Good morning, RVA! It's 70 °F, and today looks a bit cooler with cloudy skies and highs around 80 °F.
Water cooler
At last night's regularly-scheduled City Council meeting, Councilman Jones introduced a monument-related resolution—you can read the legislation's blurb in this pic snapped by @RVAdirt. First, this is not "an ordinance to take the monuments down." This is a resolution—which means it's non-binding—to say that the City is in favor of asking the State to grant them the authority to take the monuments down should we get to that point. Second, Ned Oliver and Mark Robinson say the rest of Council has no appetite for passing even this mild resolution. Personally, I want to see what the Monument Avenue Commission comes up with first before we start putting together our legal toolbox.
Good Luck America, Pete Hamby's show on Snapchat, begins its new season today with an episode about Richmond's monuments. You'll see a bunch of familiar places and faces, including Governor McAuliffe, Mayor Stoney, and Councilman Jones. Two things: First, Hamby is the head of news at Snapchat, but also he's from Richmond. Second, Snapchat has shows?! You can watch a short preview or here's a Snapcode that'll take you directly to the full episode.
This piece by Justin Mattingly about RPS hiring former Baltimore County School Superintendent (and Richmonder) Dallas Dance as a consultant makes me go 🤔. I honestly don't know what to make of it. Although, I think this story does put him firmly out of the running for RPS superintendent—assuming he ever was in the running.
Carol Hazard at the RTD has more about a new mixed-use, mixed-income project going up in Fulton near the site of the Fulton Hill School building. Some of the things worth mentioning about this development: 204 units, some underground parking, it's about .7 miles from the Orleans BRT station and a similar distance from the Capital Trail, and some units will "rent below-market rates for people who make less than the average area median income." Density!
St. Paul's Episcopal has begun hosting their Eyes on Richmond speaker series! Last week, Mayor Stoney stopped by (you can watch his talk here), and this week they'll welcome Carrie Coyner—a Chesterfield County School Board member—whose talk is titled "Social Inequality and its Impact on Educational Equity." Sounds fascinating. Next week, I'll make an appearance to talk about...transit (duh)! Anyway, you should check it out.
There's a Batman film festival at Gallery5 this week, and I just thought y'all should know that. The fest kicks off with the 1966 Batman movie (free!), and continues with Mask of the Phantasm (from Batman the Animated Series), a Batman / Batman Returns double feature, The Dark Knight, and The LEGO Batman Movie
Vox has an update (which will probably be out-of-date by the time you read it) on Graham-Cassidy. Read down to the section labeled Quote of the Day and then feel sad about life. The WaPo, however, says the bill is dead.
Sports!
- Nats beat the Phils, 3-1, and continue that series tonight at 7:05 PM.
This morning's longread
Why Happy People Cheat
There are some good sentences in this piece about how life and people are complicated.
The revelation of an affair forces couples to grapple with unsettling questions: What does fidelity mean to us and why is it important? Is it possible to love more than one person at once? Can we learn to trust each other again? How do we negotiate the elusive balance between our emotional needs and our erotic desires? Does passion have a finite shelf life? And are there fulfillments that a marriage, even a happy one, can never provide?
For me, these conversations should be part and parcel of any adult, intimate relationship from the beginning. It’s far better to address these issues before a storm hits. Talking about what draws us outside our fences, in an atmosphere of trust, can actually foster intimacy and commitment. But for many couples, unfortunately, the crisis of an affair is the first time they talk about any of this. Priya and Colin will have to negotiate these questions while also dealing with the ravages of betrayal, dishonesty, and broken trust.