Good morning, RVA! It's 67 °F, and today's highs will be in the low 80s. Expect some rain this afternoon through early evening.
Water cooler
Planning Commission meets today, and you can find the agenda here (PDF). Should be an exciting meeting as they'll cover lots of great stuff, including: The final review for the 17th Street Farmers market, folding the Pulse Corridor Plan into the city's Master Plan (plus an update on the update to the Master Plan), and a presentation on the Public Art Master Plan. That's a whole lot of plans, and it seems like the Planning Commission are the just the right folks to tackle the job.
Ned Oliver at the RTD has a rundown of the renovations going on at the Main Street Train Station—and, really, "renovations" is not nearly a strong enough word for a $90 million project. While the building looks absolutely beautiful, I'm not super stoked on the several million dollars of anticipated annual operating costs. Call me a negative Nelly, but the list of city-subsidized projects that haven't panned out is long and not awesome. You can listen, first-hand, to the discussion between City Council and project manager Jeannie Welliver over on this episode of the Boring Show (along with a great conversation about the Capital Improvement Plan).
A Ned Oliver double feature! Here's his update on the proposed development at the Union Seminary-owned Westwood Tract on the Northside. The intensely negative comments about the project from current City Council members surprised me. I'm trying to remember if I've seen such opinionated quotes from sitting councilfolk about a private development before—holler at me if something comes to mind.
Finally on the City government beat, City Council's budget amendments should show up on the internet today. Thrilling, I know! Keep your web browsers peeled.
Richmond Magazine's Stephanie Breijo says the South of the James Market turns 10 this year. That's wild! Congratulations GrowRVA, farmers, and marketgoers!
Just to prove we're not suffering from a collective delusion, the RTD has pictures of dogs in hats from this past weekend's Easter on Parade.
Have you listened to the new Kendrick Lamar album yet?
Sports!
- Squirrels wrapped up their series against Reading with a 6-7 loss. They'll start a new series at Bowie tonight.
- Kickers fell to the Ottawa Fury FC, 0-1.
- Nats went 2-1 against the Phillies over the weekend. They have the day off today.
This morning's longread
What was saved
Things saved from the shooting at Virginia Tech, which took place ten years ago yesterday.
Some of the objects saved are small enough to fit in a pocket. Others take more than one person to lift. Some were gifts from strangers. Others belonged to loved ones who could no longer hold them. In the 10 years that have passed, much has changed for those who were on campus that day or were pulled there by the bloodshed. Students have graduated. Careers have blossomed. Families have expanded or shrunk. But the objects — a jacket, a quilt, a Christmas ornament, a cellphone, a drum, a collection of decorated eggs — still retain their power. They are tokens of grief. They are testaments of generosity. They are relics of heroism.