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Youngkin vetoes bills to create legal pot market, raise minimum wage

By GREGORY S. SCHNEIDER, Washington Post (Metered Paywall - 3 articles a month)

Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) said Thursday that he has vetoed bills to establish a state-regulated marketplace for marijuana and to raise Virginia’s minimum wage, gutting two Democratic priorities a day after opposition to his plans for a sports arena in Alexandria led Wizards and Capitals owner Ted Leonsis to keep the project in the District. Both sets of bills had been widely seen as bargaining chips as Youngkin angled for Democratic support for the $2 billion arena project. Though he had expressed opposition to each, Youngkin had carefully avoided using the word “veto” while talks about the arena were still underway.

VaNews March 29, 2024


Projects raise questions about Warrenton’s growth plan

By HUNTER SAVERY, Fauquier Times

Quietly and quickly, big decisions about what growth should look like in Warrenton over the next few years have begun to inch their way before town officials in 2024. Last week, it was the Warrenton Town Planning Commission considering a proposal to radically overhaul the Warrenton Village Center along Oak Springs Drive near Broadview Avenue and Lee Highway to add 386 new apartments and amenities such as a swimming pool and dog park. Earlier this month, Warrenton Town Council and Fauquier County Supervisors agreed to start an annexation process that could eventually lead to the construction of up to 270 new homes on the south side of Warrenton as part of a proposed project known as the Arrington subdivision.

VaNews March 29, 2024


Youngkin arrived like a GOP star, but arena failure clouds legacy

By GREGORY S. SCHNEIDER, Washington Post (Metered Paywall - 3 articles a month)

No Virginia governor has come into office with a deeper dealmaking background than Glenn Youngkin, who as former co-chief executive of the Carlyle Group made a fortune acquiring and merging companies around the globe. But as the Republican chief executive of a purple state, Youngkin has struggled to translate that business acumen into political success — or even economic development success, with the demise Wednesday of his much-touted plan to bring the Washington Wizards and Capitals to Alexandria.

VaNews March 29, 2024


Yancey: Gov. Youngkin says Virginia’s continued out-migration shows why taxes should be cut

By DWAYNE YANCEY, Cardinal News

One Saturday afternoon, when he could have been watching basketball, Gov. Glenn Youngkin instead was at his computer, playing around with a database on homebuilding statistics. He didn’t like what he found. That discovery will have to wait just a bit while I explain the significance of the governor of Virginia spending his spare time researching construction stats. Since 2013, Virginia has repeatedly seen more people move out of the state than move in. The state is still gaining population — just more slowly — because births outnumber both deaths and the net out-migration. That period of time covers four different governors from two different parties but I’ve only seen one of them focused on that particular status — our current one.

VaNews March 29, 2024


Prince William’s tech corridor stretches into mid-county

By PETER CARY, Piedmont Journalism Foundation

Prince William County is poised to add yet another “data center alley” to its already burgeoning tech industry — this time in the mid-county area. The Prince William Board of County Supervisors moved Tuesday, March 19 to allow 85-foot data centers on 90 acres known as Parson’s Farm, a former landscaping outlet along Dumfries Road. In April, the planning commission will hear another application to add at least three more 80-foot-tall data centers at Colchester Industrial Park and surrounding properties about three miles south on Dumfries Road.

VaNews March 29, 2024


Blame game ensues as $2 billion sports and entertainment deal falls apart

By MICHAEL MARTZ, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 7 articles a month)

Aubrey Layne was secretary of finance for a Democratic governor facing a Republican-controlled legislature in negotiations over the biggest economic development deal in Virginia history — Amazon HQ2, a national competition to land a $5 billion bid for the retail giant’s East Coast headquarters with up to 50,000 new jobs on the line. Virginia won half of the prize — at least $2.5 billion in investment and 25,000 jobs, with potential for more — when Amazon chose a site in Arlington County’s Crystal City neighborhood in late 2018.

VaNews March 29, 2024


Potomac Yard developer blames Tysons talk for failure of pro sports arena deal

By ANGELA WOOLSEY, FFXnow

The deal to bring the Washington Capitals and Wizards to Alexandria’s Potomac Yard is officially dead, and the developer says suggestions that an arena could be built in Tysons instead were the final nail in the coffin. Alexandria City officials revealed yesterday (Wednesday) that they had ended negotiations with developer JBG Smith, Wizards and Capitals owner Monumental Sports & Entertainment, and other stakeholders for a stadium in the proposed Potomac Yard Entertainment District. About an hour later, Monumental owner Ted Leonsis and D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser announced that the two professional sports teams will stay at Capital One Arena in Chinatown after all.

VaNews March 29, 2024


Prince William County to pilot tool to determine if person can be released before trial

By BRITTNEY MELTON, WUSA-TV

Prince William County Criminal Justice Services team announced Thursday that it is ready to launch its Public Safety Assessment (PSA) tool. It is designed to determine whether a person charged with crimes can be released back into the community pending trial. Prince William County will be one of five communities in Virginia to pilot the tool that uses nine scoring factors to help judges and judicial officers make release conditions. It is said to help ensure court appearance and public safety during the pretrial period for the person facing charges.

VaNews March 29, 2024


Richmond ballpark could lose $25 million due to arena

By ERIC KOLENICH, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 7 articles a month)

A $25 million chunk of funding for the nascent Diamond District baseball stadium is being held up by the debate surrounding Gov. Glenn Youngkin's now defunct plan to build an arena in Alexandria. The city of Richmond hopes to use state sales tax revenue to help pay off the minor league ballpark, but the law giving the city that authority expires in July. Now the Richmond ballpark needs help from Youngkin and state lawmakers. The tax problem is not dire enough to kill the Richmond project, but it could increase the difficulty of paying for it.

VaNews March 29, 2024


Youngkin vetoes Virginia bills mandating minimum wage increase, establishing marijuana retail sales

By SARAH RANKIN, Associated Press

Republican Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin vetoed two top Democratic legislative priorities on Thursday: bills that would have allowed the recreational retail sales of marijuana to begin next year and measures mandating a minimum wage increase. The development, which drew criticism from Democrats who control the General Assembly, did not come as a surprise. While Youngkin had not explicitly threatened to veto either set of bills, he told reporters he didn’t think the minimum wage legislation was needed and had repeatedly said he was uninterested in setting up retail marijuana sales.

VaNews March 29, 2024