All results / Stories / Jeremy M. Lazarus
Spotty CARE van service leaves riders in limbo
Roderyck Bullock has somewhere to go almost every day, but he doesn’t always make it. His ride sometimes arrives late. Occasionally, it doesn’t show up at all.
RRHA resident’s chilly 3-year ordeal
For the past three years, Tina Marie Shaw has had to rely on an electric space heater to keep the winter cold out of her public housing unit in Creighton Court. “I worry about the heater starting a fire,” said Ms. Shaw, who looks after her 9-year-old grandson, Xavia, her pride and joy and an honors student at a Richmond elementary school. To avoid risk to herself and the child, “I unplug (the heater) at night when I go upstairs to bed, and turn it on in the morning.”
Tale of the tests
Richmond SOL scores rise, but still below state average
The good news: More students in Richmond Public Schools passed state Standards of Learning tests in reading, history and math in spring 2015 compared with the previous year. That’s in line with the state trend of rising pass rates.
A resurrection story
Richmond Christian Center climbing back from bankruptcy with entrepreneurial efforts
Richmond Christian Center climbing back from bankruptcy with entrepreneurial efforts
Primary elections Tuesday, June 9
Next week, Richmond voters will go to the polls. Primary elections will be held in two area Senate and two area House of Delegates districts on Tuesday, June 9, to determine who will carry the Democratic banner into the general election in November.
Opportunity time
Richmond mayor’s race hit by 11th-hour surprises
The Richmond mayor’s race has been turned topsy-turvy as the days count down to Election Day next Tuesday, Nov. 8. As the apparent front-runner, Joe Morrissey, scrambles to contain a new sex scandal with fierce denials, one of his six rivals, City Councilman Jonathan T. Baliles, announced Wednesday he has ended his bid for the city’s top post. Trailing far behind in recent polls, Mr. Baliles issued a message to his supporters on his campaign website that he was dropping out.
Va. SCLC lauds racist U.S. attorney general for civil rights work on anniversary of Dr. King’s death
Sending shockwaves through the civil rights community, leaders of the Virginia affiliate of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference used the anniversary of the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., a co-founder of the national group, to honor what many would view as his nemesis, U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions.
Stoney offers $681M budget
Spending plan raises trash fee, utility rates but avoids tax hike
Richmond Public Schools teachers and city police officers and firefighters would gain pay raises, but most city employees would have to make do with their current wages.
City Council on board with Bus Rapid Transit
Let’s roll on this project. That’s the message Richmond City Council sent this week on Bus Rapid Transit, also known as “Pulse.” Envisioning BRT as a start to creating a modern regional public transit system, council members voted 7-1, with one abstention, to give the green light to the $49 million project to speed up transit service primarily along the Broad Street corridor.
‘Virtual school’ in Va.?
Advocates say it would boost educational choices; critics say it would strip students and money from public schools
Thousands of public school students in Virginia could have the option of taking all of their classes on a home computer in what is known as a “virtual school” — instead of making the daily trek to a building with bells and defined class times. Gov. Terry McAuliffe is mulling whether to sign House Bill 8, a largely Republican-backed piece of legislation that would allow Virginia to join Florida, Ohio and 28 other states in providing 12 years of public education in what enthusiasts describe as a “classroom without walls.”
Paydazed in RVA
High-fee payday loan traps Henrico man
Running short of money to pay bills, Donald Garrett did what many people do — he turned to a payday lender. He borrowed $100 from a small loan company called Advance ‘Til Payday on Nine Mile Road near his Henrico County apartment in order to catch up. Four months later, he had wracked up $320 in fees and still was unable to pay off the original $100. Until a friend stepped in and paid off his debt, he faced paying $80 each month. To pay the loan off, $100 had to be added to the $80 payment.
Source: City Hall knew Adediran was managing church project
It was no secret at Richmond City Hall that city Public Works Director Emmanuel O. Adediran was doubling as project manager for a new $5.3 million sanctuary that First Baptist Church of South Richmond is building in Chesterfield County, the Free Press has learned. According to a highly knowledgeable source, “everyone knew (Mr. Adediran) had been asked by the mayor to help with the church project.”
Lead poisoning endangers Richmond children, too
Amid the public outcry over the lead-contaminated public water supply in Flint, Mich., it is easy to forget that lead poisoning remains a threat to children across the country — even in Richmond. The Centers for Disease Control estimates that 500,000 young children nationally suffer from lead poisoning that can affect development of their mental capacity, their bones and their organs.
Dr. Earl McClenney Jr., legendary VSU educator and longtime public administrator, dies at 79
Dr. Earl Hampton McClenney Jr. left his mark on public administration in Virginia as an educator and as a Richmond and state official where he fought entrenched racism and sought to aid the underdog.
Help for women in addiction to expand with new CARITAS center in South Side
In a bit more than two months, Richmond will have a new shelter and treatment center for women struggling with addiction and homelessness.
Gone!
After more than 100 years, the statue of Confederate ‘Stonewall’ Jackson on Monument Avenue comes down
Goodbye, “Stonewall” Jackson.
Gov. Northam releases progressive 2020-22 budget plan
Smokers might have to shell out an extra 30 cents in tax for a pack of cigarettes to help offset the cost of tobacco-related illnesses that the state must pick up through Medicaid and other health care programs.
$3.7B transportation deal to boost rail service from Richmond to D.C.
Richmond would be a major beneficiary of an unprecedented $3.7 billion deal announced by Gov. Ralph S. Northam to boost passenger rail service between Washington and other Virginia cities to avoid an even costlier expansion of Interstate 95.
Blood Feud
Descendant pushes to be recognized by Pamunkey Tribe despite vestiges of ‘Black Laws’
The Pamunkey Indian Tribe’s fight in the General Assembly for the right to build gambling casinos in Richmond and Norfolk is shining a renewed spotlight on the tribe’s use of racial bigotry to ensure its survival.
Polls open on Super Tuesday March 3 for Democratic presidential primary contest
Voters in Virginia are getting their chance to help select the Democratic contender to face President Trump in the fall election.
