In November I heard that Dominion Power (aka Dom.Com, VEPCO, Dominion) had indicated to a Charlottesville City Councilor that utility poles located in the middle of sidewalks could be addressed. Dominion was interested in a list, an inventory of such poles.
HEY Dominion! Are these two more sidewalk poles in the making? 1000 block of East Market Street.
Decrease the width of the street to 36 feet, keep the sidewalk, move the poles?
Put the lines in an underground utility bus?
Category: government
compliance
Franklin and Broadway. The sign is advisory in nature, not a sign that the police enforce.
And so…. Franklin and Market. The tractor trailer driver mashes Betty Lou’s front lawn, knocks on doors. Residents on Market Street move their autos so the rig can make the turn he has been advised not to make.
it’s the thought that counts
SUP 101
Charlottesville Neighborhood Development Services planner Brian Haluska AICP presents information regarding the purpose and intent of the “Special Use Permit” provision within the zoning code. How are such permits applied for? Who can grant an SUP?
The informational meeting was held at the Woolen Mills Chapel, organized by Cindy Cartwright and Bill Lankford. Attended by 30 citizens…
Mr. Haluska pointed the assembled toward the definition and regulations pertaining to music halls.
scary
My fears regarding the future of neighborhoods? Cut them open to get to the golden eggs, trade them for a handful of magic beans, shrink National Historic Districts and ADC’s to the size of handkerchiefs, widen roads, install sewage pipes in the air, cut down the trees, fire engines everywhere. Anything is possible.
Charlottesville Tomorrow has the story:
Urban Design
Our City is currently involved in several urban design discussions simultaneously.
Are cities gender neutral? Our city, being Charlotte’s Ville. Maybe she can multitask. Talk about redesigning her central park and her bridge downtown and not cut off the wrong leg by mistake.
I have missed the bridge-design events & discussion. Watching the video by Dan Bluestone and Brian Wimer has me playing catch-up.
Why do we allow our bad things to happen to our cities? Why do we allow our cities to be designed by autos and fire engines?
Jim Kunstler talked a bit about the Law of Perverse Outcomes in his November 2011 “Eyesore of the Month”.
Humpty Dumpty
failure to control
My first dog was executed by the Albemarle County dog warden by rifle shot at my request. Mr. D would have taken Charlie away and gassed him, I preferred to have it be quick and dead.
Charlie was a fabulous dog, I was a bad dog owner.
Problems with domesticated animals can generally be traced back to the owner. Having my dog die of lead poisoning made an impression on me.
Charlie the Labrador slew rabbits at Carlo Columbini’s place on Route 20 North.
You kill livestock in Virginia, you die. There is a law for that.
When a state or a municipality enforces its existing laws, changes in behavior will occur.
I support leash laws for dogs and cats. I am tired of domesticated cats killing wild birds and defecating wherever they see fit.
Pond
In our town there is one Council meeting every two years opened by the City Manager. This is the first meeting following the expiration of the Mayor’s term when the City Councilors choose one of their colleagues to be the boss of the dais for the next two years and another of their colleagues to be the underboss.
Now, our City is a bit of a machine politics town, all the Councilors are Democrats. They do argue amongst themselves, have healthy debates, intrigues, kerfluffles. They get things done, spend money.
Still, I like the pretense that a vote will be taken, it just feels more democratic.
So, do they do this every time? Telegraph the result of the vote before the vote? That is Mr. Jones, our excellent City Manager, sitting on the mayoral throne, gaveling open the meeting. And the sign in front says Huja.
Huja is the mayor who was elected several minutes later.
water water everywhere
Workers from TriState Utilities reline 8″ diameter waste water pipe from an access point at 10th and Market Street. To prevent infiltration and exfiltration related to sewer pipes in the water and sewer authority service area would require an expenditure of 2000 million dollars.
Albemarle County Supervisor Ken Boyd gives an interview to local TV following the Rivanna Water and Sewer Authority Board Meeting September 27.
Charlottesville City Council Independent candidate, Bob Fenwick, advocates dredging of the region’s reservoir as the most effective means of protecting water supply. Mr. Fenwick shown here with corn growing in dredging spoils.
September 29, a citizen addresses a representative of the state Department of Environmental Quality at a public hearing regarding a Modification Request for VWP Individual Permit No. 06-1574, Ragged Mountain Expansion Project, Albemarle County, Virginia.