November 18, 2024: City of Charlottesville responds to Friday’s diesel spill in Fifeville
Plus: A duckpin bowling alley is proposed for Dairy Market
Monday? More like mundane! By now it’s normal to experience a sense of frustration as the work week begins, but thankfully there is another new edition of Charlottesville Community Engagement to hopefully give you something to think about that will connect you to the immediate world around you. I’m Sean Tubbs, and there is a lot to know.
In today’s installment:
Members of the Fifeville Neighborhood Association want the city to stop tractor trailer traffic on their narrow streets after a diesel spill Friday
A top official at the University of Virginia will retire next July after a 42-year career
There are plans to bring a duck-pin bowling alley to the Dairy Market
A quick look at a written report for today’s City Council meeting from City Manager Sam Sanders
A new shout-out: Alliance Française de Charlottesville
The Alliance Française de Charlottesville promotes the French language and francophone culture through educational and cultural programs. Visit the Alliance Française website to learn more about group classes, private lessons, cultural events, and social activities for both kids and adults.
Fifeville neighborhood seeks signage to prevent events like Friday’s diesel spill
On the morning of Friday, November 14, 2024, a tractor trailer with the company Sysco attempted to turn left on 6 ½ Street onto Dice Street in the northern section of Charlottesville’s Fifeville neighborhood.
Video footage captured by an adjacent property owner’s camera shows the driver attempting to make the turn. At seven seconds in, the driver moves left onto Dice Street and the footage shows vegetation brushed against as it tries to go through a very sharp corner.
An incident report filed with the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality reports that the tractor trailer struck a post.
At eight seconds in the footage, there is a very audible crunching sound.
The video footage immediately shows a pinkish liquid emerging from the vehicle. For the next four seconds, a pool of diesel floods out.
Then the truck backs up.
“Caller reported that the diesel tank hit a post and leaked an unknown amount of diesel fuel onto the roadway and into a nearby storm drain,” reads the DEQ report. “Caller stated that the diesel tank's maximum capacity is 50 gallons, however is unsure about the total amount spilled.”
Over the next 15 seconds, the tractor trailer attempts to back up again and at 29 seconds, there appears to be another conflict with the pole. Meanwhile, the pink diesel is now flowing east on Dice Street.
At 42 seconds, the driver is continuing to attempt to back up. The pink diesel is about to escape the frame, but there is still a steady flow from the ruptured tank.
A man in a blue coat with a gray hat walks past and doesn’t stop to intervene.
Cars driving past do not know immediately what has happened.
At 1:36 into the video footage, a man steps into what is now a sheen of pink diesel fuel on the roadway. The flood appears to be slowing. The man looks down and walks past and is out of frame by 1:49.
When such incidents happen, there are companies that are hired to provide clean-up of the hazardous materials.
The company SMR Rapid Response arrived on scene to handle the efforts. According to the DEQ report, booms and pads were put into place but the diesel entered the watershed and Tonsler Creek. The tank can hold 50 gallons but it was unclear what amount spilled. The report estimates between 30 and 50 gallons.
Members of the city’s Fifeville Neighborhood Association are now urging the city to post signs to tell drivers of tractor trailers to not use the small streets north of Cherry Avenue to get to Main Street. A message from the FNA’s secretary states that the city has responded that signs will be ordered.
Today, members of the FNA received a message from the city’s utilities director with more details. Lauren Hildebrand wrote that about 40 gallons of the diesel fuel spilled into a stormwater drain that eventually leads into a stream just south of Cherry Avenue.
“The Charlottesville Fire Department, Fire Marshal's Office, and Department of Utilities responded to the incident to contain the spill and deploy spill response materials on Dice Street and in the stream,” Hildebrand wrote.
Hildebrand said the spill was contained to a small section of the stream and that a third party contractor will continue work remediating the affected portion.
“At no time was there any threat to the municipal drinking water system,” Hildebrand said.
That is in part because all of the drinking water comes from sources in Albemarle County such as the Ragged Mountain Reservoir or the South Fork Rivanna Reservoir.
Sheehy to retire as UVA’s chief operating officer and senior vice president
Colette Sheehy began work as a budget analyst at the University of Virginia in 1982, the total enrollment was around 16,500.
Enrollment has grown steadily over the decades with a Fall 2024 count of 17,901 undergraduate students and 8,569 graduate students according to UVA’s Institutional Research and Analytics office.
When Sheehy retires next July after spending ten years as UVA’s senior vice president for operations and state government relations,
“When you have spent over 42 years at a place, it is difficult to walk away, but I feel the time is right,” Sheehy is quoted in a story on UVA Today. “UVA has given me opportunities to advance my professional career and to grow personally.
Sheehy is one of the first women to become a vice president at UVA and currently oversees over 2,500
One of Sheehy’s roles is to lead the meetings of the Buildings and Grounds Committee. She will leave her position while UVA continues a period of major construction. New residence halls are expected on Emmet Street and Ivy Road. The Karsh Institute of Democracy and the Virginia Guesthouse hotel will soon be completed and other buildings will be revealed.
EMS calls down in Charlottesville, while fire calls are up
There is a lot that can be learned from the written report that Charlottesville City Manager Sam Sanders includes in packets for City Council. For instance, the Charlottesville Fire Department has presented data comparing fire and EMS in the first four months of the last three fiscal years.
“Comparing the first four months of FY25 to the same period in FY24, CFD incidents are up by 7 percent across all categories,” reads a section of the city manager’s report. “Fire incidents increased by 21 percent. EMS incidents decreased by 2 percent and all other types of incidents increased by 28 percent.”
Fire Chief Michael Thomas also reported that 14 new recruits have graduated from training and will begin work on November 25.
“After six months of rigorous, specialized training, the recruits have gained expertise in essential skills such as firefighting, emergency medical response, hazardous materials handling, and rescue operations,” Thomas said.
Sanders reports he attended the October 30 ground breaking for what had been known as Premier Circle but is now Vista29. THe project is being shepherded by what had been known as Virginia Supportive Housing but is now Support Works Virginia.
In all there will be 77 studio apartments and three one-bedroom houses.
“It will be a mixed-income community with a blend of units for homeless and low-income clients from Albemarle County and the City of Charlottesville,” Sanders wrote.
Both Albemarle County and Charlottesville have filed provided funding for the project to overcome cost increases.
Deputy City Manager James Freas states in the report that he was part of a second delegation to Champaign, Illinois, to see how the Mass Transit District generates its own hydrogen fuel for a dozen buses. There was an open call for members of the press to go on the first trip in mid-May but there did not appear to be one for the October trip. I attended the first one if you’d like to go and learn more.
Second-shout: WTJU’s Offbeat Roadhouse features Veronneau this Friday
Every Friday night at 8 p.m, Offbeat Roadhouse on WTJU invites a different musical group into your home for an hour long concert live from WTJU’s performance space. Each week there will be Blues, Folk, Jazz, and Roots acts from around the globe.
This Friday, Veronneau will pull into the Offbeat Roadhouse for a live concert. With awards for Best Jazz Group, Best Jazz Vocals, and Best Jazz Recording and three chart topping, critically acclaimed albums under their belt, Veronneau have captivated audiences in concert halls, festivals and jazz clubs all over the world.
This is a free event, open to all. You can also listen to Offbeat Roadhouse on the radio (91.1 FM) or on-line, and even video stream it at WTJU’s Facebook page or YouTube channel. But concerts always sound better with you as part of the studio audience. WTJU is located at 2244 Ivy Rd in Charlottesville, right next door to Vivace.
Curious? Check out some of the music first!
Dairy Central seeks exterior renovations to accommodate bowling alley
In 2008, Charlottesville City Council designated the Monticello Dairy building at the intersection of Preston Avenue and Grady Avenue as an individually protected property. That means the Board of Architectural Review has to weigh in any time there is an alteration to the exterior.
On Tuesday night, the BAR will hear a proposal to modify four non-historic doors in the northwest section of the building.
“Our client wishes to open a restaurant featuring duck-pin bowling in the space formerly occupied by the South and Central Restaurant at the Dairy Market,” reads a narrative written by the firm Stoneking/von Storch Architects.
As part of the work, a new entry would be built from 10th Street and some of the windows would be replaced.
The place would be called Sunpins Bowling and would feature six lanes. According to Wikipedia, duck-pins are slightly smaller than those used in standard bowling lanes. Supposedly, no one has ever scored a perfect 300, either.
A minor development plan for the new use is still being reviewed by the Department of Neighborhood Development Services.
Reading material for #763
How will U.Va. select the next dean of students?, Zackary Holt, Cavalier Daily, November 11, 2024
Meet the “C’dogs,” Charlottesville’s senior podcasters, Kate Nuechtelein, 29News WVIR, November 11, 2024
Remembering a tragedy: A look at the aftermath of Nov. 13 over the past year, Grace Thrush, Cavalier Daily, November 13, 2024
Severe flooding cancels classes, trips for U.Va. in Valencia study abroad, Bertie Azqueta, Cavalier Daily, November 14, 2024
Climbing Everest on One Wheel: A Student’s Record-Breaking Unicycle Challenge, Renee Grutzik, UVA Today, November 15, 2024
Election recap: How many Virginia registered voters actually voted?, Capital News Service, November 15, 2024
Charlottesville considers privatizing pool management, Mark Gad, CBS19, November 15, 2024
The Future of American Democracy Amid Deepening Polarization, Nieman Reports, November 15, 2024
Ting lays off 42% of workforce, Emily Hemphill, Charlottesville Daily Progress (paywall), November 16, 2024
How would Project 2025’s energy implications manifest in Virginia?, Charlie Paullin,
The end of #763
What can be said about this edition? For one thing, I wish I had been able to get one of the two AC44 stories I have pending, but I’ll get that in the next one. I can also say that this is the 16th day of content in the feed. When will the streak break? I don’t know. The good thing about doing this work for four and a half years straight is that there’s a system of sorts for how it all comes together.
The fuel story, for instance, went out on Information Charlottesville on Friday night just after I completed the radio version of the podcast for WTJU. People asked for my help to get the word out, and so I wrote that story.
I didn’t get to the AC44 story because I had to work on my story for C-Ville Weekly which continues the story of White v. Charlottesville.
Anyway, I love doing the work and will continue. I know this annoys at least one person, and for that I apologize. I don’t want to annoy anyone.
Today there’s a new shout-out because until I figure out a new system, the old one is in play. The person who gets that first shout-out does so because they are a double Patreon/Substack supporter. The second one is because of a person’s $25 a month Patreon support. This system is a little obsolete and I know I could bring in more revenue.
All in good time.
If you’d like to become a paid Substack supporter, Ting will match your initial payment.
If you sign up for service and you are within Ting’s service area, enter the promo code COMMUNITY you’re going to get:
Free installation
A second month for free
A $75 gift card to the Downtown Mall
