Today’s sponsor: Big builds, small repairs, and everything in between, Nola Builds does it all
On this day in 394 AD, a priest named Nesmeterakhem celebrated the birthday of Osiris by carving an inscription in hieroglyphics into the temple of Philae in southern Egypt. The author, also known as Esmet-Akhom, may have been one of the last people to make such a mark as the knowledge of how to do so was no longer being spread as new religions had risen. Will anyone 2,400 years from now be able to look back at digital documents like Charlottesville Community Engagement? What would you tell them?
In this edition:
Charlottesville’s representative in the United States House of Representatives calls on City Manager Sam Sanders to delay opening of an emergency shelter at 2000 Holiday Drive
A top official at Central Arizona Shelter Services explains what the organization does and gives a glimpse of the plans for Charlottesville
A federal judge will allow attorneys hired by the Charlottesville Redevelopment and Housing Authority to defend itself from allegations the agency illegally obtained COVID-era loans
The Jefferson Madison Regional Library’s Board of Trustees will get an update on the future renovations of the Central Library today
Corrections or clarifications to start:
In two previous editions of this email, I have spelled the name of Katelyn Malcolm incorrect. Malcolm is Albemarle’s Chief of Budget. I regret the error.
At Panorama Natural Burial, we believe caring for the deceased can be simple, meaningful, and deeply connected to the natural world. As a natural burial ground just outside Charlottesville, we offer families an alternative to traditional burial that honors both the people we love and the land that will carry them forward.
Whether you are planning ahead, navigating a recent loss, or are just curious about natural burial, we welcome the conversation. We host regular tours and community events throughout the year. At Panorama we are building new ways of understanding death, land, ecology, ritual, memory, and community. We believe that building community around death care helps us all to live fuller lives. We are open to the public daily 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Come visit!
In just over a week, the City of Charlottesville plans to move people from encampments along the Rivanna River with residents being offered a place to stay at a low-barrier shelter at 2000 Holiday Drive.
City Council agreed last October to use $6.2 million from the city’s surplus fund to purchase the site and agreed earlier this month to use another $4 million from the fund to hire Central Arizona Shelter Services and others “for homeless intervention services to include emergency sheltering and direct to housing supports.”
Charlottesville’s representative in the United States House of Representatives sent a letter to City Manager Sam Sanders on August 20 asking to delay opening the shelter citing concerns of local business-owners.
“While it would be unfair to assume that every shelter resident will engage in criminal or disruptive behavior, the City should not dismiss legitimate concerns about the potential for theft, trespassing, harassment, disorderly conduct, or other public-safety issues,” McGuire wrote.
The letter also notes that the emergency shelter will initially begin with restrooms and showers in trailers outside the building. Holiday Drive is a cul-de-sac lined with hotels and restaurants with the city-owned building at the end.
“Guests and customers should not be exposed to outdoor bathroom use or public changing,” McGuire continued.
McGuire called on the shelter opening to be delayed until after a comprehensive safety plan is created and the city picks up the tab for additional security patrols. The letter suggests no alternatives but McGuire’s official Facebook page had this further information.
“Compassion does not mean turning a blind eye to public safety or the concerns of local businesses,” McGuire said. “The city has a responsibility to protect taxpayers, families, and property owners, not force businesses to pay for private security because of failure to plan properly. I am confident the city can find a solution that priorities the safety of all citizens.”
A request for a response from the City of Charlottesville is still pending. Other coverage:
Rep. McGuire calls on Charlottesville to delay emergency shelter opening, Pimm Dyar, CBS19 News, August 23, 2026
Rep. John McGuire urges Charlottesville to delay opening Holiday Dr. shelter, Mike Barber, Cville Right Now, August 23, 2026
Almost a month has passed since the City of Charlottesville produced a brochure with information about the upcoming removal of people from encampments along the Rivanna River. They also created a page on the Connect Charlottesville as another resource, but there hasn’t been much of an update.
To fill a perceived information gap, the organization Livable Cville held a webinar on August 19 with speakers including City Councilor Jen Fleisher, a former employee of the Blue Ridge Health District who has been working on what the city refers to as a “transition” to the emergency shelter being prepared at 2000 Holiday Drive.
“The reason we are in an emergency posture is one, the pressurizing of weather,” Fleisher said. “So the flood season in the— along the Rivanna River down between Riverview Park and kind of Cosner’s and under the bridge at Freebridge are floodplains and flood fields. Where between September and October we generally see our most, we are most at risk for flooding.”
Fleisher said the contractor Martin Horn is building out the space on a single floor at 2000 Holiday Drive for the emergency shelter with an intent of being open on September 1. She said teams have been working with those who have been living in tents to find out their needs.
“The priority is not to arrest people,” Fleisher said. “The deadline is an incentive for both us as the city and for residents to work together to get folks into their best fit for housing.”
The organizations in what’s known as the Continuum of Care are putting together an operations plan for what they want to see happen at Holiday Drive and that is due on August 31. In the meant, the city is in negotiations to have Central Arizona Shelter Services manage the emergency shelter.
“CASS began more than 40 years ago as a collaborative community response to homelessness in the Phoenix area, and the spirit of that partnership has remained central to what we do,” said Brittnie Stanton, the chief programs officer. “So our mission is to prevent and end homelessness among individuals and families.”
Stanton said the organization seeks to reduce barriers to shelters and said she is hopeful lessons can be shared with local service providers. The intent is not to copy and paste what’s worked in Phoenix.
“We’re gonna bring some experience and we’re gonna bring some staffing and we’re gonna bring some capacity,” Stanton said. “But we really are going to lean on the local organizations, the CoC, the city, lived experience by continuing to do the public workspaces workgroup, by having feedback from those residing in shelter to, to make this the best project it can be.”
An agreement had not been signed as of August 19 but Stanton said the initial duration will be a 12-month contract.
As for who can stay at the shelter, Stanton said there will be no criminal background checks. No firearms or weapons are allowed.
“We are not asking them to be sober,” Stanton said. “We are not asking them to have income. We are really just asking them to show up and give us a chance to help connect them to the next best place, which is hopefully housing. And so obviously, as we continue to kind of figure out what that landscape looks like, and as those new units become available, that is going to be where things are directed.”
More on this story as it develops. In the meantime, the webinar also features comments from Shayla Washington, executive director of the Blue Ridge Coalition for the Homeless.
The invasive vines that spring up every year at my house are winning the battle this year so far. I am determined to one day learn the skills necessary to make my garden something more palatable and less like a Little Shop of Horrors franchise.
I often look longingly at the Plant Virginia Natives to inspire my dreams of a tidy yard. Plant Virginia Natives is part of a partnership with ten regional campaigns for ten different ecosystems across Virginia, from the Northern Piedmont to the Eastern Shore.
Take a look at the full map below for the campaign for native species where you are in the Commonwealth. For the Charlottesville area, download a free copy of the handbook: Piedmont Native Plants: A Guide for Landscapes and Garden
The Charlottesville Redevelopment and Housing Authority will have the opportunity to defend itself from an accusation that two federal payments during the COVID-era were obtained fraudulently.
Oregon-based lawyer filed suit against CRHA as well several other Virginia governmental entities arguing that they were not eligible for Payment Protection Program loans. J. Bryan Quesenberry specifically asked for $1.5 million in damages from CRHA.
CRHA did not initially respond to a February 17 summons seeking an answer to the charges and Quesenberry filed for a default judgment. The government entity hired the firm Holland & Knight this June after learning of its status.
On August 14, 2026, United States Magistrate Judge Joel C. Hoppe of the Western District of Virginia issued an opinion that CRHA could proceed with a defense.
“I find that CRHA has shown good cause to set aside its default,” Hoppe wrote in the opinion.
The court’s clerk entered the default into the record on March 24, but a notice to CRHA was returned as undeliverable. On June 10, Judge Robert S. Ballou ordered another notice to CRHA. Attorney Mark H. Churchill of Holland & Knight filed a motion to set aside default on June 18.
“This was a ‘reasonably prompt’ response to a default entered in the early stages of litigation,” Hoppe continued.
CRHA now has until August 28 to file a response to Quesenberry’s amended complaint. Judge Hoppe also ordered CRHA to pay attorney’s fees of $1,500 to Quesenberry’s legal team to recover the cost of their work to respond to the motion to set aside default.
Previous coverage:
CRHA defaults in lawsuit seeking $1.5 million over ineligible PPP loans, judgment still pending, June 14, 2026
CHRA files first motion to challenge default in $1.5 million federal lawsuit over PPP loans, June 24, 2026
Plaintiff in CRHA fraud case responds to motion to stay default, July 7, 2026
Share Charlottesville Community Engagement
On June 28, 1978, the City of Charlottesville and Albemarle County paid the federal government $250,000 for the former Post Office and federal building on Market Street to convert it into a public library.
Six years before the two had joined with three additional counties to form the Jefferson-Madison Regional Library. This was at a time when the Commonwealth of Virginia encouraged regional systems to be more cost-effective and Greene, Louisa, and Nelson joined in.
Since then the system is governed by a Board of Trustees appointed by elected officials in each jurisdiction. They meet each month at different locations across the network and today at 3 p.m. they will be at Northside Library at 705 West Rio Road. (agenda)
One of the items on the agenda today is a discussion of the future renovation of the Central Library on Market Street. Capital budgets in both Albemarle and Charlottesville include money in this year for planning and funding in Fiscal Year 2029 for construction. Each set aside $857,109 this year and $9,676,141 in FY29.
The topic came up at a March 16 budget work session in Albemarle County. Katelyn Malcolm, Albemarle County’s chief of budget, said JRML will be expected to find additional money to cover the cost of renovations.
“Specifically the city and county have said that our portions of the funding will cover adding public space for additional meeting rooms, technology upgrades and youth services,” Malcolm said.
Malcolm said county patrons make up 57 percent of the circulation at Central Library.
There are no materials available in advance related to the update. Trustees will also get updates on the summer reading program.
Articles in other information outlets:
Tom Perriello added to Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee’s ‘Red to Blue’ campaign program, Aila Miyabi, WVIR 29News, August 20, 2026
Perriello gets national boost in race for 5th District, Mark Gad, CBS19 News, August 20, 2026
Notes from the Square: DCCC triples down on its push to flip the 5th Congressional District, Elizabeth Beyer, Cardinal News, August 21, 2026
Could American Single Malt Have Regions Like Scotch? Amanda Beckwith Thinks So, Beth Squires, The Whiskey Wash, August 23, 2026
Virginia considers calls for mandatory school nurses as healthcare gaps persist, Nathaniel Cline, August 24, 2026
Quickly today. I finished a book over the weekend called Yesteryear and the story is still sticking with me. I’ve got another book I want to immediately dive into called What We Can Know. I am eyeing the end of this week and wondering if I might take some time off to attend to some writing I want to get done. Or some work on myself, maybe.
But this work calls to me all of the time somehow. I’ve managed to concoct a living for myself by attracting enough paying subscribers, and I’m hungry enough to work seven days a week. I couldn’t tell you off the top of my head right now what I wrote last week, but it’s all there in this newsletter with some of the stories copied over to Information Charlottesville.
An email comes over with a notice from the City of Charlottesville about another procurement opportunity.
“The City of Charlottesville is soliciting bids for the purchase and delivery of three (3) DJI Matrice 4T Universal Edition Drones, including accidental damage coverage (DJI Care Enterprise Plus Plan – minimum 12 months of accidental damage or equivalent coverage) and additional accessories as detailed herein.”
It doesn’t stop.
Stories everywhere. My job is to pay attention and write down what I can as I go through my own life, spiraling around the sun like everyone on this planet, grateful to the work of everyone who came before me. I hope the work I do inspires people to try to learn something, try to describe something.
In any case, I’m grateful to paid subscribers for keeping this going and I have several to thank from the past week. My goal today is to make sure I write to all of them with a personalized thank you. The current ratio of paid subscribers to free ones is 16.5. I need that to be higher than 20 percent.
Supposedly today is the 12th anniversary of the 12th Doctor. So of course that’s what I put as the link to end this thing!
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