Search
UVa. president, other leaders defend steps that led to arrests at protest
University of Virginia and police officials defended actions that led to the arrests of more than 25 pro-Palestinian protesters on campus grounds over the weekend, even as faculty members and others criticized what they saw as an overly aggressive response. In a virtual town hall Tuesday, Tim Longo, chief of police at U-Va., said that officials offered to let demonstrators stay if they took down their tents and that authorities moved in Saturday only when they refused. James E. Ryan, the university’s president, said that police were met with “physical confrontation and attempted assault” and that officials then called in Virginia State Police.
In 8-1 vote, Danville City Council revises agreement with Caesars Virginia
In an 8-1 vote, Danville City Council on Tuesday evening approved changes to the agreement with Caesars Virginia that solidifies an investment nearly double what was originally planned in 2020, but dials back jobs and moves a planned stand-alone entertainment center into a multipurpose space. ... Danville City Manager Ken Larking said the changes to the agreement — in the works between casino leaders, city officials, attorneys and consultants — were mostly routine.
UVa president: ’Necessary to rely on assistance from the Virginia State Police’ to clear encampment
The organizers of an encampment in support of Palestine at the University of Virginia knew that pitching tents could trigger action against their protest. University officials made that clear when they first gathered Tuesday afternoon. What they and the faculty members who were helping them communicate with police and administrators did not anticipate was the force with which that action would come. Instead of citations and facilities management taking down the tents, they were met with a multi-agency, coordinated police action with officers wearing riot gear and military-grade equipment.
General Assembly, Youngkin still have ‘work to do’ on budget compromise
... The commonwealth’s budget planners will soon have data to answer a key question: Can everyone get what they asked for? On Tuesday, lawmakers involved in the budget writing process met with Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin, who was briefed by Finance Secretary Steve Cummings earlier in the day. “We still have an aspiration to present a budget that meets the multiple objectives of the General Assembly and the governor’s office by next week. And that’s what we’re working towards this week,” said Youngkin. “As I said, we still got work to do. But I’m optimistic.”
Buc-ee’s still plans to open in New Kent in 2027 despite delays from I-64 improvements
The Texas-based roadside travel chain Buc-ee’s is still on course to open one of its first stores in Virginia in New Kent in 2027 despite a complicated series of road improvements. New Kent County Planning Director Amy Inman said the mega convenience store will have to coordinate with the Interstate 64 widening project as well as the reconstruction of the Route 106 bridge, but that “they are still planning to open in 2027.”
The ongoing rise in antisemitism should rally Virginians to action
Religious freedom and tolerance for others’ beliefs are foundational principles in the United States, and stem from a philosophy enshrined in Virginia law 238 years ago. The Statute for Religious Freedom, authored by Thomas Jefferson, states “all men shall be free to profess, and by argument to maintain, their opinion in matters of religion.” Ensuring that right has never been easy, and it’s especially difficult lately as a virulent strain of antisemitism afflicts the nation and our commonwealth. In a week that people around the world remember victims of the Holocaust, it’s more important than ever for Hampton Roads to stand up to hate and defend our Jewish family, friends and neighbors from attacks.
Chesterfield County Jail first institution to implement new device aiding opioid recovery
The Chesterfield County Jail has become the first institution in the nation to adopt a new FDA-approved device aimed at alleviating withdrawal symptoms among inmates struggling with opioid addiction. The Masimo Bridge device utilizes neuromodulation technology to significantly reduce the discomfort associated with drug withdrawal. The device sends electrical impulses to certain parts of the brain that contribute to withdrawal symptoms.
Youngkin calls on coaches to help warn about fentanyl
It might have seemed an unexpected place to talk about a deadly scourge – the Richmond Kickers’ home field to mark National Fentanyl Awareness Day – but for Gov. Glenn Youngkin it was a chance to reach out to a group he feels will make a difference: coaches. Those are the same kind of people that Youngkin, once a high school and college basketball player, said steered him right so many times as a teenager – when “I probably spent more time with coaches and teammates than with my parents,” he told a gathering of college, high school and other youth sports coaches at City Stadium.
Virginia health officials launch ‘surveillance system’ for kids sickened by cannabis
Virginia officials are instructing health care providers to start keeping track of “adverse events” involving children and teens being exposed to cannabis products. In an April 24 letter to clinicians, State Health Commissioner Karen Shelton said her agency had received enough reports of minors getting sick from products containing CBD and THC, chemical compounds found in cannabis, that the state was establishing a “special surveillance system” to keep tabs on the issue.
Yancey: Salem is losing population. Here’s how demography drives the proposed HopeTree development
Today we tell a tale of two cities. Charles Dickens told his through London and Paris. I shall tell this one through Salem and Roanoke, although the issues involved here are universal so you don’t need to live in either of those places to find some relevance to the issues they’re dealing with. The Salem City Council faces an upcoming decision: whether to allow mixed-use development of part of the HopeTree Family Services property, often known as the Virginia Baptist Home. It would be the largest residential development in the city’s history. This is broadly similar to a decision that the Roanoke City Council recently made — in that case, on whether to allow development of the Evans Spring property, the largest undeveloped piece of land in the city.