Two weeks ago, Squeaky Wheel columnist Peter Kleeman hedged his bet and said he was considering a run for City Council– as he collected the 125 signatures necessary to get on the ballot as an independent in November.

Kleeman turned in his signatures yesterday. “I am officially a candidate,” he said, before taking off for Ontario for 10 days. He’ll make his official announcement when he gets back.

And while he’s gone, the Democrats will winnow their field from five to three candidates on Saturday. And Dems who take part in the convention must “pledge that they do not intend to support anyone who is opposed to a Democrat in the November election.”

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Its official name was Piedmont Equipment, but to locals, the company on Ivy Road with the John Deere-filled lawn was always known as Piedmont Tractor. The paucity of the familiar green yard and farm equipment lately has caused some west-siders to wonder, ou sont les tracteurs?

They’ll be back soon, promises new president and general manager Ann Lawrence Grasty. She and five other owners of Virginia Tractor LLC, including Allied Concrete owner Wick McNeely, purchased some of the assets of Piedmont Equipment and hold the new Central Virginia John Deere dealership franchise, with locations in Albemarle and Orange.

As for missing mowers, “When the old dealer was no longer a John Deere dealer, that equipment was taken to other dealers,” says Grasty. She promises that by June 4, John Deere tractors will once again line Ivy Road.

Grasty becomes the first woman to head a John Deere dealership in this area. “I grew up on a thoroughbred horse farm, and I’ve always been a big John Deere fan,” (more)

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After much speculation, the Associated Press is now reporting that the NBA’s Memphis Grizzlies will name UVA alum and former ‘Hoos assistant coach Marc Iavaroni as their new head coach at a press conference tomorrow. He will reportedly leave his post as an assistant coach with the Phoenix Suns for his first head coaching job at any level.

Iavaroni remains one of the great big men in Cavalier history. He ranks 10th on the all-time career rebounding list with 718, and helped lead the ‘Hoos to their only ACC Tournament championship in 1976. Following graduation in 1978, (more)

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Bikes in Charlottesville, Panic over real estate, Say hello to the Tough Customer

ON THIS WEEK’S COVER:
I want to ride my bicycle
They may be in the minority, but local bike commuters seem to be more dedicated than many fans of other exercise. Neither snow, nor rain, nor dangerous traffic deters them from their morning rides. But our lack of non-car routes might. What’s it going to take for two-wheelers and four-wheelers to coexist? Randy Salzman has the story.

ALSO IN THIS WEEK’S ISSUE (more)

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Attention dog owners: if you’re one of those people who’ve been flouting the city’s leash law along the Greenbelt in Riverside Park, you might want to consider that your canine’s free-roamin’ ways could cost you some freedom. Or at least some money.

This past weekend, the city kicked off a new wave of leash law enforcement, as a community patrol officer issued five citations for leash law violations– a class four misdemeanor punishable by a fine up to $250. In late December 2001, the city enacted a leash law in all parks, designating certain spaces and times when dogs can be off leash. While Riverside’s rules allow dogs to run free on on the “short loop” (starting and ending at the park parking lot) on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays, many dog owners are letting their dogs exceed these bounds.

“We’re going to enforce it,” says Charlottesville Police Sergeant L.A. Durrette, “and city and county residents need to understand that the city does have a leash law.”

Durrette says the decision to ramp up enforcement in all city parks was a result of community complaints, (more)

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Film festival director Richard Herskowitz has been named the Tourism Person of the Year by the local tourist board, according to a release. The presentation occurred last night at a ceremony inside the brand new Visitor Center.

Director of the Virginia Film Festival for 13 years, Herskowitz has become something of a local institution– sorta like the Festival itself which began in 1988.

“The Virginia Film Festival is both a signature event which draws thousands of visitors to our region and a showcasing of the Charlottesville area to current and future filmmakers,” said Mark Shore, director of the (more)

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Click for a cool slide show
PHOTO BY HAWES SPENCER

Wild animals have taken over the Downtown Mall! Well, sorta. Yesterday, volunteers with “Look3: Festival of the Photograph,” put up 25 banners– 50 giant photographs in all. As detailed in a recent Hook cover story, the nearly 7 x 10′ photographs– wildlife images by Festival founder and National Geographic photographer Nick Nichols– are designed to whet appetites for pictures. But they almost didn’t.

“The delivery was lost by the shipping company for about two days,” says Festival co-founder Will May. “We received it at midnight the night before.”

May led a small team of volunteers who spent about seven hours climbing ladders and swinging from trees yesterday. And the outdoor exhibition was just one of three exhibitions (more)

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This morning an outgoing City Councilor issued the first endorsements of the upcoming election, but already his statements have come under fire from a former councilor.

Incumbent Kevin Lynch, who isn’t seeking a third four-year term, taps newcomers Jennifer McKeever and Holly Edwards to join mayor David Brown as his picks. “Both want the best for their young children and have translated this into a desire to be advocates for all of our community’s children,” Lynch wrote in an email sent out earlier this morning.

Conspicuously absent was any mention of former school board chair Linda Seaman or of Satyendra Huja, the retired city planner who oversaw construction of the Downtown Mall and myriad other large civic projects during his 31 years in City Hall. (more)

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A group of heretofore mysterious artists have finally been revealed as the painters of the masterful faux brick design that has covered the east side of Beta Bridge for the past month. Impressive in its own right, the project is also remarkable for its apparent role in the preservation of the orange and maroon “Hoos for Hokies” message painted on the bridge on the day of the Virginia Tech massacre. ‘Hoos for Hokies’ has remained unpainted-over longer than any other message since Beta Bridge became a daily-altered canvas in the 1970s.

Nine UVA undergraduate students and their professor, Sara Brown, painted the brick trompe l’oeil as a final project in their Scenic Painting class this past spring semester. “We’ve done this kind of thing as a final class (more)

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Congressman Virgil Goode (R-Rocky Mount) got himself into a bit of national controversy in January when he wrote in a letter to constituents, “I fear that in the next century we will have many more Muslims in the United States if we do not adopt the strict immigration policies I believe are necessary.” Now our man in Washington is talking immigration again and it’s gotten the attention of America’s favorite fake newsman, Jon Stewart. Well, not so much what he said, but the way he said it.

In a segment during last night’s Daily Show, part of a series of Republican soundbites expressing opposition to the new immigration reform bill, Stewart aired a clip of Goode, in his trademark Southside Virginia twang, saying, “It’s a destruction of our sovreignity.”

It seems that Goode’s voice was enough to provoke a laugh from the studio audience as a grimacing Stewart remarked, “I guess that was Leghorn-esque.” To hit home his point, an image of Looney Tunes cartoon chicken Foghorn Leghorn appeared to Stewart’s left as he mocked, “I say, I say, I say, I say, I say we gotta respect my sovereign-TAH!”

For the record, Leghorn is not Goode’s favorite animated pullet. According to the Hook’s 2002 HotSeat feature, he’s more of a Donald Duck man.

Speaking of Charlottesville’s association with famous cartoons, our fair city recently found its way into the 400th episode of The Simpsons. As reported by Waldo Jaquith, while ordering the types of toppings he wanted on his ice cream, Homer Simpson listed a series of fictitious knock-offs of famous candies, including “Charlottesville Chew,” which was pronounced CHAR-lottesville instead of the usual SHAR-lottesville, an obvious homage to the Charleston Chew.
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In addition to inspiring local fiction writers recently, local author John Grisham has inspired one local anti-war activist to begin a 5-day walk tomorrow from the Rotunda to the White House in protest against the Iraq War.

During his Sunday commencement speech at UVA, the author spoke of the “fifty-eight thousand boxes” that returned from Vietnam, and had this advice for outgoing students: “When politicians get the itch to go to war, don’t believe what they say.”

“I’ve been against this war for a long time,” says Nicholas Kimbrell, who co-founded UVA’s Students for Peace in Iraq. “And it finally just clicked while I was listening to Grisham. Anti-war people need to make sacrifices for their cause, just like soldiers do, and this is a way to make a symbolic statement myself after graduation.”

Kimbrell says he’ll begin his trek tomorrow at 9am in front of the Rotunda, and that he’ll be carrying a sign on his back that says, “Bring Our Troops Home: Memorial Day March, Charlottesville to DC.” For safety reasons, he’s let the State police know he’ll be walking up Route 29 and will be keeping his cell phone on.

In addition to Grisham, Kimbrell also credits his Mom, a civil rights activist back in the day, with inspiring him to make the march.

“I think it will be a good summation of my years in Charlottesville,” says Kimbrell.

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A classic classified scam is back, and a rising third-year UVA student trying to sublet an apartment on craigslist was bilked out of $3,500 over the weekend.

The playbook was standard: The student received a response from someone purporting to be from Port-au-Prince, Haiti, [warning sign #1] wanting to rent the apartment unseen. They sent a $5,000 check [warning sign #2, usually a fake cashier's check] for the $1,500 rent [warning sign #3-- the amount is way over the rent or sales price]. The student was asked to deposit it and write checks from her account for the overage, in this case to pay for airline tickets and storage, says Charlottesville police Officer Phil Wauple.

The young woman deposited the bogus check Saturday, May 19. She sent out checks from her account May 21, and on May 22, her bank said the check was no good and asked, “Hey, where’s our dough?” says Wauple. And by then, the victim’s checks had already been cashed. (more)

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Murder in the Park, The Queen’s guide to summer, Racist parking regs?

ON THIS WEEK’S COVER:
Murder in the Park: Rice release revives memories
In the second of a two-part series on unsolved local murders, Barbara Nordin examines the events surrounding the 1996 deaths of Lollie Winans and Julie Williams in the Shenandoah National Park and the government’s now-withdrawn case against Darrell David Rice. Now that Rice is getting out of prison for other offenses, what lies ahead for him and what does it mean for one woman who survived an attack from him?

ALSO IN THIS WEEK’S ISSUE (more)

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The City announced last night that it will create a new pedestrian trail linking the Downtown Mall to Carlton Avenue near the Woolen Mills area of the City, via the developing “coal tower” property owned by music mogul Coran Capshaw.

The announcement indicates that the so-called Coal Tower Trail will run from the East End of the Mall near the Lexis-Nexis building near the CSX/Buckingham Branch railroad tracks passing through downtown. Capshaw has revealed plans to transform a 10.8-acre site, what was once part of a working rail yard, into one of the largest– if not the largest– mixed-use projects downtown.

The City’s announcement, arriving last night after 9pm, was just in time to coordinate with City Council’s “Vision Week,” a series of events emphasizing eight areas of future emphasis by Council and City staff. Monday focused on a “Connected Community” encouraging bike and pedestrian trail systems, sidewalks and crosswalk enhancement in residential neighborhoods.

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For almost 30 years, the crumbling Blue Ridge Tuberculosis Sanatorium along Route 20 South has been in the shadow of the wrecking ball. Now it appears the ball is going to swing, as the owner has applied for demo permits.

Founded in 1920, the Sanatorium operated as a tuberculosis treatment center until 1978, when the State transfered ownership to the University of Virginia. In 1988, UVA applied for a demo permit to take down the buildings on the site, but (more)

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Dave Matthews and Tim Reynolds will put on a special, intimate show on Saturday, July 28 on Long Island, part of a special five-concert series called “The East Hampton Social,” featuring not only this dynamic duo, but also Prince (July 14), Billy Joel (August 4), James Taylor (August 11), and Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers (August 25). But this isn’t just any concert series. To attend this party, music lovers are going to have to dig deep into their pockets.

In what some industry analysts say could start a trend, the only way to see Dave is to buy the ticket to see Dave and all four other shows. The only way (more)

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What’s big, blue, genderless, mute, and quite possibly a little bit stinky? Give up? It’s Charlottesville’s new “gascot,” who’s helping the gas distribution office of the city’s utilities department teach kids gas safety.

Today the still-unnamed creature (seen here with city spokesperson Ric Barrick) wandered Downtown waving to passersby. On Tuesday, the city plans an “Unveiling Ceremony of the Gas Mascot’s Name” complete with balloons and cotton candy and an official “birth certificate” issued by city officials.

According to Irene Peterson, the city employee who created the mascot’s design, more than 200 people entered the contest to name the mascot. Among the creative entries: “Jack Gas,” “Mr. Stinky,” and “The Flamer.” The winner, who will be announced during the ceremony, will receive gift certificates to various city establishments. Peterson says many people– children and adults– are unaware of the smell of the noisome chemical added to the naturally odorless gas and don’t know what to do in case of a leak. The city aims to increase awareness with this new silent buddy.

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For nearly 14 years, a small specialty shop at the east end of the Downtown Mall has kept cat lovers purring with all manner of goods with feline themes. Now fans of two other species have a reason to woof and whinny.

On June 1, the Dog and Horse Lovers Boutique will open just a block from the Cat House. But despite their proximity, owners of both stores say they won’t be fighting like cats and dogs.

“She’s been really helpful and very welcoming,” says Dog and Horse owner Sharon Nichols of Cat House owner Elizabeth Hurka, who Nichols says has assisted her in finding unusual vendors.

Hurka says the warm feelings are mutual, and she’s looking forward to having an animal-loving business neighbor. “She can refer cat people to me,” she says. “I can refer dog people to her.”

Nichols, who’s moving to Charlottesville from Middleburg, has had an organic pet treat business for the past seven years and is the former regional manager of Plow & Hearth.
Opening a pet-centric store of her own is something she has spent the last seven years planning, and she decided Charlottesville would be the perfect location. “I love the charm (more)

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The Squeaky Wheel may eventually have to go on hiatus, but the City Council race just got more interesting with the entry of transportation activist Peter Kleeman, who is collecting signatures to get on the November ballot as an independent, Charlottesville Tomorrow reports.

Former VDOT engineer Kleeman has been a green transportation consultant since 1997, and falls into the Meadow Creek Parkway opposition camp.

He last ran for City Council in 2000 as a “Democrat for Change,” along with Maurice Cox and Kevin Lynch, but was edged out by Meredith Richards.

Kleeman needs to collect 125 signatures by June 12 to get on the ballot, and he’ll face three Democrats, who will be chosen at the party’s June 2 caucus. So far, no Republicans have entered the race.
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“We’ll treat this like Vegas– what happens here, stays here,” said WINA program director Jay James last night at the Glenmore Country Club. Yeah, right. Like a bunch of advertising folk are going to keep their winnings a secret.

The event was the 2007 Emma Awards for Excellence in Marketing, and James was the host for the annual ceremony that drew Central Virginia chapter members of the American Marketing Association. “I can be impartial,” said James. “There is no radio category.”

Payne, Ross & Associates took home the overall marketing award for its Kl�ckner Pentaplast campaign, as well as best logo/graphic for Collins Engineering and best print advertising for Monticello. Susan Payne, left, and Lisa Ross clutch their coveted Emmas. (more)

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Rt. 29 murder unsolved 11 years later, Dueling shelter mags, Dems pick candidates

ON THIS WEEK’S COVER:
Cold case? Alicia Showalter Reynolds and the fall and rise of Darrell Rice
After serving time for an attack in Shenandoah National Park, Darrell Rice is about to be free again. His release prompts memories of a series of attacks involving illicit pull-overs along Route 29 that still have law enforcement agencies puzzled, especially the 1996 murder of Alicia Showalter Reynolds. Eleven years later, are police any closer to cracking the case?

ALSO IN THIS WEEK’S ISSUE (more)

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Recent Beta Bridge passersby may have been startled to see that one side of Charlottesville’s most mutable public billboard seems to be restored to its original brick.

No paint was stripped for this job, however. Some skilled visual illusionists simply painted the bridge to look like aged brick, leaving only the maroon and orange “Hoos for Hokies” message that was painted there on the day tragedy struck Virginia Tech one month ago.

That message resonated powerfully with many affected by the tragedy, since Beta Bridge has long been a favored expression-place for the traditional UVA/ Tech rivalry. The mysterious artists haven’t publicly taken responsibility (more)

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While lauding the personable and prankster sides of fundamentalist preacher Jerry Falwell, who died yesterday in Lynchburg, freedom fighter John W. Whitehead reveals that he was no fan of Falwell’s mixing of church and state.

“I would eat dinner with him,” says Whitehead, “but as far as his philosophy, I couldn’t disagree with him more.

“His view of things was typical Christian right-wing fundamentalists,” continues Whitehead, “but I hate to use the word Christian because I can’t picture Jesus with a Uzi. Falwell probably could.”

Ironically, it was Whitehead’s 1981 book, The Second American Revolution, that inspired many of the same believers who became part of the Moral Majority, the Falwell-founded group that typically argued for a hawkish foreign policy. Whitehead says he later changed (more)

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To borrow from Casey Kasem, the hits just keep on coming for the Charlottesville Pavilion this summer. After announcing a summer season that already includes the likes of Bonnie Raitt, Lyle Lovett, and k.d. lang, the Pavilion has heralded the coming of four more big-name shows to come in the next few months. On Thursday, July 26, country legend Randy Travis will bring his “Passing Through” tour to town. Three days later, on Sunday, July 29, the B-52’s arrive with their kitschy brand of southern-fried rock. Six days after that, on Saturday, August 4, neo-roots heroes Nickel Creek and teenage-prodigy-turned-acclaimed-songwriter Fiona Apple play a double bill. And a week and a half after that, Rufus Wainwright serenades us with his off-kilter pop, with alt-country queen Neko Case opening.

Tickets for Travis, the B-52’s, and Nickel Creek/Apple go on sale (more)

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Going up: WNRN’s new antenna rises to the occasion via the crane on the right.
PHOTO BY JON HALL

Regular listeners to WNRN may have noticed over the past month that the modern rock station wasn’t coming in loud and clear. High winds April 16 blew the antenna off its Carter Mountain tower.

General manager Mike Friend could tell right away something had happened. “The top of the tower looked like there wasn’t an antenna there,” he says. “Fortunately we have a back-up antenna, but it’s kind of sucky.”

And Friend doesn’t even want to think about what kind of blast blew off a 30-pound antenna with two braces and dropped it 80 feet away. “That puppy just took on off,” understates Friend. (more)

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