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The Buc-ee’s stops here? Stafford residents put off by potential gas giant
The mascot for Buc-ee’s may be the beaver, but many Stafford residents aren’t eager for the business to come to the county. Buc-ee’s, a Texas-based chain of large gas station/convenience stores, is seeking a permit to build what would be its third Virginia location near the intersection of Interstate 95 and Courthouse Road in Stafford. The initial public hearing on the proposal likely won’t be held until late fall or early winter at the earliest, but some Stafford residents who live near the proposed site have already begun voicing their opposition to it with county officials.
Commonwealth’s NIL rule for college sports should be national model
Nearly four years since the NCAA appropriately decided that student-athletes should be free to receive compensation for their names, images and likenesses (NIL), the landscape of college athletics has been profoundly transformed by the absence of clear, firm rules about those opportunities. Virginia recently has moved to bring order to the chaos with a law that should protect students and ensure stronger oversight in a previously untamed environment. Other states looking to do the same — and Congress, which has dithered on the issue — would do well to follow the commonwealth’s lead and adopt similar models.
Senate passes air safety bill with more flights at Reagan National Airport
The Senate has passed a $105 billion bill designed to improve safety and customer service for air travelers, a day before the law governing the Federal Aviation Administration expires. The bipartisan bill, which comes after a series of close calls between planes at the nation’s airports, aims to boost the number of air traffic controllers amid a shortage, improve safety standards and make it easier for customers to get refunds after flights are delayed or canceled, among other measures.
Powhatan school leaders address racism concerns with policy change
Ripped papers and a mother’s desperate tears for change flooded the room at Tuesday night’s Powhatan County School Board meeting. Parents and students pleaded with the board to take more drastic measures towards fighting ongoing racism they say they’ve continued to witness in Powhatan schools.
Shenandoah County Fair pig scramble called ‘unfair and unjust’
The Shenandoah County Fair pig scramble was scrutinized during Woodstock’s Town Council’s meeting Tuesday night after a Lorton resident made the 90-minute drive to speak against the popular event. The pig scramble is held annually, with over 300 local children participating in last summer’s rendition. Children from 3 to 8 years old, their hands covered in lard, are tasked to catch one of a group of running pigs. If a child manages to capture one of the 3-month-old pigs up for grabs, it is theirs to take home.
Louisa Co. supervisors reverse decision to cut Piedmont Virginia Community College funding over Jewish film
What exactly Piedmont Virginia Community College President Jean Runyon said to convince the Louisa County Board of Supervisors that a documentary called “Israelism” by two Jewish filmmakers wasn’t antisemitic remains unclear. Though it must have done the trick, as the board unanimously voted Monday night to overturn the resolution it had passed just one week prior that cut off the county’s funding to the school, a sum of $6,000 this year.
Loudoun in preliminary ‘priority’ corridor for new electricity transmission lines
The U.S. Department of Energy released May 8 a list of potential “priority” corridors for new transmission infrastructure that would give a federal commission the authority to overrule state agencies when ruling on transmission projects. One possible corridor includes existing transmission rights-of-way across Loudoun County along with a new path through western Loudoun. The maps of the possible new transmission line corridors are “rough approximations,” according to the department, and provide little detail. The department did not respond May 8 to a request for the detailed mapping data used to create the high-level maps ...
In rural Virginia, sea-level rise swamps septic systems. A local partnership is testing a solution.
On Virginia’s rural Middle Peninsula, Jamie Miller is the guy you call when something goes wrong with the least glamorous part of your home. “‘I can’t flush my toilet. I have sewage backing up in my house,’” Miller said, listing off some of the typical calls he receives. … A lifelong resident of Gloucester, Miller was born into the sewage business. He owns Miller’s Services, a plumbing company first started by his grandparents in the 1970s. But in recent years, the nature of the work has changed. Many homes in rural regions of Virginia rely on standalone septic tanks to handle wastewater because they aren’t connected to a municipal sewer system. When he took over in 2001, Miller said, the business was usually called to maintain working septic systems. Now, more and more septic systems are failing altogether, Miller said, flooding homes and yards with sewage that can threaten residents’ health and the local environment. The problem lies underground.
Southwest Va. region to get $845M as part of six-year transportation plan
The Virginia Department of Transportation’s Bristol district is slated to receive over $800 million, or about 3% of the state’s total proposed transportation funding, during the next six years. The district, which includes the 12 counties and two cities of far Southwest Virginia, is budgeted about $845 million in transportation funding as part of the Commonwealth Transportation Board’s proposed $25.4 billion six-year plan for fiscal years 2025-2030.
Alexandria anti-‘Zoning for Housing’ case gets another day in court
Alexandria succeeded in its bid [Wednesday] to dismiss a case filed by residents furious with a citywide zoning overhaul that allows developers to build homes with up to four units on any property, but residents will get a chance to try again in a month. … The zoning reform package was unanimously approved last year by City Council after an extensive public engagement process. It includes citywide changes to single-family zoning, expansion of transit-oriented development, reducing parking requirements for single-family homes and analyzing office-to-residential conversions. The effort is meant to increase affordable housing options, as well as eliminate segregationist zoning practices of the past.