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Steel tubes ready for start of Virginia Beach offshore wind farm construction
The first batch of the enormous metal structures used as wind turbine bases in Dominion Energy’s offshore wind farm will soon be headed on a boat to the construction site off the coast of Virginia Beach, Virginia Port Authority officials said Tuesday. Six monopiles — steel tubes almost as long as a football field — are ready to be loaded onto the Orion vessel to be installed at the wind farm site, Virginia Port Authority Chief Development and Public Affairs Officer Cathie Vick told the port’s board of directors during an April 30 meeting.
Advocates worry Virginia struggles to provide medications to ailing prison inmates
The Virginia Department of Corrections recently launched a tip line where people could call to report suspected delivery or sale of contraband behind bars. In making the announcement, Department Director Chad Dotson said the safety of employees and inmates was his top priority. But advocates say there’s another drug problem in prisons— a failure to provide prescription drugs inmates need. A recent study published by the American Medical Association found people with common chronic diseases were less likely to get prescription drugs for their condition if they were in prison or jail.
Virginia Beach denies collective bargaining of city employees
The City Council denied collective bargaining of city employees in a 5-5 vote with one abstention Tuesday, and instead decided to establish employee relations committees for full-time city workers. Police officers, firefighters, emergency medical services and public works personnel wanted to negotiate better wages and enhanced employment conditions. But Mayor Bobby Dyer said the timing wasn’t right yet “given the budget constraints we have now.”
Missing Middle critic subpoenaed as Arlington County seeks to ‘know what forces’ are behind lawsuit
County government requests for extensive documentation in a Missing Middle lawsuit have expanded to include an outspoken critic who’s helping to fund the suit. Attorneys representing Arlington County contacted Dan Creedon, one of the founders of the anti-Missing Middle group Neighbors for Neighborhoods (NfN), with a broad subpoena last week. … Creedon is not one of the 10 plaintiffs in the litigation, which alleges that the Arlington County Board failed to follow due process when it created the Expanded Housing Option last year. But NfN is financially backing the lawsuit with a GoFundMe campaign that has raised some $72,000 since last June.
Virginia free clinics see sharp rise in patient visits
Ill Virginians who cannot afford to go elsewhere for care are continuing to pour into a cornerstone of the state’s health care safety net, free and charitable clinics report. So far in the state fiscal year 2024, patient demand is up 11.5% from the same period a year ago, according to new data from the Virginia Association of Free and Charitable Clinics. That increase comes on top of the 28% increase the clinics saw in fiscal year 2023.
University of Mary Washington president says arrested students won’t face charges
University of Mary Washington President Troy Paino assured a group of students that he’s been in communication with Fredericksburg Commonwealth’s Attorney Libby Humphries to ensure that nine of their peers who were arrested for trespassing last weekend as part of a campus protest will not ultimately face criminal charges. That was one revelation that came out of a remarkably candid meeting that Paino held with a group of students on Tuesday in a conference room in George Washington Hall, which houses UMW’s administrative offices.
Florida’s Abortion Ban Will Reach Well Beyond Florida
As of Wednesday, Florida has banned abortion after six weeks of pregnancy. It will have far-reaching effects. In 2021, abortion was legal in every state, and the average American woman lived less than 25 miles from a clinic. But after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, some states banned all or most abortions, including many in the South. Florida, North Carolina and Virginia were the only states in the South offering abortion after six weeks of pregnancy. For 6.4 million women, the nearest clinic was in Florida. Now, that option is gone. Women in several states will need to travel hundreds of miles farther to reach a clinic. It is the biggest change to abortion access since the period immediately after the reversal of Roe v. Wade in 2022.
Demonstration for Palestine at CNU remains peaceful
As protests pop up at colleges and universities across the nation, community members at Christopher Newport University are some of the latest demonstrators to support the Palestinian people and push leaders toward a ceasefire in Gaza and Israel. Community members began organizing at the university’s Great Lawn at 7 p.m. Tuesday as the school’s sprinklers watered the grass.
Protest over student arrests blooms anew on University of Mary Washington campus
From the moment University of Mary Washington sociology professor Nora Kim learned that nine students were arrested on campus Saturday and charged with trespassing after re-erecting an encampment during a nonviolent protest in support of Palestine, she believed police intervention was unwarranted. Kim said that while instructing students she explains to them that they should get involved with causes they are passionate about. Kim helped organize a flower protest — a peaceful and silent demonstration — in support of students’ rights to protest Tuesday morning on campus outside of George Washington Hall.
Stoney voices support for VCU while some on council condemn police response
Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney responded to the protests that erupted on Virginia Commonwealth University’s campus last night by stating his support for the university. “My administration and Richmond Police have been in close contact with VCU officials and will continue to support them in their mission to ensure the safety of all students and community members,” Stoney said.