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Helen Dragas has a new headache. Despite telling the group that accredits the University of Virginia that all governance issues were under control, the UVA Board of Visitors, which Dragas leads, suffered a major rebuke Tuesday when the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools put the Charlottesville institution on "warning" status in the wake of the so-called "UVA June," the forced resignation of a sitting president. read full story

Your article on panhandling [December 6 cover story: "Season of giving: Is panhandling, vagrancy, destroying the Downtown Mall?"] stated that battles have been fought regarding ordinances "to restrict aggressive panhandling, which some call unconstitutional." That is simply not correct. I represent the five people who regularly beg on the mall and who challenged, in court, certain portions of the "soliciting" ordinance that prohibited passive solicitation. read full story

On a roll read full story

Walking in the County southeast on Hydraulic Road past the shops at Stonefield. Enjoying the new sidewalk and trees. Headed home. Arriving at the “Main Street” of the County, U.S. Route 29, the neighborhood model takes on a new light. Not sure exactly how many lanes there are, as they are a challenge to count when standing on one side. How is the pedestrian meant to cross into Charlottesville? Carefully. [For our post-Korean Conflict readers, "DMZ" typically stands for de-militarized zone.–editor]~ read full story

Too busy to make dinner every night? Don't want to give your kids fast food? If you live in the Keswick area, chef Juan Hernandez might have a solution for you. From a commercial kitchen tucked away behind his house on Union Mills Road, Hernandez runs a full scale catering operation called La Cucina Classica, offering fully prepared family-sized dinners that can be picked up on your drive home. "We can do meals for 1, 2, or 3 people up to 1,500," says Hernandez, 52, who comes from some tough circumstances. read full story

Two weeks after Dashad Smith vanished without a trace, police remain tight lipped about the progress of the search, and the teenager's grandmother is struggling to cope. "I'm so lost," says 53-year-old Lolita Smith, sitting and crying in the living room of the duplex she inhabits on Orangedale Avenue. Known to friends and family as "Cookie," Smith describes a world come undone since Dashad's pre-Thanksgiving disappearance. read full story

8/20/12 CharlottesvilleStephen L. & Barbara J. Wheeler to Karen M. Wheeler, 111 Hartford Court, $138,500Teresa D. Caddell to Bank of America, 1451 Avon Street, $99,875Francis Carcuccio & Julie Innes to H. Robert & Cynthia W. Brashear, 302 12th Street NE, $225,000Bank of New York Mellon to Cava Capital, LLC, 1231 Agnese Street, $110,1008/21/2012Albemarle read full story

It's a beautiful, 70-degree December day, and that's killing Mark Tramontin, the owner of Sneak Reviews, a virtually extinct type of retail establishment– the video store– and one that is a beloved Charlottesville institution. Because it's so warm, the door is open to the movie mecca, perched on a knoll overlooking Ivy Road, with its vintage posters and unparalleled catalog of art, indie, and foreign films. There's not a customer in the shop. read full story

The success of the Downtown Mall is a miracle in many ways. After it was completed in 1976, initially eliminating five blocks of Charlottesville's Main Street to revitalize the downtown area, it did nothing of the sort, sputtering along for 20 years, a largely desolate place with an odd assortment of stores, and a few bar/restaurants that served a budding underground music and art scene largely ignored by the general public. UVA students, by and large, didn't go near the place.  read full story

December 12 at 3:30pm at the Albemarle Courthouse Property: 7122 Johnstone Lane, Gordonsville Debtor: Joseph B. Berger and Christy Batten Original amount owing: $168,000 Bidder brings: $15,000 or 10 percent sale price Info: Shapiro, Brown & Alt LLP 757-687-8777 read full story

Biggest search for missing teen: Nearly 100 people turn out December 1 to look for 19-year-old DaShad "Sage" Smith, who was supposed to meet a friend November 20 at the Amtrak station on West Main, and didn't show up. According to Samantha Koon's report in the Daily Progress, some members of the family and the LGBT community are wondering whether Smith's sexual orientation and tendency to cross-dress have limited the public interest in his disappearance.   read full story

The story. read full story

Third-year Mike Rusie spent a recent Friday morning volunteering at the Local Food Hub. In exchange, he received sweet potatoes, carrots, and spaghetti squash– "donation-grade produce"– for UVA's Campus Kitchen Project, food that will end up on the table at Salvation Army. The student group's mission is a "community-powered hunger relief effort," says Nicole Freeman, co-coordinator for Campus Kitchen. "We take food the dining halls would otherwise throw away." read full story

“The king of gospel keyboards” and “the Lucky 7 philosopher”– these are just two of the titles that have been bestowed upon composer, keyboardist, and all-around musician extraordinaire Art Wheeler. read full story

Holiday soul read full story

Related Season of giving: Is panhandling, vagrancy, destroying the Downtown Mall? read full story

8/14/12 CharlottesvilleGerald G. Fahnestock to John, Kathryn & Rachel Gendreau, 1174 Rose Hill Drive, $170,000Stanley W. & Lisa G. Butler to Adam Smith  & Jennifer Freeman, 2313 Tarleton Drive, $225,000Gaffney Homes, LLC to Piedmont Realty & Construction, LLC, 110 Morgan Court, $63,000Gaffney Homes, LLC to Piedmont Realty & Construction, LLC, 114, 116, 118, 121 & 123 Morgan Court, $390,0008/15/12Albemarle    read full story

Nicholas Rigterink may not have been seeking a fight over property rights when he went out for a mid-November dinner, but the 29-year-old Charlottesville man found one– one that ended up with him staring up the barrel of a handgun. read full story

With a multi-state lottery soaring toward a record $550 million dollar payout, Powerball fever has exploded– with one enterprising pair of jackpot-seekers appearing at downtown Charlottesville's Reid Super Save market to buy a few tickets: 1,300 to be precise."Are you freaking kidding me?" exclaimed the grocery shopper in line behind brothers Ben and Greg Lang on November 28. "You are gonna run out the paper." read full story