Good morning, RVA! It's 66 °F, and we've got another day ahead of us with cooler temperatures in the 80s. I don't know what's going on with August right now, but I'm loving it.
Water cooler
The New York Times reports that "the Food and Drug Administration has accelerated its timetable to fully approve Pfizer-BioNTech’s coronavirus vaccine, aiming to complete the process by the start of next month." I think this will be huge! Right now, all of the vaccines we have—vaccines which work stunningly well—are being jabbed into arms across American under the FDA's "Emergency Use Authorization." There's still a lot of science that goes into granting Emergency Use Authorization, but the process to get to EUA is faster than the FDA's full-approval process. And when you talk to folks about why they're hesitant to get the COVID-19 vaccine, EUA vs. full approval comes up a ton. So while some folks are just a hard no on vaccination forever and ever, I do think there's a nontrivial set of humans that really are waiting for full approval. I think this sentence from that NYT piece feels very, very true: "Full approval of the Pfizer vaccine will kick off a patchwork of vaccination mandates across the country." Choosing not to get vaccinated will soon have a lot of real and tangible consequences—you know, aside from getting sick and dying.
Related, Holly Prestidge at the Richmond Times-Dispatch talked to a handful of restaurant owners who have either already implemented COVID mandates of some kind or are getting real close to doing so. My prediction: Once some high-profile places break the seal, require vaccination, and aren't faced with an angry pitchfork mob, we'll see these piecemeal mandates spread quickly (like a virus!).
Confession: I've had a hard time following the news around the expiration of the federal eviction ban at the end of July. I'm pretty dumb about how the federal government works, but over the last couple of weeks the CDC, President Biden, and Congress have all spent significant time pointing fingers at each other when asked to do something about the lapsed ban on evictions. However! According to CNN, it sounds like the CDC will reinstate their ban until October 3, but only in areas with high or substantial community transmission (Richmond and Henrico have a "substantial" level of community transmission, while Chesterfield has a "high" level). Ben Paviour at VPM reports that Virginia's General Assembly has plans to help at the state level, too, by extending the Virginia Rent Relief Program. This program allows both landlords and tenants to apply for financial assistance, which seems great. You can learn more about the program and how to qualify here. According to Paviour, one of the issues facing the Rent Relief Program is that folks just don't know about it, so file this link away and spread it around as needed!
I think, for the moment, I've run out of words on the RPS School Board's attempts to replace George Wythe High School. Luckily, Chris Suarez at the RTD has plenty of words about this past Monday's Board meeting and the lack of progress made on moving forward in any sort of way.
Angela Petruzzelli writing for Richmond Magazine samples five different styles of fried chicken sandwiches you should try from local restaurants. Honestly, I'm pretty satisfied with the Popeye's chicken sandwich, but, it's not like I'm going to not eat a fried chicken sandwich if presented with the opportunity, you know?
Small reminder: The virtual version of the Shockoe Small Area Plan public meeting takes place today from 12:00–1:00 PM via Microsoft Teams. You can get at the full draft plan here, if you'd rather just flip through a thoughtfully put together PDF.
This morning's longread
Los Angeles confronts its shady divide
Check out this article in National Geographic about redlining and urban heat island effects in Los Angeles, which, of course, draws heavily from the work of Richmond's own Dr. Jeremy Hoffman!
On a hot day you feel much hotter in the direct sun than in the shade, even if the air temperature is the same. That temperature is a measure of how fast air molecules are moving and are heating you as they bump into you—but solar radiation heats your body too. In direct sunlight you might feel as much as 20 degrees warmer than in nearby shade. The same is true for buildings, sidewalks, and other massive objects: Direct solar radiation imparts more energy and therefore heat. Asphalt is a particularly good absorber, and along with concrete it releases that captured heat into the air for hours, even after the sun disappears, contributing to the urban heat island effect. A well-placed tree, on the other hand, can keep a building 18 degrees cooler than if it were fully exposed to the sun. Shade keeps everything cooler—and the overheating city is taking note.
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