While they serve sandwiches, pastas, and salads, Newcomb says Brixx mostly sells one-size pizzas cooked in a wood-fired oven.

“We use high-end ingredients,” he says, “but nothing on our menu is over $10.”

Another thing that distinguishes Brixx? Twenty-four craft-brewed beers on tap and 14 wines by the glass, many of them local. In fact, Starr Hill Brewery’s offerings are already on the line-up in their 18 other restaurants.

This new arrival to Charlottesville is unrelated to Brix Terrace Café, a California-cuisine bistro with a long history in town that’s now located at Pantops Shopping Center.

Blue Ridge Backyard Harvest co-founder Guinevere Higgins wants to make you an urban farmer.
PHOTO BY BILLY HUNT

There appears to be a backyard revolution going on in Charlottesville, as two businesses designed to help folks grow their own food have, well, cropped up.

C’Ville Foodscapes and Blue Ridge Backyard Harvest are nearly identical in their missions and services, offering to design and build gardens, consult on planning and growing them, and assist in maintaining them. Both offer harvesting and composting advice, and the folks at Blue Ridge Backyard Harvest even offer chicken-keeping services.

But will this urban farming movement catch on as the two companies hope it will? According to Blue Ridge Backyard Harvest co-founder Guinevere Higgins, our survival may depend on it.

“At some point, our food system is going to have a very rude awakening— be it a spike in gas prices or an outbreak of food-borne illness, or a massive food recall,” says Higgins, who also founded CLUCK, the Charlottesville League of Urban Chicken Keepers. “And those best positioned to weather those upsets will be home gardeners.”

Similarly, C’Ville Foodscapes co-founder Wendy Roberman and her partners Sky Blue, Sam Pierceall, Kassia Arbabi, Patrick Costello, and Angel Shockley have approached the venture with a sense of mission.

“We believe everyone has the right to healthy food, and we want to help people achieve this,” says Roberman.

Of course, before the two businesses came on the scene, local Grammy-nominated songstress Adrienne Young had already launched a backyard revolution with her non-profit SurLie Foundation, which started a program in 2008 called, appropriately enough, Backyard Revolution. In fact, the organization is planning its first Backyard Revolution Festival hosted by the Devil’s Backbone Brewery in Nelson County May 8 and 9.

Young also chats with 106.1 The Corner’s Brad Savage every Friday at 8:30pm on opportunities to start your own backyard revolution.

“As a society, we have drifted further away from the practical wisdom that enabled people to lead highly self-reliant, interdependently sustainable lives in their own regions,” writes Young on her website.

Unlike the “Victory Gardens” that sprouted up during the World Wars, encouraged by a government effort to protect the home front and fueled by the real fear that people might actually run out of food, our latest garden movement appears to be a reaction to the industrialized production of food of the late 20th Century.

“More people are coming to understand that growing your own food is the best possible way to avoid industrial agriculture, decrease your carbon footprint, ensure safe and high-quality produce, and eat food with real flavor,” says Higgins.

Higgins, along with partners Matt Bierce and Mike Parisi, say they’ve wanted to do this for a long time, and that they see it as a natural extension of the local food movement. After all, you can’t get much more local than your own backyard.

In addition, while homegrown food is fresh and organic, it can also be cheaper. As the recession drags on, the idea of avoiding Whole Foods by buying a pack of seeds and tilling some soil has its appeal.

“An investment in a garden is like money in the bank,” says Higgins. “The initial investment will pay for itself in savings on eating out and buying organic produce in the grocery store or at the farmer’s market.”

So what’s that investment cost? Initial consultations are free for both companies, and Blue Ridge Backyard Harvest’s Parisi says they charge $40 per hour plus materials. Roberman says their services start at $100 for a 4′ X 8′  “lawn transformation”: removing grass, tilling the soil, adding amendments, compost and mulch as needed.

“Each project is unique, so it’s difficult to give a typical figure for a garden installation,” says Parisi. “So far, we’ve had a variety of requests. Some clients want coaching for their existing garden, some want us to plan and install a garden that they’ll maintain entirely on their own, and some would like us to help them throughout the year.”

“Gardening can be really fun. and we can help people by doing the hard work for them,” says Roberman. “And they can enjoy the benefits.”

A CTS bus downtown.
PHOTO BY HAWES SPENCER

Perhaps the most fascinating part of the whole brawl-at-the-mall that caused Charlottesville Fashion Square to shut down for an hour on Friday night, March 5, is the statement released by Simon Malls. The release declares that unsupervised juveniles— said to number around 100 by NBC29— arrived via public transportation. The Newsplex doesn’t give a total for the crowd, but Charlottesville Transit Service buses appear to hold a little under 50 people.

Albemarle County Police Corporal Ken Richardson says that preliminary reports suggest total involvement of 30 to 50 people, none of whom have yet been detained.

Richardson says that the only possible weapon, and people are not sure it’s connected to the incident, is an ordinary kitchen knife found in a trash can near the scene of the brawl. One person was checked by medical personnel, but nobody, according to Richardson, was transported for medical treatment. As for the public transportation allegation, he says that investigators will investigate.

“We have no knowledge of how they got to the Mall,” says Richardson, noting that the investigation is being transferred to Sergeant Linda Jenkins, who oversees the Police’s school resource officers.

“On Friday night,” says CTS chief Bill Watterson, “some youths rode our bus to the Mall. I have no idea if they were involved.”

The #5 and 7 buses go to Fashion Square, and Friday and Saturday evening ridership is usually greater than on weekdays, says Watterson.

CTS reports no recent incidents of gangs of troublesome youths— or any other age group. Says Watterson, “There has not been anything out of the ordinary with riders.”

–last updated 3:17pm, March 9

Mark Linkous was the subject of a February 28, 2002 Hook cover story.
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He died once 14 years ago, but this time Mark Linkous won’t be coming back. The 47-year-old musician who performed under the name Sparklehorse and was known for his haunting melodies and poetic lyrics, committed suicide on Saturday, March 6 in an alley outside a friend’s home in Knoxville, Tennessee by shooting himself through the heart.

“It’s very distressing,” says his cousin-in-law, Tracey Linkous of Charlottesville, noting that Linkous had become increasingly withdrawn from extended family over the past several years and that he was devastated over the disintegration of his marriage. Linkous’ manager, Shelby Meade, confirms that the musician was in the process of divorce.

The subject of the February 28, 2002 Hook cover story, when he was living near the tiny Buckingham County town of Dillwyn, Linkous famously overdosed in London in 1996 and suffered cardiac arrest, but was revived after spending several minutes technically dead. Hospitalized for months, he regained the ability to walk with leg braces— but more importantly, he retained his ability to sing and write songs. While his work never achieved mainstream commercial success, it inspired a cultlike following and generated gushing critical reviews.

“Songs that are as a bouquet of rotting roses, heavy American gothic masterpieces delivered so hushed you can hear a feather drop,” wrote the New Musical Express.

“A homemade tour de force of psychedelic Appalachian folk slop, held together by writer-producer Linkous’ ruggedly melancholic whisper of a voice,” praised Rolling Stone.

Linkous, who was raised by grandparents and attended Albemarle High School, would eventually collaborate with musical giants including PJ Harvey and Tom Waits, and he toured with Radiohead and R.E.M.

His most recently completed project is Dark Night of the Soul, an album-book that combines filmmaker David Lynch’s photography with songs penned by Linkous and Danger Mouse, the force behind Gnarls Barkley. Despite performances by music greats including Iggy Pop and the late Vic Chesnutt (whose Christmas Day 2009 fatal overdose is widely believed to have been suicide), the album has yet to be released due to a legal dispute.

The lyric of one of Linkous’ most recent songs, “Revenge,” penned with Danger Mouse and performed by Wayne Coyne of the Flaming Lips, offers an eerie premonition of the way Linkous chose to die.

“…in my mind 
i have shot you and stabbed you through your heart,” he wrote. “
i just didn’t understand 
the ricochet is the second part…”

Indeed, as news of Linkous’ death ricochets around the music world, those who loved his music may be understanding what he meant.

The Cessna Crusader burned after impact.
PHOTO BY HAWES SPENCER

A preliminary report pointing to possible causes of the fatal front-yard crash of a private plane in Louisa could be posted later this week, following National Transportation Safety Board policy.

“It’s really day one of an investigation that takes about six months,” said NTSB official Bob Gretz. “We’re still in the fact-finding phase.”

Gretz, a senior air safety investigator based in New Jersey, made his comments on site March 5, a day after the twin-engine Cessna Crusader crashed shortly after take-off from Freeman Field in Louisa, a town about 20 miles east of Charlottesville.

The pilot, identified as 62-year-old James “Jay” Youngquist of Reston, died in the fire, which consumed the one-and-a-half story Cape Cod-style residence near Jefferson Highway, better known as U.S. 33. A man inside the dwelling, who shunned a reporter’s entreaty, had reportedly stepped into his basement moments before the front-yard crash, an act that allowed him to emerge unscathed. (Early accounts of the plane nosing into the house appeared to be incorrect.)

Gretz said that two workers at factory across the road separately commented that they noticed “grayish-blackish” smoke before the impact and that other witnesses reported the engines appeared to be “running rough.”

A flight tracking service shows that Youngquist departed his home airport, Manassas Regional, that fateful day at 11:47am, maintained a 3,900-foot altitude and an approximately 195mph cruising speed, and arrived safely 20 minutes later at Louisa’s Freeman Field.

The online log shows that shortly before landing, Youngquist swung the craft eastward around Lake Anna, where he had a home, as he lined up for his landing. Despite living in Reston, Youngquist had for several years volunteered as the secretary-treasurer of his beloved Lakeshore Woods, a 52-lot community.

A Fredericksburg news report indicated that Youngquist donated thousands of dollars worth of fuel and volunteered his time by flying around successful 2005 gubernatorial campaigner Tim Kaine, who expressed regret over the loss of his former pilot.

Another of Younquist’s passions was baseball, and he was reportedly slated to umpire that day’s 3pm baseball game between Hampden-Sydney College and Averett University, at the latter’s diamond in Danville.

At Freeman Field, Youngquist himself filled the plane with 148 gallons of fuel— which, Gretz noted, appears not to be faulty— and took off from the western end of the runway. The first emergency responder was summoned, according to state police, at 12:34pm.

The FAA indicates that the airplane, tail number N9305T, was built in 1981 and had an air-worthiness certification in 2004. A map shows that the impact occurred just three fifths of a mile from the closest tip of the runway, which serves an average of 57 mostly-private flights per day.

Youngquist leaves behind his wife and three sons.

New Orleans media subsequently reported that Schantz was last seen leaving Razoo Bar & Patio around 2am and walking alone along Toulouse Street in the general direction of the Mississippi River. Thirty investigators have reportedly been assigned to the case.

At a Tuesday morning press conference, the New Orleans police chief reportedly revealed that subsequent security footage showed Schantz walking precariously along a two- to three-foot wide gangplank near a docked riverboat. And a reporter for the Times-Picayune reveals that a body found under a dock near the S.S. Natchez may be that of Schantz.

–last updated 1:14pm on Tuesday, March 9
–original headline: “Missing on Bourbon Street: UVA grad and energy co. boss”

Could this be you in November?
PUBLICITY PHOTO BY JACK LOONEY

You may be ready to say “I do”— but sometimes your wallet is not. For couples across the country, Charlottesville is quickly becoming the destination of choice for brides longing for whimsical Southern elegance, and with its countless vineyards and historical properties, luscious Blue Ridge backdrop, and talented community of local vendors, who could blame them? But while Charlottesville’s wedding industry is on the upswing, some local couples are not— which is why those same local vendors are teaming up to throw one lucky couple a dream wedding for free.

“Times are hard right now, and people aren’t doing as well, and there’s a war,” explains local photographer and project mastermind Jack Looney. “Everyone around here has big hearts, and as quickly as I could tell them what I was thinking, they were up for it.”

The idea for the Charlottesville Free Wedding Project stemmed from Looney’s own pro bono photography work— nearly fifty percent of his business, he says. After approaching a few of his industry peers with the idea of throwing a free wedding for a local couple, he was overwhelmed with the support he was offered to make the dream a reality. In little more than a few weeks, the Cville Free Wedding Project was up and running.

“I had donated wedding services before, but had never thought of it on a larger scale,” he says. “But this is a small community on a lot of levels, and a lot of people were willing to donate their time.”

So what would a dream Charlottesville wedding look like? The lucky couple will wed in Albemarle County’s Mountfair Vineyards on November 5 or 6, 2010, in front of 75 guests, with Reverend Claire Goodman conducting the ceremony, Harvest Moon serving a plated dinner, Cakes Unlimited providing the desserts, Pat’s Floral Designs arranging the bouquets, and FDS Tents providing the reception space. And that’s just the beginning.

The winning bride gets to consult with West Main Bridal to design a custom-made dress, while DJ Derek Tobler will meet with the couple to provide dance lessons. The entire affair will be planned by Easton Events, with Looney, of course, as the event photographer.

“It won’t be super ostentatious, but it will be a really nice wedding from top to bottom,” Looney says. “We’ll all work with them to try to personalize it— we all want to do something special and meaningful for the couple.”

The lucky couple needs to submit their love story and some photos— “to see the chemistry,” Looney says— by March 25. The top three couples will meet with judges Lynn Easton and Tim Gearhart before the winner is announced in mid-April. But beyond just being a “lucky” couple, the winner must be one with a striking love story— and limited means with which to have a happily ever after, according to Looney.

After receiving so many responses from local wedding specialists, Looney hopes the event could potentially become an annual contest.

“I’m proud to be part of it and to see who the couple is,” he says. “Maybe it wouldn’t appeal to everyone, but if it does, then let’s hear your story.”

Front yard clutter? City zoning inspectors ordered this Cherry Avenue resident to relocate the satellite dish.
PHOTO BY DAVE MCNAIR

Satellite dish in my yard
Tell me more, tell me more
Who’s the king of your satellite castle?

We may not know exactly what Dave Matthews meant in his song “Satellite,” but last month Cherry Avenue resident Susan Blake had no doubts about what a letter she received from the city had to say about the dish in her yard: relocate it within a month— or face legal action with fines up to $5,000.

After losing her job with a construction company, Blake was looking for ways to save money, and switching from cable to satellite television was one of them.

“I was paying $62 per month for Comcast, but now I’m paying $27 per month for DirecTV,” says Blake. “That savings practically pays my electric bill.” Of course, those $27 offers are only good for the first year, but with things so tight for folks like Blake, many people are switching over.

However, that small piece of mind was shaken by the letter she received from city zoning inspector Craig Fabio, which gave her 30-days to relocate the dish, which is mounted on a five-foot pole in her front yard, or face a first-time fine of $100, and $250 for every day thereafter (up to $5,000) if she didn’t comply.

According to Neighborhood Development chief Jim Tolbert, satellite dishes like Blake’s fall under the definition of “accessory buildings or structures,” which are prohibited in front yards under the current zoning ordinance.

The ordinance, says Tolbert, was designed to prevent people from “cluttering up their front yards,” and explained that satellite dishes are considered accessory structures when they are attached to the ground.

Tolbert says the ordinance is typically enforced only a few times a year, but when inspector Fabio received some recent complaints about the front yard saucers, this time, to be fair, at least 30 letters were sent out.

“But what about lamp posts, basketball courts, and lawn sculptures?” Blake asks. “Don’t they clutter yards?”

Indeed, as the Hook observed, Blake’s dish is the only thing in her front yard, and it’s been positioned off to the side next to a row of shrubbery. On a recent tour of the neighborhood, we noticed properties that had a lawn ornaments, including a ceramic deer and a miniature windmill— not to mention one tee-pee-like structure in a front yard and a steel I-beam sculpted into the shape of cats.

According to DirecTV spokesperson Robert Mercer, if the city believes that something the size of a satellite dish is prohibited under the ordinance, then “it would appear that the city is selectively targeting satellite TV homes.” He encouraged Charlottesville DirecTV customers to protest the enforcement.

What’s more, the ordinance may also violate the FCC’s Telecommunications Act of 1996, says Blake, which prohibits restrictions that prevent dish users from getting “an acceptable quality signal” or imposes “an unreasonable expense or delay” in getting service.

Indeed, according to an FCC spokesperson, the “over the air reception device rule” preempts local zoning ordinances “unless there is a legitimate safety or historic preservation basis” for the restriction.” There’s an exception made for ordinances specifically requiring that dishes not be visible from the street, but only if their enforcement doesn’t degrade the signal or cost the property owner money.

Blake says that technicians told her the dish needed to face southwest, toward the back of her house, and that there needed to be an unobstructed line-of-sight to the sky. Since there are several tall trees in her backyard, close to the house, they concluded that dish needed to be placed in the front yard.

“I would love to have the thing in my backyard,” says Blake, “but I get no signal back there. That’s true of most houses on this side of Cherry Avenue.”

The Hook counted six dishes in that section of Cherry Avenue— modest properties that do not have big yards– all facing southwest. On Blake’s side of the street, all the houses have tall trees behind them. On the other side of the street, the houses themselves would most likely block the signal if the dishes were in the backyard.

However, it appears this story will have a happy ending for Blake.

When initially contacted by a reporter, Tolbert said that the City ordinance would prevail as long as a home had an adequate alternative site. But after fielding complaints and mulling the situation for a few days, he now says the City had an “ah-ha” moment.

“We’re going to pull back and revisit the ordinance,” says Tolbert, assuring dish owners like Blake that enforcement can wait.

That’s a big relief to Blake, who worried she was going to have to pay to have her dish moved, or lose her service entirely. She also hopes the city will inform those who received the letters in a timely fashion, as her deadline for removing her dish was March 4.

“I’m surprised, but not surprised,” says Blake. “They really opened up a can of worms with this one.”