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Yancey: Natural Bridge Zoo legal saga escalates as two baby giraffes missing, state alleges threats, harassment
On the afternoon of April 7, three people showed up at the Natural Bridge Zoo to conduct a random inspection of the giraffes that the state had seized last year, but which remained at the zoo until they could be moved. There are many complications to moving a giraffe, but two of these three giraffes had a special one: They were pregnant, and moving a pregnant giraffe was deemed too dangerous. Even though a jury had ruled that the state could seize 71 animals from the zoo after it found the animals had been neglected and abused, it was agreed that pregnant giraffes should stay at the zoo until it was safe to move them. In the meantime, the court order directed the zoo to cooperate with the state and allow random inspections.
Fisher: Connolly built the trail to post-Trump progress. Who will hike it?
The largest structure in downtown Washington is a huge government building named for Ronald Reagan, which would be a heck of a joke except that it’s true: The man who won the presidency by crusading against government bloat is memorialized with a hulking symbol of public largesse, a nearly billion-dollar pile of limestone housing a slew of government agencies. Gerry Connolly, the congressman from Northern Virginia who died Wednesday, lived long enough to see his name attached to a public project, too. It’s a hiking trail, more than 40 miles across Fairfax County, through rural, suburban and urban patches, and it’s as beloved as the Reagan Building is derided. The Gerry Connolly Cross County Trail couldn’t be a more apt recognition of its namesake.
Local PBS, NPR stations may endure Trump’s cuts. Others won’t be as lucky.
As the Trump administration pursues a policy of selective federal austerity, defunding public media represents a drop in a very large bucket. But that drop makes a big difference in the health of our democracy, the early development of our children and the civic awareness of the public. According to recent reporting, Hampton Roads’ National Public Radio and Public Broadcasting Service stations are confident they can endure a loss of federal support, even if they shouldn’t have to. Other communities, including many in Virginia, won’t be as lucky as these actions needlessly rob them of public media programming that challenges, entertains, informs and educates.
1 of 4 election fraud charges dismissed in Blacksburg case
One of four election fraud charges against Blacksburg Town Council member Liam Watson was dismissed by a Circuit Court judge Tuesday. The grand jury indictment in question alleged that Watson listed a false address on official paperwork that certified his qualifications as a candidate in the Nov. 7, 2023, election for a seat on the council.
Norfolk floodwall delayed 4 years as costs rise, city considers alignment changes
Norfolk’s downtown floodwall project will take an additional four years to finish, Army Corps of Engineers officials told Norfolk City Council on Tuesday. The update comes as city and elected officials push for several changes to the project, which also faces an uncertain financial future. “Just know that this is being watched very closely,” said City Council member Courtney Doyle. Complications such as rising costs after the pandemic and issues with the real estate certification process have pushed the end of construction for the entire $2.6 billion floodwall and coastal resiliency project until 2037, said Keith Lockwood, Norfolk district chief, Water Resources Division, of the Army Corps.
Charles City County: Proposed data center promises windfall, stirs opposition
Financially troubled Charles City County is considering a large data center campus with its promise of a multimillion-dollar tax windfall. On Tuesday, the county board of supervisors will consider rezoning a 515-acre tract of woods in the northwestern corner of the rural county, about 20 miles east of Richmond. The rezoning request from Kansas-based Diode Ventures said it expects data centers on the site would operate 24 hours a day, but it did not provide detail about how many buildings it plans or the size of its investment or expected electricity use, although its map of the site noted eight areas on the tract that it labeled as buildable areas.
Data centers could soon be banned from Warrenton
Data centers could soon be banned from the Town of Warrenton. The Warrenton Planning Commission on Tuesday recommended that the town council remove data centers as an allowable use in industrial districts — effectively banning them from the town by eliminating the process by which they can be approved. The move comes about four years after the Warrenton Town Council approved a change to the zoning code to allow data centers in certain areas with a special exception permit, a process that requires a review of a project’s details to ensure it won’t negatively impact neighboring properties.
Fairfax County government workers vote to unionize in contentious election
A long-coming, sometimes bitter battle over the right to represent thousands of Fairfax County government workers ended in victory last week for one union, even as another cried foul over the election process and results. Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local Virginia 512 announced last Friday (May 16) that county government workers have elected it as their exclusive bargaining unit for future contract negotiations after the largest organizing push among general government employees in Virginia history.
Speakers attack, defend trans students after Loudoun County locker room incident
The right of Loudoun County Public Schools transgender students to choose which bathroom or locker room they use was both attacked and defended by public speakers at before the Loudoun County School Board on May 20. The often heated comments by about 40 speakers were in response to an incident March 21 in which a transgender student allegedly made video recordings of three male students without their consent in the locker room of Stone Bridge High School in Ashburn.
U.S. 58 reopens months after it was destroyed by floodwaters — and months ahead of schedule
A 1.5-mile section of U.S. 58 between Damascus and Konnarock that was decimated by flooding and high winds from Hurricane Helene last September will officially reopen Thursday afternoon — five months ahead of schedule. The cost of the project is expected to total about $7 million, according to a spokesperson for the Virginia Department of Transportation.