for more at resale or re-fi,” Adams said. “We launched Pearl Certification and currently are headquartered here in Charlottesville because this community is so supportive when it comes to clean tech, sustainability and entrepreneurship.”The Innovator of the Year went to Welld Health, a division of ACAC. “Welld Health is an innovative software platform that was built from scratch here in Charlottesville and is designed to make prevention sustainable,” said Chris Craytor. “How do we as a country live a healthier lifestyle and how do we make sure we have the prevention we need to avoid the health care that we don’t want is accessible for all.” The Top Jobs Creator of the Year was to go to “a technology or tech-centric business for its noteworthy achievement of generating secure well paying, primarily tech jobs and retaining highly skilled workers.” This year that went to Commonwealth Computer Research Inc, or CCRi. “We were not expecting this, this is a big surprise, we’ve only been a tech company in Charlottesville for 31 years,” said Julia Farill, director of people operations at CCRi. “That’s not long enough, is it?” The CBIC Partnership of the Year award this year is sponsored by the Chamber of Commerce and was introduced by President Elizabeth Cromwell.“The CBIC Partnership of the year award recognizes new partnerships built in the last 18 months that model collaborative innovation and achievement that inspires others,” said Elizabeth Cromwell, president of the Chamber. This year’s prize went to New Hill Development Corporation and the Fountain Fund for their work on financial literacy.  Here is Yolunda Harrell of the New Hill Development Corporation. “We are so excited about the partnership we have with the Fountain Fund,” Harrel said. “Part of our role at New Hill Development Corporation is to focus on financial capability. Everyone is capable of achieving the financial dreams that they would like.”The Social Good Award went to Antwon Brinson for Culinary Concepts. “Culinary Concepts was designed as a solution for folks that are in the food and beverage industry that are looking for a step up,” Brinson said. “There’s a lot of folks that don’t want to go to culinary school but they found themselves in this industry and they’re looking for certifications or some type of foundational training to elevate their skills to be able to move up the ladder. So I designed this program to give people the foundational skills they need to grow.” The Start-Up of the Year went to Cardboard Live, a firm that seeks to transform the board game experience. The Student Entrepreneur of the Year went to Roman Bohuk of MetaCTF. “We have some exciting things coming up in October,” Bohuk said. “October is Cyber Security Awareness Month so a lot of our clients are looking to do things, and run trainings.” This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s Patreon-inspired shout-out is from a supporter who wants to say one more time…  “Vote. That's it. Just vote. Vote early. Take your friends to vote early. Vote in person. Vote early! Did I already mention that?” And we have a news item on this today! *Nearly one thousand people registered yesterday for the first and possibly last campaign forum featuring the two candidates for Virginia’s 5th Congressional District. The event was put on by the Senior Statesmen of Virginia, and was held virtually on a Zoom call. The audio is available on the Charlottesville Podcasting Network. Dr. Cameron Webb is an attorney and physician who works for the University of Virginia Health System and served on the White House Health Care team in both the Obama and Trump administrations. Webb said in his opening statement that his decision to go into politics stems from his wish to heal the community.“Being a doctor, being a physician, it means that we’re leaning into the issues that make our patients sick, and often times those issues that make them sick, they’re issues related to education, and housing, or food insecurity, challenges with earning a decent wage or having a good paying job, those are the factors that really drive the outcomes in my patients.” Webb said. Bob Good has worked in the finance industry, served as an athletic director at Liberty University and has served on the Board of Supervisors in Campbell County outside Lynchburg. In his opening statement, he said he understood what it was like to live in poverty.“I know what it was like to get free lunch at school, to be in the lunch line with the free lunch voucher if you will and to know what that feels like as a young kid,” Good said. “I know what it’s like to get sent by your mother to walk a mile down the street to the grocery store because we didn’t have a car and to buy groceries with food stamps... I had to work for everything all of my life as long as I can remember and as we struggled for the essentials and we certainly didn’t have any of the extras, so I learned to work at a young age and I think that’s one of the most important things for a young person to do, is to learn to work and to learn the value of things, that has shaped me all of my life.” Webb had limited his opening statement to his own biography, but Good opted to go on the attack.“My opponent is aligned with the radical socialist left that has become much of the Democrat party,” Good said. “If he were elected he would do everything in his power to stop President Trump’s agenda or God forbid enact the Biden/Harris agenda if President Trump was not reelected.” In response, Webb cited a string of endorsements.“I’m proud that I am endorsed by the entire span of the Democratic party,” Webb said. Moderates, centrists and also progressives that shows my ability to build consensus. The reason why I have members of the current Trump administration still acknowledge all that I contributed and how I think that I am a pretty awesome guy.” The audio is available on the Charlottesville Podcasting Network. * Early voting in Virginia begins next Friday and the Albemarle Board of Supervisors got an update this week on what the process will be like. The General Assembly passed a law in 2019 allowing anyone to vote absentee in advance without an excuse. The law was amended this year to open up the window to 45 days before the election. Localities must offer the ability for people to vote at the registrar’s office. Lance Stewart, the director of facilities and environmental services in Albemarle, said the county is working to make early voting safe. “We have state mandates to follow in relation to protection of citizens and others from COVID-19,” Stewart said. “We have our own local ordinance and there are a slew of best practice recommendations from the state and the CDC that we are going to try to observe.”Early voting in Albemarle will be at the county office building on 5th Street Extended. Earlier this year, the county had considered moving the registrar’s office to a more central location on U.S. 29, but the plan was reconsidered soon after the pandemic began.  Stewart said the county is encouraging people to vote by mail in order to limit crowds. “We don’t know the exact volume that we might get from this early voting opportunity,” Stewart said. “Predictions were that they might be significant with as many as 60 percent of people who vote.”  Steps taken include dedicating parking spaces for voting, creating a way for people to move through the office building without passing each other, and expanded hours closer to Election Day. *The Virginia Department of Health reports another 1,236 cases of COVID-19 today, and another 11 deaths. The seven-day average of positive tests is at 7.6 percent today. There are another 28 new cases in the Thomas Jefferson Health District with half from Charlottesville. The seven-day average for TJHD has dropped to 5.8 percent The University of Virginia reported another 26 cases on September 8, with 24 of those students. That brings the total to 257 positive cases since August 17, with 214 of those students. Five percent of quarantine beds are in use, as are one percent of the isolation beds set aside. *Tonight is the night of the Charlottesville Business Innovation Council’s Gala, happening around virtual tables in a virtual gathering space. CBIC helps promote and advocate the technology community in the area, and tonight the annual awards will finally be handed out at the gala. Craig Honick, the incoming chair of CBIC, explains why they decided to hold the event electronically rather than postpone until safer times. “We just felt this really important part of our function is to celebrate local businesses that are stand-outs and we didn’t want that to get interrupted,” Honick said. “We had done the voting in preparation for the May gala and then instead of canceling it we decided to move it to the fall.”Honick said tonight’s event offers a chance for people to get involved with the tech community by watching the awards being handed out. Usually there are about 400 attendees, but the audience tonight could be larger. “The event is free,” Honick said. “There’s an opportunity to make a donation to the organization if you’d like to support but anyone can attend. They just have to register.”  (learn more and register) This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s Patreon-fueled shout-out is for Abundant Life Ministries, “working hard to create a better future for the Charlottesville community.”*The Virginia Department of Health reports another 882 cases of COVID-19 in the Commonwealth and another 11 deaths. Today’s statewide seven-day average for positive tests is at 7.6 percent today. In the Thomas Jefferson Health District there are another 27 cases reported today, with 22 of them coming from Charlottesville. Another death has been reported in Albemarle for a total in the district to date of 58. The University of Virginia’s COVID tracker now reports 231 total positive cases since August 17, with 190 of those students. Dr. Denise Bonds of the Thomas Jefferson Health District briefed City Council last night on where we are six months into the pandemic. She said Charlottesville is within the VDH’s Northwest Region, and she said the situation here is officially described as “fluctuating.”“Our case number has been rising for the region and we’re at 12 per 100,000 incident rates and that has been increasing,” Bonds said. “We see an upward arrow and it’s been increasing for 17 days.” However, Dr. Bonds said the seven-day average for testing rates has been below ten percent in the region. Another metric available in the non-public dashboard is the number of medical personnel who have been infected with COVID-19, and that number in the northwest region is at 3.5 percent. Dr. Bonds said that number is closer to 7 percent in the Charlottesville area. About eighty percent of hospital beds in the region are occupied, but that includes all patients. The last week has seen an increase in the daily number of cases in the Charlottesville area. “The case incident rate for the Charlottesville area as of yesterday was 32 per 100,000,” Bonds said. “We had a dramatic steep increase between August 24 and yesterday with a substantial number of cases if you look at the day rolling sums, we went from 29 to 92 to 108.”Bonds said that epidemiologists are watching case loads at UVA very closely. “What they’re really seeing is students infecting other students rather than students infecting people in the community and vice versa, so we tend to have community members that we can trace back to a known source in the community, someone at their work site, a family member, they attended some community event where we had an outbreak in, and we have students that we can typically trace their infection back to another student group.” *This Saturday, Albemarle County will remove Confederate markers from Court Square, and the Board of Supervisors voted yesterday to give them to a group known as the Shenandoah Valley Battlefields Foundation. The Foundation will get the statue, cannonball and cannon “as is” after it is dismantled. Supervisor Bea Lapisto-Kirtley represents the Rivanna District.“I like the fact that they will preserve it and rededicate it as the Virginia monument for all soldiers,” LaPisto-Kirtley said.Supervisor Diantha McKeel said she favored removing the statue and materials this weekend, but suggested they be placed in storage while Albemarle decides if any remnants of the materials would be used in efforts to tell the good and bad of county history.“Maybe a pause in storing it would allow us to discuss at a higher level how we want to contextualize our Albemarle County history and present ourselves for future generations,” McKeel said, a thought echoed by Supervisor Donna Price. However, Supervisor Ann Mallek said photos could be taken to preserve what is on the statue, and she wanted the materials to just go. “We in Albemarle have the chance to take this decisive step and really forward the feeling in our own community,” Mallek said. “We’ve been careful and we’ve been thoughtful and it’s not just the last couple of months. We’ve discussed for many years how to deal with this.”The removal of the statue will be televised on a video live stream to be provided by the county. * The pandemic has claimed another business. Breadworks is a bakery on Preston Avenue that has employed people with disabilities since 1967 but according to a Facebook post, the store will close on September 25. “All persons with disabilities who are employed at Breadworks will be referred to other WorkSource programs,” reads the page. “The majority will be seeking employment in the community, so we hope that area employers looking for dedicated and talented staff will offer persons with disabilities served by Breadworks opportunities for employment.” * Charlottesville City Council has approved a new nine-story building at 218 West Market Street off of the Downtown Mall. Developer Jeffrey Levien has proposed redeveloping a shopping center that currently is rented by stores such as the Artful Lodger. Levien has proposed building eight units that would be sold below market value, four of which would be at the standard rate of 80 percent of area median income  with two units at 60 percent and two units at 40 percent. “This one project is not going to solve everything for the city but it is a start and we need every start that we can get,” Levien said. Levien said he may work with nonprofit groups to build the units offsite, and not within the new structure. He told Council that the cost to him and the benefit to the city would be about $825,000. That’s more than he would be required to pay into the city’s affordable housing fund, but restrictions that keep rents below market would only last for a limited time. Six units would be kept affordable for eight years and two would be restricted for sixteen years. Charlottesville Mayor Nikuyah Walker was the lone vote against the project in part because of the time limits. “It’s good that you’ve added the extra units but by the time the family got settled in to the unit that would be potentially expiring,” Walker said. Levien is also the developer of two luxury apartment buildings on West Main Street.*In meetings today, the Albemarle Supervisors hold a retreat from 10:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. today with presentations on “Contemporary Trends in Local Government” and “Operating Guidelines for High-Quality Governance.” (agenda)The Crozet Community Advisory Committee meets at 7 p.m. with a discussion of next steps for the Crozet Master Plan. (CAC meeting info)The Charlottesville Planning Commission meets at 5:30 p.m. and has a new member now that City Council has appointed Liz Russell to an open seat. Commissioners will discuss a zoning change to allow more daycare facilities within city limits, and will also hold a work session on a proposed rezoning on Stribling Avenue for up to 181 units. That’s higher than an application Southern Development brought to the city in 2019. Charif Soubra is with Southern Development.“The feedback that we got directly from the Planning Commission was that… they were hoping to see a little more density and more of an innovative design,” Soubra said.At a community meeting last week, many nearby residents expressed concern about increased traffic volumes and the city’s perceived inability to build infrastructure to address the impacts of growth.- This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s Patreon-fueled shout-out comes from a patron who wants to say: “Vote. That's it. Just vote. Vote early. Take your friends to vote early. Vote in person. Vote early! Did I already mention that?” He did. And he has one more shout-out to go!Classes start today in-person at the University of Virginia and virtually in Charlottesville and for most pupils in Albemarle.  Students in Fluvanna and Nelson counties are also in class remotely. Louisa and Greene County are on the hybrid models with a mixture of in-person and virtual participation. (Virginia Department of Education Map) The Virginia Department of Health reports another 836 cases of COVID-19 this morning, and another two deaths. The seven-day average for positive tests has dropped to 7.5 percent down from 7.7 yesterday. There are another 13 cases in the Thomas Jefferson Health District, with eight from Charlottesville, three from Albemarle, one from Fluvanna and one from Greene. The district-wide percent positive rate dropped to 6.4 percent from 7.1 percent reported yesterday. The University of Virginia COVID-19 Tracker was updated late Monday afternoon and the official tally increased to 227 positive cases reported since August 17, with 186 of those listed as students. There were 18 positive test results reported for September 4, two for September 5 and six on September 6. Numbers for September 7 were not available at production time. *Efforts to bring more passenger rail service to Charlottesville came one step closer last week. The Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation and other governmental entities completed paperwork for the expansion of a bridge that crosses the Potomac River. “Currently, there is insufficient capacity, resiliency, and redundancy to accommodate the projected demand in future railroad services,” reads the executive summary for the Final Environmental Impact Statement for the Long Bridge Project. “The Project is needed to address railroad service demands and to ensure the Long Bridge Corridor continues to serve as a critical link connecting the local, regional, and national transportation network.”A series of recent transportation projects known as the Route 29 Solutions initiative included funding for a second daily train to come through Charlottesville on its way between Roanoke and D.C., but the current crossing cannot handle additional traffic. That has delayed the start of that services. The new structure will be owned by the state of Virginia and will carry two tracks adjacent to the existing bridge. The project also includes a new bike and pedestrian bridge. (Long Bridge FEIS)*While work continues on the long-running update of the Charlottesville Comprehensive Plan, the city is launching a review of the Strategic Plan, a document that guides “decision and policy-making” in city government. “The City Manager evaluates the performance of each department against their specific objectives, performance measures, and initiatives,” reads a press release announcing a series of five public meetings where the update of the current plan will be discussed. The current plan has five goals, one of which is to be an “inclusive, self-sufficient community.” Each goal has a series of metrics to see if the goal is being met. A dashboard for the current plan indicates the city is not meeting its goal to create more subsidized affordable housing units. The Comprehensive Plan is a different document that is mandated by state law that is more about government overall. “The Comprehensive Plan guides decision-making processes for matters related to land use, community facilities, housing, transportation, environment, economic sustainability, historic preservation, urban design, and more,” said city Communications Director Brian Wheeler in response to a question. “The two plans work together and the goal for increased affordable housing is a good example,” Wheeler added. The firm Rhodeside and Harwell is currently overseeing a review of the Comprehensive Plan while also drafting a new zoning ordinance and affordable housing strategy. That process is known as the C’Ville Plans Together initiative. City Council will hold a six-hour work session on the strategic plan next Tuesday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. *But first, City Council will meet tonight beginning at 6:30 p.m. for a long meeting that includes a public hearing on the issuance of $27 million in bonds, a rezoning for a car wash off of Long Street, and a resolution to prohibit firearms on city property.  There’s also a special use permit for a nine story building at 218 West Market Street that was deferred by the last City Council at their penultimate meeting in 2019. In Albemarle, the Architectural Review Board will consider a proposal that involves a car dealership replacing the Hardee’s at the southwest corner of Rio Road and U.S. 29. This project went before the Places29-Rio Community Advisory Committee late last month and Scott Collins is its engineer. “The applicant is looking to move his dealership over to this site and utilize a lot of the existing facilities on the site but make some improvements,” said engineer Scott Collins at the August 27 meeting of the Places29-Rio Community Advisory Committee. “The building itself would be reused with some minor modifications such as removing the drive-through canopy and removing the refrigeration on the back.”Buffering and landscaping appear to follow elements of the Rio Road Small Area Plan, which seeks to guide the redevelopment of Albemarle’s commercial strip area.  On Saturday, September 12, the Confederate markers in Court Square will come down. At 5 p.m. today, the Albemarle Board of Supervisors will meet to select an entity that will receive the statue, the cannon and the stack of cannonballs. “To date, Albemarle County has received offers from the Shenandoah Valley Battlefield Foundation, the Petersburg Federal Correctional Complex, a private citizen, Gordonsville Grays, Isle of Wight County Historical Society, Sons of Confederate Veterans, Civil War Museum at the Exchange Hotel, Trevilian Station Battlefield Foundation, and Hampstead Farm,” reads the staff report for the item. “A final list will be provided to the Board on September 8.” This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s Patreon-fueled shout-out is for Abundant Life Ministries, “working hard to create a better future for the Charlottesville community.”*Since Friday morning, the Virginia Department of Health has reported another 2,792 cases of COVID-19 in the Commonwealth. That adds up from 948 cases reported Saturday, 1,199 reported Sunday and 645 reported this morning. There are another 22 deaths since Friday, with six reported this morning. The seven-day average for positive test rates is at 7.7 percent, where it has roughly been since the beginning of the month. The Thomas Jefferson Health District has reported another 78 cases since Friday morning, with 27 of those from Saturday, 40 on Sunday, and eleven today. From September 1 to today, there have been 108 new cases reported from Charlottesville and 59 from Albemarle. Over the weekend was move-in weekend for the University of Virginia, prompting concern from many on social media that the number of cases might rise. The University of Virginia’s COVID-19 Tracker has not been updated since Friday so there is no official change from the 201 cases reported through September 3. That includes 161 student cases. A spokeswoman for the Thomas Jefferson Health District said in an email that cases among students do show up in the VDH data. “We are tracking and doing contact tracing for all UVA cases,” said Kathryn Goodman. “UVA cases will be reported wherever the student lives - so if they are in City of Charlottesville limits, they'll be in city numbers and if they're in Albemarle County limits, they'll be in the Albemarle numbers.”*  The epidemiological model put together by the Biocomplexity Institute and Initiative at the University of Virginia has raised the number of predicted cases anticipated by Thanksgiving. In the latest report published on Friday, forecasters suggest 15,609 more cases by that holiday, or a total of 203,492. A week before, the report stated 187,883. The increase is due to a rise in the virus’s reproductive rate in the state to slightly above one. (model report)This week the model report also added new language to describe the rate of growth in health districts, which are now classified as if they are declining, in plateau, slow growth, or in surge. “Fewer health districts have been classified as surging in the past two weeks,” reads the report. “This does not mean growth has stopped. The surge trajectory is narrowly defined as having a current increase in cases of at least 2.5 per 100,000 per week.”Only Richmond City and the New River Health Districts met that criteria when the latest model report was published. The Thomas Jefferson Health District was considered to be in plateau. However, the report wants that could all change.  “Weather patterns are beginning to change and with that comes the start of the flu season,” reads the report. ”When Virginia last entered a period of significant change following the transition to Phase III of the Forward Virginia Plan, we observed a second peak in cases statewide. The upcoming seasonal changes could bring a similar, or even larger, increase in cases. This is a critical time for Virginians to modify behavior and place extra emphasis on safety and health.” *The toy store Alakazam will be closed for the next couple of weeks, according to the mall shop's Facebook page. The owner has tested positive for COVID after a customer reported their own positive test. Other employees tested negative, but the post states they will continue to quarantine. *The COVID-19 pandemic is causing many nonprofits to shift their business model to grow membership while not necessarily growing revenue. Preservation Piedmont is one of those groups and Liz Russell is the president of its Board of Directors. “We are going to waive our membership dues in 2021,” Russell said. “That’s partly in light of the fact that we have not been able to have in-person events this year but also we really want to expand our audience, and our diversity, and our perspective.”Russell said this gives people the chance to try out the organization for a year, and for the organization to expand. They’re also expanding the amount they will give for historic preservation grants up to $3,000.“The application is due October 31 and there is more information on our website but the categories could include documentation and research, preservation, education and interpretative initiative,” Russell said. “Any kind of stabilization of a historic structure or repair, and any kind of preservation related publication research.” Visit Preservation Piedmont’s website for more information.It is in fact Labor Day, and I will be spending this respite from meetings to catch up on a lot of stories I’ve been hoping to write. The weekly Week Ahead newsletter will be coming your way shortly. After that, paid subscribers will get a long story on the Crozet Master Plan. But for the rest of you, that story will also be available for free on Real Crozet VA. That’s one example how support for this work through a subscription or through Patreon goes a long way to help build community journalism. I want to spend my time writing about these things, and every contributions leads to more work. For instance, supporters in the $10 tier on Patreon get access to the Week Ahead podcast I do, where I think more casually about what’s coming up in government meetings. And if you like this program, please share it with friends and family! This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s Patreon-fueled shout-out is for Abundant Life Ministries, “working hard to create a better future for the Charlottesville community.”*There are another 1,111 cases of COVID-19 reported this morning by the Virginia Department of Health and another 10 deaths. The seven-day average for positive tests has increased to 7.8 percent. There are another 35 cases in the Thomas Jefferson Health District with 26 of those listed as being from Charlottesville, seven from Albemarle and two from Louisa. Another Albemarle resident has died for a total of 57 in the district to date. The positive rate for the district has increased to 7.3 percent. Last night, the Charlottesville School Board was briefed on local conditions by Dr. Beth Baptist, the director of city schools. She has access to VDH health metrics that are not available to the public. She reported that the city of Charlottesville on August 31 had a much higher seven-day positive rate than surrounding counties.“For the overall health district we are at 7.1 percent,” Baptist said. “Charlottesville is 9.7 [percent]. When we get to ten, that’s when it becomes a red indicator and so we’re very close to that. Last week it was 3.6 [percent].” City schools open virtually on Tuesday, the same day that the University of Virginia will open to in-person instruction. This morning the University of Virginia COVID Tracker has recorded another 20 cases reported, all of them students. That brings the official total to 194 total cases, with 155 of them students. Students are expected to move into residence halls this week. Meanwhile, James Madison University students are moving out of dorms there as that school has opted to go virtual for at least the month of September. The image below is a screenshot taken this morning before the tracker was edited.* Governor Ralph Northam has asked the Virginia Supreme Court to extend the moratorium on evictions in the Commonwealth. A temporary halt on eviction notices expires at midnight on Labor Day. The Governor wrote Chief Justice Donald Lemons to point out that the General Assembly is still in session with a bill pending to address the issue, and new federal directives on a nationwide eviction moratorium is still being assessed. That action came this week in the form of a Centers for Disease Control directive. “While my administration works with our federal counterparts to understand the implementation of the CDC order, and while we continue to work with the General Assembly on protections that  will enable more landlords and tenants to utilize the rent relief funding, I write to seek additional time from this Court,” reads the letter. Northam specifically wants the moratorium to last through the end of September. (Northam’s letter)*The General Assembly remains in special session this week, and members of the Thomas Jefferson Planning District Commission got a brief update last night. David Blount is the legislative liaison for the TJPDC. “They have a over $200 billion budget gap to fill for the rest of the fiscal year 2021 and fiscal year 2022,” Blount said. “I think they’re going to cover that largely by using the money that was frozen from this past regular session and they went and reduced that to largely fill the gap.” Blount said he did not anticipate the state will tap into a reserve fund at this time. Both the House of Delegates and the Virginia Senate meet at noon. (General Assembly schedule)TJPDC Directors had the opportunity to update their counterparts from across the region. Albemarle Supervisor Donna Price relayed the news about the decision to remove Confederate markers in Court Square on September 12.“We expect that we will have several applications in [from] groups or organizations that are interested in receiving those items and we’ve been very pleased with the community engagement we’ve had in keeping our constituents informed of the process,” Price said. Price said the Albemarle Board plans to continue to keep meeting virtually as cold and flu season approaches and with no concrete plans for a vaccine. Fluvanna County is using its CARES money for economic development and expanding Internet coverage along Route 6 and U.S. Route 15. Supervisor Tony O’Brien said the county is also hopeful for more businesses to locate in the community, especially now that public water is coming to Fluvanna’s portion of Zion Crossroads. “We continue to see some positive growth on the economic development site,” O’Brien said. “We should have some announcements coming out in the near future but we’re getting a lot of momentum there and we’re sharpening up our economic development package.”Nelson County is also investing in broadband with a recent $1.25 million investment to expand access to the Internet, and another package is underdevelopment. “We’re looking at doing that again and trying to get to another 500 plus households within the next 12 months,” said Jesse Rutherford of the Nelson County Board of Supervisors. Dale Herring of the Greene County Board of Supervisors updated the TJPDC on the impasse over Greene’s proposed water supply plan. In July, the Rapidan Service Authority voted to stop collecting facility fees intended to pay for the impoundment of White Run for a new reservoir. The RSA consists of officials from Madison and Orange counties as well as Greene.“We voted to pull out,” Herring said. “They voted to not allow us to pull out. The resolution that the board has approved stated that if we were not allowed to pull out of the authority, we would seek legal action. At this point in time we are trying to determine what needs to be done. The bottom line is they have the authority to say there’s not enough water to approve our project, and they also have the ability to say they will not expand the water access.”Herring said the RSA has offered another solution but it not acceptable to the Board of Supervisors. The Greene County Board next meets Tuesday. *Tonight, Live Arts will hold the first in a series of Friday events the theater company plans to use to stay engaged with its patrons. Darryl Smith is the Box Office Manager at Live Arts.“This season, Live Arts is embracing First Fridays in our lovely community here,” Smith said. “Every first Friday of the Month, I will go out into the community of artists and performers and do a little of snippet, an interview about their art and the inspiration about their art.” Tonight, Smith will speak with writer Jocelyn Nicole Johnson who will read from some of her work, including a story in the form of a list called “Buying a House Ahead of the Apocalypse.”“I’m going to read a super, super short reading,” Johnson said. “I actually wrote this last summer before the pandemic and before quarantine. I was thinking about even last summer about how to plan for a future that seems particularly fragile or even tilting towards catastrophe.” Tonight’s interview is free to the public and will be streamed on Facebook Live, but you don’t need an account to access it. “This will be a way to give people a taste of what a Virtual Studio Visit will be like,” said Katie Rogers, marketing coordinator for Live Arts. The company is switching to a Season Pass model for programming that offers weekly content including radio plays and more. This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s Patreon-fueled shout-out is for Abundant Life Ministries, “working hard to create a better future for the Charlottesville community.”*Governor Ralph Northam held his first COVID-19 press conference since early August yesterday in order to warn Virginians against being complacent as the holiday weekend approaches. “Overall, the coronavirus is moderately contained in Virginia,” Northam said. “The case numbers remain steady and the percent positivity is not spiking but again we continue to watch this very closely and we need to remain vigilant, we continue to monitor the data.” For an audio record of Northam’s press conference, take a listen to the latest episode of the Charlottesville Quarantine Report. In the question and answer period, Northam was asked whether he would intervene if cases spiked at public colleges and universities that open to in-person instruction. The University of Virginia is expected to do so in six days on September 8. “We have provided specific guidelines,” Northam said.  “The colleges and universities have been working with [State Council on Higher Education in Virginia]. Their plans were certified by SCHEV and we’re watching this very closely. We expect our colleges and universities to continue to follow their plans and to also work with the local health districts. As long as we see that continuing to happen, then I think we can proceed. But if it’s not, then I certainly have the opportunity to intervene and make changes.”This is a link to UVA’s reopening plan as filed with SCHEV. There is a section on page eight about the criteria if shutting down is necessary at UVA. “UVA will follow Governor Northam’s statewide executive orders regarding restrictions and potential return to previous phases of opening/closure. As noted above in the monitoring of campus outbreaks, UVA will closely monitor the campus community using a dashboard of key metrics including but not limited to capacity for isolation and quarantine, as well as in the UVA Medical Center. Criteria for shutdown in the absence of an executive order are still being finalized.”Just four hours after Northam’s press conference, James Madison University announced plans to reverse course and go to online-instruction only. That happened after the school’s COVID tracker showed more than 500 cases. JMU started class on August 26. The University of Virginia’s COVID tracker announced 31 new cases today, including 28 among students. That’s for a total of 155 positive cases since August 17. That’s 117 positive student cases. The tracker also states that out of 17,203 pre-arrival tests taken by students, 55 were positive. (COVID-tracker) There are another 927 cases reported today by the Virginia Department of Health, and another 29 deaths. The seven-day average for positive tests remains at 7.7 percent today. The Thomas Jefferson Health District reports another 25 cases, and another 3 fatalities bringing the total to 53. The seven-day average for positive tests in the TJHD rose to 7.1 percent today, up from 6.6 percent yesterday. *A Charlottesville Police Officer has been charged with assault and battery stemming from a March 3 incident on Prospect Avenue that resulted in two arrests. According to a release that was briefly on the city’s website, one of the arrests was for drunk in public, and the arrestee was later found not guilty in Charlottesville General District Court. After body camera footage was viewed in court, a complaint was made claiming that one of the arrestees had been assaulted by one of the officers. On Monday, a Magistrate found probable cause for a warrant to arrest Officer Jeffrey Jaeger on misdemeanor assault and battery charges. His court appearance is scheduled for September 14. Shortly after this news release was posted, Charlottesville Mayor Nikuyah Walker interviewed Police Chief RaShall Brackney on the city’s talk show, Charlottesville 360. Walker began the program by asking the chief why she wanted to take the job and Brackney responded she appreciated the challenge.“If you could reclaim the narrative of Charlottesville, if people could really just understand the pain and where some of the pain comes from in Black community, and if there was a way I could even be a bridge or a conduit to some of that healing, particularly the pain that law enforcement had caused in this community when they had not lived up to their expectations in any way of the type of service the community wanted and expected of them, I firmly believe we were led here and I firmly believe that we were led here for a time such as this,” Brackney said. Last week, the city appointed a final member to the city’s Police Civilian Review Board. Former City Council candidate Bellamy Brown was appointed one day after Council had appointed a city employee to the CRB, something that was in violation of the group’s by-laws. The two-hour conversation is available for viewing on the city’s website. (watch)*One in five Virginia households has not yet filled out their Census forms, and time is running out. Kelly Thomasson is the Secretary of the Commonwealth and she asked anyone who has not yet completed the Census to do so now. “The Census is a population count and the Census data is used to determine how federal funding is used to determine how federal funding is distributed to states and to how many seats we get in Congress,” Thomasson said. “It is also used by our state and local communities to shape public safety planning, to determine where schools and hospitals are built, and more.” The Census began in March and Thomasson said over 80 percent of Virginia households have either responded or been counted by an official enumerator. The U.S. Census Bureau is ending all counting efforts on September 30, a month earlier than originally planned.* The main meeting today is of the Albemarle Board of Supervisors, where they will discuss the possibility of “hybrid” public meetings with in-person and electronic participants. In the afternoon, they’ll also get an update on the county’s legislative priorities, a briefing on how land use developments estimate how much traffic they will generate, and more. In the evencbicing there is a public hearing for the proposed Breezy Hill subdivision on U.S. 250 in eastern Albemarle. For more on the 1 p.m. meeting, go back and look at Sunday’s Week Ahead newsletter.  (meeting agenda)Today in corrections is a minor one. Yesterday I had a small piece on the Charottesville Business Innovation Council’s upcoming gala. It begins at 5 p.m. and not 7 p.m. If you go at 7, you’ll miss the networking opportunities! This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s Patreon-fueled shout-out comes from a patron who wants to say:“Vote. That's it. Just vote. Vote early. Take your friends to vote early. Vote in person. Vote early! Did I already mention that?” I think he did.  *There have been another 1,021 cases of COVID-19 reported by the Virginia Department of Health today, for a cumulative total of 121,615. There have been another 32 deaths recorded for a total of 2,612 to date. The statewide seven-day average for positive tests increased to 7.7 percent today, up from 7.4 percent yesterday. In the Thomas Jefferson Health District, there are another 15 cases and no new deaths reported today. The seven-day average for positive tests was not available at recording time. The University of Virginia reports another eight cases of COVID-19 today, with six of those being students. That brings the total number of cases since August 17 to 123, with 89 of those students. UVA returns for in-person classes a week from now, on September 8. (UVA COVID tracker)* With the pandemic entering its sixth month, thousands of Virginians face eviction as the economic slowdown has put so many out of work. Governor Ralph Northam announced yesterday a $4 million payment to the Legal Services Corporation of Virginia to hire more attorneys to represent those who will end up in court to challenge eviction notices. A moratorium on evictions expired on June 28 and was reinstated in August. That now runs out again on September 7. In the meantime, there are a lot of pending cases. “Ten thousand eviction cases were docketed in Virginia courts from mid-July to August,” Northam said. “The Virginia Poverty Law Center estimates some 230,000 eviction cases could be filed through the end of this year.” More than a million Virginians have filed for unemployment benefits since the pandemic began. The Northam administration has created a Rent and Mortgage Relief Program that has $50 million in funding, including $450,000 in the Thomas Jefferson Planning District Commission. Still, many of the eviction cases will proceed, and Northam said hiring more attorneys can help affected households navigate the process.“Legal Aid makes a real difference if you’re facing eviction,” Northam said. “In fact, when Legal Aid attorneys represent people in eviction proceedings, 72 percent have successful outcomes.” The $4 million payment consists of a $2 million repayment from IKEA for unemployment benefits its employees received from the state when stores were shut down in the early days of the pandemic. The other half comes from the proceeds of taxes on skills machines in Virginia. For more on the state of evictions in the state of Virginia, read this August 31 article by Ned Oliver in the Virginia Mercury. *Local sales tax collections are up sharper this year in the communities that surround Albemarle and Charlottesville, but the city’s revenues have declined. That’s one conclusion drawn from the Free Enterprise Forum’s Retail Report for the second quarter of 2020. Forum President Neil Williamson and former Chamber of Commerce president Tim Hulbert analyzed data collected from each community and found that local sales tax revenues increased by 18.5 percent in Fluvanna, 18.5 percent in Greene and 24.3 percent in Louisa. Albemarle collected one percent more than in the second quarter of 2019, and Charlottesville’s sales tax collection was 11.6 percent less this year over last year. The report states that one factor is a reduction in people commuting to Charlottesville and spending money in their home communities. Another theory is that dramatically fewer people were in Charlottesville as a result of the closure of the University of Virginia in March. “As enterprises continue to pivot their business models to accommodate social distancing and other COVID-19 realities, we are hopeful that the economic rebound we see in some localities becomes a region wide trend,” Williamson and Hulbert write in the report, which also attributes some of the higher numbers to the recent Supreme Court decision mandating localities to receive sales tax from online purchases made within their jurisdiction. *In nine days, the Charlottesville Business Innovation Council (CBIC) will finally hold its annual awards gala, just three months after the pandemic caused the May event to be canceled. Each year, the CBIC gala honors tech companies and innovators in the community and this year’s event will be a little different. The gala will be held electronically but not on a regular Zoom call. Instead, participants will be seated at a virtual table and can interact and network with their seat mates. Heidi Tombs is the co-chair of the CBIC Gala. “We were looking for the virtual solution to put on this event,” said Heidi Tombs, co-chair of the CBIC Gala. “We were really looking to capture some elements of the gala that our attendees have given us great feedback about in the past and two of those essential elements are connecting with our local innovators through Innovators Row and being able to network, whether you are looking for your next job opportunity or looking for investors or just looking to connect with other people in your industry who can help you make your way.” Awards include Business of the Year, Partnership of the Year, and the Social Good Award. Review the finalists on the CBIC Gala website. This year’s event is open to admission on a pay as you can basis. The event takes place on September 10 beginning at 5 p.m. *There are three meetings of note coming up today that might be of interest. The first is the Albemarle Board of Zoning Appeals, which has a routine public hearing on a sign for three new buildings coming to Pantops at the corner of U.S. 250 and Route 20. As a reminder, these are a Wawa, a self storage unit, and a 122-room hotel. (meeting info) Next, the Albemarle Planning Commission will have a work session on Crozet’s future land use map,  and specifically a discussion about what is known as “middle missing” housing. That refers to structures with multiple residential units, such as duplexes, fourplexes and other forms. “They are referred to as “missing” because they have typically been prohibited from being constructed by zoning ordinances across the United States and are typically a more affordable option than single-family homes due to the cost of land,” reads a handout that county staff made for participants in the on-going Crozet Master Plan update. Finally, Charlottesville Mayor Nikuyah Walker will join Charlottesville Police Chief RaShall Brackney on a new episode of Charlottesville 360, the city’s in-house talk show. This conversation begins at 5:30 p.m. (details)A couple of corrections. Yesterday the newsletter reported the incorrect daily figure of new COVID cases for Virginia. The correct number was 847.  In addition, in the Week Ahead newsletter I stated that a planned unit development project had already been approved, when in fact the item has not yet been scheduled for a public hearing with the Planning Commission and City Council. These items will be corrected in the archive. This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s Patreon-fueled shout-out is for Abundant Life Ministries, “working hard to create a better future for the Charlottesville community.”*On Friday evening around 5 p.m., the University of Virginia announced they would proceed with plans to begin in-person instruction on September 8, two weeks later than originally planned. That also means that residence halls will open to students at two-thirds capacity, or about 4,400 people. “We know some will be delighted to hear this news and others will be disappointed,” reads a statement signed by officials including President Jim Ryan. “To be frank, it was a very difficult decision, made in the face of much uncertainty, and with full awareness that future events may force us to change course.”The statement goes on to explain the decision was made in part because local conditions in Virginia and the Thomas Jefferson Health District have been improving. He also said “thousands of students” have been slowly returning to Charlottesville and UVA to work in labs, the medical and nursing schools, and professional students.“One thing we have learned from this virus is that you can do everything in your power to plan and prepare, but it still might not be enough, as things can change rapidly,” Ryan and others wrote. “That is why we will continue to monitor conditions closely and, if necessary, will put more restrictions in place, move classes online, and, if need be, send students home.”As of this morning, the official number of positive cases of UVA faculty, staff, and students is listed on the COVID-19 tracker as 115 since August 17, with 83 of those students. This morning, another three positive cases were reported, with two of those students.*The Virginia Department of Health has reported an additional 3,002 cases of COVID-19 in the Commonwealth since Friday morning, for a total of 120,494 to date. That includes 1,217 cases reported Saturday, 938 reported Sunday and 847 reported today. The positive test rate increased yesterday to 7.4 percent, up from 6.5 percent a week earlier.   In the Thomas Jefferson Health District, there have been another 103 cases of COVID-19 reported since Friday morning, with 52 reported Saturday, 34 reported Sunday, and 17 reported this morning. The positive rate jumped to 6.7 yesterday, up from 5.6 a week earlier. Today the figure decreased to 6.6 percent. *The latest report from the people putting together the University of Virginia’s COVID-19 forecasting model states that surges in health districts across the Commonwealth are abating. According to analysis by the UVA Biocomplexity Institute, only one health district, Mount Rogers in far southwest Virginia, is considered to be surging. The model currently suggests there could be around more 57,000 cases in Virginia by Thanksgiving, or 187,883. Adjustments were recently made to the model to anticipate the effects of seasonal change. (model report)“With the new modeling approach, the current course predicts that confirmed cases already peaked at 7,358 cases per week during the week ending August 9th,” reads the report. “Anticipated seasonal changes in the Fall due to schools and universities re-opening, changes to workplace attendance, and the impact of weather patterns could lead to a surge beginning around Labor Day.”The third page of the report talks about the effects schools re-opening could have on transmission in Virginia’s localities. *Albemarle County has announced the launch of another round of LIFT grants funded by the CARES Act. This time around, county officials are seeking applications from non-profit groups. Applications are not yet opened, but would-be applicants are asked to complete a form to be notified when the window opens. The Community Investment Collaborative will administer the funding. *A coffeeshop on Elliewood Avenue that has been closed since the pandemic began is reopening today. Grit sent an email to customers Saturday morning to notify of the change and to state that “safety protocols have been implemented” including a continued ban on indoor seating. Grit’s four other stories have been open to take-out and curbside pick-up but the store on the UVA Corner has been closed. *Two members of a group charged with overseeing urban design in Charlottesville have resigned, including chair Mike Stoneking. Stoneking and architect Fred Wolf have both sent letters to the city stating they now longer want to serve on the PLACE Design Task Force, which was created in 2012. Carrie Rainey, the city's urban design planner, sent a letter to remaining members telling them they could call for a special meeting to appoint new leadership. That meeting will happen on September 10 at the regular time. *Developer Katurah Roell has submitted new plans for a mixed-use building on Roosevelt Brown Boulevard in Charlottesville. A sign for the SoHo building has been standing on the half-acre property has been standing for several years. Staff in the city's Department of Neighborhood Development Services had approved a site plan for 6 residential units and over 40,000 square feet. The new plan would increase the residential units to 24 and would cut the commercial space to about 11,000 square feet. Both projects are allowed by-right under the zoning, which is a special district created for the Cherry Avenue corridor. In recent years, the city commissioned the Thomas Jefferson Planning District Commission to create a small area plan for the area to guide future development. City Council has not yet adopted the plan. *With no end in sight for physical distancing rules and bans on public gatherings, there are no scheduled curtain openings for live theater. However, Live Arts is shifting to an online model that begins with programming this week. Jeremy Duncan Pape is the interim creative director at Live Arts. “One of our primary focuses is obviously going to be on flexibility and adaptability because there is so much that we don’t know about the state of the word for the next year or so we have a lot of ideas,” Pape said. This year’s season will be driven by local content. Ann Hunter is the executive director at Live Arts. “When COVID hit, seems like a lifetime ago, Live Arts had a choice to either hunker down or to forge ahead and we chose the latter. That choice led to the creation of a reimagined forging ahead season,” Hunter said. She added that they are asking patrons to purchase a season pass to help subsidize the cost of programming for those with limited means. “The goal here is pretty simple, to lower the economic barrier to theater during a time of social, emotional and financial hardship for our neighbors,” Hunter said. Programming kicks off this weekend when box office manager Daryll Smith interviews writer Jocelyn Nicole Johnson as part of a First Friday event. You can get a preview in the Live Arts Season Reveal which is available on YouTube. This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s shout-out is for the Parent-Teacher Organizations of the Charlottesville City Schools, and their request for donations to the jointly organized Reopening Fund: Ready to Teach, Ready to Learn. Visit their website for more information and to make a contribution. *This is the day that the University of Virginia is expected to announce whether it will continue on with plans to open to in-person instruction on September 8 and whether residential housing will open to students. As of this morning, the University of Virginia is reporting a total of 67 positive cases on its public COVID-19 tracker, with 40 of those being students. (UVA COVID tracker)The Virginia Department of Health reports another 1,013 cases of COVID-19 statewide today, and an additional 23 fatalities for a total of 2,550 to date. There are another 36 cases in the Thomas Jefferson Health District and another death. Albemarle added another 12 cases, Charlottesville added 19, Greene added two, and Louisa added four. There have now been 49 fatalities in the district. *The city of Charlottesville has warned drivers to expect road closures and traffic delays downtown this afternoon from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. for a “planned freedom of speech event.” The event is a Black Lives Matter march intended to commemorate the 57th anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr.’s I Have a Dream speech organized by local activists that will go from Tonsler Park to the police department. The city released a statement warning that it will issue fines to  organizers for being in violation of a ban on special event permits that has been in place since the beginning of the pandemic. “Over the last three months, large crowds gathered in both Washington Park and Market Street Park,” reads a statement from City Manager Tarron Richardson. “These gatherings have obstructed nearby public streets and intersections. While the City of Charlottesville has supported the community’s right to peaceably assemble, obstructing city streets and using parks without the proper permits will no longer be allowedThe Daily Progress reports that the city will issue a $500 fine on the organizers of a Juneteenth celebration held in Washington Park. Richardson’s statement suggests there will be more charges. “While the City of Charlottesville has supported the community’s right to peaceably assemble, obstructing city streets and using parks without the proper permits will no longer be allowed,” Richardson wrote. *Even though the University of Virginia is not yet in session, activity around Grounds has increased. The University Transit Service (UTS) is running on a new set of routes in part because McCormick Road is now closed to motorized vehicles. Becca White is Parking and Transportation Director at UVA and she spoke at yesterday’s meeting of the Regional Transit Partnership (RTP). “We’re already seeing more passengers riding this week than pretty much we had all summer on any route besides our employee routes,” White said. “But we are still limiting to 20 passenger boarding. We’re still using all the same precautions. Rear door boarding. A barrier in the aisle so that passengers can’t get six feet from the drivers.” White said UTS will continue to run if in-person instruction does not happen, and that there would not be as many buses.  She said Jaunt, Charlottesville Area Transit (CAT) and UTS have created a makeshift transit hub on Whitehead Road. CAT director Garland Williams told the RTP Board that his agency continues to run on its restricted “lifeline” service. He said there is an protocol by which drivers get frequent tests. “CAT did have one positive case,” Williams said. “That individual has gotten over it and we are really fortunate it wasn’t a bad case. They have returned back to work. We have a testing program that is in place that happens every other week, every Monday, Wednesday and Friday.” The RTP also got an update on new daily bus that travels through Charlottesville between Danville and D.C. The Piedmont Express is being funded by the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation as part of its growing fleet of Virginia Breeze bus lines. Neil Sherman with the DRPT said the agency decided to proceed even with the pandemic. “For many reasons right now the ridership is very low but we just thought it was time to get the bus operating,” Sherman said. “There is a restriction of I think it’s 27 riders which is normally a 50 passenger coach and masks are required.” The Piedmont Express also calls on Dulles Airport. The RTP also learned about another bus service that will soon be launched between Staunton and Charlottesville. The project known as the Afton Express has been shepherded by the Central Shenandoah Planning District Commission (CSPDC). Sara Pennington of the TJPDC said bus line awaits final funding approval, but is moving forward. “They have finalized all of their logos, branding and the color schemes,” Pennington said. They have gotten the route timings and the stops have been finalized.”*The COVID pandemic has meant fewer places for people to discard used books. Neither the Jefferson Madison Regional Library or Goodwill are accepting books and periodicals that people want to get rid of. Since the pandemic began, they have also not been accepted at local recycling facilities. This week the Rivanna Solid Waste Authority (RSWA) discussed the status of the book bin at the McIntire Recycling Center in Charlottesville, which has been in a shipping container that had been modified with shelves with no dedicated staffing.“Basically it allowed people to bring in books when they did house clear-outs or whatever and the idea was that people could take books as they wished and bring books back and present a book exchange that was free to the public,” said Phillip McKalips, the Director of Solid Waste. However, McKalips said the book bin has been closed since the pandemic began and its condition deteriorated in the months it was not used. He presented replacement alternatives to the RSWA Board on Tuesday. (staff report)Albemarle County Supervisor Liz Palmer said the book bin helped promote the reuse of materials, but she was not interested in spending money to staff it. She saw the value in having a larger discussion.“What is the lay of the land of used books in the area?” Palmer asked. “I do think that it is a value for a lot of folks and I think it is valuable to be looking into trying to relocate it.” City Councilor Lloyd Snook said the RSWA should seek to work with the Jefferson-Madison Regional Library. “I think it might be useful for us to sit down and talk with them and figure out what we would like to see in the way of the entire ecosystemWhile their annual library sale has been postponed until spring, the Jefferson-Madison Regional Library and the Friends of JMRL will hold a pop-up book sale on Sunday, Sunday August 30 from 10am to 2pm at Gordon Avenue Library, at the lower level by the parking lot. People who want to purchase books will pay $5 for a “pre-selected bag of 5 hardback and/or trade paperback books.” According to their website, people will have a choice of mystery, popular fiction, or literary fiction. *In business news, the owners of the Crozet Running store have announced on Facebook they will close their doors on September 30. Since September 2013, they have rented space for the business in the lower level of the Crozet Library. In May, the Board of Supervisors declined a request to provide rent relief to Crozet Running and other entities that lease space on county property. “This has been a difficult year for everyone and after much soul searching on the best path forward for our family, we were led to this very tough decision to close the store,” wrote the owners of Crozet Running. There will be a sale while their doors remain open. This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s Patreon-fueled shout-out comes from an anonymous supporter who wants to say - "We keep each other safe. Wear a mask, wash your hands, and keep your distance."There are another 1,121 cases of COVID-19 reported by the Virginia Department of Health this morning, for a cumulative number of 116,579 to date. There are an additional 12 deaths for a total of 2,527 to date. The seven-day positive resting rate increased to 6.5 percent this morning, up from 6.4 percent yesterday. There are another 27 cases in the Thomas Jefferson Health District and an additional death for a total of 48 in the district to date. The University of Virginia has released an online dashboard that tracks COVID-19 cases among faculty, staff, and students. As of this morning, there are a total of 14 positive results among those tested, with all of those listed as students. The public dashboard does not include the number of tests conducted, which would yield a positive test rate. The dashboard indicates that there are no students in isolation, but five percent of the rooms UVA has set aside for quarantining students are currently occupied. (UVA COVID tracker)*If the pandemic had not happened, students in Albemarle and Charlottesville public schools would have already started classes in person. However,  they won’t start virtual learning now until September 8, the day after Labor Day. The issue of school opening was discussed at length yesterday as part of the Leadership Charlottesville Alumni Association’s Courageous Conversations series. Juandiego Wade, a member of the Charlottesville School Board, said that before that body made their decision, there was a lot of correspondence in favor of opening the schools. “And for us as decision makers, and at this point I’m speaking for myself, safety was above all, and that was safety for the students, safety for the teachers, and ultimately the entire community,” Wade said. “September the 8th was not going to be the time for us to bring back the students in-person.”The majority of students in Albemarle will go to school virtually, but some special needs students and English-language learners will attend in person. Students with no access to Internet at home can also physically go to class. Latishia Wilson, the principal at Stony Point Elementary School, explains how those pupils have been selected. “For special education, our special education department developed some very specific criteria that they looked at and looked at the needs of the students to see which students they could provide services for in a virtual environment and which students really required being in-person instruction,” Wilson said. “As far as students who didn’t have access, they really worked hard to create equity because that was definitely a challenge in the spring. We already knew that many of our students didn’t have access but the turn-around was so quick.”The architectural firm VMDO has the contract to reconfigure city schools at Walker and Buford, but it is on hold due to the pandemic. Architect Shawn Mulligan said this offers the chance to think about how schools can be redesigned. He said the work happening now to make sure all students have access to education will inform the future redesign.“How do we know that each family is getting the service they need and that each student is able to thrive to the best of their abilities, and how do we as architects and we as a community create a full wrap-around services both that the school can provide but the after-hours care, the before-hours care, the family that’s necessary to really make sure that families and students are supported through this difficult time,” Mulligan said. “I believe that right now we are looking at a massive and looking equity crisis. I think our country is having a deep, detailed and really probing conversation about the history of race and racism in our society.” Mulligan said there is an effort to create a Civilian Education Corps to help with the long-term effects of virtual education. The video will be available on the LCAA webpage.*The Charlottesville Tree Commission met for the first time since the pandemic began and welcomed four new members to the group. The first line of the group’s purpose statement reads “the Tree Commission will serve strictly in an advisory role assisting City Council, the Planning Commission and City staff on issues regarding tree planting, protection, preservation and removal.” However, some members of the commission say they have struggled to be heard by any of those groups, and some have put together a presentation to explain the role trees play in a community that is healthy and equitable and hence the need for a Tree Commission“Generally, our main guiding thing is to protect and improve the urban forest,” said Paul Josey, a member of the Tree Commission. This year the city will get an update on the tree canopy, a term that refers to the percentage of city land covered by trees. According to the city’s website, the tree canopy decreased from 47 percent to 45 percent from 2009 to 2014. Josey said areas with low tree cover are unhealthier and tend to be in areas with low-income. “There are these hot spots, and in these hot spots there are also higher amounts of heat-related illnesses,” Josey said. “That’s heat stroke, heat exhaustion, heat cramps, and heat is actually the number one most deadly weather-related hazard in the U.S.”Josey said the city needs to do more to enforce regulations and policies intended to increase tree cover, and in his presentation he made the case for the Tree Commission to play a stronger role in reviewing site plans for development. “We have a lot of talent at reading site plans on the commission who get to look at these and know the codes and say, these are opportunities, these are areas where we’ve missed and figure out the big picture, so we’ve worked on a lot of advisory comments for these groups. We’re not a binding commentary group. Our comments are to help the developer meet the best management practices and make sure they are meeting the city’s codes,” Josey said.However, Josey said no site plans have been shared with the Tree Commission since the Tarron Richardson took over as City Manager last year. He is asking for that to change. The full presentation can be viewed on the city’s webpage. (watch)*Today in meetings, the Regional Transit Partnership meets virtually at 4 p.m. and the Places29 Rio Community Advisory Committee meets at 6 p.m. One potential link between these meetings is the role that bus service might plan in alleviating congestion issues on Rio Road.But today the RTP is scheduled to hear an update on Jaunt’s plans to introduce an on-demand service. They’ll also be briefed on the intrastate bus that now travels through Virginia between Danville and D.C. (RTP meeting info)The Places-29 Rio committee will get an update on the city’s housing policy, which is under development. There is also a community meeting for a special use permit for an auto dealership on U.S. 29.  (Places 29-Rio meeting info) This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s shout-out is for the Parent-Teacher Organizations of the Charlottesville City Schools, and their request for donations to the jointly organized Reopening Fund: Ready to Teach, Ready to Learn. Visit their website for more information and to make a contribution. *The Virginia Department of Health is reporting another 823 cases of COVID-19 today, and another 21 deaths. The seven day average for positive tests remains at 6.4 percent for the third straight day. In the Thomas Jefferson Health District, there are 15 new cases and another death for a total of 47. The newly deceased is from Albemarle. The seven day average for positive tests in the Thomas Jefferson Health District remains at 5.5 percent for the second day in a row. That’s down from 6.4 percent a week ago. *The Greene County Board of Supervisors got a small update last night on the future of planning for a new reservoir to expand its urban water supply plan. In July, the Rapidan Service Authority voted to stop accepting facility fees from each bill to pay for the project. Bill Martin is chair of the Greene Board of Supervisors and a member of the RSA Board of Directors. He had invited RSA’s executive director to attend the meeting, but that invitation was declined for now. “It’s clear that there is a dispute between Greene County and RSA and I thought it would have been a good opportunity for RSA general management to speak to all of us and citizens in particular,” Martin said, adding that RSA’s director of projects had a conflict.Martin did brief his colleagues on the August 20 meeting of the RSA board at which RSA officials stated they could expand the water capacity by new technology at the existing water treatment plant that takes from the Rapidan River. At $10 million, that would be a cheaper alternative than the new reservoir. Read Terry Beigie’s coverage in the Greene County Record for the full story. *Two natural events prompted the Rivanna Water and Sewer Authority (RWSA) to implement emergency action plans earlier this month. Executive Director Bill Mawyer said heavy rains on August 6 caused concern.“There was more than three inches of rain coming across the Sugar Hollow reservoir dam,” Mawyer said. “All worked out fine but that’s an example of how we manage the reservoirs particularly during storms.”An earthquake in Sparta, North Carolina with a magnitude of 5.1 forced RWSA safety engineers to have to inspect all of the dams to make sure they suffered no damage. One of those inspectors is Jennifer Whittaker, the RWSA’s chief engineer. She briefed the Board of Directors on several projects designed to increase drinking water capacity in Crozet, one of Albemarle’s designated growth areas. The COVID-19 pandemic has increased consumption but that is within acceptable range. “What we’re seeing right now is that our peak day number is staying fairly high, particularly associated with warm weather,” Whittaker said. “Because Crozet is 80 percent residential we believe we are seeing an impact from people working from home perhaps more historically than they have.”One of the planned pieces of infrastructure is a new pump station at Beaver Creek Reservoir. While this new facility would be on county property, an easement across private land is required for an underground pipeline. “They understand for the most part what we’re trying to do,” Mawyer said. “We understand that they might not be so happy that we may need an easement across their property and we’re looking at all the alternatives.” The RWSA also reviewed a study on what to do with land purchased in the 1980’s for a dam that was never built due to environmental concerns. The RWSA owns 1,314 acres of land in northwest Albemarle and some landowners want to buy back their property. Scenarios envisioned in the plan include selling all or portions of the property, retaining the property, or a mixture of the two. The RWSA Board adopted a resolution to develop a comprehensive property management plan for the agency to retain the property. They will also seek to manage the property in a way to offset the RWSA’s carbon footprint.*Albemarle's historic preservation committee voted Monday to recommend a historical marker be created to commemorate the role the Union Run Baptist Church in Keswick played in local history. The exact text remains to be written. Union Run is a Black church founded in 1865 by newly freed people after Emancipation and the Civil War. An acre of land was given for the church by Thomas Jefferson's grandson, who had owned many of the parishioners. Pastor Robert Hughes oversaw the congregation for thirty years. There is a deadline of October 1, 2020 to get information to the Virginia Department of Historic Resources. The Historic Preservation Committee wants to install several markers to commemorate Black history in Albemarle, as well the role women have played throughout time. They will be seeking input from the community.  (Union Run Baptist Church website)*A Charlottesville artist is among 40 recipients of a $5,000 grant from the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts and the Northam administration. The Virginia Artist Relief Fellowship Program will distribute $200,000 to visual artists of all kinds. The selections were made from more than 350 applications and the funding comes from the museum’s existing endowment. The person selected from Charlottesville asked not to be named. (release)*In meetings today, the Leadership Charlottesville Alumni Association will hold another “Courageous Conversation” at 2 p.m. This time around a series of panelists will discuss the challenges facing public schools who will open virtually to begin the academic year.Guests include parent and architect Shawn Mulligan, Juandiego Wade of the Charlottesville City School board member; and LaTishia Wilson, the Principal of Stony Point Elementary School. The Charlottesville Tree Commission meets at 5 p.m. One of the items is a presentation from member Paul Josey about the roles the commission and city government can take to improve city canopy, including the site review process. Josey has expressed concern about the decreasing amount of tree canopy coverage in the city and increasing canopy inequality present in the city. (register)  (agenda)One clarification today. In yesterday’s newsletter, I reported on housing vouchers being granted by the Charlottesville Redevelopment and Housing Authority. The 49 vouchers on the street and the 20 additional ones planned are supplemental vouchers added in recent years in excess of the 350 or so already in use. Thanks to those who pointed this out and I am glad to further clarify. This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Editor’s note: I accidentally sent yesterday’s email to the wrong setting, so you most likely didn’t get it. I caught this well after sending it out and there’s no way to send it again without creating a new post. I’ve reused some of the info in today’s newsletter, so some of you may have seen this twice! Do take a look at yesterday’s edition if you missed it. Today’s shout-out is for the Parent-Teacher Organizations of the Charlottesville City Schools, and their request for donations to the Reopening Fund: Ready to Teach, Ready to Learn. Visit their website for more information and to make a contribution. There are another 1,005 new cases of COVID-19 reported today by the Virginia Department of Health and another 23 new deaths. The seven-day positive testing rate remains at 6.4 percent statewide. There is one more death reported in Charlottesville for a total of 46 to date in the Thomas Jefferson Health District. The district reported 25 new cases today with 12 from Albemarle, eight from Fluvanna, three from Charlottesville and three from Greene. In the district the seven-day positive testing rate is at 5.5 percent. That figure was at 6.4 percent on August 18. *The Charlottesville Redevelopment and Housing Authority’s Board of Commissioners last night got an update on the redevelopment of public housing sites in the city. The long-awaited renovation of Crescent Halls as well as the first phase of new units at South First Street are getting closer to breaking ground. Dave Norris is the director of redevelopment at CRHA. “We’re making good progress in getting to closing on our first two projects and there’s a number of hoops we have to jump through but one of the final hoops was a approval from the fair housing office at HUD,” Norris said. HUD is the acronym for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and their approval was for something called the Site and Neighborhood Standards Review Process. Norris said the city has assisted CRHA in getting bonds to finance the project, and that closing on all of the financial paperwork should take place by October 1.  “And then it will take a little bit of time to mobilize and get some construction activity going but we’re still hoping to break ground this calendar year, and that’s to be determined, but we’re getting there,” Norris said. There are currently 58 vacancies among the city’s 376 public housing units as of August 24, with 26 of those at Crescent Halls in order to prepare for those units to be upgraded as part of the renovation. Executive Director John Sales said they are working on ways to get those units refurbished so they can be returned to service. “So right now we are working with Habitat,” Sales said. “Habitat has pledged us some construction managers and possible volunteers to assist us with a few units. We currently have a contractor going through some of the units as well.”Sales said 49 of the CRHA’s housing vouchers are in use with families living in an affordable living arrangement, and there is a goal of adding 20 more in recent weeks. However, there are obstacles to doing so. “Unfortunately, the more vouchers we put on the street, the harder it is for individuals to find housing units and we already have low numbers of being successful in finding units in a short amount of time,” Sales said, adding it takes between 90 and 150 days for a housing voucher recipient to actually move in. The CRHA has been discussing ways to incentivize property owners to accept the vouchers. *The Charlottesville Chamber of Commerce has been identified as a world leader for the way it has helped local businesses adjust to the COVID-19 pandemic. The International Association of Facilitators will give the Chamber one of 17 Facilitation Impact Awards for the Project Rebound program. The recognition also goes to the Organizational Excellence program at the University of Virginia. In May, the Chamber held over three dozen meetings to get input before launching its Blueprint for Economic Resiliency in the Greater Charlottesville Region on June 25, 2020. The facilitation work is credited with translating business concerns into concrete ideas embedded in the plan. The award will be handed out at a virtual ceremony on October 26. *Virginia’s coastline was hit fairly hard earlier this month by Tropical Storm Isaias which spawned several tornadoes on the eastern shore and caused flooding throughout much of the Commonwealth. That’s part of a continuing trend toward a more turbulent climate. This fall, the Northam administration will release a master plan to deal with rising sea levels, which are experienced now in the form of more frequent sunny day flooding. Part of that will include greater data about where flooding occurs, data coordinated by the Commonwealth Center for Recurrent Flooding Resiliency. Retired Navy Admiral Ann C. Phillips is Northam’s Special Assistant for Coastal Adaptation and Protection. “You can go in and look at coastal Virginia using this new nuisance flood overlay data and the intent is that it will help localities and communities better understand the context of nuisance flooding which we are seeing more and more and more of and which we will see more and more and more of in our future, and then overlay that with sea level rise projections and also with a cat 1 or a moderate Northeaster storm,” Phillips said. Phillips said nuisance flooding today in some places will lead to permanent inundations but there can be remedies that also improve water quality. Earlier this year, the General Assembly passed legislation that strengthens the role the plan will play in Virginia’s conservation programs. Phillips made her comments Friday at the annual meeting for Resilient Virginia. The group aims to increase planning for and awareness of adaptation to a changing climate. *The word of the day in government meetings today is “reservoir.” First, the Rivanna Water and Sewer Authority will meet at 2:15 p.m. One topic will be the unveiling of a master plan for land that had been purchased in the 1980’s for the Buck Mountain Reservoir. That project never went forward because of the presence of an endangered species. Some original landowners have requested the land to be sold back to them. (master plan) (full agenda)The Greene County Board of Supervisors will get an update on the proposed water supply plan that was to have been undertaken by the Rapidan Service Authority. Last month the Madison County and Orange County representatives on the RSA Board voted to stop collecting facility fees to pay for impoundment along White Run for a new reservoir. Prepare for this by reading Terry Beigie’s latest story in the Greene County Record. Another meeting today is the Charlottesville Housing Advisory Committee which meets at 1 p.m. The Rivanna Solid Waste Authority also meets shortly before the RWSA. The two will hold a joint strategic planning meeting as part of the RWSA agenda. (full agenda)*Thanks for reading or listening! Why not do both? Sometimes you will see differences between what I record and what ends up in the text. Either way, I’m really glad you are here. Please consider sending on this edition to a friend, family member, co-worker, or elected official. This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s shout-out is for the Parent-Teacher Organizations of the Charlottesville City Schools, and their request for donations to the Reopening Fund: Ready to Teach, Ready to Learn. Visit their website for more information and to make a contribution. Publisher’s note - this installment was inadvertently set to the wrong setting, hence it is coming out later than usual. *The state of Virginia has added another 2,770 cases of COVID-19 since Friday, with 664 of them reported this morning. There have been another 35 deaths reported since Friday for a total to date of 2,471. The seven-day average for positive tests declined to 6.4 percent today, down from 6.6 percent on Friday. In the Thomas Jefferson Health District, there have been 52 new cases reported over the weekend, including eight today. There have been two new fatalities in the district for a total of 45 to date. The seven-day average for positive tests was at 5.6 percent on Sunday, continuing a downward trend. The latest report on the model from the University of Virginia’s Biocomplexity Institute states there could be 11,306 new cases in Virginia for the week of September 27, The report also states that “anticipated season changes in the Fall could lead to a surge beginning around Labor Day with schools and universities open.” The report notes that both the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and North Carolina State University re-opened for in-person instruction on August 10, but have already shifted to online due to clusters of COVID infection among students. (UVa Model)*The University of Virginia welcomed its incoming class in a virtual ceremony Sunday night. Dean of Students Allen Groves began the Convocation event by speaking into a camera rather than directly to a crowd of first-year and transfer students. (UVA Today article)“As you are all too aware, COVID-19 has up-ended many of our traditions and plans but this doesn’t alter in any way the fact that you are starting what I hope will be one of the most memorable journeys of your life,” Groves said, promising that students would be able to walk down the Lawn when they graduate. “While it’s true this fall that you may not get to play rugby in Mad Bowl, or enter Old Cabell Hall for an a capella concert packed with your friends, or sway with a hundred other students singing the Good Old Song, or huff and puff your way up Humpback Rocks with 25 of your closest friends, this will still be a memorable time in your life with lots of opportunities to bond with friends and enrich your mind,” Groves said. “And we will overcome the current COVID-19 challenge and be right back to doing all of these things that we love so much.” President Jim Ryan said this year at UVA will be unlike anything before and that there would be many challenges. In-person classes are not scheduled to begin until September 8, two weeks after originally planned because of rising caseloads in the Thomas Jefferson Health District in reporter in early August. Ryan said Convocation is not about COVID but about welcoming students, no matter where they are. “You belong here,” Ryan said. “I don’t mean by this that you need be here physically.”Ryan’s speech contained many references to the need to wait until it is safe to have the full experience, such as office hours or large gatherings. He also urged students to eventually connect with people who live in this area. “Look for a chance to build a bridge to the broader Charlottesville community. This is a wonderful place but like other small cities it has its challenges and a complicated history. I encourage you to learn about this history and to engage with this broader community. There are countless ways to do so, including some amazing programs at Madison House.”Last week, the city’s Human Right Commission discussed their concerns over UVA’s opening. Kathryn Laughon is a member of the Commission. “I would like to ask the University to not have the undergraduate students return in person,” Laughon said. “They can’t control what the students who don’t like in dorms do. Jim Ryan has said he doesn’t want to bring the students back if he doesn’t think that they are going to be able to stay for the whole semester.”  A final decision about whether to proceed with in-person classes on August 28. *Virginia’s coastline was hit fairly hard earlier this month by Tropical Storm Isaias which spawned several tornadoes on the eastern shore and caused flooding throughout much of the Commonwealth. That’s part of a continuing trend toward a more turbulent climate. This fall, the Northam administration will release a master plan to deal with rising sea levels, which are experienced now in the form of more frequent sunny day flooding. The plan is informed by better data about where flooding occurs, data coordinated by the Commonwealth Center for Recurrent Flooding Resiliency. Retired Navy Admiral Ann C. Phillips is Northam’s Special Assistant for Coastal Adaptation and Protection. “You can go in and look at coastal Virginia using this new nuisance flood overlay data and the intent is that it will help localities and communities better understand the context of nuisance flooding which we are seeing more and more and more of and which we will see more and more and more of in our future, and then overlay that with sea level rise projections and also with a cat 1 or a moderate Northeaster storm,” Phillips said. Phillips said nuisance flooding today in some places will lead to permanent inundations but there can be remedies that also improve water quality. Earlier this year, the General Assembly passed legislation that strengthens the role the plan will play in Virginia’s conservation programs. Phillips made her comments Friday at the annual meeting for Resilient Virginia. The group aims to increase planning for and awareness of adaptation to a changing climate. *In meetings today, the Board of Trustees for the Jefferson Madison Regional Library will convene virtually at 3 p.m. and among other things will discuss the system’s COVID-19 response. The Charlottesville Redevelopment and Housing Authority meets at 6 p.m. and items include an update on the next generation of public housing in the city. The CRHA is finalizing construction contracts with the firms hired to begin work on the renovation of Crescent Halls as well as new units that will be built at South First Street. (meeting info)The Steering Committee for the C’Ville Plans Together initiative is scheduled to meet virtually at 4 p.m. for another meeting. Jennifer Koch of the firm Rhodeside & Harwell explains what it’s all about. "The effort that we're calling Cville Plans Together is an effort that we as a consultant are working with NDS, the Planning Commission and others to continue the update to the Comprehensive Plan that was started in 2017, 2018," Koch said. "That includes a big focus on housing and housing affordability with a specific housing plan that will be part of the housing chapter of the Comprehensive Plan."I wrote a summary and produced a podcast of the August 11 Charlottesville Planning Commission discussion that is now the first item to be available through a premium subscription. You can support my work either through the paid subscription or through Patreon. This is all still a work in progress! This daily newsletter and newscast will remain free! This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s shout-out goes to the Parent-Teacher Organization of the Charlottesville City Schools, and their request for donations to the Reopening Fund: Ready to Teach, Ready to Learn. Visit their website for more information and to make a contribution. *Incoming students at the University of Virginia are invited to view the annual convocation virtually on Sunday with remarks from President Jim Ryan and others. The event is traditionally held on the Lawn. According to a story on UVA Today, first year and transferring students will not sign the honor code at the convocation, but will “pledge their honor” in some other way to be announced later. The convocation can be seen on YouTube at 6 p.m. Almost 4,000 new undergraduates and hundreds of transfer students will begin study at UVA this fall, whether it be online or virtual. The plan is still to begin in-person instruction on September 8, the day after Labor Day.  *The Virginia Department of Health is reporting another 978 cases of COVID-19 this morning, for a cumulative total of 110,860 to date. There are another nine deaths for a cumulative total of 2,436. There are another 29 new cases in the Thomas Jefferson Health District with 13 from Albemarle, five from Charlottesville, three from Greene, three from Fluvanna, two from Louisa and three from Nelson. The seven day positive test average in the district is at 6.1 percent, down from 6.4 percent on Wednesday. *The same localities in the Thomas Jefferson Health District are also in the Thomas Jefferson Planning District, and the Board of Commissioners that oversees the latter met last night. They got more information on the Rental and Mortgage Relief Program being administered by the TJPDC. So far, the agency has received $450,000 in funding from the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development to disburse to those who qualify. When administrative and staff funding is subtracted, that leaves $382,461.75. TJPDC housing coordinator Christine Jacobs gave an update on how that money has been used so far. “Of the $382,461, we’ve gone through about 45 percent of our funds, which is good progress, about two weeks ago we were significantly below that so we are being an increase in the number of people who are being approved,” Jacobs said. Here is a link to the report. As of August 19, there have been 497 applicants with 91 percent seeking rent assistance and nine percent are for mortgage relief. Jacobs said most of that is going to to households who need it the most. AMI stands for area median income. “And so we are seeing 61 percent of the households are below 30 percent  AMI and that we’ve seen receive rental and mortgage relief to date,” Jacobs said. “The relief goes anywhere from $100 to $10,000 per household. That $10,000 seems high but it could be that they were four months in arrears, it could be that they had a loss of income that made them eligible.”The TJPDC Board approved the funding agreement as well as a grievance policy. On Monday, Charlottesville Council had been told that there were long delays in getting through to the community helpline, but a spokeswoman for the city said they are caught up on calls seeking assistance with the program. The TJPDC also approved a framework for a regional initiative to expand broadband in the rural area. Chip Boyles is the executive director of the TJPDC.“We would be acting as a facilitator bringing together the public sector and the private sector folks as well as businesses and citizens and the education sector,” Boyles said. Jesse Rutherford is the chair of the TJPDC and a member of the Nelson County Board of Supervisors. “Broadband is the biggest topic we have in our region,” Rutherford said. “I’m sure everyone can concur with that, with schools going virtual and parents working from home and what not. I do think it is appropriate we look at this from a regional perspective. Essentially we are all connected and when crises like this happen we realize how much more important this new method of transportation is.” One outcome could be the creation of a regional broadband authority. Albemarle County has such a group and that body’s board of directors will have an annual meeting on Wednesday.  *We are now approaching the half-year mark for this pandemic, and with continued community spread, many in our area are seeking to better understand how the community might change after such a prolonged time of uncertainty. The Center for Nonprofit Excellence has been conducting a series of interviews with nonprofit leaders on the Hope and Resilience, and the latest installment has been posted. Mary Coleman is the executive director of the City of Promise. “We have to believe that things can get better so that we can put one foot in front of the other and keep going,” Coleman said. “You know, the sun rises every single morning and every morning is an opportunity for us to realize our dreams but it takes hard work and it takes hope, we have to believe in ourselves.”That interview was produced by Town Crier Productions. Previous installments are with:Ella Jordan of the United WayFrank Dukes of the Institute for Engagement and NegotiationMarta Keene of JABACynthia Hurst of the Foothills Child Advocacy Center*And that brings us to the end of a sixth week of this community service. I rely on contributions from the audience, and for basic support of the research I do, please consider becoming a supporter on Patreon. Your support keeps this daily newsletter free, and helps me look for other opportunities to bring information to the public. Take a look! This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s Patreon-fueled shout-out comes from an anonymous supporter who wants to say - "We keep each other safe. Wear a mask, wash your hands, and keep your distance."There are another 863 cases of COVID-19 in the Commonwealth reported by the Virginia Department of Health this morning and another 17 deaths for a total of 2,427 to date. The seven-day average for positive tests is at 6.5 percent, down from 6.7 percent posted yesterday. The Thomas Jefferson Health District added another 21 cases and still reports 43 deaths. Yesterday that was downgraded from 44. Kathryn Goodman, spokeswoman for the Thomas Jefferson Health District, told me that ”after further investigation of the fatality, the case was moved to another health district. “*Classes at the University of Lynchburg will move to on-line only for the next week following the news that there are at least five COVID-19 cases among its student population. The school began its fall semester with in-person classes on August 12 but will meet virtually through next Thursday. Twenty-one students are in quarantine and another ten are in isolation.“Some of these recent positives and suspected cases have occurred between roommates,” wrote President Alison Morrison-Shetlar in a release. “Still others have come about when students let down their guard in small gatherings in individual rooms and apartments. If we are to stay ahead of the virus and return to in-person classes next week, this is where you can make a difference.”Eastern Mennonite University announced yesterday that they are delaying plans to open to in-person classes on August 25 after four student leaders tested positive for COVID-19. “All other student leaders and Residence Life staff who were in sustained contact with them are now in quarantine,” reads an email to students. “We have since learned from our contact tracing that there is a wider group of Student Life staff personnel that we need to quarantine out of an abundance of caution.”*The Albemarle Board of Supervisors has endorsed the idea of building a roundabout at the intersection of the John Warner Parkway and East Rio Road, and agreed to apply for funding from the Virginia Department of Transportation through their Smart Scale program. In June, the Board deadlocked on a proposal for over 300 apartment buildings in part because of stated concerns about additional traffic. Albemarle transportation planner Kevin McDermott said a study of the whole Rio Road corridor is underway to accommodate those concerns.“That corridor study is really going to be evaluating these intersections along with many others in the corridor and in reviewing this with our selected consultant on that project, we really looked at that John Warner Parkway roundabout as the only real option we had there to address the traffic problem,” McDermott said. The intersection is the #14 transportation priority in Albemarle and the project is estimated to cost $7.8 million. McDermott is also suggesting spending $2 million in local tax money to get design for the roundabout underway. Smart Scale projects will be ranked according to a series of metrics and those scores will be released in January. The Board of Supervisors also voted to approve a special use permit to allow Scott’s Ivy Exxon to expand from three service bays to seven. *The Thomas Jefferson Planning District Commission (TJPDC) will try again this evening to hold a meeting in August. Their first attempt two weeks ago failed to meet a quorum in part because of large storms that hit the region. Among the items on the agenda is a discussion of the Rental and Mortgage Relief program that the TJPDC is administering. On Monday, one person told Charlottesville City Council of their concern over the way the project is being handled in Charlottesville and Albemarle, where a hotline goes to the United Way. “Myself and other volunteers in the community have been outside talking to people that are heading into court and they have all said that they are unable to get through to that hotline and that the only way to make contact is to basically spend a day just calling and calling,” said Elizabeth Stark, adding that people who are about to be evicted do not have that time. TJPDC executive director Chip Boyles said the situation is known to him and that the problem is happening across the state. “We are very much aware of the delays and we are working not just with our local governments but also with the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development where the funding came from is also working to help all of the localities with this problem,” Boyles said.The TJPDC will also discuss regional efforts to bring more broadband to rural communities. *In other meetings today, the Albemarle Natural Heritage Committee meets at 5 p.m. and will discuss the county’s stream health initiative among other items. (meeting info)The Charlottesville Human Rights Commission will meet at 6 p.m. Among the items on the agenda are a discussion of the return of University of Virginia students and the effect on community health. They will also prepare for their joint meeting with City Council which is scheduled for Tuesday at 3 p.m. (agenda)The Fifth and Avon Community Advisory Committee will meet virtually at 7 p.m. and will get an update on greenway planning as well as the future Biscuit Run county park. (meeting info)* Thank you for reading or listening! Please forward this on to someone you think might be interested. And please let me know what you think. Feedback is key to the future of this community service. This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s episode is in honor of the Charlottesville Podcasting Network, a community service website that’s been around since 2005, and gearing up to be for another 15 years. Visit the archives at cvillepodcast.com to see what you can learn!*There are another 737 cases of COVID-19 reported in Virginia today for a cumulative total of 109,019. There are another 14 fatalities recorded for a total of 2,410 to date. The seven-day rate for positive tests rate dropped to 6.7 percent, down from 6.8 percent yesterday. In the Thomas Jefferson Health District, there are another 14 cases, with five each from Albemarle and Charlottesville and four in Louisa County. The positive rate remains at 6.4 percent for the second straight day. The number of fatalities has been reduced to 43. *Today is the first day of in-person classes at the University of Virginia School of Law and earlier this week their communications department put together a video describing to students how things will be different.  We’ve been masked and distanced when I’ve seen you in the building, and some of you I’ve met for the first time since on Zoom,” said Dean Risa Goluboff in the video. Golubuff described physical changes that will be made at the law school, as well as a requirement that everyone leave the building by 9 p.m. so cleaning crews can get to work. Students are also being asked to stay home whenever possible.The University of Virginia recently delayed the in-person start of the school year to September 8, the day after Labor Day. Undergraduate classes begin online starting on August 25. Earlier this week, the University of North Carolina announced they would suspend in-person classes following a series of COVID clusters forming in dormitories there. *The General Assembly’s COVID and justice reform special session began yesterday, with the House of Delegates spending most of the afternoon debating rules that would allow them to meet remotely for the rest of the session. Here’s Speaker of the House Eileen Filler-Corn shortly after roll call was taken.“Members of the House, we are gathering today at this unprecedented time in our Commonwealth’s history,” said Speaker of the House Eileen Filler-Corn. “Virginians are hurting. Students, workers, families, businesses have all been hit hard by the coronavirus whose impact none of us in this room none of could have ever imagined.” Visit the General Assembly’s website for a full list of meeting times and links to the proceedings. *The Virginia Department of Health has issued a harmful algae bloom advisory for tributaries that feed into Lake Anna, as well as parts of the lake itself. These are the Middle Pamunkey Branch of Lake Anna, now in addition to the Upper Pamunkey Branch, Terry’s Run, and the Upper North Anna Branch of Lake Anna in Orange, Louisa and Spotsylvania counties are experiencing a bloom of cyanobacteria, which can cause skin irritations. According to a release, “the public is advised to avoid contact with the lake in these areas until algae concentrations return to acceptable levels.” Visit swimhealthyva.com to learn more. * There are new officers for the Albemarle Economic Development Authority following the resignation of the former chair, vice chair and secretary-treasurer at the end of their meeting in July. Donald Long volunteered to take on the role through the end of the year. Stuart Munson will serve as vice chair. David Shreve will serve as the new secretary-treasurer. There are three vacancies on the EDA, which oversees grantmaking opportunities and other initiatives for local and new businesses. The EDA was also briefed on the possibility of an agricultural company that wants to open up a facility in Scottsville. *The Albemarle Planning Commission has voted unanimously to recommend approval of a rezoning for about 13 and a half acres on Old Lynchburg Road to make way for a project known as the Albemarle Business Campus. Developer Kyle Redinger altered his proposal for the land after a different project was rejected by the commission last October. However, the commission did not recommend a special exception that would allow Redinger to build only one kind of housing. Here’s at-large member Tim Keller.“I think the applicant has come a long ways on this and I am supportive of the overall project but I am not supportive of the special exception,” Keller said. The Board of Supervisors is expected to hear the item on October 7. *Speaking of the Board of Supervisors, they will meet at 2 p.m. today for a meeting that includes a review of a possible roundabout to replace the signalized intersection of Rio Road and the John Warner Parkway. There will also be a public hearing on the expansion of an existing service station in Ivy Road, an area not designated for commercial growth.  Today’s meeting of the Charlottesville Housing Advisory Committee was canceled. That meeting will be held now on Tuesday, August 25 at 1 p.m. *The Piedmont Environmental Council and the Local Energy Alliance Program (LEAP) are looking for people to sign up for free assessments of what it would take to get solar panels installed on their rooftops. The Solarize Piedmont program runs through August 31. Bri West is the Communications Director for PEC. “It’s all about demystifying the process of going solar,” said Bri West, communications director at PEC. “Over the years a lot what we’ve heard from people is a readiness and interest in going solar and then there’s this apprehension of whether I’m going to get the right installer, or get the right price.” Ryan Patten with LEAP explains what happens after you sign up for the program.“Once you sign up we’ll email you within a few business days and we’ll let you know what we see through various satellite images, whether your home or property looks good for solar or not,” Patten said. “Things we are looking for include shading concerns, large trees, other buildings nearby and also the angle of the roof may come into play as well. We’ll take a look at all that information and follow up with an email with you.” You can watch the whole video on the PEC YouTube channel. *One correction is required. On the August 18, 2020 edition of the show, I incorrectly reported the cost share between Albemarle and Charlottesville. Ratepayers in Albemarle are responsible for 80 percent of future costs of the waterline to connect the Ragged Mountain and South Fork Rivanna reservoirs. You can read the January 2012 agreement here. *If you would like this program to continue, please consider supporting this venture on Patreon. There are multiple tiers of support, including the ability to create shout-outs to nonprofit and charitable causes. And please forward this on to friends and family in the community, as the goal is to increase the audience. This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s Patreon-fueled shout-out comes from an anonymous supporter who wants to say - "We keep each other safe. Wear a mask, wash your hands, and keep your distance."* There are another 861 cases of COVID-19 in Virginia reported today by the Department of Health, and another 11 deaths for a total of 2,396 people dead since the pandemic began. The seven day average for positive tests dropped to 6.8 percent. There are another 19 new cases in the Thomas Jefferson Health District. The test rate here is at 6.4 percent, up from 6.1 percent on Monday. *The Virginia General Assembly convenes today for a special session expected to cover the impacts of COVID-19, criminal justice and police reform, and whatever else might come up. A joint meeting of the House Appropriations, House Finance and Senate Finance committees kicked off the session at 9:30 a.m. beginning with remarks and budget amendments from Governor Ralph Northam. “Virginia ended the 2020 fiscal year on June 30 with a $234 million shortfall in general revenue collection,” Northam said. “We now project that we will have $2.7 billion less than we expected in general revenue for the coming biennium. We feared worse. But this still requires serious and thoughtful budgeting and planning.”The full House of Delegates convenes at 1 p.m. at the Siegel Center in Richmond, and the full Senate will also convene at 1 p.m. (full schedule) (legislation list)*Charlottesville City Council held a public hearing last night on giving permission to the regional water authority for a pipeline to connect the South Fork Rivanna Reservoir with the Ragged Mountain Reservoir. The project has an $80 million cost estimate and is the second phase of the community’s long-term water supply plan. “This waterline will replace the existing Upper Sugar Hollow pipeline which is very old and increase raw water transfer to the urban water system,” said Lauren Hildebrand, the city’s utilities director. “The waterline is anticipated to be constructed between 2027 and 2040.” At the public hearing, former City Councilor Dede Smith continued her opposition to the plan, which she voted against in January 2012.  She claimed there were cheaper alternatives. “This $80 million pipeline that may I add was not in the original plan and was added very late in the game doubles the cost of the community water plan and that is going straight into our water bill,” Smith said. The Rivanna Water and Sewer Authority submitted its application for the water supply plan in June 2006. “The project involves expansion of the existing Ragged Mountain Reservoir (RMR) and construction of a new raw water intake and pipeline from the South Fork Rivanna Reservoir (SFRR) to RMR,” reads the permit application to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The application goes on to say that timing of construction would be dependent on funding. The first phase of the plan was completed in 2014 when a new earthen dam was built at Ragged Mountain Reservoir, expanding capacity. The second phase is not yet programmed in the RWSA’s Capital Improvement Program, which lays out how ratepayer money is reinvested back into the water and wastewater system. One of the next steps is an analysis of current water usage rates which was presented to the RWSA in June. Capital projects such as the waterline are paid for through bonds floated by the RWSA and paid by ratepayers in the form of debt service. The cost share agreement adopted in January 2020 states that Albemarle ratepayers are responsible for 80 percent of the costs of the waterline. Council asked for a full briefing on what the impacts that other 15 percent might have on Charlottesville ratepayers in the future. Council also passed a resolution in support of three Smart Scale applications, one of which would include a pedestrian bridge to connect the city’s side of U.S. 29 with Stonefield. “We definitely need some way for people that aren’t in vehicles to get across that road because it is not an option right now at all,” said City Councilor Heather Hill.*New apartment units are coming to the Stonefield mixed-use development in Albemarle County, according to information told to the Places-29 Hydraulic Community Advisory Council Monday evening. Stonefield was originally rezoned by the Board of Supervisors in 2003, but the project did not break ground until the spring of 2011. “The original vision was for a very vertically mixed-use development and it remained unbuilt for a number of years and what we’ve all seen built out has been more single-use and shorter buildings due to economic factors,” said county planner Micheala Ac cardi. “For the past two years we’ve seen developers come in submitting some plans that are more consistent with that more vertical mixed-use development.” Accardi said these include 220 apartments planned for a new building on an empty parking lot between Hydraulic and the Hyatt Hotel, which will also include commercial space. Close by there are 49 town homes under construction as well as another 160 unit apartment building. Supervisor Diantha McKeel said these new projects will get the built environment closer to what had been planned. “If you think about the main street where all those stores are, those stores were planned to have residential living above them,” McKeel said. “When the economics and recession hit, those residential units were taken away. It would have been more like a, if you think about downtown Charlottesville where you have stores on the mall and then residences above, that’s what Stonefield was originally planned to look, we’re making up for that now.” Another common link between the downtown Mall and Stonefield is the presence of a movie theater, and those were all closed at the beginning of the pandemic. Victoria Tremaglio is the general manager of the Shops at Stonefield, which she said is holding its own despite the loss of a few tenants. She said the Regal Theater will reopen this Friday for limited service. “They’re going to have 50 people per theater to start, I think with $5 movies at Regal which should help with some foot traffic,” Tremaglio said. As for Stonefield, Tremaglio said more people are coming back. “People have been super respectful, super safe, lots of outdoor dining. You’ve probably seen Champion Grill is on the green and they’re going to be adding a tent. We’ve added other tables and chairs outside for people to sit.”The Violet Crown on the Downtown Mall remains closed. *Coming up in government meetings today, the Albemarle County Economic Development Authority and the Albemarle Planning Commission meet, but not at the same time. The EDA meets at 4 p.m. for the first time since three members resigned last month in protest of new conflict of interest forms they had to sign. (meeting info) The Planning Commission has a public hearing at 6 p.n. on a rezoning for the proposed Albemarle Business Campus on Old Lynchburg Road across from the county’s office building. (meeting info) The Charlottesville Board of Architectural Review will meet at 5:30 p.m. Items include lighting and interpretive signage of the historically protected Coal Tower on Water Street, an update on the Belmont Bridge project, and a letter of support to apply for the Burley School to be on the National Register of Historic Places. (agenda) (meeting registration)Correction: This article originally stated an incorrect figure for the cost share for the future waterline. It has since been corrected. I regret the error. This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Monday, August 17, 2020Today’s installment has a final shout-out to the CVille STEM fundraiser to pay for boxes for scientific school supplies. We’re pleased to announce they have met their $30,000 goal! Thank you for your support. *Another day, another new set of numbers. The Virginia Department of Health reports another 734 cases of COVID-19 today, and another 4 deaths for a total of 2,385 fatalities to date. The statewide seven-day average for positive tests has dropped to 7 percent, a figure that was last reported on July 15. That’s when caseloads were in the middle of an increase in the Commonwealth. This average hit a high of 8.2 percent on July 21. There are another 18 cases reported in the Thomas Jefferson Health District, with seven from Albemarle, two from Greene, one in Fluvanna, five in Louisa, and three in Nelson. There were no new cases reported from Charlottesville and no new deaths in the district.  The COVID-19 reproduction rate in Virginia has increased but only slightly, according to the latest model from the University of Virginia Biocomplexity Institute. The reproduction rate listed in the August 14 report is at 0.917 statewide, up from 0.909 on August 7. Numbers higher than 1 indicate higher levels of community spread.  Sixteen health districts in the Commonwealth are experiencing surges, including three in the southwest and one in the central region. The far southwest region has a reproduction rate of 1.139.  In all, the model suggests that Virginia has avoided 922,941 cases since May 15 through various interventions.The model itself has been updated this week to take into account past and current trends, and to factor in possible increases due to school reopenings and changing weather patterns. As of right now, the model is expecting a ten to twenty percent increase in transmissibility. “With the new modeling approach, the current course predicts a peak the week of September 27th with 14,743 weekly cases,” reads the model. “With a 10 percent increase in transmissibility beginning on Labor Day, we would expect to see cases peak at 18,000 the week of October 11th. A 20 percent increase in transmissibility leads to a slightly later peak the week of October 18th with over 23,000 weekly cases.”***So far there have been no confirmed cases of COVID-19 in meat and poultry processing facilities in Virginia this month, continuing a downward trend of infections from highs of 604 cases in April and 552 in June. The Virginia Department of Health and the Centers for Disease Control worked with plant operators to put in interventions including requiring face coverings, and adding physical barriers between workers where physical distancing is not possible. In all, there were ten COVID-19 deaths related to these facilities. ***Earlier in the pandemic, a couple of physicians at the University of Virginia wrote a children’s book to explain COVID-19 to children of color. “We’re Going to Be Okay” by Dr. Ebony Jade Hilton and Dr. Leigh-Ann Webb is intended to simplify the language of this time. The book is co-created by illustrator Ashleigh Corrin Webb. They spoke about their work on a Virginia Festival of the Book webinar last week. Here’s Dr. Leigh-Ann Webb, who had never written a book before. “This is the first time that I’ve really seen the power of that intersection of health, art, creativity and how you use those two things to connect with an audience,” said Dr. Webb. Ashleigh Corrin Webb had ten days to draw the book.“It was exciting, an exciting challenge and I think it was exciting because the purpose was to serve and that’s what drives me and what I do and why I do what I do,” said Corrin Webb, likening the collaboration to a dance. “I need the information. I obviously don’t have the knowledge that Ebony and Leigh-Ann have so I need that and then I’m like that give that to me and I’ll figure out how to present it in a way to hopefully make it resonate with people.” The book is available for download. ***There are lots of government meetings today. Charlottesville City Council will meet at 6:30 p.m. and has five public hearings. The first regards a request from the Rivanna Water and Sewer Authority (RWSA) for an easement for the waterline to connect the Ragged Mountain Reservoir and South Fork Rivanna Reservoir.  The project is the second phase of a community water supply plan adopted by Albemarle and Charlottesville in January 2012. (staff report)“This water line will replace the existing Upper Sugar Hollow Pipeline and increase raw water transfer in the urban water system,” reads the staff report for the item. “The water line is anticipated to be constructed between 2027 and 2040 for an estimated cost of $80 million.”The next four are for:A request for Dominion Energy for an easement for electrical lines at the Ragged Mountain Natural Area and the Heyward Community Forest  (staff report)A request from the International School of Charlottesville for a drainage easement for their new facility near Rives Parks (staff report)A request from a landowner to purchase 0.13 acres of city property adjacent to Northeast Park (staff report)A request to support the three Smart Scale applications being submitted by the Charlottesville-Albemarle Metropolitan Planning Organization. They are:Hydraulic/29 Intersection Improvements ($24.6 million)Hillsdale Avenue South Extension ($29.7 million)Fifth Street Trail Hub ($3.7 million) (staff report).Council will also hold a second reading on changing the ordinance to prohibit firearms on city property. (staff report)Also meeting today are the Albemarle Architectural Review Board at 1 p.m. and the Places29-Hydraulic Community Advisory Committee at 530 p.m. They will get an update on the ambassadors at county parks who are there to enforce physical distancing guidelines. There will also be an update on the renovation of Charlotte Humphris Park and an update on development projects underway in the area. (meeting info)The Louisa Board of Supervisors meets in person at 5 p.m. for a meeting that includes a report on the state of Lake Anna, an update on the Shannon Hill Regional Business Park, a discussion on an application for a solar field, and a conversation on the Trevilian Battlefield’s request for a tax exemption. (agenda) This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s installment has a shout-out for a fundraiser called C'ville STEM: Support Schools in COVID times. UVA doctors have teamed up with schools and want your financial support for school scientific supplies for up to 2,100 children in City Schools who might not otherwise have access. They are very close to meeting their goal. *There are another 1,216 cases of COVID-19 in the Commonwealth as reported by the Virginia Department of Health, and another eight deaths bringing the total to 2,370. The statewide seven-day positive testing rate has dropped to 7.2 percent. Another 20 cases have been reported in the Thomas Jefferson Health District for a total to date of 2,067. No fatalities have been reported in the district in over a week, with the total at 44 since August 6.  *The Charlottesville Police Civilian Review Board (PCRB) met last night and heard from a couple members of the Virginia Legislative Black Caucus in advance of the General Assembly’s special session, which begins on August 18. PCRB Chair James Watson invited the elected officials to the virtual meeting to explain legislation to increase civilian oversight of police in Virginia localities. “Right now we are a pretty big state and we only got three CRBs in the entire state so that legislation will empower localities to create CRBs and avert the various challenges they may face once they are established,” Watson said. Charlottesville City Council authorized creation of a CRB in late 2017, and one formed but its members expressed concern about a lack of authorized oversight. A new board has formed and many of the same concerns are present, such as a lack of subpoena power and access to records. Senator Jennifer McClellan (D-9) is the vice chair of the Legislative Black Caucus.“We are going to be putting on both the House and the Senate side bills to give localities the authority to have civilian review boards that have much more teeth than what you have now,” McClellan said.McClellan said the special session will begin the process of “de-criminalizing poverty” and making punishments for crimes more proportionate. “We are making it so that access to justice does not depend on how good of a lawyer you have or can afford,” McClellan said. “And then if you are sentenced that the Department of Corrections process focuses on rehabilitation and reentry.” Delegate Don Scott (D-80) said he believed it is important for civilian review boards to have more oversight on what he refers to as the “criminal punishment” system. “We’re going to have a higher expectation for those who we entrust to protect and serve our community,” Scott said.The General Assembly special session begins on August 18. Last night’s meeting is available for viewing on the city’s website. (watch the meeting)*The new director of Charlottesville’s public housing authority introduced himself to his Board of Commissioners last night. John Sales has been the executive director of the Charlottesville Redevelopment and Housing Authority since August 3rd. “I came from the city [where] I was the housing program coordinator,” Sales said. “Before that I was at the Chesapeake Redevelopment and Housing Authority where I was the director of development and capital projects.”Sales said the CRHA is poised to move forward with redevelopment and rehabilitation of public housing.“It’s going to take off like a rocket,” Sales said. “We have a lot of stuff working on with redevelopment, working with increasing our volunteer slots, and just improving affordable housing in the community, something the community has been asking for for a very long time and I think we are at the position where we can give them that and be the leader of affordable housing in the city of Charlottesville.”The two new Commissioners also introduced themselves. A’Lelia Henry is a public housing resident who has attended many meetings on the topic over the years. “For the time that I have been involved in housing it seems to be that we have the least input into what comes out of public housing,” Henry said. “I guess I’m here to make good trouble.”The other new member of the board is Lisa Green who is ending her ten-year stint on the Planning Commission. In March, the Planning Commission approved the site plan for a phase of development at South First Street, which had been created with input from residents.“Working with the South First Street project, I got more energized and I felt more excited about projects than I have a long time in the city,” Green said. “I think sometimes the city gives away the farm so to speak instead of actually making sure we’re doing by our residents and the folks who live here now.”Later in the meeting, the CRHA Board discussed ways to encourage more property owners to rent out to people and families with federal housing vouchers. *The Rivanna Solid Waste Authority (RSWA) is in the early stages of testing a new app that could keep more discarded material out of landfills. If it passes out of a beta test, the Better Bin app would allow people to scan barcodes on products and be informed about where the material could be recycled or where they could get guidance on composting. Philip McKalips is the Director of Solid Waste for the RSWA and he updated the Solid Waste Alternatives Advisory Committee on the app. “What this thing does is you go into the store, hopefully, or at least with the recycling bin after you’ve already bought a product, and you open the app, and when it accesses the camera you’ll see that it’s got this image of a barcode there,” McKalips said. “When you shine that on to the bar code of the product, it will either know it or it won’t know it and if it knows it, it will tell you how how to recycle that product and its packaging, and if it doesn’t know it, it will give you a chance to fairly easily send that information back to Better Bin in which case they are going to look for that information so that the database gets smarter.” The Wisconsin company that built the app will conduct a second round of beta testing. The SWAAC committee also discussed legislation that passed the General Assembly such as the enabling authority to levy taxes on plastic bags. The legislation authorizes that to happen as of January 1, and the Board of Supervisors was briefed on the possibility on July 15. “The revenue accruing to the county or city must be used for certain purposes including environmental cleanup and the provision of reusable bags,” wrote county attorney Greg Kamptner in his briefing for that discussion. The SWAAC members discussed a desire to move forward with the City of Charlottesville if the local officials decide to eventually levy the tax. *Thanks for listening and reading! This venture is being supported by community members through a Patreon account. I know these are tough times for so many, but if you can support this venture, it will help me hire people to help with community engagement. And pay a copy editor! This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s installment has a shout-out for a fundraiser called C'ville STEM: Support Schools in COVID times. UVA doctors have teamed up with schools and want your financial support for school scientific supplies for up to 2,100 children in City Schools who might not otherwise have access. They are very close to meeting their goal. *Today is the third anniversary of the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville which resulted in a vehicle being deliberately driven down 4th Street into a crowd of counter-protesters, killing Heather Heyer and severely injuring dozens of others. Charlottesville City Hall will be closed for a “time of reflection and remembrance.” So will the vehicular crossings of the Downtown Mall. A coalition of groups including the Charlottesville Democratic Socialists of America and Showing Up for Racial Justice Charlottesville plan to hold an event beginning at 1 p.m. at Market Street Park where the statue of Confederate General Robert E. Lee stands. However, city manager Tarron Richardson issued a statement warning that his pandemic-related decision to stop issuing permits for events city parks still stands. “We ask that the community continue to follow all aspects of the local COVID-19 ordinance, specifically the wearing of face coverings and adherence to the gathering limits,” Richardson wrote in a statement. “No special event permits have been approved for the use of downtown parks or other public property for August 11 or 12, 2020.”Dr. Richardson went on to state it was important that roads not be blocked in protests.“Unauthorized closures of City streets can delay responses for emergency vehicles and require rerouting to an emergency incident, the hospital, or other critical infrastructure when seconds matter,” Richardson wrote. “Additionally positioning one’s self in a lane of travel/traffic without proper protection is putting oneself potentially in grave danger.”On August 8, the city issued a statement that sought to remind the public that gatherings of fifty people or more were specifically prohibited by Council on July 27 when the city enacted restrictions that are greater than what is allowed under Phase 3 of Governor Ralph Northam’s Forward Virginia program. *There are another 776 cases of COVID-19 in Virginia reported by the state health department this morning, and another eight deaths for a total of 2,352 to date. The seven-day average for positive tests has dropped to 7.3 percent statewide. The Thomas Jefferson Health District has another 23 cases with eight from Albemarle, five from Louisa, four from Charlottesville, two from Greene, two from Fluvanna and two from Nelson. *The James River Water Authority (JRWA) will meet today to discuss delaying the application process for a pump station to bring water to the growth area at Zion Crossroads. In March, authority members from Louisa and Fluvanna counties voted to proceed with a plan to build the pump station at a Monacan site called Rassawek which was a major population center before colonization. That’s prompted over 10,000 signatures on a petition organized by the group Cultural Heritage Partners. “Although the James River Water Authority is confident that the revised application materials submitted to you in March took a hard look at a broad range of alternatives and identified the only practicable alternative, we have continued to engage in discussions with interested parties on this matter,” reads a letter to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers from D.D. Watson, chair of the JRWA. The letter goes on to state that the Louisa and Fluvanna needs an expanded water supply and that a short delay will allow for the study of alternatives to the site at Rassawek. Look to coverage on this from Allison Wrabel in a future edition of the Daily Progress and get more information from her preview story.*The pandemic has delayed the public dedication of the Memorial to Enslaved Laborers at the University of Virginia, but the monument has already become a central gathering point in the community as seen during the protests against the killing of George Floyd. There will be a virtual panel discussion about the architecture of the memorial at 4 p.m. held by Arch Daily. Participants include Alice Raucher and Mary Hughes of the UVA Office of the Architect), Mabel Wilson of Studio&) and J. Meejin Yoon of Höweler + Yoon Architects. *At 7 p.m., the University of Virginia’s Religion, Race and Democracy Lab will hold a zoom webinar that reflects on three years ago. The title is “Praying With Our Feet: Religious Activists Remember the Unite the Right Rally in Charlottesville.” Speakers include Jalane Schmidt, an activist who helped build community support for removal of Confederate statues, and Don Gathers, a founded of the city’s Black Lives Matter chapter and founding member of the Police Civilian Review Board. (info)*The Charlottesville Planning Commission said an official goodbye to one of its longest-serving members last night. Lisa Green has served on the seven-member body since October 2010 and her term ends at the end of this month. “I’ve enjoyed every minute of it,” Green said. “I know sometimes it doesn’t seem like it but I am passionate about this city and I see all the potential.”Green was recently appointed to serve on the Board of Commissioners for the Charlottesville Redevelopment and Housing Authority. She’s also a 19-year veteran of working for Albemarle County.“I think I am rooted into public service,” Green added. “I believe in public service. I believe in local government. I believe in all the things we can do better and I truly believe that there are systems we can change to make it more equitable for everyone in the city.” Charlottesville City Council has not yet appointed a replacement, so Green will continue to serve on the Planning Commission until they do so. Interviews with applicants for the position have not yet been conducted, according to Council Clerk Kyna Thomas. We’ll have an update on the Charlottesville Planning Commission’s discussion on the Comprehensive Plan and the New Hill Community Vision Plan on a later show. *The Crozet Community Advisory Committee meets at 7 p.m. and begins with a discussion about Old Dominion Village. Developer Katurah Roell is requesting a rezoning of 14.259 acres from rural area to Neighborhood Model District for the creation of a new neighborhood. However, the land is not within the jurisdiction of the Albemarle County Service Authority. Currently only the existing structure on the property is allowed to connect to public water. The applicant will request that connection as well as to public sewer. The Crozet CAC will also discuss the results of community feedback on bike and pedestrian connectivity.  (agenda) This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s version is supported by a shout-out for the Kindness Cafe, open for curbside pickup Wednesday through Saturday from 8 am to 11 am at the Brooks Family YMCA in McIntire Park. Visit the Kindness Cafe website to place your order. *The number of COVID-19 cases in Virginia has increased by 996 today, for a cumulative total of 101,745. Seventeen more deaths were reported today for a total of 2,344. The seven-day positive testing rate increased to 7.5 percent. The Thomas Jefferson Health District reports another 21 cases today with seven from Louisa, six from Albemarle, three from Charlottesville, three in Nelson, one in Greene and one in Fluvanna. The testing rate in this community is at 5.2 percent today, up from 5 percent yesterday. *Top officials at the University of Virginia briefed members of the community last night on their plans to reopen in early September. The Zoom Town Hall was a chance for members of greater Charlottesville to ask why UVA is going to open in the first place. “We’ve believed all along that trying to have students back and to hold classes in person is the right goal, but again, only if we can do so in a reasonably safe way,” said President Jim Ryan, adding that officials will continue to monitor many metrics, including the availability of test kits, the progression of the virus, and the capacity to isolate exposed students. These have already resulted in one decision.“Last week we announced we are delaying the return of undergraduate students by two weeks because we are concerned about the prevalence of the virus in the region and some recent volatility in the supply chain for testing materials,” Ryan said. “We are hopeful that both will improve over the coming weeks and we’re already seeing some signs of progress that make us optimistic that we’ll be able to bring students back to grounds.”Dr. Craig Kent, the chief of the medical center, said the UVA system can withstand a surge in cases.“Currently in the hospital we have about 20 to 30 of our beds filled at any given time with COVID patients,” Kent said. “Our total hospital capacity is about 700 beds. There’s no doubt that we’re very busy now with non-COVID patients. The hospital is full. We’re proud of the fact that we’re able to take care of all of these patients that need our care, but we have a number of levers that we can pull very quickly to change that capacity from non-COVID patients to COVID patients if that were to turn out to be necessary.” One of the biggest concerns people have in the community is the possibility of large gatherings of UVA students where physical distancing and facial covering protocols are not followed. Patricia Lampkin, the vice president and chief student affairs officer, said there is a tradition of students being held accountable for their actions.“Through the University Judiciary Committee, there have always been consequences for behavior that harms other people and property, whether on Grounds or in the greater Charlottesville or Albemarle community,” Lampkin said. “This year the stakes are even higher because of each of us, students, everyone, will have a direct impact on the health of others.”Lampkin said students will be asked in writing to wear masks, keeping gatherings at less than fifteen people, and to remain physically distanced.“Forgetting to wear a mask to class is a mistake,” Lampkin said. “Having a party with 50 to 100 people is more than a mistake. Such behavior will result in consequences and disciplinary actions.”Several UVA departments related to the community will move into space at the Albemarle Hotel on West Main Street to consolidate efforts. Kevin McDonald is the vice president for diversity, equity and inclusion. “Four units across UVA which include the Equity Center, the Office of the Vice Provost for Academic Outreach, the division for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion and the Office of Community Partnerships within UVA’s health system have come together to support and strengthen community partnership efforts,” McDonald said./For a longer version of the town hall, check out the next installment of the Charlottesville Quarantine Report. *This month features a key deadline for the Virginia Department of Transportation’s Smart Scale program, where projects are ranked and scored against a series of criteria. One of Albemarle County’s submissions this year would remove the existing traffic light at the intersection of U.S. 29, Frays Mill Road and Burnley Station Road. The junction would be converted to something called a “signalized restricted crossing u-turn intersection” that is intended to improve through traffic volumes.  During a public input process in the spring, 92 of 96 comments about this project were in opposition. This event is being held in response and offers an opportunity for members of the public to learn more. On June 17, Albemarle Supervisors voted 4-2 to support the project anyway, with Supervisors Ann Mallek (White Hall) and Bea LaPisto-Kirtley (Rivanna) voting against it. The meeting begins at 4 p.m and can be accessed by Zoom or by telephone. (project details) *In other government meetings tonight, the Charlottesville Planning Commission meets at 5:30 p.m. will get an update on the city’s Comprehensive Plan update, which is also to include a rewriting of the zoning code and an affordable housing policy. (register for meeting)At 6 p.m. the Albemarle Planning Commission will get an update on the county’s housing policy, which includes a recommendation that Albemarle needs 11,750 new homes by 2020 to keep up with housing demand. (register for meeting)The Greene County Board of Supervisors will also meet and will discuss the future of emergency medical services. The University of Virginia Health System recently ended a contract to provide that service for Greene. (agenda)*If a government meeting isn’t what you’re interested in participating in, the Charlottesville Business Innovation Council is holding another in their series of monthly Tech on Tap events for “tech enthusiasts to socialize, collaborate, share ideas and form professional relationships.” The virtual event begins at 5 p.m. and those who attend are eligible for happy hour discounts on delivery from Common House, this month’s virtual host. Registration details are in the newsletter. (register)And that’s it for today’s installment. Before we go, let’s check in with the Go Fund Me for the C'ville STEM: Support Schools in COVID times. UVA Doctor Sana Syed is raising funds for scientific school supplies for up to 2,100 Charlottesville families for at-home STEM research. They have about $1,000 to go! This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s burst of information begins with a message from a fundraiser called C'ville STEM: Support Schools in COVID times. UVA doctors have teamed up with schools and want your financial support for school scientific supplies for up to 2,100 children in City Schools. *The Virginia Department of Health is reporting another 663 cases of COVID-19 in the Commonwealth today, the lowest one-day total since in a month. The total is now 100,749. One more death was reported for a total of 2,327. The seven-day average for testing has dropped to 7.4 percent today. There are another 11 cases reported in the Thomas Jefferson Health District with four from Albemarle, one from Charlottesville, three from Greene, one in Fluvanna, one in Louisa and one in Nelson. *The latest model results from the UVA Biocomplexity Institute states that fourteen of Virginia’s health districts are experiencing surges of COVID-19 cases,  but the surge in the Rapidan-Rappahannock Health District has abated.  The statewide reproductive rate for the novel coronavirus is below, but is 1.174 in the Near Southwest area that includes Roanoke. The model estimates that 817,000 cases of COVID-19 have been avoided since May 15. *There are four community testing opportunities this week. First, UVA Health will hold an event from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m at the Church of Incarnation at 1465 Incarnation Drive. No appointment is required. UVA Health will hold another event Tuesday at Mount Zion First African Baptist Church at 105 Lankford Avenue from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. Both of those events will be held every week. On Wednesday, the Thomas Jefferson Health District will hold a testing event from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the Grace and Glory Lutheran Church at 683 Thomas Jefferson Parkway in Palmyra. An appointment is necessary and can be obtained by calling 434-972-6261. The TJHD will hold another event on Thursday in Scottsville at the Farmers Market from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. An appointment is also necessary. (testing site info) *University of Virginia officials will hold a town hall on Zoom tonight aimed at members of the community. Last week, UVA President Jim Ryan announced that classes would be delayed for two weeks. He made a promotional video last week that sought to explain why they will proceed. “We know that this carries some risk, but there are risks regardless of what  decision we make, including staying online all semester,” Ryan said. “There are risks for some students for whom UVA is the safest place to be, or who may face challenges learning online at home. There are risks for our employees whose jobs depend on having students on Grounds. We also know that roughly two-thirds of our students live off Grounds and outside of University housing which means thousands of students are going to be living in Charlottesville regardless of whether classes are held or not.”The Zoom Town Hall meeting will be held at 5 p.m. and has a maximum of 3,000 attendees. Register here. *Albemarle County will launch a new website today, replacing one that is nearly twenty years old. A promotional video was released last week to help people navigate the new site. The old site will be archived and made available for public use. *All year, events that celebrate parts of our community have had to be cancelled, including the Charlottesville Business Innovation Council’s annual gala in May. However, the organization plans to hold a virtual gala one month from now on September 10. They’ll hand out awards such as Startup of the Year, Innovator of the Year and Job Creator of the year. This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

This version of what’s happened and what’s scheduled comes to you with support from the Charlottesville Podcasting Network. Bringing you sounds of the community since 2005, and hoping to bring more voices forward in the next 15 years. Visit cvillepodcast.com. ***The Virginia Department of Health has reported another 2,015 new cases of COVID-19 this morning. That’s the highest one-day total since the pandemic began but VDH officials said this is the result of a technical error. “This figure includes information that should have been reported on Wednesday and Thursday of this week as well as the regular numbers for Friday,” VDH communications director Maria Reppas wrote in a release. “Late Thursday, VDH’s Office of Information Management, which helps manage VDH’s COVID-19 databases, identified and rectified the technical issue, which was a system performance configuration.”There are another 18 deaths statewide for a total of 2,317 to date. The seven day average for positive PCR tests remains at 7.3 percent for a second straight day. The Thomas Jefferson Health District reports another 49 cases today for a total of 1,894 cases to date. That consists of 19 from Albemarle, 15 from Charlottesville, five from Fluvanna, seven from Louisa, and three from Nelson. No new deaths are reported today. The seven-day average for positive tests is at 5.6 percent today.***The Albemarle Board of Supervisors has voted unanimously to remove Confederate monuments and markers from the county courthouse grounds. The county will take proposals from groups who want to take possession of the statue, cannon and stack of cannonballs. Ten people asked for the items to be removed at a public hearing. Alex Taurel with the League of Conservation Voters called them monuments to racism. “The League of Conservation Voters works to protect public lands and parks and make nature accessible for more people in this country, but recent events have highlighted that while parks and public spaces may be accessible for many folks, it doesn’t mean those spaces are safe and inclusive for all,” Taurel said. The removal was supported by several groups, such as the Charlottesville-Albemarle BAR Association. The General Assembly passed legislation this year allowing localities to remove or contextualize war memorials, paving the way for Confederate statues to be removed across Virginia. Albemarle Resident Ramona Martinez thanked the county for moving fast. “Removing these statues is not removing history or Southern culture,” Martinez said. “It is an acknowledgment that one group of people does not have claim on land that was never theirs to begin with.” Supervisor Diantha McKeel voted to remove the statue.“The at-ready Confederate statue symbolizing the effort to maintain a plantation society, slavery, white supremacy, and the tools of a war fought against the United States should not be co-located with our court facilities,” McKeel said.McKeel said that after the materials are removed, the community must still work to combat system racism. Supervisor Ned Gallaway said that many people who wrote him to support keeping the statues accused him of being “politically correct.” However, he said the ability of Albemarle to remove the statue came because people voted and the make-up of the General Assembly changed to one that no longer wanted to defend the statues as war memorials. “That is something that I see as not politically correct, but democracy in action and the way it’s supposed to work. If you want change, you go to the ballot box, you vote, and you put the folks in who are going to make the changes,” Gallaway said. Proposals for museums and historical organizations to assume possession of the materials will be accepted through September 5. The county also announced the hiring of Fentress Architects to design the $45.2 million expansion and consolidation of the city and county’s General District courts in Court Square. That construction is expected to get underway in the spring of 2022. ***The city of Charlottesville is seeking proposals for honorary names for city streets. According to a release, there is a deadline of August 31 to submit applications to honor a roadway after an individual, an organization or entity, or an “event of local significance to Charlottesville.” “The City Council believes honorary street names further the City’s commitment to create ‘a community of mutual respect’ especially when they recognize the important contributions of African-American community members both past and present in the development of the City of Charlottesville,” reads the release.Several proposals have been made this summer to honor the Black Lives Matter movement with a street designation. City Council discussed the matter at its meeting Monday night.“It’s looking like we might want to get a little bit more input since we are getting so many street naming requests at this time to do this correctly and to do this with the most transparency,” said Vice Mayor Sena Magill. Eleven streets have been given an honorary designation since 2011. A committee will sift through potential additions and make recommendations to Council at its meeting on October 19.***Today is the first day that a new intrastate bus route will come through Charlottesville on its way between Danville and D.C. The Virginia Department of Rail and Public Department is funding the daily service which is called the Piedmont Express. The service follows what the DRPT considers a successful launch of the Virginia Breeze, a route between Blacksburg and DC which is now being called the Valley Flyer. The Piedmont Express will also stop in Altavista, Lynchburg, Amherst, Culpeper, Warrenton, Gainesville, and Dulles Airport. (Virginia Breeze website)Long lines for library curbside pick-ups may soon abate. The Jefferson Madison Regional Library will extend hours for the service to serve more patrons. Monday: 1pm-7pm at all branch locationsTuesday-Saturday: 10am-4pm at Central Library, Crozet Library, Gordon Avenue Library, Northside Library, Nelson Memorial and Louisa CountyTuesday-Saturday: 10am-2pm at Scottsville Library and Greene County LibrarySunday: All branch locations closed“Library staff are working very hard to provide curbside and drive-up service, and are thrilled to be able to expand that service,” said JMRL Director David Plunkett in a release. “All returned items are quarantined for 72 hours before being put back into circulation, for the safety of staff and the public.”***A group called Come As You Are Cville will hold a clothes drive Saturday at Forest Hills Park. Anything collected will be donated to homeless members of the community. The event will be held from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. (info on Facebook)***There are no government meetings that I know about today, but please let me know if I’m incorrect. I can report that the Thomas Jefferson Planning District Commission meeting last night did not meet due to a lack of a quorum. Many parts of the region were hit by a massive storm earlier in the evening. The meeting will be rescheduled for later this month. This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s installment materializes courtesy of the French Press, open every day from 7 to 7 in Waynesboro for delicious coffee and light treats. Cool snacks, and cold and frozen bevvies. Order in advance on the @cloosiv app or call ahead 540.221.6568. See you there at the French Press!***Virginia has become the first state in the nation to roll out a mobile app intended to track COVID-19 cases and alert users if they have been close to any positive cases. Governor Ralph Northam made the announcement yesterday. "I want to be clear that this app, COVIDWISE, does not track or store your personal information," Northam said. "It does not track you at all. It does not rely on GPS or your personal information. And while we want everyone to download it, it is voluntary."Northam said people who are alerted are advised to get tested as soon as possible and to quarantine. "You are in control,” Northam said. “All of this is your choice, to download the free app and use it. But I hope Virginians across the state will use this." Northam also said rapid COVID-19 testing will come to Virginia thanks to an interstate compact entered into with several other states. The antigen tests have already been approved for use by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.“Antigen tests are different from the PCR test which is primarily what Virginia and other states use,” Northam said. “As we are seeing days [for] test results on PCR tests, we believe this compact is a way to get faster testing.”Each state hopes to purchase 500,000 antigen tests and Northam said it is intended to signal to the pharmaceutical companies that there is a demand for the tests. He said efforts to conduct contact tracing have been hampered by long delays for testing. The new test results are expected to come back within twenty minutes. “We want everyone to get tested if you think you need to,” Northam said. Dr. Keith Jones is the pastor of Shiloh Baptist Church in Norfolk. He is involved in efforts to get more people tested in Black communities and said the COVID era is shining a light on fractures in society.“It’s shown us the need to have people who sit on boards of caring agencies who actually know something about the communities that they advocate for,” Jones said. “This pandemic fixes the glaring beam on all types of racial, policing and most of all health care disparities.” Dr. Jones said more genuine efforts need to be make sure people have access to information, including boosting broadband and wi-fi efforts. He and other pastors in the Hampton Roads made a video of themselves getting tested, and are holding testing events in their churches. Governor Northam will attend a virtual town hall on the future of policing in Virginia beginning at 6 p.m. (register)***The Virginia Department of Health is reporting another 818 cases of COVID-19 this morning for a cumulative total of 95,867. Another 25 deaths have been counted for a total of 2,299. The seven day average for PCR tests has risen to 7.3 percent.  The Thomas Jefferson Health District reports another 17 cases today for a total of 1,845. There’s another seven cases from Albemarle, one in Charlottesville, one in Greene, three in Fluvanna, and two in Nelson. There are three more deaths reported for a total of 44. ***The City of Charlottesville’s Economic Development Department has announced an initiative to promote the city’s “key commercial districts.” The city will use funding from its CARES Act allocation to install signage with reminders on physical distancing, hand sanitizer stations, and to provide 5,000 facial coverings directly to businesses. On-street parking spaces that have been set aside for curbside pick-up will be made permanent, and there will be free parking in the Water and Market Street parking garages on Saturdays and Sundays through the end of the year. “Consumer driven tax revenues, such as sales, meals and lodging taxes, which are largely derived from these key corridors, comprise approximately 20% of the City’s annual revenues; making restoration of these revenues critically important,” reads a release on the initiative. ***The Madison County Board of Supervisors voted just before 2 a.m. this morning to approve a special use permit for an agri-tourism resort, according to the Madison County Eagle’s Facebook page. Orange County resident Barbara Miller had filed an application for an event center attached to a hemp farm on Route 231. Opponents said the proposed Crescere project is out of scale with the community. According to the MThe master plan for the project includes a 12,000 square foot event center, a 7,000 square foot welcome center and restaurant, and space for up to 230 overnight guests. ***The Jefferson Madison Regional Library (JMRL) will consider changing its name, as well as the name of the main meeting room in its downtown Charlottesville branch. Director David Plunkett said JMRL’s mission statement was updated to reflect an awareness of the system’s problematic past. “The public library of today strives so hard to be free and open to the public, but that was service wasn’t available for Black families for a long time in the area here so that by your bootstraps story about public libraries being a cornerstone of education for Americans to improve their lot in life wasn’t available for Black families,” Plunkett said.The first library in Charlottesville opened in 1921, but a segregated library for Black people did not open until 1934 and closed in 1948. Plunkett said the library is working with filmmaker Lorenzo Dickerson on a documentary.  He said a working group will consider the library’s naming convention and whether the current name is a barrier to access for people. Plunkett said the entire staff of the library has gone through racial awareness training using something called the Groundwater approach. “It was really eye-opening for a lot of staff to just see number after number after number that really showed a disparity in equity in this country and that opened up a conversation for us about where libraries fit into that and not only where have libraries participated in systemic inequalities in the past but also what we can to knit those together in the future,” Plunkett said.Plunkett’s comments came during a panel discussion held last night on race and representation in library collections. Meredith Dickens is JMRL’s collection manager. “We want to make sure that everyone who walks into the library sees material that fits their needs, maybe it mirrors them, allows them to see their voice in the collection and their story, but also allows them to learn about other voices and stories,” said Meredith Dickens, JMRL’s collection manager. “So even when you are a white library patron, you need to be able to learn more than about white people, so we need to make sure there is as broad a range of materials as possible.”***In government meetings today, the Albemarle Board of Supervisors will hold a public hearing at 6 p.m. on the future of Confederate representations in Court Square, the county seat and location of the general and district courts. The county has been holding a series of community engagement efforts on the topic. One of those was on July 20. Here’s UVA Historian Kirt von Daacke with some context about how the Jim Crow era got started. “The Confederacy fails after a four year attempt to create a slave-holding empire and Virginians and the locals return and support that effort,” von Daacke said. “They are unwilling to accept the social, economic, and political realities of defeat and this includes in 1865 more than 14,000 freed people. By the 1880’s they are steadfastly committed to re-imagining the war and the past The Board of Directors for the Thomas Jefferson Planning District Commission meets virtually tonight at 7 p.m. Among the items are the funding agreement for the rent and mortgage relief program the TJPDC is administering, as well as a framework for how the agency will support broadband expansion in its member counties. They’ll also consider a proposal to purchase property. (agenda) The Charlottesville school board will meet at 5 p.m. and among the items on the agenda is a discussion of childcare, special education, preschool and nutrition will be handled as the school system begins the academic year online only. (agenda) This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s installment is supported today by the Kindness Cafe, open for curbside pickup Wednesday through Saturday from 8 am to 11 am at the Brooks Family YMCA in McIntire Park. Visit the Kindness Cafe website to place your order. Health officials in the Lynchburg area called a press conference yesterday to implore people to take the COVID-19 pandemic seriously. Dr. Christopher W. Lewis is the Vice President of Medical Affairs of Centra Health, which operates hospitals and health care facilities. “I wish I could bring you good news, but I can’t,” Lewis said. “We have seen increasing numbers of individuals in the community testing positive for COVID. In the beginning of the pandemic, we were seeing at Centra on the order of single digits, one, two, or three patients or individuals testing positive per day. That number has recently drastically increased. We are seeing on the order of 30 plus individuals testing positive for COVID and that number continues to increase.”  Dr. Lewis said there were 36 hospitalized patients in Centra facilities yesterday, straining resources in the hospitals in part because COVID patients there spend an average of 20 days. He said people must wear facial coverings to stop the spread. “If you leave your place of dwelling, you need to consider potentially everyone you come into contact with as possibly having COVID,” Dr. Lewis said. “It is that widespread in our community.”  ***There are another 1,145 new cases of COVID-19 across the Commonwealth as reported by the Virginia Department of Health this morning. Another 26 deaths have been reported for a total of 2,244 to date. The seven day average for positive tests has risen back to 7.2 percent, up from 7.1 percent on Monday. Today’s figures for the Thomas Jefferson Health District were not available at publication time. ***The Charlottesville City Council held the first reading of an appropriation for $15.26 million in state and federal funding for the $31 million Belmont Bridge replacement, a project that is expected to be advertised for construction bids in the fall. “We still have a few activities left to do,” said Jeanette Janiczek, manager of the city’s Urban Construction Initiative. “We are finalizing the plans with the Federal Highway Administration as well as the Virginia Department of Transportation. I’m working on updating the Board of Architectural Review based on their Certificate of Appropriateness that we received last year. We have completed the right of way acquisition.” Construction could get underway next spring if there is a successful bidder. The original bridge opened in 1962 and the city has been planning for a replacement for several years. At one point, Council took a year to determine whether the project should be a tunnel under the railroad tracks rather than a bridge. A final vote will be held on August 17 as part of the Council’s consent agenda. ***Charlottesville City Council will meet again today at 4 p.m. for a listening session on the police department. Several members of the public told Councilors last night they were suspicious of the event because another body will not be involved. “You are having a listening session Tuesday regarding a topical matter that is most definitely in the wheelhouse of the [Police Civilian Review Board] yet not one invitation was forwarded for a PCRB rep to be part of the panel,” said Nancy Carpenter, is the social justice representative on the PCRB. “When an inquiry was made from the board chair to the Mayor the reply was that this was not a joint session, case closed.” City Councilor Michael Payne said the event was intended to be a chance for elected officials to have a broader conversation about policing in Charlottesville.“It sprung up less from the CRB and more from the conversations in Charlottesville and the rest of the country around de-funding police, re-examining policing, and trying to think through and hear from the community in specifics what does that mean,” Payne said. “What does it mean to think about next steps and concrete policy steps that can get us there. And [this is] a very basic entry point to begin the community conversation around these topics.” Vice Mayor Sena Magill said the event is a chance to hear from the entire community on the topic. The event begins at 4 p.m. ***The executive director of Jaunt continued a series of community engagement efforts to promote a new pilot project that will integrate on-demand service into existing transit services. Brad Sheffield spoke to City Council last night.“We see sometimes in the urban area that there are some inefficient or hard-to-serve area, those gaps that exist,” Sheffield said. “Sometimes we call them the first and last mile of services. It’s really hard to try to serve everybody with transit services, especially fixed route services. We’re able to look at implementing something like on-demand that would help connect those hard to reach areas with those backbone fixed-route services.”One of those hard to reach areas is the Loaves and Fishes food pantry on Lambs Road in Albemarle County. Jaunt’s pilot project will serve that area. Sheffield said he is working with Charlottesville Area Transit and the University Transit System  to integrate the on demand service with their fixed  routes. Currently all services are running adjusted services due to COVID-19, but Sheffield said the hope is to build a system that can make it more possible for people to get around the community without an automobile. ***Heavy rains and storms overnight knocked out power in many places across the community. In Greene County, more than six thousand customers of the Rappahannock Electric Cooperative were without power as of seven this morning. ***Thanks for reading today. If you benefit from this service, please consider a contribution through Patreon. This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s installment comes with help from Mead Oriental Rugs, located on 4th Street NE. Open by appointment, call 971-8077 to set up your visit. Learn more at the Instagram account Rug Merchants Daughter. *The governing body of the University of Virginia met Friday to discuss the upcoming academic year, which is set to begin on August 25. The Board of Visitors (BOV) met virtually in an open session before going into closed session. James Murray, the rector of the BOV, said teams at UVA have been working on the reopening plan for several months.“I think we have as well-conceived a plan as any university in America,” Murray said. “But we have to be clear… this boils down to whether or not we have compliance. This epidemic is going to be the ultimate test of our students and a test of what makes UVA a special place.” The protocol for students returning to Grounds requires a 14-day self-quarantine and states students “should not attend any large social events or interact with more than a few people (3-5) at a time.” Students must be tested for COVID-19 and those who do not comply cannot return. When classes begin, daily health checks are required as are face coverings. On Friday, Murray asked how many students might already be in Charlottesville. Provost Liz Magill. There is no clear answer. “Nearly 20,000 of our 25,000 students live in some off-campus arrangement,” said Liz Magill. “Most of the leases in Charlottesville start for August 1 or August 15. We will ask students to tell us where they are as part of the on-boarding process for students which requires them to demonstrate a negative test, comply for the contract we are writing for them to comply with.”Magill said Grounds itself is slowly “repopulating” with research activities, medical education, some graduate work, as well as athletic activity. J.J. Davis, executive vice president and chief operating officer, said plans are in place if someone contracts COVID-19. “Unfortunately we know how this virus works and some people may unfortunately get sick and in that result our highest duty of care is to those students living in our dormitories so we have successfully procured isolation and quarantine spaces for those individuals,” Davis said. “We are continuing to work on this question of if there is an off-Grounds student who has no options to safely isolate and quarantine, we are working on that issue as we speak.” Davis said UVA is working with the Virginia Department of Health on a protocol for contact tracing, but arrangements are a “work in progress.” A contract tracing mobile app put together by Google and VDH is expected to go live on August 5. A UVA specific app is expected to be ready by August 10. “We are going to be using an exposure native app that will be on every student’s phone,” Murray said. “It is one provided by Google and Apple. It could well be the most important thing that we do technologically. There is no way we are going to catch cases quickly and more comprehensively than this software is going to enable. I would love to see it in the hands of merchants, people that work around and in close contact with UVA students and faculty. We’re not there yet but it’s possible. It’s not that difficult to do. If we can actually get it in the hands of several thousand people that are those most in close contact like bartenders, those kinds of people, grocery store clerks, we can go a long way, not to prevent the disease but to catching it very quickly and catching everybody that is exposed.” Davis said there are multiple contingency plans in place if there are outbreaks. The BOV next meets on August 17. (UVA Public Health Measures page)***The Virginia Department of Health is reporting an additional 1,324 cases of COVID-19  this morning, but reports no new fatalities. The seven day average for positive tests is at 7.1 percent, down from 7.2 percent. There are 44 news cases reported in the Thomas Jefferson Health District today for a total of 1,793 to date. Of those, 17 are from Albemarle, 16 are from Charlottesville, nine are from Greene, one is from Fluvanna County and one is from Louisa.  ***The latest COVID-19 forecast model from the University of Virginia’s Biocomplexity Institute states that the surge of cases in the Thomas Jefferson Health District has abated, but warns that the Commonwealth is on track to have 13,000 new cases a week by early September. The statewide reproduction rate for the novel coronavirus is below the figure of 1, but is above 1 in far and near southwest Virginia. The model estimates that 827,377 cases of COVID-19 have been avoided since May 15. “While cases are surging in Hampton Roads, the model does not project that hospital capacity will be overwhelmed during the projection window,” reads the model. The update comes out every Friday. (model)***The Thomas Jefferson Health District is holding two COVID-19 testing events this week. One will take place on Wednesday at the Nelson Heritage Center in Arrington from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. The other happens Saturday from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Innovage Virginia PACE at 1335 Carlton Avenue in Charlottesville.  Both events require appointments and those can be booked at 434-972-6261. ***The Board of Trustees of the Jefferson-Madison Regional Library has voted to keep their facilities closed to the public for now, but will consider adding more curbside pickup hours. The Board met Friday in a virtual meeting and made the move to remain within Tier 4 of the library’s COVID-19 response.  ***In government meetings today, the owners of a shopping center near Forest Lakes on U.S. 29 are seeking a rezoning to allow for an expansion onto property not currently developed. The Albemarle Community Development will hold the required information meeting for the application. The property was rezoned from residential in 1989 and the current project seeks to increase the maximum building size allowed to 110,000 square feet. Currently a maximum of 71,800 is allowed and there is only 14,778 square feet left. (rezoning narrative)“This rezoning application seeks to increase the allowable square footage on this property and to amend the application to allow for something that is different from suburban strip mall design,” reads the narrative for the proposal. The Albemarle Comprehensive Plan designated the land as “urban mixed-use community center.” (meeting access information)The virtual meeting begins at 6 p.m. The land is within the coverage area of the Places29-North Community Advisory Committee. Charlottesville City Council meets at 6:30 p.m. for what should be a shorter meeting than the July 20 meeting, which lasted until 2:30 in the morning. The main item on the agenda is an appropriation of  $15,263,257.41 for the Belmont Bridge replacement, a project that has been in the planning stages for at least ten years. The entire Belmont Bridge project now has a cost of $31.1 million, and $13 million of that is expected from the city. That includes a $5 million payment in the current year’s capital improvement program (CIP), $2.5 million in next year’s CIP and $4.8 million in other funds the city has saved for the project.  The city is currently negotiating right of way for the project and construction could begin next spring. (July 20 update)Following that item, the CEO of Jaunt will present Council with an update on his agency’s pilot project to deliver on-demand transit within the region. Brad Sheffield presented that information to the Board of Supervisors on July 15. ***Thanks for reading or listening. If you learned something from this service, please send it on to a friend. And consider supporting us through Patreon. This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s episode is supported by the Kindness Cafe, open for curbside pickup Wednesday through Saturday from 8 am to 11 am at the Brooks Family YMCA in McIntire Park. Visit the Kindness Cafe website to place your order. *The school boards in Albemarle and Charlottesville have both voted to proceed with virtual instruction for the first nine weeks of school year, though some Albemarle students will attend in-person if they have either special needs, are learning English, or do not have any access to the Internet.  This is known as Stage 2 of the county’s reopening plan and was recommended in part out of a concern that there is not enough testing capacity. “This is of concern,” said Rosalyn Schmitt, chief operating officer for Albemarle County Public Schools. “Access to testing remains limited and those that are tested are seeing much longer delays in the results and we know a key strategy of keeping our students and staff safe will be able to identify cases quickly and isolate them and quarantine them quickly, and our testing will not allow that.” Two-thirds of staff who responded to a survey said they did not feel comfortable with returning to school. However, two-thirds of parents surveyed said they wanted schools to open. Superintendent Matt Haas recommended Stage 2 at this time, and any returning staff and teachers would be volunteers. After being presented with the options, School Board Member Katrina Callsen made the motion to move forward with Stage 2.“I move that the Albemarle County Public School institute Stage 2 to begin the 2020/2021 school year encompassing the first nine week marking period and further that four and a half weeks prior to the end of the marking period the superintendent shall make a recommendation to either continue stage 2 or initiate the educational program of another stage for the following marking period,” Callsen said. School Board Member Ellen Osborne said she could not support Stage 2.“I just don’t feel like I can put our most vulnerable students into the middle of a grand experiment and then have them take that home to their communities which are already being disproportionately affected,” Osborn said. The motion passed four to three, with School Board Member Dave Oberg changing his vote from initially voting against it. In Charlottesville, the School Board voted unanimously to proceed with an online option. They did so after a long public comment period. Both communities will begin online learning on September 8. *There are another 984 new cases of COVID-19 in Virginia today, for a cumulative total of 89,988. The death toll rose by another 33 fatalities today for a cumulative total of 2,174. The seven day positive testing rate remains at 7.2 percent for a second day. The numbers for the Thomas Jefferson Health District were not available at recording time. *The organization that encourages and promotes the humanities in the Commonwealth will move its headquarters to the redeveloped Dairy Central building at the corner of Preston Avenue and 10th Street. Virginia Humanities is moving to the location in part because it is more centrally located and will allow more space for public discussions. Dairy Central a redevelopment of the old Monticello Dairy building, itself a protected historic building whose facade was required to remain intact. The property in the 10th and Page neighborhood is being redeveloped by Stony Point Design Build. During the review process, some in the neighborhood noted the potential for gentrification. “We’re conscious of this history and we are also aware of the positive and negative impacts that a development like Dairy Central can have on a neighborhood,” said Virginia Humanities Executive Director Matthew Gibson. “We want to be an asset to the community and be good and collaborative neighbors.” The $1.7 million move will take place early next year, and has been delayed due to COVID-19. (release)*When students return to Grounds for classes at the University of Virginia, they will be asked to use public transit only when necessary. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, buses on the University Transit System are restricted to no more than 20 passengers who must also use the rear doors. On August 3, routes will also change and buses will not run down McCormick Road, the main roadway through central Grounds. There will also be changes to parking, with some annual spaces being converted into hourly, weekly or monthly permits. “For those who want to park by the day or the week, we will have new online options for people to purchase these virtual permits with their credit cards,” said Parking and Transportation Director Becca White in an interview with UVA Today. “The customers supply their license plate numbers online, which will be fed into the license plate recognition system on our enforcement vehicles. People who use the meters and the Parkmobile application are already doing this.”Employees are also being encouraged to telework if they can. That strategy was already being implemented as part of a transportation demand management plan adopted in 2019. (transit routes)*The Board of Trustees for the Jefferson-Madison Regional Library will hold a special session today to conclude their discussion about when they can move to a new tier in their COVID-19 response. Currently some libraries are open for curbside pick-up under Tier 4, but the Board will continue a conversation about moving to Tier 3, which would allow people to come into the library under appointment. The meeting begins at 3 p.m. (agenda)Are you enjoying this service? Please consider supporting our Patreon account. This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s installment of information comes to you with support from Rapture, open for takeout or outside dining only on Charlottesville’s downtown mall. Visit them on Facebook to learn more. There are another 999 new cases of COVID-19 in Virginia today for a total of 87,993. Yesterday the number of new cases was 922 and on Sunday it was 1,505. The seven-day positive testing rate is at 7.1 percent. The numbers for the Thomas Jefferson Health District were not available at recording time. *Governor Ralph Northam has announced he is imposing further restrictions on the Hampton Roads area to stop increases of new cases there. Virginia’s seven-day positive testing rate is stable in four out of five regions.“Overall the rate is 10.8 percent positive,” Northam said. “As of yesterday, test positivity rates in Chesapeake, Norfolk, Suffolk, Portsmouth and Hampton ranged from 9.9 percent to 18.6 percent.”To combat the trend, Northam has issued an executive order that will take effect July 31 at midnight that would stop alcohol sales on-site after ten p.m. and all restaurants must close at midnight.“This effectively closes all bars,” Northam said. Indoor dining will be restricted to 50 percent of capacity and gatherings are capped at 50 people, or what was in place during Phase 2 of the Forward Virginia plan. On Monday, Albemarle and Charlottesville took that step for themselves due to local concerns. “This is about stopping the spread of COVID-19 in Hampton Roads,” Northam said. “It happens when too many people gather, when too many people are non compliant, and as I’ve said before, when too many people are selfish.” More from Governor Northam can be heard in the next installment of the Charlottesville Quarantine Report. *Delegate Sam Rasoul of Roanoke announced over the weekend that he and his wife have tested positive for COVID-19. He said his family likely contracted the disease after meeting with a relative on a family trip. “I’m on day 13,” Rasoul said on July 28. “I started feeling symptoms that included fatigue, fever, and most concerning was the kind of chest pressure as you’re not sure what direction it’s going to head in.”Rasoul said he believes he is on the mend. He is calling for more rapid testing to help people know if they are asymptomatic and spreading the disease. The delegate said it’s important for people to remain careful.“We let our guard down around an asymptomatic family member who subsequently tested positive and that’s unfortunately how we got it,” Rasoul said. That family member had tested at a pharmacy, but those results do not usually come back for ten to fourteen days. Delegate Rasoul said he is preparing for the August 18 special session of the General Assembly, and he said police reform will be a major issue. More from this interview will be in an upcoming episode of the Charlottesville Quarantine Report.*The Greene Board of Supervisors has voted to withdraw from the Rapidan Service Authority, paving the way for the county to take over planning and implementation for a new reservoir. Last week, the RSA Board voted 4 to 2 to end the collection of facility fees to pay for the project, which has a cost estimate between $45 million and $60 million. Mark B. Taylor is the Greene County administrator. “Greene County’s water supply project must proceed for existing customers and for future growth alike,” said county administrator Mark B. Taylor. “We must get this water supply project done. The problem on July 16 was that the RSA Board did not apply its usual rule of deference in dealing with Greene County.”Greene is in the RSA with Madison and Orange counties,. In a press release issued on July 16, RSA said the project was supposed to have been built by 2008, so the facilities fee should not be collected. Taylor said that was false. “RSA’s website doesn’t quite fully describe reality,” Taylor said. “The RSA doesn’t really work like a partnership, advancing one shared purpose. RSA is really more like a confederation of three counties using the water and waste authorities act to serve the needs of their communities. RSA keeps separate books for each county that it serves. It even keeps separate books for each system that it operates in each of the member localities.”The Board of Supervisors voted unanimously on a resolution to begin the process of leaving the RSA. Read the story on the Greene County Record for all of the details on this action. * Even in the middle of summer, development continues. Albemarle County Community Development will host a community meeting for a rezoning proposed for 5258 Three Notch’d Road. Developer Katurah Roell is requesting a rezoning of 14.259 acres from rural area to Neighborhood Model District for the creation of a new neighborhood. However, the land is not within the jurisdiction of the Albemarle County Service Authority. Currently only the existing structure on the property is allowed to connect to public water. The applicant will request that connection as well as to public sewer. (meeting info)*Later this afternoon, the Albemarle Charlottesville Historical Society will present two showings of the 1930 version of the World War I classic All Quiet on the Western Front at the Paramount with showtimes at 3 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. In between, the Charlottesville Municipal Band Brass Quintet will play on the society’s front lawn beginning at 4:30 p.m. until 6 p.m. Details on the society’s web page. This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s sense of what’s going on is brought to you by the College Inn, a place that is ready to bring you a variety of food and beverages throughout Charlottesville via delivery. That includes ice cream! Place your order online at thecollegeinn.com or phone 977-2710. *Both the Albemarle County Board of Supervisors and Charlottesville City Council will convene today in special meetings to discuss moving each jurisdiction back into Phase 2 of the Forward Virginia plan. Supervisors go first at 3 p.m. with consideration of a new emergency ordinance to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus. The Board met last Wednesday and discussed the matter for several hours, before delaying the vote. Now they’ll vote on an emergency ordinance that would require facial covering in all indoor public places and limit the number of people at outdoor gatherings to 50, with some exceptions. That’s what the restrictions were when Virginia was in Phase 2 in mid-June. The exceptions include churches, weddings, restaurants and wineries, as well as “expressive activity on a public street, public sidewalk, in a public park subject to park rules, and on other public property expressly designated for expressive activity by its governmental owner or occupant.”  The Albemarle ordinance if adopted would be in effect from August 1 to September 30. (ordinance)Charlottesville City Council will convene at 4 p.m. for its special meeting on an emergency ordinance. Albemarle Supervisors had discussed wanting to know if the city planned to impose more stringent restrictions than the state. The city’s ordinance mirrors the county’s with some differences. (city ordinance) The Louisa County Board of Supervisors also has a special meeting called for 3 p.m. today, but no agenda is available. The Jefferson Madison Regional Library Board of Trustees also meets at 3 p.m. for a regular meeting. All library spaces have been closed to the public since March. *Over the weekend, Virginia added another 2,203 new COVID-19 cases according to the Virginia Department of Health. The number of fatalities rose to 2,078 and the seven-day positive testing rate remained steady for three days at 7.5 percent. In the Thomas Jefferson Health District, another 49 cases were reported for a total of 1,600. On Sunday, the 7-day positive rate was at 6.7 percent. *An epidemiological model put together by the University of Virginia’s Biocomplexity Institute projects that will have around 15,000 new COVID-19 cases each week by early September. This week the number of new cases was 7,137 between Monday and Sunday, up from 6,760 the week before. The latest weekly report from the Biocomplexity Institute states that 12 of Virginia’s Health Districts are experiencing a surge in cases, including the Rapphannock-Rapidan District. The report states that 752,188 cases of COVID-19 have been avoided in Virginia so far but that could change is physical distancing continues to wane. "Cell phone data indicates that Virginians are increasingly returning to work and visiting local businesses, almost at prepandemic levels," reads the July 24 report. "This is good news, if residents and businesses follow the guidance in the Forward Virginia plan." (UVA Model)A fourth year football player at the University of Virginia has tested positive for COVID-19, reports the Daily Progress. T.J. Kitts of Tazewell had posted his result on Twitter but has since deleted the post. (Daily Progress article)* The Albemarle School Board will hold another virtual town hall meeting at 6 p.m. this evening to take comment and provide information about different options for the upcoming school year. Two previous sessions are recorded on the county’s website. (register here) On Wednesday, the Greene County School Board will hold a special meeting to vote on pushing back the beginning of the school year to September 8. The Greene County Record and Daily Progress report that more than a hundred teachers and parents have sent a letter to the school board requesting an online only option. *Albemarle County will hold a webinar at noon on the Lift Grant program which is expected to provide funding to up to 100 small businesses in the community. The initiative is part of how the county is using its allocation of the federal CARES Act. (register)*Thanks for reading. This begins the third week of a daily newsletter I’m putting together to try to make sense of a lot of information in these changing times. If you have information you’d like to share, or would like to support the programming, please contact me. Please send this on to anyone you think would be interested. This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

This burst of words and soundbites comes to you courtesy of Rapture, open outside only on the Downtown Mall for lunch, drinks and dinner, with brunch served Friday through Sunday. But only if you feel safe. Take-out options available. *The Virginia Department of Health is reporting another 1,127 cases of COVID-19 today, the highest such number in the past month.  However, the seven-day positive rate declined to 7.5 percent, down from 7.7 percent yesterday. The number of deaths has increased by 13 to a total of 2,067. Of those, nearly 50 percent of the deceased were over the age of 80, a quarter were between 70 and 79, 15 percent between 60 and 69, 6.2 percent between 50 and 59 and 2.7 percent between 40 and 49.  The numbers for the Thomas Jefferson Health District were not available at recording time.  (VDH dashboard)There have now been over 4 million cases in the United States  and at over 143,000 deaths. According to a report on CNN, Johns-Hopkins University reported its first case six months ago on January 21, and it took 99 days to reach a million cases. The nation reached two million cases on June 10, three million cases on July 8, and now…. Four million. How long until we reach five million as a nation? The Albemarle Board of Supervisors will hold a special meeting on Monday at 3:00 p.m. to take up an ordinance that would allow the county to return to Phase 2 of the Forward Virginia Plan. Supervisors discussed the matter at length on Wednesday and will provide a summary of that meeting by Monday morning. Subscribe to the Charlottesville Quarantine Report podcast for more. (agenda)*The Albemarle School Board held the first of three town hall meetings yesterday on the reopening plan for the upcoming academic year. At the beginning of the meeting, Dr. Denise Bonds of the Thomas Jefferson Health District said she was concerned about the future availability of COVID-19 testing.“Test resulting is delayed,” Bonds said. “It is now taking somewhere between five and 14 days to get rest results back from commercial labs because of the increased demand that’s being caused in the southern half of our nation and the large outbreaks that we’re seeing there.”On Wednesday, Bonds told the Albemarle Board of Supervisors that the University of Virginia Health System appeared to be backing out of a commitment to help cover the costs of community testing. However, she had this news on Thursday.“UVA continues to assist us,” Dr. Bonds said. “I think we’ve got a workaround. If you listened to the Board meeting yesterday there were some concern because the state will not pay for the test that UVA does so I think we’ve come up with a non-ideal but a functional work-around to move forward so that we can continue to use that valuable asset as we refer to it as having people from UVA out and testing in the community.” Sentara Martha Jefferson has confirmed they will “temporarily discontinue” testing events in the community. Yesterday they held such an event at Washington Park but no others are scheduled. In a release, the company stated that it is making the move to preserve resources. “The number of hospitalized and emergency room patients requiring testing is increasing and our laboratories daily capacity, due to restrictions on the supply of tests, are not able to meet the community testing needs at this time,” reads the July 23 release. The release goes on to state that Sentara Martha Jefferson has provided more than 650 tests to the community, with 35 positives. More tests are currently being processed by the hospital. The Thomas Jefferson Health District currently has three testing events scheduled for next week. On Monday morning they will be at Agnor-Hurt Elementary in Albemarle. On Wednesday morning, they will be at Louisa County High School, and on Thursday morning they will be at the Earlysville Fire Department. You’ll need to call 434-972-6261 to schedule an appointment. (VDH page on testing sites)As for Albemarle County schools, the second of three town halls will be held this afternoon at 2 p.m. and will be hosted by School Board members Katrina Callsen and Ellen Osborne. Monday’s meeting at 6 p.m. will be hosted by Judy Le and Katrina Callsen. (meeting information)*Across the Commonwealth, more school systems are considering a pathway of online only for at least the beginning of the school year. Loudoun County voted earlier this week to not hold classes in person. York County’s superintendent is recommending the division go with remote learning for the first nine weeks, according to the Daily Press. That county’s school board will vote on July 30. Dr. Bonds did not offer a recommendation on what Albemarle should do, but said that if classes are held in-person, facial covering must be normalized and contact between students must be limited. She gave this advice. “If school is to be held in season, to really work on cohorting kids in small groups and limit the use of shared spaces. So small groups of students that stay in their classroom, go out to the playground together, and try and bring resources to the students. Can meals be brought to the student classroom. With library time, is there a way to bring those books be brought to the student classroom? And then if you are in a situation where normally students would rotate to different classrooms, can you instead in the same classroom, rotate faculty between?” *Last night, the three Places29 Community Advisory Council met virtually and got an update on development in Albemarle County’urban area. For instance, County planner said there are currently 365 units in the site plan review process for North Pointe. North Pointe was originally rezoned in 2006 but has not been under construction until recently. Other topics included the status of a new Autozone slated for U.S. 29 north of Greenbrier Drive, what’s going on with an office complex at the corner of Georgetown Road and Hydraulic Road, and a full update on transportation projects in the area. One of them will eventually connect the UVA Research Park directly to Hollymead Town Center by extending Berkmar Drive northward. Transportation planner Kevin McDermott explains. “We have the Lewis and Clark Extension that brings you down to Airport Road but as those folks that go up there know, currently Berkmar doesn’t make it all the way up to Airport Road,” McDermott said. “What we’re trying to do with that project is continue that all the way up to Airport Road where it will be at an intersection with what has been known as Innovation Drive and construct a roundabout there.”This project is called for in the Places29 Master Plan and is the county’s fifth transportation priority. McDermott said the Virginia Department of Transportation will reveal soon whether the Berkmar project will be funded. (Albemarle County Transportation Priorities 2019 update) This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s edition materializes thanks to the French Press, open every day from 7 to 7 in Waynesboro for delicious coffee and light treats. Cool snacks, and cold and frozen bevvies. Order in advance on the @cloosiv app or call ahead 540.221.6568. See you there at the French Press? *The number of new cases of COVID-19 in Virginia reported today is 844, a lower number than in recent days. There are another three deaths for a total of 2,054. The rolling seven-day average of positive PCR tests had dropped two tenths of a percentage point to 7.7 percent. All localities in the Thomas Jefferson Health District reported COVID-19 cases today for a total of 47. That breaks down to 24 new cases in Albemarle, 14 in Charlottesville, three in Greene, three in Fluvanna, two in Louisa and one in Nelson. The 7-day positive testing rate in the TJHD is 6.5 percent today, up one from yesterday. The VDH has also began releasing more historical records in the online data portal. Until now, the VDH has only been presenting each day’s information as a snapshot. * The Albemarle Board of Supervisors on Wednesday discussed measures to help stop further spread of COVID-19 but stopped short of adopting an emergency measure to adopt “necessary regulations to prevent the spread of contagious diseases” which would go beyond what has been authorized by Governor Ralph Northam. Virginia entered into phase 3 of the Forward Virginia plan on July 1, which allowed for indoor restaurant dining and gathering of up to 250 people. Phase 2 places that at 50, and Phase 1 capped it at ten. Some Supervisors have expressed concern that staying in phase 3 will lead to more spread, especially as more University of Virginia students return to the community. After a lengthy discussion, they opted not to adopt the ordinance yet but to further refine some of the potential restrictions. Jeff Richardson is the Albemarle County Executive. (proposed emergency ordinance)“So there is consensus with this board to move forward and unless there is a special meeting of this board, we will come back on August 5 and you will take a formal note at your regular meeting on August 5 to adopt this local emergency ordinance,” Richardson said. Supervisor Donna Price said the pause will allow more time to make sure the ordinance is correct and that similar measures can be put in place by the city of Charlottesville and UVA. “And while I don’t believe that we’re waiting on permission from anyone else I think it’s very helpful to coordinate as much as we can with the city of Charlottesville and UVA,” Price said. For full coverage of the emergency ordinance, read Allison Wrabel’s story in the Daily Progress.*Sentara Martha Jefferson will hold a free testing event at Washington Park from 5 to 7 p.m. This event is intended for “communities of color” and registration is not required.  Dr. Denise Bonds of the Thomas Jefferson Health District told the Board of Supevrisors said both Sentara Martha Jefferson and UVA have helped with testing so far, but the future is not clear.  “I had hoped that UVA would be stepping into the role starting in the next week or so where they would do regular testing events in our community on our behalf,” Bonds said. “They had a plan set up… I got an email last night from the executive vice president of health affair that I think is going to put this in jeopardy.” Dr. Bonds said the plan had been for UVA to pick up the cost of their own staff time and material costs, but that may no longer be the case. The health director also said that Sentara Martha Hospital has notified her they will not be able to do community testing events after this week. “So what went from really widespread testing availability for our community members has now dropped down to our testing team and the CVS commercial sites. And while I think it’s very great that CVS is willing to do it. I will just say that they send it to Quest Labs and you won’t get your result back for ten days. And that is useless. That doesn’t help me if it takes ten days to get a test result back.”We have asked for comment from both the University of Virginia Health System as well as Sentara Martha Jefferson and will bring you more in a future installment. More on this topic on the next episode of the Charlottesville Quarantine Report. *The director of Science, Engineering and STEM for Charlottesville City Schools has teamed up with a pediatrics professor at the University of Virginia to raise money for education supplies for families who may not have the resources. Nigel Standish and Sana Syed are seeking to raise $30,000 to build boxes with measuring tape, scissors, thermometers, and other scientific tools. According to their Go Fund Me page, this would help provide a full year’s materials for families in need whose children attend the city’s six elementary schools. (Go Fund Me page)*Today is a quiet day in government meetings. Three separate groups that make up the Places29 Community Advisory Committee will hold a virtual meeting at 630 p.m. to be introduced to Albemarle’s new planning director. Charles Rapp recently took over the position after serving in a similar role for the town of Culpeper. In an email sent to Community Engagement yesterday, he said the county is getting ready for a transportation study of the Rio Road area. Several developments have been opposed by nearby residents who have concerns about traffic issues. Some of them will have the chance to raise questions at this meeting. There will also be updates on the county’s development dashboards, which are intended to give people a sense of how many more new buildings are on the way. (agenda)Tomorrow, Preservation Virginia will hold a free webinar on “The Role of Historic Preservation in Recovering from the COVID-19 Pandemic.” The event begins at 10 a.m. and registration is required. (register) This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s edition of the program is sponsored by Mead Oriental Rugs, located on 4th Street NE. Open by appointment, call 971-8077 to set up your visit. Learn more at the Instagram account Rug Merchants Daughter. *The Virginia Department of Health has posted another 996 new COVID-19 cases this morning, and the seven-day positive rate for all testing encounters has risen to 8.2 percent statewide, up from 7.7 on Monday. VDH reports another 17 deaths for a cumulative total of 2,048.  Another death has been reported in the Thomas Jefferson Health District for a cumulative total of 30. The TJHD reports 26 new COVID cases with ten in Albemarle, six in Charlottesville, four in Greene, five in Fluvanna, and one in Nelson. The positive test percentage for all testing encounters is 6.7 percent, down one tenth of a percentage point from yesterday. *There are no scheduled public COVID-19 mass-testing events today, but several are coming up in the days to come. Free drive-through tests will be offered on Wednesday in Nelson County at the Rockfish River Elementary School from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. Appointments are required and you can call 434-972-6261 today. Drive-through tests will be conducted in Fluvanna County at the Kents Store ARC Community Center. Also call 434-972-6261 to sign up. Sentara Martha Jefferson will hold a free event at Washington Park on Thursday from 5 to 7 p.m. This event is intended for “communities of color” and registration is not required.  *Charlottesville City Council concluded their meeting last night at around 2:30 a.m. after a full meeting that will take another day to get through. Earlier in the evening, Council agreed to proceed with a funding request to redevelop the intersection of Preston and Grady, along with three other transportation projects. Council voted 3-2 on a motion to proceed with Smart Scale applications that are due in early August. Several nearby residents had asked for the Preston/Grady project to be put on hold. Vizena Howard is the president of the 10th and Page Neighborhood and she said that nearly 300 signatures were collected opposing the project. "I believe that rerouting the traffic through Grady Avenue is an error with which a high volume of traffic would create additional congestion issues for residents on the adjacent side of the street," Howard said. "And I believe it's important more than ever that those in positions of power to be listening to residents who have long lived in this neighborhood," Howard said.City traffic engineer Brennan Duncan explained he did not think vehicles would be pushed onto Grady Avenue because many want to get elsewhere. He said future development on Preston Avenue as well as the redeveloped Dairy Central require the intersection to be reconfigured. He said the current configuration is flawed."We know the history of it and we know that when Preston happened it did separate the historically African American community of 10th and Page from Washington Park," Duncan said. "Reducing this back down to one intersection and one light where we can control pedestrian crossings I think is a huge benefit for trying to reconnect that community to the park that was historically theirs."The Preston project was supported by Mayor Nikuyah Walker and Councilors Lloyd Snook and Heather Hill. Vice Mayor Sena Magill and Councilor Michael Payne opposed it. Payne said the Smart Scale process itself needs to be reviewed. "I think it tends to promote urban sprawl, it is a flawed process, granted its out of our control, and this is the kind of thing where if we were to approve it tonight it's still ten years until anything even begins to happen and  if we didn't approve it that could be fourteen or fifteen years maybe even longer than that," Payne said. "My concern is about what happens with the institutional inertia of this process and outside out of our intentions about the future of the corridor, what will actually happen." The Smart Scale applications next go before the Metropolitan Planning Organization’s Policy Board at their meeting on Wednesday. *In other city infrastructure news, the construction on the Belmont Bridge is now expected to begin in spring of 2021. City transportation staffer Jeannete  Janiczek sent an email that stated Council will be briefed on funding for the project. There are $5 million in the current year’s Capital Improvement Program to pay for previous design work, which has been in process since 2010. There is also a plan in the works to create sixty temporary parking spaces to replace that will be lost under the bridge. (update)*The developer of a proposed 370-unit apartment and townhouse complex near Forest Lakes on U.S. 29 had the chance Monday to share details of the plan in a public community meeting. RST Development of Virginia Beach purchased the Ridgewood Mobile Home Park and a former motel last fall for around $6 million and are seeking a rezoning for more residential density. Valerie Long of the firm Williams Mullen represents RST Development. “We’re proposing a maximum of 370 units which is comprised of 254 apartments and 108 townhome units,” Long said. One member of the public asked what would happen to the residents of the mobile home park. Long said there are plans to address their future housing needs.“Our project team has been working very closely with them since they purchased the property in November,” Long said. “Some may know that it was under common ownership and management by a prior owner for over thirty years and he was managing it for over 30 years all along to our understanding and Scott and Todd at RST Development started meeting with him. One of the first things he cared about the most was that the residents in the community had plenty of time to make another arrangements and not be displaced on short notice.”Long said residents have until November to find a place, but RST Development is willing to grant an extension. The rezoning will now move on to the Planning Commission for a public hearing in the near future. *In today’s meetings, the Greene County Board of Supervisors will have an emergency meeting tonight at 6:30 p.m. to discuss the decision last week by the Rapidan Service Authority to take away Greene’s administration of a plan to create a reservoir. The Albemarle Economic Development Authority meets at 4 p.m. for a virtual meeting. There will be a presentation on the CvilleBioHub from executive director Nikki Hastings, an update on business relief funding through the CARES Act, and a resolution to transfer grant money to WillowTree related to their move to the redeveloped Woolen Mills. There will also be a review of the Albemarle Community Survey.  There are two public hearings on the agenda for the Albemarle County Planning Commission. In the first, a change in the zoning ordinance is being reviewed to allow landscape contractors to operate within the rural area. (staff report) In the second, Stanley Martin is seeking changes to the proffers for Spring Hill Village, a planned 100-unit community off of Avon Street Extended. They are seeking changes to the transportation improvements agreed upon at the rezoning in the fall of 2014. (staff report) This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Today is the 51st anniversary of the first people stepping foot on the moon. Today’s installment comes to you from Rapture, now serving lunch and dinner on Charlottesville’s Downtown Mall weather permitting. Open from noon to nine Tuesday through Saturday, visit Rapture on Facebook to learn more. *There have now been nearly a million COVID-19 tests conducted in the Commonwealth, according to data from the Virginia Department of Health. On Saturday and Sunday the number of new cases increased by around a thousand each day, and the 7-day positive percentage rate for all testing encounters rose to 7.6 percent as of Sunday, up from 6.6 percent on July 12. The Thomas Jefferson Health District added another 41 cases and the positive percentage rate for all tests is at 7.1 percent as of Sunday. According to the latest COVID-19 model run by the University of Virginia Biocomplexity Institute, the Thomas Jefferson Health District is experiencing a “surge in cases.” That’s the same case with the Pittsylvania-Danville District and eight health districts in the Hampton Roads area. The reproduction rate for the novel coronavirus statewide is at 1.137. Numbers higher than 1 represent the possibility for community spread. The model, which was released Friday, estimates that 656,034 cases of COVID-19 have been avoided since May 15 due to physical distancing and facial covering protocols. (July 17 report)***The expansion of Greene County’s water supply appeared to be heading toward construction but an action taken Thursday by a regional body with jurisdiction over the matter calls that future into question. According to the Greene County Record, the Rapidan Service Authority voted 4-2 to “assume leadership” of the process to determine the future of the water supply plan mandated by Virginia law. They also effectively overturned a decision last week by the Greene County Board of Supervisors to increase facility fees to help pay for the White Run Reservoir project which has an estimated total cost of between $45 million and $60 million.  The five-member Greene BOS will hold a special emergency meeting Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. to receive information about the project. (agenda) (Greene County record story)***A thirty-year old Albemarle County man is dead following a crash Saturday evening at the intersection of 5th Street Extended and Harris Road. Charlottesville police have identified Dustin Ryan Parr as the deceased. According to a press release, Albemarle Police were called to a crash at U.S. 250 and Hunter’s Way where a Toyota pickup truck had fled the scene. Several people called 911 to report the vehicle “driving erratically at numerous locations.” At ten to seven, the truck collided with a sedan at the 5th Street and Harris intersection and the driver of the truck died. *** Albemarle County will hand out free masks and facial coverings this week at several locations. If you or someone you know is interested, the procedure is to drive up, roll down the passenger side window, and a member of staff will place the item in the passenger seat. Today’s event is from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m at the Greenwood Community Center. Tuesday’s will take place at the same time at the  Free Union Country School, Wednesday’s at Barracks West, and Thursday’s at the Covenant School on Hickory Street. On Friday, staff will give out free masks at the Crossroad Country Store from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and at the Yancey School Community Center from 2 to 6. ***Ridership is down on transit vehicles, but the head of the one agency is preparing for a future in which it is easier for people to call buses to pick them up closer to their home. Last week, Jaunt CEO Brad Sheffield began an educational campaign for a new on-demand service he would like to see integrated among Jaunt, Charlottesville Area Transit and the University Transit System. Sheffield shopped the idea around to the Board of Supervisors last week. “I’m hearing some similar ideas popping up here and there and so as it is the case, we sometimes see duplicate efforts and there’s no cross-communication and that ends up wasting a lot of resources and time,” Sheffield said. Jaunt has applied for a federal grant to help pursue the idea and a pilot project is under way to help people get to the Loaves and Fishes food pantry on Lambs Road. “This on-demand initiative looks at shaping schedules around the actual requests that come through so over time we’re able to better response more immediately to those needs,” Sheffield said. Sheffield will make the same presentation with the Charlottesville City Council on August 3 and the Charlottesville Planning Commission on August 11. ***It’s a busy day for virtual government meetings today. There will be a community meeting tonight at 6:30 p.m. in Albemarle County for a proposed rezoning that would replace a mobile home court and motel on U.S. 29 near Forest Lakes with 370 new residents. RST of Virginia Beach purchased the land for about $6 million last October. (site plan) (register for meeting)City Council has a packed agenda with action on four transportation projects, a rezoning in Fry’s Spring, and allocation of $2.29 million in funding for nonprofit agencies. There are two requests to amend city code. One would ban the “possession, carrying, or transportation of firearms, ammunition, or components or combinations in certain public spaces.” The General Assembly passed enabling legislation to allow such prohibitions earlier this year. In the other, the city would make June 19 an official holiday to mark Juneteenth. Another item on the agenda would request legislation to give more subpoena powers to police civilian review boards. (resolution) This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s assemblage of pertinent information is brought to you by the College Inn, a place that is ready to bring you a variety of food and beverages throughout Charlottesville via delivery. That includes ice cream! Place your order online at thecollegeinn.com or phone 977-2710. *Virginia’s COVID-19 death toll is now 2,007 based on new information released this morning. The Virginia Department of Health reports another 904 new cases today, and reported 1,084 new cases on Wednesday. That brings the total number of cases to 74,431. The statewide 7-day positive percentage for all testing encounters has increased to 7.1 percent. Updated figures from the Thomas Jefferson Health District were unavailable at recording time. *The Albemarle Board of Supervisors is considering sending a letter to Governor Ralph Northam asking for permission for the county to move back to Phase 2 of the Forward Virginia plan, which would reduce the size of allowed public gatherings from 200 people to 50. It would also close indoor dining. Supervisor Ann Mallek is concerned there will be a spike in cases.“I would encourage everybody to think about whether we really want to be in phase 3,” said Ann Mallek. Supervisor Diantha McKeel shared that concern and suggested sending a letter to Governor Northam especially with the University of Virginia possibly returning in weeks.  “I am very concerned about 20,000 students coming back,” McKeel said. “We now have our school division that’s saying they’re struggling to even get enough teachers. County staff said they would need to review whether they could enforce local rules if Governor Northam did not move back to phase two. Supervisors may hold a special meeting to further discuss the letter and next steps for the pandemic response.  County Executive Jeffrey Richardson said that county office buildings will remain closed to the public and meetings will continue to be held virtually. *Do you or someone you know need assistance paying your rent or your mortgage due to the pandemic? A local organization has begun coordination of Virginia’s Rent and Mortgage Relief Program. The Thomas Jefferson Planning District Commission has a central website for information on how to apply for relief funding in Albemarle, Fluvanna, Greene, Louisa, and Nelson Counties, as well as the city of Charlottesville. Details on eligibility are on the website, which can be seen in the show notes and the newsletter version of this newscast. (more info)*The Dean of the Students at the University of Virginia has written a letter to undergraduates warning them that continued public gatherings in violation of COVID-19 restrictions could end plans to return to on Grounds instruction about a month from now. Dean Allen Groves responded to photographs and accounts of students crowding into Corner bars and fraternity houses, with people not wearing masks or staying six feet apart. Groves called such activities “selfish and ignorant” and chided them to follow the rules. He stated – “If such behavior continues, we will not make it long into the fall semester before a significant outbreak occurs and we then need to send students home.” (NBC29 story) *There will be another COVID-19 testing event this evening at Booker T. Washington Park in Charlottesville from 5 to 7 p.m. Sentara Martha Jefferson does not require preregistration for the event, which is being offered at no cost with a focus on “communities of color.” People can either drive through or walk up. There will be another event at the same time and place on Thursday, July 23. The University of Virginia Health System will have a COVID-19 test at Buford Middle School on Saturday from July 18 from 2 to 5 p.m. This event is also offered for free. More details on events in Nelson County and Greene County coming in the days to come, or on the Thomas Jefferson Health District website. (testing information)*In recent years, many people across the world have opened their doors to paying guests who seek short-term rentals. The AirBnB phenomenon has led some to question the impact this may have on the availability of affordable places for people who live here. Phil d’Oronzio is the chair of the Charlottesville Housing Advisory Committee, or HAC.“There had been some queries to the HAC about the impact of short-term rentals, AirBnB and their analogues, and its impact on housing stock,” d’Oronzio said.The HAC reached out to the Center for Civic Innovation at SmartCville to take a look at the underlying data. Nathan Day is one of the fellows who took a look at property records and zoning for an initial report to share with the many members of the HAC. (Smart Cville blog entry)“This is a data gathering from my standpoint,” said Day. “I’m good at getting data and visualizing it but I rely on experts like you for the interpretation and what the policy changes will make going forward.” The data was collected prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, and has not been collected since. The study found that about one percent of the city’s total housing stock is being used for transient use, or about 200 units. “It’s a small fraction of the total number of houses out there and we haven’t begun to dive into what that trend looks like over time because I think that’s the next question,” Day said.  Joy Johnson represents the Public Housing Association of Residents.“I’m just wondering how many of those AirBnB is actually in the low-income neighborhoods or around the low-income neighborhoods because we know that a lot of houses are being bought up in our neighborhoods,” Johnson said.Work will continue on the details of the study. This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

The Virginia Department of Health is reporting another 801 cases of COVID-19 this morning, bringing the cumulative total to 72,443. Nine more deaths have been reported for a total of 1,977. The 7-day percent positive rate for all testing encounters has risen again to 6.8 percent. That’s the third day in a row that metric has increased by a tenth of a percent.  In the Thomas Jefferson Health District, there are 41 new cases reported today for a cumulative total of 1,277. The 7-day positivity rate in the area for all testing encounters is 7.5 percent based on 27,858 tests. *It has now been four months since the State of Emergency was declared in Virginia for the COVID-19 pandemic. Mayor Nikuyah Walker and other city officials held a press conference yesterday to reinforce the need for vigilance.“After a few months spending trying to figure out how we  protect each other, I think we all understand that we at some point have reached a fatigue around this COVID-19 virus. There have been a lot of mixed messages from state, federal and even here at the local level and it’s been a very confusing time to try to figure out how to keep yourself and your family safe.” Mayor Walker and other speakers warned that the fatigue can be hazardous as people stop using masks and stop keeping physical distance. Dr. Denise Bonds of the Thomas Jefferson Health District said her agency is responsible for enforcement of directives requiring facial coverings.“To date we’ve had 180 complaints almost all of them related to individuals not wearing masks in restaurants or shops. Our policy right now is to inform and educate  for the first few times we get a complaint about a particular organization. If the complaint continues and its an agency that we are responsible for regulating, we do have the authority to issue more serious compliance orders with that.The full video of the press conference can be seen on the city of Charlottesville’s archive and excerpts will be included in the next edition of the Charlottesville Quarantine Report. Governor Ralph Northam will hold his first press COVID-19 conference in several weeks. *A University of Virginia media studies professor has published an article in the Guardian about whether American schools are ready to reopen in the fall. Siva Vaidhyanathan writes in a July 13 article that Charlottesville schools are not prepared to reopen, and he writes that the pressure from the federal government to resume in-person classes isn’t helping. Albemarle County plans to open on September 8 with students attending school twice a week in two different cohorts, with schools Friday for a teacher workday and deep cleaning. Charlottesville is considering a plan that would see students in kindergarten through 6th grade attend school days four a week, and older students on the same plan as Albemarle. A growing number of faculty and staff are pushing back on the concept as a number of metrics appears to indicate further caution. (Open letter to Albemarle County schools) (Siva Vaidhyanathan article in the Guardian) * In government meetings today, the Charlottesville Planning Commission will hold a public hearing on how to spend nearly an additional $250,000 in federal funding for COVID-19 relief, as well as a rezoning that would allow a car wash located on Long Street to expand onto a nearby property.  The Albemarle County Planning Commission will take consider a request to fill in the flood plain for a stream crossing to enable more homes in Crozet. And the Greene County Board of Supervisors will hold a public hearing on raising water connection fees to help raise funds for a proposed reservoir. This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

This is the first in a series of newsletters and newscasts about community engagement in the area around Charlottesville. I’ve spent the last thirteen years very close to many different processes, and my goal with this newsletter is to bring you information every single day about what’s going on. *Over the weekend, there were three consecutive days where more than 800 new cases of COVID-19 were reported in Virginia, That brings the cumulative number of cases to 70,670, with a reported 1,966 deaths. The 7-day percent positive metric for all testing encounters has risen from 5.9 percent on July 5 to 6.6 percent on Sunday. Meanwhile the Thomas Jefferson Health District reported 35 new cases on Sunday and 29 new cases on Saturday for a cumulative total of 1,208. There were also reports of outbreaks at two area long-term care facilities. Nationwide, there were 62,918 new cases reported in Virginia, for a total of 3.2 million. (Virginia Department of Health COVID-19 page) A forecast model produced by the University of Virginia estimates that 495,799 cases of COVID-19 have been avoided since May 15 due to physical distancing and other measures. That comes from the July 10 update produced by the UVA Biocomplexity Institute, which also states that the novel coronavirus now has a reproduction rate of 1.124. That’s an indicator of how the disease spreads, and numbers above 1 raise concern. (July 10 update)*The community of Forest Lakes opted to close their outdoor pools on Friday, July 10 "out of an abundance of caution, due to an indirect exposure of the COVID virus." That's according to an email sent out by the Forest Lakes Community Association. They said the pools would reopen after being sanitized. Charlottesville City Hall will reopen on a limited basis beginning on July 10 for in-person transactions with either the Commissioner of Revenue's office or Treasurer's office. However, you'll need to make an appointment to do so. (press release) *Moving on to Community Engagement news, Albemarle County has hired a Washington D.C. firm to help conduct a new round of analysis of the future of the area around the Rio Road and U.S. 29 intersection. Smart Growth America will "review and provide comments on a draft, form-based code for the Rio29 area and/or provide hypothetical design scenarios for properties in the study area." Supervisors adopted a master plan for the Rio-29 area in December 2018, and that included a recommendation to update the zoning ordinance to allow for creation of a "vibrant and diverse mixed-use community with interesting character and a human-scale built environment." Supervisors heard an update on the plan earlier this month.  *A child care center that failed to get approval from Albemarle Supervisors for a new home on Pantops has purchased land on East Market Street in downtown  Charlottesville. An LLC associated with Our Neighborhood Child Development Center has purchased the site of the former ABC Preschool on East Market Street for $1.325 million. That's about 20 percent below the 2020 assessment. ABC Preschool closed its doors last October five years after opening in a new building. In May, Supervisors deadlocked 3-3 on a request to build in the flood plain to allow for the Our Neighborhood center to move to a location on Stony Point Road. *And that’s it for the July 13 edition of the Community Engagement newscast, picking up from our last such event from late January 2019. The world has changed a lot since then, and I’m putting myself in a position to help bring you information to help get you through these times. Please consider supporting my Patreon account with a modest monthly donation so I can keep going and get my eye back on the world around us. I’m Sean Tubbs, and thanks for listening. This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe