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E-book purchasers may be due refund
Electronics giant Apple Inc. has begun coughing up refunds to e-book buyers in a price-fixing settlement. According to Virginia Attorney General Mark R. Herring, the company began distributing $11 million to $15 million in account credits and checks Tuesday to state residents who purchased e-books, or electronic books, through the company’s site.

Henrico man’s gardening passion grows YouTube followers
Randy Battle has a passion for gardening. Now he’s sharing that passion with a worldwide audience.

City welcomes new schools chief
Jason Kamras from D.C. to become next Richmond superintendent
They campaigned on a platform of change for a school system that continues to rank high in dropouts and suspensions and low in student academic achievement.

VSU may lose $10M to $12M with decision to go virtual
The decision to keep students off campus for the first semester may cost Virginia State University $10 million to $12 million — just one example of the impact COVID-19 is having on higher education.

Price of new Wythe High School skyrockets to $140M
The price tag to replace aging George Wythe High School has jumped to $140 million, a 40 percent hike from the previous estimate of $100 million.

Chief Durham decries drop in police force
Richmond Police Chief Alfred Durham is tired of hearing he should be doing more to stem the bloodshed in Richmond. He hears that refrain every time there’s another killing — and there have been 52 already this year, up nearly 27 percent from a year ago when 41 people were reported slain.

2 City-supported shelters temporarily open for homeless
At 80, Gayle Freeland is struggling to keep a roof over her head.

Shielding from responsibility?
City mum on funds diverted to police
Mayor Levar M. Stoney joined community partners Tuesday to announce the city is all for trying to prevent the killings that leave bodies in the street and families in mourning. However, during his City Hall press conference, the mayor didn’t mention that just a few weeks ago his administration gained approval from

Woody Foundation, Military Retirees at odds over admissions tax
For at least 10 years, Christopher J. Woody Sr. raised money for his charity, The Woody Foundation, by throwing at least 17 parties and events a year at the Military Retirees Club of Richmond in North Side, a large private space that permits alcohol.

Governor vetoes bills ahead of April 10 deadline
Richmond and other localities can still, if they choose, require employers with government contracts to pay workers a “living wage” that is well above the current $7.25 an hour federal minimum wage. However, the state will not be creating an experimental, independent school system where students in kindergarten through 12th grade could take all of their classes on a home computer or laptop.

End of an era
Harvey’s Progressive Barber Shop to close Downtown
For hundreds of Richmonders, Harvey’s Progressive Barber Shop in Downtown has been their go-to place for a haircut. No more.

Center ordered to sell Cowardin Avenue parcel
Pastor Stephen A. Parson has spent more than 16 months fending off a lender’s attempt to foreclose on the current South Side home of the Richmond Christian Center he founded more than 30 years ago.

Election Day less than smooth for local voter
Eugene M. Price finally has been told his vote will count, six days after the Nov. 8 election. The 73-year-old Richmond auto mechanic said Monday he got a call from the city Voter Registrar’s Office telling him that the provisional ballot he cast was accepted and would be included in the city’s total vote after it was determined that he was properly registered to vote and that his name should have been on the voter rolls.
Va. Supreme Court upholds revocation of Morrissey’s law license
Joseph D. “Joe” Morrissey is just one election away from returning to the General Assembly as a state senator.

$1 City selling home sites for low, moderate income families
Vacant property for $1. That’s the price that City Hall is setting to clear out its inventory of home sites and to help cut the future purchase price of the houses to be built on them. This effort also will help finish partially completed developments that have been on hold since the economic recession began in 2008. In a first step, at least 16 lots are being prepared for sale, primarily in Southern Barton Heights. A few lots in Swansboro on South Side and in Newtowne West near Virginia Union University also are part of the sale. The board of the Richmond Redevelopment and Housing Authority, the properties’ nominal owner, helped clear the way by approving the transfer of the properties to the city at its meeting last week.

VSU facing possible $26M deficit, enrollment drop
Virginia State University has become a prime example of the financial hits historically black colleges and universities are taking because of the coronavirus.

Economic injustice?
Report shows city spending with minority-owned businesses has dropped nearly 48 percent since 2014
From the mayor’s office to key positions at City Hall, African-Americans continue to play big roles in Richmond’s government. But the issue of city spending with black businesses and the promotion of black inclusion, inexplicably, appears to be taking a backseat to other priorities, with Mayor Levar M. Stoney having publicly spoken little about inclusion and economic justice during his 18-month tenure.

State vital records now online
Millions of individual records of births, deaths, marriages and divorces in Virginia in the past 100 years are now available online, Gov. Terry McAuliffe announced this week.

Construction of new city schools didn’t meet deadline, goal for minority participation
Richmond has built three new school buildings, but can teachers and students use them if the School Board decides to restart in-person learning?

She’s lovin’ it
Former Richmonder’s career with McDonald’s has made her a millionaire
Flipping burgers leads to millionaire status