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House Democrats Are Having a Public Fight About Their Oldest Lawmakers
When then-74-year-old Virginia Rep. Gerry Connolly defeated 35-year-old progressive star Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez for a top Democratic attack-dog role during President Trump’s second term, he was immediately confronted with questions about his age and health. “I think that’s a false narrative, frankly, propounded by the media,” Connolly said in December, when asked whether his colleagues were effectively rejecting younger voices in the party by electing him as the senior Democrat on the House Oversight and Government Reform committee. “We’re looking at capability; we’re not looking at age,” he said.
Investigation: MRSA outbreak in Henrico NICU lasted over 3 years, infected 94 babies
An outbreak of the antibiotic-resistant infection MRSA circulated in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at Henrico Doctors’ Hospital for more than three years and infected 94 babies, according to what staff members at the hospital shared with state inspectors. Inspectors with the Virginia Department of Health's (VDH) Office of Licensure and Certification found during a survey completed January 24 that the hospital failed to consistently implement methods to prevent and control the transmission of infections within the hospital.
Bon Secours Harbour View Medical Center opens after 10 years in the making
Bon Secours Harbour View Medical Center held its ribbon-cutting ceremony on [Monday], May 5, where they welcomed members of the Bon Secours family as well as local and state officials to view the completed building. The first patient is expected on [Tuesday], May 6. Market President for Bon Secours Hampton Roads Pat Davis-Hagens said the vision for this building started 10 years ago.
VCU plans to demolish Grace Street buildings and downtown student center
Virginia Commonwealth University plans to demolish a pair of buildings on its Monroe Park Campus and a student center on its MCV Campus for health sciences to make way for two new projects. On the Monroe Park Campus, VCU intends to tear down an office building and the BookHolders.com building on West Grace Street, which will become the site of a 1,000-bed residential building. On the downtown health sciences campus, the university expects to remove the Larrick Student Center, where VCU will build a new school of dentistry building.
Manassas Officials Caught Off Guard as Bank Tenant Sidesteps Millions in Data Center Taxes
A bank tenant inside a newly completed data center in Manassas has triggered a sweeping local tax exemption, upending financial expectations and leaving city officials blindsided. At the April 30, 2025, Manassas City Council meeting, Commissioner of the Revenue Tim Demeria revealed that a tenant inside the new Brickyard data center, operated by Digital Realty Trust, had filed paperwork identifying itself as a bank. Under Virginia Code §58.1-1202, banks are exempt from local Business, Professional and Occupational License (BPOL) taxes and the business personal property taxes that typically bring cities millions in revenue from data centers. The loss is significant.
Hopewell commonwealth’s attorney finds legal fault with council’s firing of city manager
As dust continues to stir on last week’s firing of Hopewell’s city manager and city clerk, the city’s top prosecutor warned in a letter to City Council that the motion to terminate Dr. Concetta Manker may have been made improperly, and because it was, Manker should still be in office. Citing Rule 36 of Robert’s Rule of Order, Commonwealth’s Attorney Rick Newman said the motion made at the May 1 meeting did not follow the direction about either the time frame for making the order or the authenticity of the motion made by Ward 4 Councilor Ronnie Ellis.
City of Bristol, experts to review efforts to end odors from former landfill
City leaders plan to review its efforts to eliminate odors from the quarry landfill, according to a statement issued Friday. Contractors have installed a $10 million sidewall odor mitigation system and expanded the gas collection efforts in the now shuttered landfill and workers continue refining those operations, a city official previously said. Despite that, the city received about 400 odor complaints during the first four months of this year.
Virginia should move to purchase, preserve Monroe estate
What a shame it will be if Virginia squanders an opportunity to turn Oak Hill, the Loudoun County home of President James Monroe, into a state park. The Delashmutt family, which bought the historic house on 1,200 acres in Northern Virginia more than 70 years ago, wants to sell the estate for $20 million, well below market value, to the Conservation Fund, a nonprofit preservation group hoping to make Oak Hill a state park and museum.
Rozell: Youngkin’s blunder clouds his political future
Glenn Youngkin cultivated a very successful brand as a thoughtful and likeable leader. During his successful campaign for governor four years ago, in the immediate aftermath of the first Trump presidency, it was exactly what Republicans and even many moderates were looking for. His fumbling responses and failure to think through last week’s salacious allegations against John Reid, the Republican nominee for lieutenant governor, is a miscalculation that haunts the lame-duck governor as he surveys what are quite likely diminished prospects for future elective office.
Kish: Dominion’s gas addiction is proving costly for Virginians
If we’ve learned anything from recent weather events, it’s that extreme weather is here to stay. Cold snaps, heat waves and tropical storms are all part of what has become Virginia’s “new normal.” So when Dominion Energy cited high gas prices incurred during the January freeze in its recent proposal to raise rates, it was a sign — a bad sign for customers — of things to come. It was a sign that Dominion will make fuel-related rate hikes part of the “new normal,” too.