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City planner, wife ran permitless Airbnb in violation of city code
A city official and his wife for over a year operated an unpermitted Airbnb in violation of city code governing short-term rentals, according to records reviewed by The Times-Dispatch. The property in question is located on West Marshall Street in Jackson Ward. City assessment records show the rowhouse is owned by 17 W Marshall, LLC. State Corporation Commission records show that company is registered to Alexandra Mercer, wife of city planner Brian Mercer.
Cantor: Virginia prison cites unwritten policy when declining press comment
Tomeka Wallace didn’t know her son was being transferred from Virginia’s Red Onion State Prison until she got a call in February from a Maine prison official. Demetrius, her son, was among a group of men at Red Onion who previously harmed themselves and participated in a hunger strike to protest conditions at the super-maximum security facility in the southwest portion of the state. “I just happened to get a call that I almost didn’t answer,” Wallace recalled. “The lady said, ‘Do you know Demetrius Wallace? … Well, your son is in Maine.’ I said, ‘In Maine? You mean the state?’” Wallace is hundreds of miles from where her son’s now being held and said the entire carceral system needs to be changed.
Youngkin lauds federal budget bill, plays down Medicaid cuts
Gov. Glenn Youngkin fully embraces the massive federal tax-and-spending bill that President Donald Trump signed into law last week, including cuts to Medicaid that Democrats and state hospitals say would cause hundreds of thousands of Virginians to lose health care coverage and potentially threaten the survival of small rural hospitals. Youngkin, speaking after an unrelated news event on Tuesday, said the spending package would deliver tax relief of about $2,800 per family. Most of that relief would come from extending the provisions of the tax cuts that the president signed into law in 2017. The law also eliminates taxes on tips and overtime and creates a $6,000 tax credit for seniors.
City officials will not release spending records for employee under investigation
City officials will not release additional records related to spending by Reginald Thomas — a former senior management analyst with the Richmond Fire Department who is the subject of an ongoing investigation by the city’s watchdog office. The Times-Dispatch previously reported that, according to credit card logs and invoices obtained through the Virginia Freedom of Information Act, Thomas had spent more than $2 million of public funds at three companies registered to himself and associates.
Trump’s megabill: Newport News leaders applaud more shipbuilding, brace for social services cuts
Recent presidential executive orders have put significant emphasis on Newport News’ shipbuilding industry. But according to city leaders, who discussed the anticipated effects of federal policy changes during a City Council retreat this week, it’s the only positive of the new federal mandates. President Donald Trump has issued 164 executive orders since taking office in January — the most of any president in his first 100 days. One issued April 9 aims to increase shipbuilding and workforce development with investments into additional military ships and improved port infrastructure.
Historical markers approved for Lucy Addison in Roanoke, small newspaper in Highland County
The Virginia Department of Historic Resources has approved nine new historical markers across Virginia, including one for the famed Roanoke educator Lucy Addison, as well as the weekly newspaper in the smallest county in the state. Other notable markers include one in King William County to call attention to the Virginia “racial integrity” act of 1924 that was used to erase the existence of Native American tribes in the state, something that has since been called a “paper genocide.” The department notes that markers aren’t meant to “honor” a particular person or event but rather to recognize history that has happened.
As part of FEMA Review Council, Youngkin to assess state, federal disaster coordination
In the wake of deadly flooding in central Texas and New Mexico that claimed over 100 lives with nearly 200 still missing, scrutiny of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), which provides disaster recovery services and funding, has mounted. Before the floods, the federal government had announced plans to eliminate or remake the agency and is now reviewing its procedures, funding, and execution of agency missions, a process in which Virginia’s governor is taking an active role.
Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin says his family escaped Texas floods
Virginia first lady Suzanne Youngkin and other members of Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s family were stranded at property they own on the Guadalupe River in Texas on Friday, but they were unharmed by the devastating flash floods that have killed more than 100 people. The governor was in Virginia at the time. . . . Youngkin detailed how his family was in touch with him during the flood as he attended July 4 events in Virginia. He said Texas officials offered to airlift them out, but when it was clear they were no longer in danger he told authorities to see to other nearby life-threatening situations first.
Martinsville deputy misses response window in ongoing civil rights suit
The window for Martinsville Sheriff’s Deputy Reva Keen to respond to a federal civil rights suit filed by city council member Aaron Rawls has closed, according to recently filed court documents. A clerk’s entry of default, a document signifying that the defendant has failed to defend or otherwise respond to the suit, was filed July 1 in federal court in Danville. The suit stems from Rawls’ removal from a March city council meeting. In the complaint, he says that his constitutional rights and his privileges as a locally elected official were violated.
City school board debate over professional development policy is a real trip
The only location specified in a new policy concerning professional development considered at Monday’s Fredericksburg City School Board meeting was Virginia. But school board member Jarvis Bailey (at-large) asserted that the proposed policy, which would require approval for school board members prior to attending conferences and other events, was motivated by his attendance at out-of-state conferences, including one such trip to Hawaii. “Much of this was precipitated, in my opinion, by back-office conversations about me going to Hawaii, . . . "