Trying to reason the Museum money crunch

As a show-me-the-money business guy, I’m having a hard time on the issue involving funding for the Waynesboro Heritage Foundation, because this one isn’t one where you’re going to get a lot tangible out of return-on-investment analysis.
Vice Mayor Frank Lucente is rarely right, but he is on a key point on this – that city taxpayers are subsidizing the museum at a high ratio of about $20 per visitor for the 3,000 visitors that the Waynesboro Heritage Museum sees a year. Read more

Newspaper numbers continue tumble

Local newspaper circulations are continuing their downward trend, based on my analysis of the most recent report of data from the Audit Bureau of Circulations.
The News Leader saw its Sunday circulation drop 1.8 percent in the six-month period ending March 31, 2009, from where it was for the six-month period ending Sept. 30, 2008. The raw numbers on the total paid circulation count were 18,611 for the period ending March 31, 2009, and 18,258 for the period ending Sept. 30, 2008. Read more

The Rumor Mill | Pyles, Curren and the 20th

I’m hearing in bits and pieces that Tracy Pyles, the Pied Piper of the reassessment opposition in Augusta County, made a late inquiry into what he would need to do to get in the contest for the Democratic Party nomination in the 20th House District, and that he isn’t entirely behind the man who ended up getting the nomination, Erik Curren of Staunton. Read more

Marrow to canvass Waynesboro on Saturday

The Greg Marrow 25th District House of Delegates campaign will be doing some door-knocking in Waynesboro on Saturday. Read more

Kent Willis | Virginia Fusion Center’s assessment of terrorist threat begs for assessment of Fusion Center

Recently an alarming document titled 2009 Virginia Terrorism Threat Assessment appeared on the Internet. Produced by the Virginia Fusion Center, it is chocked full of assertions about terrorist activities in the state that will leave readers trembling with fear (if they believe it) or infuriated by governmental incompetence and prejudice (if they don’t believe it). Read more

Lieutenant Governor’s Race Notebook: Debate challenge, Wagner Education Plan, Signer leading online race

Bowerbank challenges rivals to primary
Democratic lieutenant-governor candidate Jon Bowerbank on Wednesday challenged his primary opponents to a series of debates across Virginia, calling on his opponents to concentrate on issues that affect Virginians every day. Bowerbank’s proposal requests debates in Southwest Virginia, Hampton Roads and Northern Virginia. Read more

In the News

- State News: Two “mild” swine-flu cases reported in Virginia, posted Thursday, 8:15 p.m.
- Chris Graham on Facebook: Am I the only person thinking that the media is whipping up mass mysteria over a flippin’ flu virus?
- Event: Small business workshop in Waynesboro, posted Thursday, 9:45 a.m.
- Event: Operation and supply chain career workshop, posted Thursday, 9:45 a.m.  Read more

Chief of Staff | Rain or shine

It rained, then it rained some more, then for good measure, it started raining harder. And yet the only game in town went on this afternoon at Kate Collins Field, and yes, my feet are wet as I’m writing this, but we got that ribbon cut. Read more

Bad news in Waynesboro, but job situation holding steady around us

The unemployment rate in Waynesboro pushed past 11 percent in March, up nearly a point from February and more than double the jobless rate from a year ago.
A net loss of 87 jobs from February to March was reported in Waynesboro in the Virginia Employment Commission numbers released Wednesday. According to the data, 1,219 people in Waynesboro were out of work in March, up from 1,132 in February and 490 in March 2008. Read more

Mac the Knife

We’ve got a handful of commitments – OK, honestly, three – for our noon Friday Big Mac Attack. Count me in, and we’re at four, so add another, you know, few dozen, and maybe we can send City Council the message that we’ve done enough damage to our local schools already. Read more

Desperate times call for desperate measures

You don’t have to win the national championship every week, football coach Lou Holtz says. You only have to be the best team in the stadium on Saturday. Terry McAuliffe is clinging to that right now.
The same SurveyUSA poll that Creigh Deeds’ campaign manager is citing as evidence that the Bath County state senator is best positioned to beat presumptive Republican nominee Bob McDonnell has McAuliffe pulling away from Deeds and Brian Moran in the race for the Democratic Party nomination. Read more

Road to nowhere, fast

Headline: VDOT cuts another 230 jobs. Observation: We’re not cutting fat anymore. Or muscle. We’re digging into bone.
“None of these are easy decisions for us to make,” Virginia Department of Transportation Commissioner David Ekern said. “We know that these decisions will impact the public and the lives of our valued professional staff, but we must make the sound business decisions necessary to ensure the long-term viability of Virginia’s transportation system and our department.” Read more

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