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Some Chesapeake leaders pushing to ask residents to weigh in on district voting system
Some leaders in Chesapeake are pushing the possibility of transitioning to a district-based election system by posing the question to voters in the upcoming election. A potential change to the city’s local election system could be up for discussion in the coming weeks following a request made by council member Don Carey at a meeting earlier this month. Carey asked for background information to be placed on the May 28 meeting agenda so that council members could consider beginning the process of putting a referendum on the ballot that would ask voters to weigh in on a single-member district voting system versus the current at-large system.
Business owners remove, scale back street dining as Norfolk enacts new rules
The city is changing the rules for on-street dining four years after Norfolk embraced outdoor setups during the coronavirus pandemic — and downtown business owners are not happy. In the spring of 2020, as the coronavirus pandemic began to escalate in the United States, Norfolk allowed flexibility in outdoor dining on patios, sidewalks and even in city parking spaces. ... Now, Norfolk has asked businesses to follow new, long-term rules for street dining. While some downtown business owners are working to comply with the new regulations, others are removing their setups entirely.
Loudoun teachers’ union urges School Board to act on collective bargaining election rules
It’s been 15 months since the Loudoun Education Association completed its collective bargaining drive, but a resolution on rules for an election determining which union will represent workers in contract negotiations has yet to be approved by the School Board. Union leaders say they are frustrated by the delay, and announced in a May 8 news release that they’ve abandoned negotiations with the Joint Committee on Collective Bargaining.
Arlington remains guinea pig for ranked-choice voting in Virginia
The eyes of Virginia, and beyond, are on Arlington. At least when it comes to the commonwealth’s first ranked-choice general-election contest, to be held for Arlington County Board in the fall. Election officials, in Virginia and across the nation and globe, are keeping in touch with their Arlington counterparts as the preparations move forward, said Gretchen Reinemeyer, Arlington’s elections director, during a presentation to the Kiwanis Club of South Arlington on May 16.
Here’s What Led Up To Roanoke City Manager Resignation
Roanoke City Manager Bob Cowell is out of a job, in the wake of toxic workplace claims that have rocked city hall. City Council on Monday unanimously accepted Cowell’s resignation and put Mayor Sherman Lea in charge as an acting city manager following Cowell’s June 7 departure. A national search firm will help the city name an interim city manager “soon” as well as find a permanent manager, the city said in a late Monday press release.
Fentanyl is fueling a record number of youth drug deaths
Fentanyl, a pervasive killer in America’s illicit drug supply, is increasingly landing in the hands of teens across the region and nation, worrying providers who say treatment options for youth are limited. Across the country, fentanyl has largely fueled a more than doubling of overdose deaths among children ages 12 to 17 since the start of the pandemic, according to a Washington Post analysis of Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data released this month. Fatal overdoses in D.C., Maryland and Virginia are in keeping with the national increase in opioid fatalities, which until recently primarily claimed the lives of adults.
Student sues U.Va., alleging antisemitism
A Jewish undergraduate student is suing the University of Virginia, its president and rector, and two pro-Palestinian organizations, alleging that he was “a victim of hate-based, intentional discrimination, severe harassment and abuse, and illegal retaliation” at U.Va., according to a federal lawsuit filed May 17. Matan Goldstein, who completed his freshman year at U.Va. this month, made public allegations this spring in interviews with The Daily Progress and CBS 19 in Charlottesville that he was physically and verbally assaulted on U.Va.’s grounds over his Jewish faith and the fact that he is a dual American and Israeli citizen.
Federal Spending Rescued Mass Transit During Covid. What Happens Now?
As commuter buses and trains ran nearly empty at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, the federal government stepped in with $69.5 billion in relief funds. It was about five times the federal support for transit approved for 2019, and it is credited with rescuing public transit and saving more than 50,000 jobs in the United States. … With ridership still lagging and the prospects for mass transit again uncertain, the health of large transportation agencies around the county could hinge, in large part, on how much aid and in what form the federal government can supply. … The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, which serves Maryland, Virginia and the District of Columbia, in December released a budget that predicted “an unrecognizable Metro” because of service cuts.
Supreme, North Face brand owner to leave Henry County in 2025
VF Corp., the parent company of apparel brands including Timberland, North Face and Supreme, plans to close its Henry County distribution center in March 2025. VF spokesperson Ashley McCormack said the closure is intended to reduce the company’s operational costs. “We have evaluated how we are shipping products to best meet the needs of our customers,” McCormack said in an email. “As a result, we have made the difficult decision to close the Martinsville, VA Distribution Center. This transition will deliver operational efficiencies, consolidate our operations, and reduce real estate costs.”
VF Corp. to close Martinsville distribution center
Company officials confirmed Tuesday that VF Corp. will close its distribution center in Martinsville by March 2025. ... The number of employees affected was not disclosed, but the Martinsville-Henry County Economic Development Corp. lists the facility on Nautica Way in Martinsville as employing between 250 and 500 people. Several employees at the facility described the scene Monday when everyone was called together and told to vacate the premises ...