Good morning, RVA! It's 43 °F, and today you can expect highs near 70 °F. Rain potentially moves in tomorrow, alongside cooler temperatures, so today may be the best bike-ride day until the weekend. Something to consider!
Water cooler
As of this morning, the Virginia Department of Health reports 1,143 new positive cases of the coronavirus in the Commonwealth and 21 new deaths as a result of the virus. VDH reports 157 new cases in and around Richmond (Chesterfield: 39, Henrico: 86, and Richmond: 32). Since this pandemic began, 1,205 people have died in the Richmond region. The Washington Post reports that I'm not the only one concerned about a springtime coronapeak: "President Biden and top health officials on Monday urged an impatient public to remain vigilant against the coronavirus, as daily case counts continued to rise, younger people replaced seniors in some U.S. hospitals, and the United States moved beyond the milestone of 30 million cases since the outbreak began." The director of the CDC said she has a feeling of "impending doom," which, yikes. To me this means, don't get lazy, wear your masks, keep your distance, work form home if you can, and take the first vaccine offered to you.
Over in vaccine world, in the same press conference which you can just watch directly here, Biden also announced that 90% of Americans will be eligible for vaccination within the next three weeks. To quote, "For the vast, vast majority of adults, you won't have to wait until May 1. You'll be eligible for your shot on April 19." That's pretty dang soon, y'all. If you're not eligible for an appointment yet, just sit tight and you will be. You will be.
Casino updates! In her district news letter, Councilmember Kristen Larson came out against the Forest Hill casino site, saying "While the reasons for opposition are wide ranging, access and traffic impacts for that parcel are a huge issue for the district. I have not received any reassurances on these issues in my discussions with Bally’s leadership team or the city administration...For these reasons and more, I cannot support this proposal for Bally’s Richmond Casino Resort in the Forest Hill/Chippenham/Powhite area." So we've got the 4th District councilmember against the 4th District casino site, the 2nd District councilmember against the 2nd District casino site, and I don't think we've heard much from the 8th District councilmember either way. Meanwhile, these disgusting signs advocating against the 2nd District site have popped up (either on Twitter or in the Real World, I can't tell). The signs warn of "More traffic. Higher crime. Lower quality of life for us." and then end with "Tell them to build it over there." It's pretty clear who this sign's creator includes in "us" and where they think is "over there." And then, last night, I got this text, which shares a lot of language with the disgusting flyer: "Hi, this is Jenny. As you may know there is a proposal before the Richmond City Council to build a resort casino on Arthur Ashe Boulevard where the Bowtie Cinema currently sits. Would you support such a proposal that would increase crime, add traffic to our community roads, and lower our quality of life? Please respond YES if you support, NO if you oppose, or NOT SURE." So it seems like some residents or businesses (or some other group motivated to see the Movieland site fail 🤔) are putting time and money into organizing against that 2nd District site. If you want to learn more and get involved, you can tune into a virtual meeting about the Movieland proposal tonight at 6:00 PM. One thing I'd like to know the answer to, which I guess I could find out by reading the legislation, is what happens if Council fails to recommend a site and operator to go on the ballot in November?
Kenya Hunter in the Richmond Times-Dispatch reports that "Alicia Atkins, the first Black woman elected to the Henrico County School Board, has asked a white colleague to step down as board chairwoman over a pattern of behavior Atkins said is harmful and perpetuates systemic racism." The current chair shared a dumb and offensive Facebook post a couple weeks ago, back when Republicans were mad about Dr. Seuss. Additionally, a few years back the same person also "apologized to constituents who were upset over a video shown to students at Glen Allen High School during Black History Month that detailed how white privilege works." I don't know that anything will come of this, but I do think it's interesting when Henrico County deals with it's business—especially issues of race and racism—out in public.
Who's stoked for a rail announcement? The Governor, Secretary Mayor Pete, and some folks from Amtrak, CSX, and Virginia Railway Express will make "an important rail announcement" today at 11:00 AM. What could it be?? My money is on something related to the Longbridge. That thing holds up north-south rail travel in a big, big way and getting a bigger replacement would open up faster trips through D.C. Sounds like something to be stoked for!
Stephanie Ganz, writing for Richmond Magazine, has put together a long list of local tacos you need to try. I've had a bunch of these, but, post-vaccination, I think I need to expand my taco horizon! Actually, Richmond Magazine has a whole set of taco features this month–check it out.
Via /r/rva, cherry blossoms on N. Cherry Street. Love it! This week of spring, aside from the lung-searing pollen, is so magically beautiful.
This morning's longread
Teacher Demoralization Isn't the Same as Teacher Burnout
I like the distinction made here between burnout and demoralization—applies to folks working all sorts of public-service-types jobs outside of teaching, too.
Teachers are often compensated far less than their peers with similar educational credentials and expertise. As public schooling has become increasingly focused on standardization, testing, and compliance, it has become a less compelling career choice for people who are motivated by contributing to their communities, engaging meaningfully with young people, or sharing the beauty of their subject matter. In exchange for these moral rewards, they have traditionally been willing to persist in work that is intellectually and emotionally demanding and only modestly compensated.
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