Charlottesville Breaking News

Talk radio: Barefoot jumps WINA ship for FM-- and TV

lisa — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 19:42:17 +0000

Something was missing for listeners of WINA's "Charlottesville Right Now" tuning in to the AM station since late last week: Coy Barefoot, the show's longtime host. Here's a hint. Try FM on your dial.

Barefoot announced he was leaving the show he created in 2006 and going to an FM competitor— WCHV 107.5 FM— on his Sunday morning Newsplex show, Inside Charlottesville, which is also the name of his new radio show.

His new boss, Monticello Media Group, has a partnership with the Newsplex television stations. "The partnership between the Newsplex and Monticello Media is what really drew my attention, and the opportunity to contribute to that and build on it is what really prompted the move," explains Barefoot.

The goal is to expand that partnership and ultimately broadcast his radio show on TV, "like Howard Stern without the strippers," he says.

"The TV/radio combo is part of the big vision, trying to make content available any way possible," says Steve Gaines, Monticello Media general manager.

That's down the road. For now, Barefoot is in his old 4-6pm drive-time slot with a much bigger FM audience. "I know there's a much broader reach with the signal into Fluvanna and surrounding counties, and I do lots of statewide issues," he says.

That means a broader audience for the local, state and national political leaders who are guests on his show, as well as the authors, scholars, and journalists. For instance, Barefoot-regular Lieutenant Governor Bill Bolling was a guest on his inaugural WCHV show. (Hook reporters also regularly discuss local issues with Barefoot on air.)

It was Barefoot's on-air connections and his love of central Virginia that attracted Gaines, along with the potential for cross-branding with the Sunday CBS19 show. "Coy is an excellent talk show host," says Gaines, who admits that it took quite a few discussions with Barefoot to lure him away from WINA.

Locally owned Monticello Media was formed in 2007 when Clear Channel jettisoned its six local stations. The station at 107.5 FM started out as "Tom," playing hits across all genres. Tom was tossed in January 2011, and the FM station became "News Talk" radio with the WCHV call letters, which also airs on 1260 AM. The station features conservative stalwarts Joe Thomas, Glen Beck, and Rush Limbaugh among its hosts.

In the six years since it purchased the stations, Monticello Media claims Arbitron ratings for the top three area stations. Number one is WCYK Hitkicker 99.7 country with a 7.9 percent market share; WHTE Hot 101.9 is second at 7.2 percent share, and Barefoot's new station, WCHV 107.5 News Talk, is number three with a 6.2 percent share, edging out his old station, WINA, which comes in at eighth place.

In other Arbitron rankings, Lite Rock Z95.1 and 3WV 97.5, both owned by Saga Communications, which also owns WINA, tie for number four. And at number 12 in the 12-and-older market, is 106.1 the Corner.

Like Monticello Media, the Newsplex is a relative newcomer on the Charlottesville broadcast scene. Owned by Gray Television, it went on the air in 2004, taking on long-established NBC29, which just celebrated its 40th anniversary.

Newsplex general manager Jay Barton was pleased with Barefoot's Inside Charlottesville debut in May on the last Sunday of the Nielsen ratings. "With minimal promotion, that debut did better than anything in that time slot the entire month," says Barton. The 30-minute show airs at 11:30am on WCAV CBS19 following Face the Nation.

A two-hour radio show is long in television time, and putting Barefoot on TV would eat into Judge Judy and CBS19 News. Barton isn't quite sure how he'll handle televising the radio show. "Does the entire show migrate?" he asks. "What form will it take? I'm very much invested in how to do it right the first time."

Those details are still to be worked out. "We spend a lot of time telling people what won't work," points out Barton. "With the right product, the right content— content being king— and the right person involved, I say, why not?"

"Charlottesville is a hub of innovation in high-tech, in medicine, and in education," observes Barefoot. "Why not media as well?"

Barefoot listener Gary Grant looks forward to the move. "Coy will be great on WCHV," he enthuses. "A more open format, I presume, will allow Coy to do what he does best— extended interviews."

Grant describes what he wants from the show: "I hope Coy keeps the focus of his show local, local, local, local, local. Personally, I'm also not interested in an NPR-type show full of features. Hard news is what I'm looking for, and, of course, also host and callers and commentators' takes on the hard news of the day and the week."

Notes Grant, "This is a big loss for WINA. I hope WINA finds a local voice to fill Coy's slot rather than falling back on some national syndicated show."

Calls to WINA's operations manager Rick Daniels and sports director Jay James had not been returned at press time.

"I have the greatest respect and admiration for everyone I have worked with at WINA and at the Charlottesville Radio Group," says Barefoot. "There's not a person in that company to whom I don't owe a debt of gratitude. I leave with many fond memories and treasured friendships. But the time has come to build something new."

Tie-breaker: Fenwick pulls ahead by 5 in council race

lisa — Fri, 14 Jun 2013 19:25:28 +0000

Three days after the June 11 Democratic primary and an unprecedented tie for one of two City Council nominations, Wes Bellamy and Bob Fenwick learned who will join incumbent Kristin Szakos on the ticket in November. The results came down to provisional-ballot casters, who broke the 1,088-vote tie and put Fenwick ahead by five.

"We're in new territory here," says Rick Sincere, chair of the Electoral Board, when the board convened for the second time after the election at 1:30pm Friday, June 14, to count the final provisional ballots cast by four people who didn't have ID at the polls, a new requirement from the General Assembly. "There was no evidence of fraud," says Sincere, "but we're stuck with what the General Assembly gives us."

The board, the candidates, and Charlottesville Registrar Sheri lachetta had gathered June 12 to assess the seven non-ID provisional ballots, which arise when a voter doesn't show up on the poll books – or in the case of five people from Walker precinct, when a voting machine malfunctioned.

One provisional ballot was rejected because the voter's registration was in Albemarle County. The other six were confirmed as registered voters in their respective city precincts. Fenwick picked up three more votes; Bellamy added none.

The delay on the ID provisional ballots came from state code, which gives the voters until noon Friday to produce identification. lachetta made courtesy calls to three – one phone number didn't pan out – and the others brought adequate proof for their identification. "They were very excited to bring their IDs in," says lachetta.

Morgan Butler was one of those identification-less voters, and he had just gotten back from the registrar's office June 12 when he spoke to the Hook.

He usually bikes to work, and was late getting out of his office at Southern Environmental Law. "In my haste, I left my wallet sitting on my desk," he says. "I felt terrible. I show up at 6:59 hot and sweaty, and then have to do a provisional ballot."

Butler declines to say for whom he voted. "It makes it exciting to know you're one of the uncounted."

One thing he says he didn't know as a provisional ballot caster is that he still had to show his ID after election day for his vote to count, but he's glad there was an option for voters who go to the polls without identification.

As for possibly being one of the tie-breaking votes, says Butler, "Every vote counts."

And then Friday, the last three ballots were counted, giving Szakos two more votes, Melvin Grady one, Adam Lees one, Fenwick two, and Bellamy zero.

With the count over and Fenwick up by five, Bellamy shook Fenwick's hand and brushed a speck off the nominee's shoulder. "This is my guy," said Bellamy. "I've got to make sure he's good."

Bellamy, a 26-year-old teacher at Albemarle High, congratulated general construction contractor Fenwick again and said, "I'm going to do everything I can to support him and the party."

Fenwick says he was relieved with the outcome. "This is a totally unprecedented situation we've been through." And looking ahead to the November race against Republicans Buddy Weber and Mike Farruggio, he says, "We face a stiff challenge."

The only person openly disappointed about the outcome was Electoral Board Chair Sincere. "It would have been interesting to settle it by a game of chance," he says wistfully. And yes, the luck of the draw is the legally sanctioned method of determining a winner in a tied primary race.

In other June 11 city races, Dave Chapman handily held onto the nomination for commonwealth's attorney with 72 percent of the vote over challenger Steve Deaton. Todd Divers won the commissioner of revenue nomination with 52 percent of the vote, while opponent Jonathan Stevens trailed by fewer than 100 votes.

In the statewide races, Aneesh Chopra garnered 58 percent of the vote for lieutenant governor in Charlottesville, but that wasn't enough to put him ahead of State Senator Ralph Northam, who took 54 percent of the vote across the Commonwealth. State Senator Mark Herring will be on the Democratic ballot for attorney general, beating challenger Justin Fairfax with 52 percent of the vote.

Updated June 18 with content from the online story Nail-biter: Fenwick has 3-vote lead in ballot count– for no.

Broken bridge

Bill Emory — Mon, 10 Jun 2013 18:48:35 +0000

The eastern sidewalk of the Belmont Bridge may be closed, but crowds still stream across the western side.

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Commentator Bill Emory puts up a new photo nearly every day at billemory.com/blog.

Mystique pizza: Wheeling in the real Neapolitan

Dave McNair — Wed, 05 Jun 2013 16:05:55 +0000

As a nurse anesthetist, Sharlene McNeish frees people from experiencing pain, but in a new side venture as pizza maker she hopes to deliver the pleasure that comes from eating authentic Neapolitan pizza.

About a year ago she bought an outdoor wood-fired oven for her home in Troy, Virginia, wanting to bake fresh bread for her family. She even took bread making classes. She eventually began roasting vegetables, chicken, and making pizzas in the oven, and the compliments from friends and family started rolling in.

"Roasting food just takes it to an entirely different level," she says.

On a whim, she decided to take a guided pizza tasting tour in New York City, and experienced the real deal.

"I wasn't really a pizza person," she says, "but after tasting authentic Neapolitan pizza, it changed my palate."

Indeed, it inspired her to launch a whole new career as a pizza chef. She would end up training with renowned "pizzaioli" Giulio Adriani in New York City, owner of Forcella, and one of the senior pizza makers in the Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana (AVPN), an Italian organization that protects the professionalism of the pizza makers in Italy and around the world, making sure real Neapolitan Pizza is made according to tradition. She would also make a trip to the International Pizza Expo in Las Vegas, where she would meet Tony Gemignani, a two-time Food Network pizza-tossing gold medalist, and the first American to win the World Pizza Championship in Italy. Eventually, McNeish herself would become certified by the AVPN in the art of Neapolitan Pizza making and form her new company Bufala!, from the Italian mozzarella di buffalo, traditionally made from the milk of Italian water buffalo.

Now she wants to bring her expertise to Charlottesville.

"This is what C'ville really needs," she says, "C'ville needs to know what real pizza is."

So, what exactly is real Neapolitan Pizza?

Well, it starts with a 200-year-old recipe and a wood-fired oven that reaches temperatures up to 800 degrees. Special flour from Naples, called cabuto, is required, as is a special Italian fork mixer that simulates your hands tossing the dough, very slowly. The dough is then fermented overnight in balls for flavor and spread out by hand the next day. Tomatoes and mozzarella cheese from Naples are also used, and the pizza is cooked for only 60 to 90 seconds in the super-hot oven.

The pizza, best eaten right out of the oven, is soft and billowy on the edges, but crisp, and has a smoky flavor from the fire. Indeed, Dish sampled the thin crust pizza, which is so much more delicate than traditional pizza that it isn't as filling. Flavors from toppings like garlic, prosciutto, shittake mushrooms, or sopressata soak into the smooth, milky bufala mozzarella and seem stronger, more fresh than traditional pizza.

Okay, now our mouths are watering, but there's just one problem. To get this special kind of pizza to town, McNeish needs about $30,000 for a mobile wood-fired pizza oven, the special Italian mixer, and other equipment. Right now, she's got a Kickstarter campaign going (check her website www.pizzastalker.blogspot.com for updates), and is hopeful she'll be in business this fall. She's not so much shooting for a food truck, as she is a cart or trailer in which she can transport the oven and cook in the open air at places like the City Market and special events.

"Naples pizza sellers actually started with push carts," says McNeish, "as far as history goes, it's a poor man's food."

Ah, but wouldn't our already exciting and diverse culinary scene be all the more richer with pizza like this?

Topeka's closes, Shadwell's to open
After four-and-half years, Topeka's Steakhouse on Pantops, right beside the Hilton Garden Inn, will close the week of June 17. The owners of the budding chain, which has restaurants in Richmond and Midlothian, spared no expense when they opened in late 2008, building an elaborate brick building for the steakhouse, a kind of mini, altered version of Monticello, which, according to a building permit at the time, cost over $800,000. Of course, one restaurant owner's bad luck is another's good fortune.

"We got this opportunity because of the misfortune of Topeka's closing," says Matthew Kossin, talking about the new place he and his partners plan to open in the space. "We wanted a local name with a local feel, thus it will be called Shadwell's. It fits the area well and we want it to be known as just a great local restaurant where everyone feels welcome."

Kossin, who says he's worked for 28 years in the restaurant business, hopes to open the first week of July.

"We'll feature fresh seafood, hand cut steaks, awesome salads and a few pastas to boot," he says. "And we'll continue to make our own rolls, hamburger buns, grind our meat fresh, and utilize this great area for its local produce."

Stayed tuned for more as the place gets ready to open.

Charlottesville Restaurant Week!
Noticed your stomach making strange grumblings and your wallet leaping like a hot tamale? Don't worry— it'll all stop the week of July 8-14 with the arrival of Charlottesville Restaurant Week! For the first time, Restaurant Week will benefit the Boys and Girls Club of Central Virginia and pricing from $16 to $36 means there's a fit for every budget. There are 27 restaurants on board, and menus are being added at charlottesvillerestaurantweek.com. Start making plans!

Old friends: Third in Hawke/Delpy series satisfies

Hook Contributor — Fri, 07 Jun 2013 16:01:42 +0000

By Richard Roeper

Early on in Richard Linklater's Before Midnight, we see an extended sequence more daring and in some ways just as thrilling as anything we're likely to experience in any 2013 movie about superhumans who can fly or futuristic galaxies filled with glorious and dangerous sights.

The scene is shot in near-documentary fashion. Twin girls of about 7 are sleeping peacefully in the backseat of a car. Up front, their parents are driving through the countryside of Greece, discussing all the things that consume the conversations of 40-something couples.

Ethan Hawke is Jesse, a writer who still dresses like a college student but looks every bit his age. Julie Delpy is Celine, effortlessly attractive, and that's a good thing because she's so harried she wouldn't have time to put in any real effort on her looks at this point.

They talk about his teenage son from a previous union, who was just dropped off at the airport and is on his way back to Chicago. They commiserate about his impossible ex-wife. He hints about a possible move to the States so he can see his son more often. She deftly opens the door to a discussion of her new job opportunity, which would keep them firmly planted in Europe. They debate whether they should wake the girls for a promised tour of some ruins, or tell them the ruins "were closed" and they'll catch 'em on the way back.

They keep driving and talking, driving and talking. And because that couple is Celine and Jesse, whom we met in Before Sunrise (1995) and then revisited in Before Sunset (2004), we hang on their every word, marveling at how wonderful and magical they are, how smart and sharp and real their exchanges.

But we also see how irritating and self-involved and pretentious and petty they can be.

When I say these two deserve each other, I mean it on every level.

How could the Richard Linklater of the mid-1990s know that in two decades, he'd be just as capable of capturing the restlessness and sometimes hateful familiarity of a long-term relationship as well as he could capture the glorious promise of a chance potential romance? Or that the talented young actors Julie Delpy and Ethan Hawke would be just as transcendent at portraying midlife crises as they were at conveying the beginning of love?

If you have not seen the previous films in this thus-far trilogy (one hopes it will add chapters in the decades to come), I urge you to rent the first two. But even if you go into Before Midnight cold, you will be treated to a rich, smart, funny, sometimes acidic portrayal of a couple who can be spectacular when they're in tune— and toxic when they're at each other's throats.

That's especially so in the last act of this film, when things are said that can be never be unsaid, and you wince at the pinpoint precision of the most hurtful insults.

All scraggly hair, carefully sloppy attire and big ideas, Jesse is an author of some repute, on a sabbatical in Greece, nearing the end of an idyllic summer spent at the home of a renowned author who has become a mentor of sorts. Celine has put her career on hold to tend to their daughters. Along with that, she has spent the last few months helping the women in the kitchen, patiently waiting for Jesse to return from his daily walks during which he plots his next novel and thinks his big thoughts. Celine's still gorgeous and vibrant and full of life, but she wears mom jeans, and she laments her expanding rear end— and Jesse's fading sexual interest in her. If not for their daughters, would they still even be together?

This is one of the many, many, many topics of discussion when it's just Jesse and Celine going for a drive or a walk, or spending a night in a hotel they'll never forget, for reasons either wonderful or emotionally fatal or perhaps both. You may tire of them at times, as you would if you were in a room with them. But after they leave that room, you instantly find yourself anticipating the next time you'll drop in on their lives.

I cannot wait to see where Jesse and Celine will be After Midnight, some 10 years from now.

Escape-ism: Is little car big enough to tow?

Tom and Ray Magliozzi — Fri, 07 Jun 2013 15:42:35 +0000

Dear Tom and Ray:

We do a lot of city driving, but in the summer months we tow a couple of Jet Skis around behind our older Nissan Murano, and it has seemed to do the job just fine. The total weight of the Jet Skis and trailer is about 2,100 pounds. We are considering replacing the Murano with a 2013 Ford Escape with the 2.0-liter, EcoBoost engine. The 2013 Escape claims a towing capacity of 3,500 pounds, which is the same as our Murano. We like the idea of a smaller engine (better gas mileage) for when we are not pulling a trailer, but we are concerned about the strain on a smaller engine when we do. Would you recommend the new Escape for our needs, or should we look at something with a six-cylinder engine or larger towing capacity? We live in Minnesota and appreciate the 4-wheel drive, too. If not the Escape, do you have other suggestions for us? Thank you.— Dave

RAY: Get the Escape. Its towing capacity is 3,500 pounds, and you need to tow 2,100.
TOM: Your strategy is correct. You want a vehicle that meets your needs for the vast majority of your driving, not a vehicle that will handle every exception. And if you live in the city, a smaller vehicle with better gas mileage certainly makes sense.
RAY: You're right to be concerned about the towing. Adding 2,100 pounds of weight to any non-behemoth vehicle makes everything work harder— the engine, the transmission, the suspension, the brakes. But the same was true of your Murano, and it's done fine.
TOM: You never want to run a vehicle at or near its limit, certainly not on a regular basis. So if you were planning to tow 3,400 pounds on summer weekends, we'd advise you to get some more wiggle room. But 2,100 pounds is well within the capacity of the 2013 Escape.
RAY: You can protect your investment by taking some reasonable precautions. First, drive more slowly when you're towing. The more gently you accelerate, the less strain you put on the engine and the entire drive train.
TOM: Similarly, by driving at 60 or 65 instead of 80, you reduce the wind resistance significantly, and reduce the engine's workload, allowing it to run cooler.
RAY: And by changing the oil before and after your summer towing season, you'll make sure you're getting the best possible lubrication while your engine is working the hardest, and then you'll drain out any oil that may have been subject to more heat and disintegration because of that towing.
TOM: Other than that, following the owner's manual's maintenance instructions for heavier-duty-type of driving (that includes more-frequent scheduled maintenance for people who drive in extreme hot weather, tow things or deliver pizza), switch to a synthetic oil if your car doesn't come with synthetic, and enjoy your new car and the better mileage.
***
It's never cheaper in the long run to buy a new car. Want proof? Order Tom and Ray's pamphlet "How to Buy a Great Used Car: Secrets Only Your Mechanic Knows." Send $4.75 (check or money order) to Used Car, P.O. Box 536475, Orlando, FL 32853-6475.
***
Get more Click and Clack in their new book, "Ask Click and Clack: Answers from Car Talk." Got a question about cars? Write to Click and Clack in care of this newspaper, or email them by visiting the Car Talk website at www.cartalk.com.

Fit to fight: Dad and daughter driving mom mad

Carolyn Hax — Fri, 07 Jun 2013 15:36:10 +0000

Hi, Carolyn:

How do you tell someone you love that you think they might have a psychiatric issue that needs to be addressed, i.e., crippling anxiety?

My boyfriend keeps saying he doesn't want to get married until he's ready to have kids because he's stressed out all the time. However, he won't do anything to alleviate the stress except to suggest moving across the country, where he's never lived, because the nice weather will make all of his problems go away.

I think it's horse-pucky. His mom also has an anxiety disorder, which makes me think that's what's going on with him.– Wants to Move Forward

It will be a big deal later— possibly starting tomorrow— but his anxiety is not the problem here.

The problem is that you have a "move forward" agenda with your boyfriend and you haven't yet learned to speak the truth to him.

"Your mother has an anxiety disorder. You're telling me you're too stressed out for marriage and kids, then doing some dance about weather. Isn't it time to connect the dots and get screened for anxiety yourself?"

If expressing honest concern is enough to derail your relationship, then, wow, wouldn't that be a good thing to know before you relocate or reproduce?

"Psychiatric issue" (wrongly) has a bogeyman aura about it, but in fact a long and typical life is, for everyone, a series of challenges both from within and without. To keep them from dominating the course of your life, you have to be able to square yourself and deal with them— and that's true whether they're your challenges or your partner's, clinical or within a normal range, easy to talk about or approachable only after deep breathing, solvable or the end of the relationship.

As-is, you don't like your life with your boyfriend. The part of your brain that's willing to admit this has to be the one doing the talking. You love him, so you're going to worry that using this voice will be mean, but it's not. Suppressing it is.

Dear Carolyn:

My daughter, 10, and my husband fight. Oh do they fight. About homework, behavior, hair, you name it. Daddy is correct 95 percent of the time, but his communication style just sets her off.

I have been unsuccessful in mediating, in getting him to adjust his style, or in getting her to stop reacting. My involvement seems at best unhelpful and often makes things worse. I am at the point of either leaving the house or at least putting ear buds in because it is intolerable. Help?— Parent

How can he be "right" about her hair? It's hers.

This fighting means Father is ruling himself out as a supportive presence in Daughter's life just as she needs one most— far more than she needs to be "right" about her homework.

And, this exit-or-ear-buds reaction means you're overmatched.

There's no shame in that— but it does mean you need to call in reinforcements. I don't count in this case because your family needs a teacher who can reach your 95-percent-wrong husband as you can't, and be there weekly as you all learn, from scratch, to talk to each other. Start with the school counselor (or, absent one, your pediatrician) and admit this one has you stumped.

Email Carolyn at tellme@washpost.com, follow her on Facebook at www.facebook.com/carolyn.hax or chat with her online at noon Eastern time each Friday at www.washingtonpost.com.

Spotlight on Lewis Mountain

Samantha Masone — Thu, 06 Jun 2013 01:22:53 +0000

Area: Lewis Mountain
Schools: Venable, Walker & Buford, Charlottesville
Price Range: $440,000-$1,895,000
Pros: proximity to amenities, especially UVA
Cons: potential traffic tie-ups on home football days

#1 Lewis Mountain Parkway is a house characterized by both irony and legend. Irony in that it sits just outside city limits in Albemarle County while the neighborhood that bears its name is located within the confines of the city of Charlottesville, which annexed the land in the late 1930s. And legend (of the urban variety) in that at various times this house, known as Lewis Mountain House, has been said to be owned by (a) a former UVA student expelled for an honor offense or (b) Dr. Seuss himself, Theodore Geisel.

As most Charlottesville residents know, however, Dr. Seuss’s Whoville and our own have little in common beyond their homonymic (or homophonic, depending on how specific you choose to get) nature. There's also no evidence that anyone who's lived there ran afoul of the university's legendary honor code.

Lewis Mountain House is sited on Lewis Mountain, which was part of 2,300 acres acquired in 1734 by David Lewis, a Hanover County native and merchant who owned a plantation near Thomas Jefferson's birthplace, Shadwell. Today’s Lewis Mountain neighborhood of approximately 133 acres is largely surrounded by the University of Virginia and primarily comprises stately single-family homes on spacious lots with mature landscaping.

A large number of these homes are occupied by professors, administrators and other professionals associated with the University. Because of Lewis Mountain’s proximity to UVA, listings don’t appear very often and most don't spend very long on the market once they do, providing sellers are realistic about their asking prices, of course.

Sally DuBose, the principal broker at Virginia Real Estate Partners and the listing agent for the fieldstone house designed by architects Milton Grigg and W.G. Clark and located at 132 Cameron Lane, says there’s not much to dislike about the Lewis Mountain neighborhood.

“The whole area is beyond lovely, and it’s highly sought after because of the location," says DuBose, citing its proximity to Barracks Road, Foods of All Nations, and UVA. "I think a lot of the people who live in the Lewis Mountain neighborhood enjoy seeing the students come back after the summer and watching the University come to life again.”

For some residents, however, there’s at least one aspect of University life that may prove inconvenient, at least on certain Saturdays in the fall. Many of the streets in the Lewis Mountain area are closed for the better part of the day or evening in an effort to manage the traffic during UVA home football games held at nearby Scott Stadium.

The Lewis Mountain Neighborhood Association is diligent about keeping abreast of upcoming events and does a great job of posting reminders about situations that may result in complex traffic situations— like home football games and graduation ceremonies— on its website.

“I suppose if you’re not part of the football scene or if you have a problem planning in advance, you might find the traffic situation on home game days inconvenient,” DuBose allows. But she’s quick to add that there are signficant trade-offs about the neighborhood in general, and her current listing in particular.

“Finding a house situated in a great neighborhood like this within walking distance of UVA and featuring designs by two noted architects is a rare occurence,” she says.

There are currently four listings available in the Lewis Mountain area priced from $574,999 to $1,895,000. Lot sizes are fairly generous for city properties, ranging from one-third of an acre to over half an acre.

There’ve been numerous sales in Lewis Mountain over the past couple of years, and while typically the houses move quickly, a few have languished on the market for close to a year. No word as to which factor contributed most significantly to those long listing periods— an unrealistic asking price or a serious aversion to game-day traffic.

Code of silence: County clams up when cops open fire

lisa — Thu, 30 May 2013 21:28:48 +0000

Two days after a 21-year-old Crozet man was shot dead by an Albemarle police officer on June 8, officials finally released his name. Neither Albemarle police nor Virginia State Police, which is investigating the case, responded to a request for the name of the officer who used lethal force.

That's not too much of a surprise in Albemarle County, where if you shoot someone and are not charged, your secret is pretty much safe. The Albemarle County Police Department has developed a practice of protecting the identities of shooters, and they say they're backed up by the Freedom of Information Act.

Some find this troubling when those firing guns and wounding– or in this case, killing– people are county employees. "Everything the government does is our business," says attorney Debbie Wyatt, who successfully sued Albemarle police for a 1997 shooting. "It's your law enforcement; it's my law enforcement."

Gregory Allen Rosson's death June 8 on Afton Mountain is the second shooting by an Albemarle cop in two weeks and the third in six months. When two officers showed up at Birdwood Court May 26, it took four days for any information to come out about why county cops had wounded a man in a quiet, kid-filled city neighborhood. When information was released, it was from the city police department, which is conducting the criminal investigation, not the county.

"Anytime an officer discharges a weapon, they're put on paid administrative leave," says Albemarle police spokesperson Carter Johnson. That was the case also for the officer who was involved in a shooting on Rio Mills Road December 26, which was later determined to be a murder-suicide.

"We only conducted internal investigations for both of those cases, and it is not our practice to release personnel files or information from internal affairs," says Johnson, when the names of the gunfiring officers are requested. "This information is protected under the Freedom of Information Act."

Virginia FOIA code also says that information may be disclosed under the discretion of the custodian.

"That's right," says Albemarle police chief Colonel Steve Sellers. "I choose not to disclose."

While internal affairs investigations are indeed exempt under FOIA, the Freedom of Information Advisory Council's Alan Gernhardt says information is sometimes released "after a public outcry or pressure put on by the press." As for whether it's good policy to withhold the names of police officers involved in shootings, suggests Gernhardt, "Bring it up with the legislature."

Ironically, while the identity of the officer who fired his weapon in the Rio Mills standoff is still a secret if you ask for it from county police under FOIA, four officers were publicly identified and praised for their roles in the incident at a May 23 police banquet. Officer Andy Gluba, Corporal Kanie Richardson and officers Jason Marden and William Underwood— the latter later revealed to have wounded Josue Salinas Valdez a week after the banquet at Birdwood Court, according to a May 30 Charlottesville Police Department release— all received Albemarle police's highest honor, the valor award, for their roles in the Rio Mills stand-off.

"You were invited to that event," says Sellers, who refuses to tell a reporter on the phone the identity of the officers he had publicly honored.

Fortunately, from other media accounts about the banquet, one can learn a little about what happened at Rio Mills. The Daily Progress reports that Frank Davis Jr. raised a gun at Gluba, who fired in self-defense and missed. Davis killed James Marshall and then himself, and the Virginia State Police, which investigated the deaths, cleared Gluba, according to the Progress. But the Hook was unable to independently verify that with state police, which referred a reporter back to Albemarle police and Denise Lunsford, the Albemarle commonwealth's attorney, who did not return a phone call from the Hook.

Officer Gluba has been involved in at least three other shootings, according to court documents and a neighbor's complaint. On January 9, 2000, he shot a neighbor's lab mix, Astro, and admitted the shooting, according to Astro's owner, Tory Sperry. She pressed charges, she told the Hook, but they were dismissed because Gluba contended he had not been read his Miranda rights. He told the Hook in 2006 he shot Astro because the dog came onto his property with a pack and threatened Ingo, the Albemarle K-9 officer who was killed in the second Gluba-involved shooting.

In that 2004 incident, B&E suspect Robert Lee Cooke was pursued by responding officers Gluba and Ingo. Cooke and Ingo were both injured by gunfire, and Ingo had to be euthanized. Cooke was left paralyzed by Gluba's bullet, according to court documents, and was sentenced to 10 years in prison for maliciously wounding the police K-9 and possessing a gun as a felon, according to court records.

And on New Year's Day 2010, Gluba was one of seven cops involved in a shoot-out with 18-year-old Colby Eppard, who stole a Greene County police cruiser and led police on a nearly 70-mile chase before being blasted by police on Route 20 south, according to a letter written by Albemarle Commonwealth's Attorney Lunsford. She cleared all officers, but refused to release the number of bullets that riddled Eppard's body when asked by a reporter.

Gluba also turns up in a lawsuit in Albemarle Circuit Court filed by James Francis Phillips of Arrington that claims during a November 29, 2006, traffic stop, Gluba ordered Phillips to the ground, where he was attacked by a K-9, and severely injured on his face, stomach and arm, according to the suit. Phillips later committed suicide, says his attorney, and the suit did not move forward.

Gluba, who no longer works in the K-9 unit, according to police spokesperson Johnson, declined a Hook request for an interview.

County police's refusal to release names of officers involved in shootings disturbs Rutherford Institute founder John Whitehead and author of the just-released A Government of Wolves: The Emerging Police State.

"I would want to know who those cops are," he says. "Wouldn't you? If we live in a democracy and they're shooting people, we should know."

Whitehead cites the case of former Culpeper cop Daniel Harmon-Wright, who was convicted for shooting unarmed Patricia Cook in a church parking lot. "They knew this guy was dangerous," says Whitehead. "There is a danger to citizens. Why would they hide that? The key to free government is transparency."

Culpeper police refused to release Harmon-Wright's name for three months, and it was eventually leaked to the Free Lance-Star. Harmon-Wright was convicted of voluntary manslaughter and two other charges in May and sentenced to three years in prison.

That department came under the scrutiny of a federal judge for what he called "outrageous misconduct" in the handling of a capital murder conviction against Michael Hash, who is suing officers and the former commonwealth's attorney for wrongful imprisonment for the nearly 12 years he spent in prison.

FOIA request: Denied
Albemarle police protect not only their officers, but also citizens who shoot other citizens. When a Glenmore woman was wounded in her yard in 2010 by nearby target shooters, no charges were brought and county police refused to identify the errant-aiming target-practicer. Nearly two years later, police again denied a FOIA request seeking the identity of the shooter, claiming it was exempt as a criminal investigative file.

Colonel Sellers rejects the idea that his department conceals woundings by police, and notes that the Birdwood Court shooting is the first since he took the position as police chief in January 2011. He says the release of information is determined case by case. "If it's in the community interest," he says, "that far outweighs protection of the officer's family.

Sellers, who spoke to the Hook before Rosson was shot, lists five "bullet-points" that can stymie the release of information from shootings by police. "First, I'm not going to influence the outcome of a police investigation before it's concluded, as at Birdwood," he says. "We need to look at facts and interview witnesses. We don't want a story going out that would distort their recall."

He also cites the need to investigate the original crime that brought the officer to the shooting scene in the first place. In the Birdwood Court shooting, Charlottesville police say the two Albemarle officers were investigating a felony hit-and-run.

Besides the criminal investigation, there's also an administrative investigation. An officer can refuse to incriminate himself in the former, but not in the latter, explains Sellers. "I've got to be very, very careful the criminal and administrative investigations don't infringe on each other."

He also considers the human side of tragedies in which an officer uses deadly force. "You have just brushed up with death," says Sellers. "In some cases, it's devastating." And the officer's family is impacted as well, he adds.

Finally, the chief says, he does a threat assessment to determine whether there's risk of retaliation against the officer, and that's a factor in releasing information as well.

"I want to lay out as much information as fast as I can," he insists. "It's easy for conspiracy theories to perk up." One frustration, he says, is having to wait for the criminal investigation, the commonwealth's attorney, and the grand jury before information can be released.

"I will be transparent and as forthright as I can when misconduct occurs," says Sellers. "You saw that when we arrested one of our own officers."

In December, a 27-year Albemarle police veteran, Lieutenant Ernie Allen, was arrested for felony embezzlement when $380 went missing from the petty cash he managed. Allen was convicted of misdemeanor embezzling in February and sentenced to 10 days in jail, according to Albemarle County District Court records.

Sellers says the threat of lawsuits is not a factor in concealing the identity of an officer who fires at someone, although history shows such suits are possible.

In 2006, a jury found Albemarle County Police Department officer Amos Chiarappa "grossly negligent" in the 1997 fatal shooting of Frederick Gray in Squire Hill Apartments, and awarded Gray's family $4.5 million.

County police had another high-profile suspect-shooting in 2001, when Officer Raleigh Anderson was reported to have fired upon and killed William L. Wingfield Jr., 46, who had lunged at another officer with a pitchfork when they responded to a domestic call to his residence on Old Lynchburg Road, according to the Daily Progress, which also reported his mother said he had a history of mental illness. Then commonwealth's attorney Jim Camblos cleared Anderson in that shooting.

Sellers denies that potential police department embarrassment is a factor in withholding information, although history shows that, too, is possible.

Perhaps coincidentally, the last dashcam video the Hook ever received from Albemarle police went viral on YouTube. That was the infamous November 5, 2007, tape that showed Officer Greg C. Davis, with the Black Eyed Peas "My Humps" playing inside his police cruiser, appear to strike artist Gerry Mitchell with his cruiser as Mitchell crossed West Main in his wheelchair in a crosswalk.

Davis was not charged in the incident, although he accompanied a Charlottesville police officer to Mitchell's hospital room where Mitchell was charged with failure to obey a pedestrian signal. Discovery in a civil lawsuit later suggested that Davis may have been texting as he plowed into Mitchell.

Mitchell died four years later, just two months after the county settled the $850,000 lawsuit he filed for an undisclosed amount. He had AIDS, but his doctors claimed his condition was exacerbated by injuries he suffered when he was struck in the crosswalk.

Subsequent FOIAs to Albemarle police for dashcam footage from the Hook have all been denied, even one last year that was shown in court of Officer Andrew Holmes rear-ending a stopped car on Barracks Road, an incident for which he was convicted of improper driving, according to court records. Authorities have said at least eight police dashcams were operating during the Colby Eppard shooting in 2010. Hook FOIA requests for those tapes? Denied.

Also no longer released: Albemarle police officer official photographs.

Attorney Wyatt, who also represented Mitchell in his civil suit, is outraged that county police are denying FOIA requests concerning possible criminal acts using an exemption for personnel records. "What if there was some cop out there shooting someone every day, and as long as they clear him, they don't have to say who it is," she suggests.

"How else can we monitor how the system works?" she asks. "Everything the government does is our information. That acting like it's not your business— I think [Sellers] is completely wrong."

Supervisor Ken Boyd was surprised to learn that Albemarle police were not disclosing the identity of Officer Gluba, who reportedly fired his weapon at Rio Mills. "I just got back from a police banquet where they honored this officer," he says.

Boyd says he understands the need for care when police gather evidence, but adds, "Generally speaking, I'm in favor of transparency in government."

As for the Birdwood Court shooting, says Boyd, "I believe the public does deserve to know what happened."

Back to Birdwood Court
Early March 16, gunfire broke out on Second Street NW outside the Elks Lodge (and across the street from the Hook) and two men were left bleeding in the street, one of them wounded by Charlottesville police Officer Alex Bruner. Later that same morning, Charlottesville police Chief Tim Longo held a press conference, offered details of the shooting and identified Bruner, who was put on administrative leave and has since been cleared of any wrongdoing.

City police spokeman Ronnie Roberts cautions about comparing the police candor in the Elks Lodge shootings and what happened on Birdwood Court. "Those are two different scenarios and two different typles of investigations," he says. "The first had an independent witness."

Three days after the May 26 Birdwood shooting, Roberts said he couldn't release the name of the Albemarle officer or the victim because, he was told, "It could compromise the investigation."

Four days after the shooting, Roberts released a statement around 3pm May 30 that revealed two Albemarle police officers— William Underwood and James Herring— went to 105 Birdwood Court to investigate a felony hit-and-run. A struggle ensued with resident Josue Salinas Valdez, age 38, and Underwood fired, according to the release.

At press time, nearly two weeks after the shooting, no charges have been filed and no further information has been released. Whether Salinas Valdez was armed is still unknown.

"I would ask people to be patient," says Colonel Sellers. "It takes time to investigate, and that exacerbates the perception of a cover-up. We want to have all our T's crossed and I's dotted."

Birdwood Court residents just want to know how a neighbor came to be shot by police on a quiet, holiday Sunday night.

"It's completely bizarre," says the homeowners association president Laura Rydin, who was watching a movie with her kids when gunfire erupted. Two days after the shooting, she said, "We're trying to figure out what's going on. We're hoping police issue a statement because this is a very quiet neighborhood and so many families live here. We'd like an explanation."

More than a week later, she says, "We're still waiting for some sort of statement from the police to our neighborhood, but nothing so far."

Days after the Afton shooting, there's a similar pattern, with some who knew Rosson asking why deadly force had to be used in the encounter with police.

If history's a teacher, it could be a while before those questions are answered— if they ever are.

Correction 6/13: In the original version, Alan Gernhardt's affiliation was misidentified. He's with the Freedom of Information Advisory Council.

Nail-biter: Fenwick has 3-vote lead in ballot count-- for now

lisa — Wed, 12 Jun 2013 19:35:31 +0000

Normally the light-turnout primary race for City Council would have been decided Tuesday night shortly after the polls closed at 7pm. Instead, an unprecedented tie for second place has candidates Wes Bellamy and Bob Fenwick still unsure who will be on the Democratic ticket in the fall, and they may not know until noon Friday.

When the votes were counted June 11, Bellamy and Fenwick each had 1,088 votes in the five-man race, with incumbent Kristin Szakos holding a clear 32-percent-of the-vote lead.

The Electoral Board convened Wednesday morning to go over the returns and determine whether the seven provisional ballots– the ones in which a voter's registration doesn't match up with the registrar's– are accepted and added to the count, along with four provisional ballots from people who came to the polls without identification.

By 11am June 12, the board began opening envelopes containing the seven provisional ballots and four ID provisionals. Six were accepted– one guy said he'd changed his registration at the DMV, but there was no record of it, he'd last registered in Albemarle County, and he'd tried to vote in the wrong precinct for the address he gave. That ballot was rejected.

Five provisional ballots came from Walker precinct, where early voters ran into a voting machine snafu. Those names and addresses all matched Registrar Sheri Iachetta's records and were accepted. Another provisional in the Carver precinct was cast by someone who'd voted overseas the past two elections and hadn't notified the registrar he was back. "He voted provisionally and should be accepted," said Iachetta.

With that, six ballots were ready to be counted. "My heart's beating," said board member Joan Schatzman.

Bellamy and Fenwick sat across as a conference table as Electoral Board chair Rick Sincere read the City Council votes: five votes for Szakos, two votes for Melvin Grady, three for Fenwick, and none for Bellamy.

That put Fenwick at 1,091 to Bellamy's 1,088. But wait, there are more votes to be counted– the four ID provisional ballots. Those voters have until noon Friday to either fax a copy of their ID or come by the registrar's office with it, reminded Iachetta.

Schatzman suggested a courtesy call to the four who didn't have ID when they voted. "That's more than we had in the presidential election," noted Sincere. "We had two then."

Morgan Butler was one of those identification-less voters, and he had just gotten back from the registrar's office when he spoke to the Hook.

Butler declines to say for whom he voted. "It makes it exciting to know you're one of the uncounted."

As for possibly being one of the tie-breaking votes, says Butler, "Every vote counts."

Outside City Hall after Fenwick had just picked up three votes, a smiling Bellamy characterized the situation as "the luck of the draw."

And indeed, it could come down to luck of the draw if he can match Fenwick's three votes. The next step in the electoral process if they remain tied?

"The candidates choose a tiebreaker," says assistant registrar Carla Mullen. "It could be a coin toss or to pick a card."

In the statewide races, Aneesh Chopra garnered 58 percent of the vote for lieutenant governor in Charlottesville, but that wasn't enough to put him ahead of state Senator Ralph Northam, who took 54 percent of the vote across the commonwealth. State Senator Mark Herring will be on the Democratic ballot for attorney general, beating challenger Justin Fairfax with 52 percent of the vote.

Correction 6/14: Sheri Iachetta's name was misspelled in the original version. The Hook certainly knows better and regrets the error.

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