The week’s top stories
-Neither rain nor sleet nor snow dissuade them, but a forecasted 1.3% pay increase led Fredericksburg’s postal workers to hold an informational picket in opposition to the NALC’s recent tentative agreement. Joey LoMonaco delivered an account of the scene that unfolded outside the downtown post office.
-Less than a year after suffering cardiac arrest during halftime of a high school basketball game, Noah Caesar is back on the court running point as he prepares for his senior season at Fredericksburg Christian School. Taft Coghill Jr. tells his remarkable comeback story.
-Caroline County will have to wait to proceed with its plan to draw water from the Rappahannock River after the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality suspended all actions related to the intake.
-Affordable housing is a problem. In nearby Henrico County, one solution has come from unbudgeted data center revenue. Kathy Knotts attended a recent regional housing summit and attended a panel on the subject.
-Last spring, the budget passed by the Spotsylvania County Board of Supervisors included a $46.8 million shortfall. Now, we’re starting to see the effects, writes Taft Coghill Jr.
What they’re saying
“Right now, we’ve been handed a bag of crap and it’s been passed on and passed on for 15 years now.” –King George supervisor William Davis on the state of the county’s school facilities ahead of a referendum on voters’ ballots.
Go figures (numbers that made the news)
–38,000: The number of vehicles that cross the Falmouth Bridge each day. Late Friday, the Virginia Department of Transportation announced that it would impose a weight limit and close one northbound lane as it pursues emergency repairs. According to VDOT, the repairs, which were deemed necessary by a recent inspection, could take months.
In other business (Highlights from Biz Beat with Bill Freehling)
-From cellophane to IPAs, Spotsylvania County’s Bowman Center is getting quite the makeover, writes Bill Freehling.
Pressing on (a look at the week to come)
-Election Day is upon us. The Free Press will be your one-stop shop for live vote tracking, interviews and more coverage from the 7th Congressional District race and beyond.
