CVILLE 3.4.2026

Budget boom! County's future looks like 724M bucks P.9

Albemarle planners give thumbs up to 153 Rio Road units P.14

What's up on the wall at this month's First Fridays P.30

Big ambitions, mounting debts, and the fall of a local restaurant group

UMBLING DOWN

“Jordan

“Jordan

My name is Jordan Hague and I created Equity Saver USA in 2008 to offer a better, more affordable service to disrupt and challenge what I personally experienced to be an outdated and flawed approach to Realtor compensation at the expense of sellers and buyers.

My name is Jordan Hague and I created Equity Saver USA in 2008 to offer a better, more affordable service to disrupt and challenge what I personally experienced to be an outdated and flawed approach to Realtor compensation at the expense of sellers and buyers.

In 2024 the National Association of Realtors settled a billion dollar lawsuit related to inflated Realtor commission practices. This monumental settlement opens the door for true free market competition and innovation to thrive. I’ve successfully sold homes using a 1% model for nearly 2 decades proving the old “6% legacy” commission model is a waste of money and does nothing to help promote affordable housing. Contact me direct to arrange a no obligation meeting to learn more.

In 2024 the National Association of Realtors settled a billion dollar lawsuit related to inflated Realtor commission practices. This monumental settlement opens the door for true free market competition and innovation to thrive. I’ve successfully sold homes using a 1% model for nearly 2 decades proving the old “6% legacy” commission model is a waste of money and does nothing to help promote affordable housing. Contact me direct to arrange a no obligation meeting to learn more.

Ben

“Jordan

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Jerry and

Sam

Hello, Charlottesville.

Thank you for reading C-VILLE Weekly.

3.4.26

In 1999, I had a date to the homecoming dance with the cutest, sweetest boy in my class, so my mom, her best friend, and I drove over the mountain from Harrisonburg to see if we could find a gown befitting the occasion. We were ultimately unsuccessful, but we had so much fun—popping into Cha Cha’s, eating lunch at Hamiltons’ because it was also the last name of my date—that we made it a regular thing. One visit a couple years later, I came home with a delicately beaded vintage top from BitterSweet’s original shop in the Glass Building. It’s hanging in my closet as I type this.

In mid-February, BitterSweet announced its closure after 25 years in business, leaving yet another empty storefront on the Downtown Mall and a bit of Charlottesville history behind. I think that’s what feels so resonant about this week’s cover story (p.19), a deeper dive into the early February shuttering of Stefan Friedman’s hospitality group, A Moveable Feast, which included Ace Biscuit & Barbecue, The Wine Guild of Charlottesville, Bonny & Read, and Omakase Obscura, all of which have gone dark.

The closures at Friedman’s restaurants were devastating for the employees, but the impact also reaches beyond them. When any business closes—whether it’s a shop like BitterSweet, or one of the restaurants caught up in mismanagement—it leaves a gap in the city we all share: places to browse, gather, or experience something new. Cities aren’t just buildings and streets—they’re the places we inhabit together. When those places disappear, it’s worth noticing.

This week’s

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Kathleen Zenker

Nathan Alderman, C-VILLE’s senior news reporter, is a writer, editor, and Oxford comma enthusiast. He volunteers for civic causes, folds a lot of laundry, and adores his spouse and his large, loud, hungry children. He’s written for Macworld magazine and The Motley Fool, among others. Read his work on page 19.

Sarah Sargent has been writing about contemporary art for more than 20 years. In addition to C-VILLE Weekly, her writing has appeared in Art Papers, Sculpture Magazine, Artillery, and Virginia Living. A former director of Second Street Gallery, Sargent lives in southern Albemarle. Read her work on page 29.

April 9, 2026 |

w Meet faculty and staff, learn about career pathways and complete the application process!

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Learn more at pvcc.edu/nondiscrimination. ENROLL AT PVCC

Named one of Forbes’ Best-In-State Wealth Management Teams

Being named to Forbes’ 2026 BestIn-State Wealth Management Teams list is a testament to your experience, focus, and dedication to your clients’ financial future. Thank you for the work you do each day and for carrying forward the standard of excellence at our firm.

-

Wealth Advisor 120 Garrett Street Charlottesville, VA 22902 434-220-3809 eric.parker@morganstanley.com advisor.morganstanley.com/the-parker-group

L-R:Marie Varga, Client Service Associate; Eric Parker; B.J. Brittle, Wealth Management Associate. CFP Board owns the mark CFP® in the U.S. Source: Forbes.com (Awarded January 2026) 2026 Forbes Best-In-State Wealth Management Teams. This ranking was determined based on an evaluation process conducted by SHOOK Research LLC (the research company) in partnership with Forbes (the publisher) for the period from 3/31/24-3/31/25. Neither Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC nor its Financial Advisors or Private Wealth Advisors paid a fee to SHOOK Research LLC for placement on its rankings. This ranking is based on in-person, virtual and telephone due diligence meetings and a ranking algorithm that includes: a measure of each team’s best practices, client retention, industry experience, review of compliance records, firm nominations, and quantitative criteria, including assets under management and revenue generated for their firms. Investment performance is not a criterion. Rankings are based on the opinions of SHOOK Research LLC and may not be representative of any one client’s experience; investors must carefully choose the right Financial Advisor or team for their own situation and perform their own due diligence. This ranking is not indicative of the Financial Advisor’s future performance. Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC is not affiliated with SHOOK Research LLC or Forbes. For more information, see www.SHOOKresearch.com.

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Join us on Sunday Evenings for beautiful music and prayer.

Choral Evensong

5:30 p.m. | 1st, 3rd, and 5th Sundays of each month

This primarily sung service is ideal for seasoned churchgoers and newcomers alike. Sung by the professional St. Paul’s Schola Cantorum on 1st and 3rd Sundays, and St. Paul’s, Ivy Parish Choir on 5th Sundays. A reception of refreshments and fellowship follows.

Contemplative Evening Prayer

5:30 p.m. | 2nd and 4th Sundays of each month

Join us for this time of quiet, prayer, reflection on scripture, and soothing Celtic-style music. It’s a great opportunity to be still and center yourself in God before your busy week begins. Casual fellowship with refreshments follows.

IN THIS ISSUE

NEWS

Teacher arrested on child porn charges; following the (campaign finance) money. 13 New Westhaven coming soon. 14 Real Estate: Lots more housing coming to Rio Road.

CULTURE 27

29 The Works: Remembering painter Philip Geiger.

ED I TORIAL

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Caite Hamilton editor@c-ville.com

ART DIRECTOR

Max March max@c-ville.com

CULTURE EDITOR

Tami Keaveny tami@c-ville.com

SENIOR NEWS REPORTER

Nathan Alderman news@c-ville.com

NEWS REPORTER

Catie Ratliff reporter@c-ville.com

NEWS CONTRIBUTOR

Sean Tubbs

ASSOCIATE CULTURE EDITOR

CM Turner arts@c-ville.com

COPY EDITOR

Susan Sorensen

DIGITAL EDITOR

Tristan Williams

CONTRIBUTORS

Rob Brezsny, Dave Cantor, Matt Dhillon, Carol Diggs, Shea Gibbs, Mary Jane Gore, Maeve Hayden, Andrew Hollins, Erika Howsare, Matt Jones, Sarah Lawson, Lisa Provence, Sarah Sargent, Kristie Smeltzer, Jen Sorensen, Julia Stumbaugh, Jake Solyst, Paul Ting, Eric Williamson

ADVERTISING

advertising@c-ville.com

DIRECTOR OF SALES

Bianca Johnson bianca@c-ville.com

REAL ESTATE & CLASSIFIED ACCOUNT MANAGER

Brian Hrozencik brian@c-ville.com

DIGITAL SALES MANAGER

Rob Davis rob@c-ville.com

ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES

Stephanie Vogtman-Say stephanie@c-ville.com

Jacob Phillips jacob@c-ville.com

GRAPHIC DESIGNER

Tracy Federico designer@c-ville.com

PRODUCTION COORDINATOR

Faith Gibson ads@c-ville.com

BUSINESS

PUBLISHER

Anna Harrison anna@c-ville.com

DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR

Gregg Early development@c-ville.com

CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER

Debbie Miller debbie@c-ville.com

A/R SPECIALIST

Nanci Winter accounting@c-ville.com

CIRCULATION MANAGER

Billy

C-VILLE Weekly is Charlottesville, Virginia's award-winning alternative newspaper. Through our distinctive coverage, we work to spark curiosity and enable readers to engage meaningfully with their community.

Learn more about worship at stpaulsivy.org/worship

TingPavilion.com

APRIL 19: Lake Street Dive with Carrtoons

MAY 7: Ole 60 with the Jack Wharff Band and Rob Langdon

JUNE 20:

WNRN Presents: The String Cheese Incident

Just Keep Spinning Tour 2026

JULY 18:

Alison Krauss & Union Station ft. Jerry Douglas with Special Guest Theo Lawrence

JULY 26: Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit

Benefiting the Charlottesville Free Clinic

***Just Announced***

SEPT 5: WNRN Presents: Charley Crockett

Age of the Ram Tour with Nat Myers On Sale Friday, March 6 at 10am

SEPTEMBER 8:

Sierra Ferrell

A WNRN 30th Anniversary show Heavy Petal Tour

SEPTEMBER 22:

Rainbow Kitten Surprise

Cheick Hamala Diabate Band & Corey Harris

MAR 20 - the High & Wides

MAR 21 - the SAAMI BROTHERS (2 shows)

MARCH 21-ON SALE NOW ANDY TICHENOR EP RELEASE BIRTHDAY PARTY

J’S FEATURING JAY STARLING & JARED POOL

03-06| ECHO CHAMBER - EDM NIGHT 21+ FT. BRIELLE & EDM.D.

03-07| NIGHT TEACHER WITH DIANE CLUCK

03-08| SHAKEDOWN CITI

03-11| PENTAGRAM STRING BAND WITH YES MA'AM & LITTLE FOOT

03-13| THE BARONS WITH NO COMPOSURE 03-15| AMELIA DAY WITH KATIE LYNNE SHARBAUGH

03-19| UVA LATIN AMERICAN STUDIES PRESENTS: KADENCIA

03-28| WILSON SPRINGS HOTEL WITH OLIVIA ELLEN LLOYD

03-31| ROSE'S PAWN SHOP

04-03| HANNAH COHEN WITH MMEADOWS PRESENTED BY WNRN 04-04| THE SOUTHERN DRAG SHOW! 04-11| BILLIE MARTEN WITH SQUIRREL FLOWER PRESENTED BY WNRN 04-14| SUNSQUABI & MANIC FOCUS WITH RUSS LIQUID 04-17| SGGL / SPEIDEL, GOODRICH, GOGGIN, & LILLE

04-18| JAY WEBB 04-19| FANTASTIC CAT WITH JILETTE JOHNSON

MAR 27 - Terri Allard, Jason Pollock, & Thomas Gunn

MAR 28 - Bill Evans A songwriters’ round qawwali Masters from pakistan w/ special guest babi evans

MAR 29 - RECKONING (2 Shows)

APRil 4 - hiroya tsukamoto & ty burkhardt A fingerstyle guitar showcase APRil 7 - ALASH At Potter’s

Money talks

Albemarle County’s draft FY27 budget is bigger than ever BY

CATIE RATLIFF

The numbers are in: Albemarle County’s proposed FY27 budget totals $724,021,078—roughly $86 million more than FY26. The budget, presented by County Executive Jeff Richardson on February 25, was balanced with no tax rate increases. In the general fund, the largest expenditure category is education, with $218.3 million slated for transfer to Albemarle County Public Schools. While significant, the allocation falls short of the amount anticipated by the school board and superintendent by roughly $6 million.

The gap between the expected and recommended transfer is a result of the county’s new school funding formula, which ACPS officials were seemingly not aware of prior to the presentation.

The school district’s draft funding request was balanced on $311.3 million in revenues, including $224.7 million from the county fund transfer based on prior funding formulas. But, on page 209 of the county executive’s draft budget, the county recommends “reallocating a portion of the amount calculated for Public Schools’ operations to cap-

ital projects” in response to the projected increase in ACPS’s state revenues.

“The recommended shift in the school funding formula would have been helpful for ACPS to know much earlier in the budget development process,” says Mary McIntyre, president of the Albemarle Education Association.

Millions more dollars in the budget are slated to support ACPS through capital projects, debt services, and miscellaneous costs. Still, the gap between the expected and suggested fund transfer throws the school district’s budget off balance.

“Finding out at this point that ACPS will have less money than expected means decisions about potential cuts will be rushed and will not get the attention or community input that they deserve,” says McIntyre. “That is really unfortunate in a year where both local revenue and state school funding are increasing. … The two budgets are not that far apart, all things considered. We believe ACPS’s operating budget is needs-based and should be fully funded.”

NEWS ALBEMARLE

The Board of Supervisors, school board, and county budget team will continue to discuss the allocation in the coming weeks, with a dedicated work session set for March 16. Other major expenditure categories in the general fund include public safety (17 percent), transfers to capital and debt (10 percent), and health and welfare (7 percent).

In the public safety category, the county recommended investment in staffing for emergency personnel. The recommended budget adds three new police officer positions and three sheriff’s deputy roles, plus funding to maintain levels of firefighter staffing originally covered by

FEMA Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response grants.

“We’ve got additional positions next year that are recommended in the police department’s budget to address an increase for calls. I think we’ve seen a 19 percent increase in calls for service over the last three years,” says Richardson.

Beyond the additional positions, $2.3 million of the proposed budget would go toward salary adjustments for the Albemarle County Police Department. The current entrylevel base salary for a police officer in Albemarle is $54,642 annually, compared to $55,016 in Charlottesville (not accounting for recruit salaries in either locality). Salaries

for officers and sheriff’s deputies in the surrounding counties vary.

The county’s budget also includes significant investment in health and welfare, ranging from directly funding Albemarle’s multi-departmental Health and Human Services efforts to allocations for a plethora of community nonprofits. For the second year in a row, the draft budget recommends a $5 million transfer to Albemarle’s Affordable Housing Investment Fund.

More than 60 partner agencies would also receive county funds under the draft budget, totaling $40.7 million. Organizations set to receive significant investment include ReadyKids, Blue Ridge Area Coalition for the

IN BRIEF

All the news you missed last week (in one sentence or less)

Homeless, Sexual Assault Resource Agency, Habitat for Humanity, Shelter for Help in Emergency, Legal Aid Justice Center, Offender Aid and Restoration, Albemarle Housing Improvement Program, and Region Ten.

To avoid raising tax rates to meet the rising expenditures, Richardson recommended drawing from the Albemarle Budget Stabilization Fund, a strategic year-over-year reserve of 2 percent of the county’s operating revenues. The recommended withdrawal of 1 percent, over the next two fiscal years, would not be feasible without the incoming AstraZeneca pharmaceutical manufacturing plant, according to Richardson.

“I would have recommended a tax rate increase, two pennies at the minimum,” said Richardson at the February 25 meeting.

Diversifying the county’s tax base is a major focus for Albemarle going forward, with an emphasis on attracting commercial revenue, like that generated by AstraZeneca. Per the county executive’s office, for every dollar of revenue generated by residential properties, it costs $1.31 to service; compared to service costs of $0.32 per dollar of commercial revenue, and $0.54 per dollar of agricultural revenue.

“AstraZeneca coming to our county, it’s the largest economic development announcement, certainly in decades for this community. … When we look out three to five years, it changes the landscape of how our revenues grow versus our obligations and our expenses,” says Richardson. “For the first time in a long time, it will relieve us from this continued stress of trying to figure out every year how to balance, how to meet our obligations, how to meet our service demands, and do that and remain affordable.”

The budget process in Albemarle is ongoing, with the county’s first public hearing scheduled for March 4 and the first work session on March 9. The Albemarle Board of Supervisors is slated to adopt the final FY27 budget on April 22. More information on the budget and public hearings dates can be found at albemarle. org/government/budget.

#Stabigail Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger follows President Donald Trump’s record-breaking 107-minute State of the Union address with a sharp, pointed 12-minute response. Third degree UVA President Scott Beardsley got his doctorate of education from a rushed, highly compressed program that doesn’t meet UVA’s own standards, says an Augusta Free Press analysis. Rent hike Though down year over year from record highs, average Charlottesville rent has risen 1.3 percent since January, to $1,452. August occasion Given April’s voter referendum on new congressional districts, the General Assembly has moved 2026 primary elections from June 16 to August 4. Free people Citywide events celebrate Liberation & Freedom Day March 3, 160 years after Union troops’ arrival emancipated 14,000+ enslaved workers. Freer parking Visitors at Water and Market Street garages can now pay by kiosk, an alternative to AI-based, license plate-scanning payment systems. Neeson reason? Liam and Charlotte top list of Virginia’s most popular 2025 baby names.

The Albemarle County Board of Supervisors will adopt the FY27 budget on April 22.

Funds’ futures

What candidates can, and can’t do, with surplus campaign funds BY CATIE RATLIFF

If you’ve ever signed up for campaign alerts or donated to a candidate, you’ve probably received a text, email, or letter asking for donations. Sometimes, those asks continue post-election. So what happens to that leftover money after an election, or after candidates end their campaigns?

The answer: It depends on the office, and where you live. Local and state candidates report to the Virginia Department of Elections, while federal seat-seekers file with the Federal Election Commission.

Per the Code of Virginia, candidates and committees must file a final report to close their committee if the candidate does not seek election to the same office in a “successive election,” the candidate runs for a different office, or the candidate dies. A campaign committee can only be closed once there is no “balance, deficit, outstanding debts, or outstanding loans,” any excess funds are properly disbursed and reported, and any reports or civil penalties due have been settled.

Surplus funds given to state and local office seekers can be dealt with in a multitude

Teacher arrested

Albemarle County police arrested Nicholas J. Clark, a fifth grade teacher at Woodbrook Elementary School, for child pornography on Monday, March 2, following a cyber tip. The Charlottesville resident, 29, was charged with two felonies: possessing child pornography and distributing child pornography.

“We know this news is deeply concerning,” said Woodbrook Principal Christie Isaiah in an email to parents. “The investigation is ongoing, and we are cooperating fully with law enforcement. Mr. Clark will not return to Woodbrook. We are putting plans in place so students in his class can continue learning with as little disruption as possible.”

Clark is being held without bond at the Albemarle-Charlottesville Regional Jail. Anyone with more information should contact Albemarle police at 296-5807 or Crime Stoppers at 977-4000.—C-VILLE Writers

Trending forward

Ahead of its 50th anniversary this July, Charlottesville’s Downtown Mall is celebrating a 4 percent increase in visitorship, according to the Office of Economic Development.

In the 2025 OED report, Director Chris Engels said the Downtown Mall saw

of ways, including use for a succeeding election, payment of a prior election’s deficit, donation to 170(c) organizations, contributions to other candidates or political action committees, or return of funds to donors.

Local candidate reports provide a few interesting examples of state law in action.

The most recent election for Charlottesville City Council took place in November 2025. As of December 31, Juandiego Wade for Charlottesville had a balance of $16,438.39. That amount has stayed the same since the ending balance reported on November 27. Even if Wade receives no additional funds in the interim, he will need to file his next campaign finance report in the coming weeks.

One of Sally Hudson’s campaign committees, Sally for Virginia State Senate, has sat at $0 since January 1, 2024—but filed its most recent report on January 15, 2026. In the months after Hudson’s narrow loss in the 2023 Democratic primary to incumbent Creigh Deeds, funds from her campaign were used to cover remaining payroll and campaign expenses, multiple donations to the House

roughly 2.8 million visitors last year—a near return to pre-pandemic foot traffic.

Reported retail vacancy rates were healthy as well, remaining at or below 5 percent, per the February 26 report.

The improved visitation numbers coincide with the city’s investment in the Downtown Mall, including replacement and maintenance of public infrastructure like water fountains and lighting. Brick paver and cross street repairs are expected to begin soon.—Catie Ratliff

Play ball

In its toughest challenge of the season so far, the University of Virginia men’s basketball team fell 77-51 to No.1 Duke on February 28.

Despite the loss, it’s not all blue for the No. 13 Hoos—the team will almost certainly return to the NCAA Tournament later this month, and likely enter the ACC Tournament as the No. 2 seed, receiving a double bye.

At press time, UVA and Wake Forest had yet to hit the court for their March 3 faceoff. Virginia will play its final game of the regular season at John Paul Jones Arena on March 7 against Virginia Tech, who beat the Hoos in triple overtime on December 31. Tipoff for the ACC Tournament is March 10, with the championship game set for March 14.—CR

Democratic Caucus totaling at least $9,000, and reimbursement of Hudson’s candidate loans to the campaign. Without an accepted final report, the committee remains open, and Hudson must continue filing reports.

From the president to congressional primary hopefuls, the FEC handles filings for all federal campaigns.

Requirements to end a federal campaign are similar to those at the state level, with the FEC needing a termination report to shut down committee operations. Committees must not intend to or actually receive contributions or make expenditures to file a termination report—but they can have an outstanding fund balance.

Per the FEC, “a committee may use its remaining funds for any lawful purpose, including refunding them to their donors or giving them to certain charities.” Allowed uses of surplus federal campaign funds also include campaign and officeholder expenses, state and federal campaign contributions, and transfers to party committees. Alternatively, federal candidates can opt to convert their campaign funds into a political action committee.

State and federal election law both prohibit the use of campaign funds for personal use.

Raw data from Tom Perriello for Congress FEC electronic filings indicate that former VA-5 Democratic primary candidate Adele Stichel, who dropped out in December, donated $1,000 personally to the frontrunner’s campaign on December 31. Stichel’s campaign could have donated that amount directly, given that it’s below the $2,000 cap for contributions to other federal candidates.

Looking at Stichel’s own FEC filings, the former candidate is seemingly in the process of terminating the Adele for Congress committee, with her most recent filing showing $0 cash on hand as of January 31. A termination report is not listed among her FEC filings, but a financial summary shows $26,000 in individual contribution refunds were issued between October 1, 2025, and January 31, 2026.

Campaign finance reports for local and state candidates can be found on the VDOE website. Filings for federal candidates can be found on fec.gov. C

DEVELOPMENT NEWS

First phase

City Council briefed on CRHA’s plans for a new generation of Westhaven housing

BY SEAN TUBBS

There have been very few renovations at Westhaven since the Charlottesville Redevelopment and Housing Authority constructed 126 apartments in 1964 as a replacement for homes razed in Vinegar Hill. Decades later, funding and planning for a new era is moving forward.

CRHA Executive Director John Sales told City Council on February 18 that design work has been led by more than 30 residents who have been working on the plans for three years and have clear goals.

“Those goals are improving the health and safety of the community, recognizing the memory and history and honoring that, balancing density and livability, cultivating community, and making urban connections,” Sales said.

The new Westhaven will be built in two phases, and Council has agreed to spend $15 million on the first phase, which has a total cost estimate of $81.4 million. This will include construction of a 76-unit senior apartment building, a 64-unit multifamily apartment building, a health clinic, a parking garage, and a dedicated teen center. These new buildings will be between existing units and current and future buildings on West Main Street.

Sales said there is a need to build more units but the place also has to be livable.

“The residents on that site have to have green spaces, adequate trees, playground spaces, adequate parking, addressing stormwater managers as you build more larger buildings,” Sales said.

All of the units will be affordable to households making less than 30 percent of the area median income. CRHA is seeking low-income housing tax credits from Virginia Housing as one of the sources of rev-

enue, which prevents the units from being rented out at market rate. Some of the new apartments will be funded with projectbased federal housing vouchers that Sales said would allow CRHA to collect the higher rents anyway.

During his presentation, Sales showed slides of the street network before Westhaven was built, which showed a connection to West Main Street. A major goal of redevelopment is to restore that link and Sales said there will be an accessible walkway to West Main that will pass between Yugo Crestline apartments and a future building to be constructed just to the east.

“That connection that we’re talking about making to Main Street actually lines up perfectly with Cox’s Alley, which was an historic street before the site was developed,” Sales said.

The second phase will include 126 townhouses where the existing units are, but the funding for that project has not yet been worked out. CRHA will come back asking for additional funding from the city.

City Councilor Michael Payne said the project is long overdue and encouraged the public to think about how to integrate the future Westhaven into Charlottesville by providing businesses and resources nearby.

“I know resident services has increased capacity, but residents don’t want to be physically or economically segregated from the broader Charlottesville community,” Payne said.

On Monday, March 2, City Council approved a new memorandum of understanding for its financial obligations as well as a declaration of Westhaven as a revitalization area. Both are intended to augment the application of tax credits.

The first phase of a reimagined Westhaven will include construction of a 76-unit senior apartment building, a 64-unit multifamily building, clinic, garage, and teen center.

JACK LOONEY

Annie Gould Gallery

NEWS REAL ESTATE Surer shot

Rezoning request for 153 units on Rio Road sails past Albemarle Planning Commission BY

SEAN TUBBS

Many public hearings for land use changes in Albemarle County are well-attended by nearby residents concerned about the impact of new development on their properties. Already in 2026, decisions on two rezoning requests have been deferred after the planning commission was persuaded by arguments from neighbors.

On February 24, there was no opposition to a request from Piedmont Realty Holdings to rezone 3.2 acres to the Neighborhood Model District on 600 Rio Rd. W in order to build up to 153 new residential units. If constructed at the full level, the residential density would be 47.8 units per acre.

“This has been identified as a place where we want urban-style residential construction, and it is a key growth area, and densification of that part of our community is appropriately located,” said Planning Commissioner Nathan Moore.

In contrast, an application to build 18 units on 3.15 acres in Crozet was sent back to the drawing board when residents objected to a density of just under six units per acre.

County planner Cameron Langille said the Rio Road project is consistent with Albemarle’s growth management policy as well as a Rio Road/29 Small Area Plan adopted in December 2018.

“It is providing new housing in the development area,” Langille said. “It is providing a new eight-foot sidewalk along the frontage of Rio Road West, which is a transportation improvement that is recommended by the small area plan.”

Langille said the developers have also agreed to provide land for a connection to a potential future county park to the north.

Albemarle owns a 5.9-acre property that leads to Agnor Elementary School. Staff’s only negative factor is a concern that the

project could add as many as 20 students to the school if fully built-out.

Acting on behalf of the applicant, civil engineer Kelsey Schlein said the units would be rentals with a mix of two and three bedrooms. She also said the apartments might attract older residents without children.

“It might be more working professionals, couples, single folks, older folks who, you know, don’t want to take care of a yard anymore and live a little closer into the city,” Schlein said.

The property currently includes five existing townhomes and two commercial buildings that look like single-family residences. The NMD zoning does not require nonresidential space to be built, but this project could build up to 20,000 square feet of commercial space depending on market conditions when it goes to construction.

Commissioner Lonnie Murray wants to see a mixture of uses.

“If we have too much residential and not enough commercial, then it ends up being a tax burden on the county,” Murray said. No one appeared in person before the Planning Commission for a public hearing, but one person took advantage of the virtual option to ask questions.

If approved by the Board of Supervisors, the design will need to get approval from the Architectural Review Board. Commissioner Corey Clayborne of the Rivanna District urged the developers to not skimp on the design.

“As it matures, just how you treat that space and the façades there as well, I think will be really important,” Clayborne said. “Hopefully it’s going to be a model for other great projects that come along in that corridor.”

The request will go to the Board of Supervisors at a date yet to be determined.

County planner Cameron Lagille said the approved Rio Road plan is consistent with the county’s growth management policy.

MULBERRY DRIVE

STREET

BY NATHAN ALDERMAN

The strange story of Stefan Friedman and his faltering feast

When the axe fell on Stefan Friedman’s restaurants,

their sudden closures left staff and patrons surprised. Ace Biscuit & Barbecue, Omakase Obscura, The Wine Guild of Charlottesville, Vitae Spirits Distillery, and Old Metropolitan Hall—the entire once-bountiful table of Friedman’s company, A Moveable Feast— folded or changed hands without any apparent warning. But the signs were there for anyone who looked hard enough.

Friedman is, as one former colleague said, “an extremely private person.” But since Ace shut its doors February 6, we have investigated Friedman’s professional life. As C-VILLE followed the trail of crumbs he left behind, we uncovered a story that grew weirder and more fascinating at every turn.

1.

The restaurateur

“I’ve always been a foodie,” Friedman says. “It’s ephemeral art, in the same way that a beautiful chalk drawing on the sidewalk is before the rain. This is art that you consume, and then it’s gone. But you remember the experience, and that always spoke to me.”

Friedman spoke to C-VILLE in an initial interview on February 16. On February 27, and again on March 2, we sent him followup questions addressing the issues raised in this article, and repeatedly invited him, via emails and in a phone conversation, to discuss them.

Friedman declined to comment further on the record, instead issuing this statement: “While I have not been given the opportunity to read the article prior to publication, from assertions and questions presented to me, I believe there to be numerous substantive factual errors and inaccuracies. Given the decades-long scope of your inquiry, I was not given sufficient time to research and comment on these matters.”

“My thought had been that there were a number of struggling businesses,” Friedman said in the February 16 interview, regarding his decision to get into restaurants, “and if I could see what in them needed to be fixed pretty readily, and I thought it was quite doable, that made for an opportunity.”

But Friedman says he found that “the hospitality industry was a quagmire, much different from other kinds of business I’d been involved in.”

Former employees at various Moveable Feast operations described a chaotic atmosphere where management didn’t track expenses.

Cait Taylor was the pastry chef at Bonny & Read, a Moveable Feast seafood restau-

rant that Friedman and Chef Chris Humphrey ran from November 2023 until it closed in September 2025. “From the beginning,” Taylor says, “I was concerned with the fact that we didn’t have a cost analysis. I’m used to working inside of some kind of budget. To have free reign on that was nice, but at the same time, it was concerning.”

Humphrey says he calculated the costs of each dish he served. But “there was never any talk about numbers or percentages, or any of that sort of thing, until the end,” he says, “which is when I was given a food cost … that was absolutely incorrect. It was too high.” According to Humphrey, supplies for the adjacent Omakase Obscura restaurant were erroneously lumped in with Bonny & Read’s budget.

One source familiar with Friedman’s operations, speaking on condition of anonymity, says that, to their knowledge, Friedman did not maintain formal bookkeeping for any of his restaurants to track how much money came in against how much flowed out. That meant his restaurant group was flying blind from the beginning.

In addition to those issues, former employees say A Moveable Feast’s problems coalesced around two key areas: permits and payments.

PERMITS

Rick Wampler is Friedman’s business partner in a second hospitality company, Draft Taproom—also known in business filings as Tapt Charlottesville, a name Wampler says is easier to trademark for franchising. He says that during Draft’s long post-COVID closure, Friedman and several associates undertook renovation work in the Downtown Mall space at 425 E. Main St.

According to Wampler, the changes shrank the kitchen, moved an interior wall, and used the freed-up space to create more seating in a private event room—all allegedly done without a permit.

“I wasn’t there much, but I remember somebody talking about a conversation with the city,” Wampler says, “and it was, ‘You’re not doing anything structural, you don’t need a permit.’ And there was a big wall that came down that was like, is this thing structural or not? They figured out, no. So that sentence I remember, and I think resonated with Stefan for a while, which was, okay, we’re not doing anything structural. We don’t need a permit.”

After Draft, Friedman attempted to reopen Fellini’s on West Market Street in early 2023. Leo Schultz, A Moveable Feast’s original food and beverage director, said Friedman recruited him to help with Fellini’s revival. But Friedman stopped working on the property in summer 2023 after a dispute with the building’s owners over renovations.

“We were knocking holes in walls, looking at completely nonstructural stuff … trying to open up the space,” Schultz says.

“I’m not sure where the breakdown of communication was, because [the property owners] had seemed on board, and then when they’d come in and seen some of the renovation that had happened, they were surprised,” Schultz says.

The owners of the Fellini’s property, now occupied by Afghan Kabob, declined to comment.

Schultz says he and Friedman were talking with engineers about getting permits for more “substantive changes” at the time. When asked whether he’d ever heard Friedman say, “If it’s not structural, you don’t need a permit,” Schultz says, “I believe I’d heard him say that.”

Would the city ever tell someone that nonstructural changes didn’t require a permit? “There is not a situation where this would happen here,” building code official Charles Miller says.

The city requires permits if renovations involve “any electrical work, plumbing work, gas work, kitchen hood modification, or any mechanical work. If adding seats or table layouts, this can also require permits to check for occupant loads and egress.” Moving walls in restaurants requires a permit. And, Miller says, “permits are required prior to any work starting.”

City records show no permits on file at Fellini’s W. Market Street address between 2016 and 2025. At 425 E. Main St., Draft Taproom’s previous management filed a permit in 2016 for renovations including the demolition of an existing wall. Since then, there have been only two permits filed at the address: a fire sprinkler adjustment in December 2022, and an occupant load permit in December 2024.

PAYMENTS

Friedman’s former employees say they sometimes received their wages in unusual ways— if they arrived on time at all.

“Stefan had a variety of bank accounts, and he did not keep enough money in the Ace Barbecue bank account,” former employee Lauren Black says. “No one was managing the funds in that account, and he was not keeping it stocked. So a bill would hit, and then it would be overdrafted, and then the whole staff would have their paychecks bounce. This happened multiple times.”

A source familiar with Friedman’s business described Black’s story of bounced checks as “a fair assessment.”

“I was paid through [online money transfer service] Zelle for the first several months I worked for Stefan,” Black says. “I didn’t receive a pay stub during this time, but my pay was lower than my salary, so he was deducting money.” Black did not have access to records confirming whether taxes were properly remitted. Both Black and Schultz recall receiving multiple payments without any paystub listing how much had been deducted from their pay, nor what those deductions went toward.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 22

TRISTAN WILLIAMS

Bonny & Read, a seafood restaurant run by Friedman and Chef Chris Humphrey, closed in mid-September 2025.

Former employee Lauren Black says she’s still owed money for her portion of a subcontracted catering job for Ace shortly before it closed.

A source familiar with Friedman’s operations confirmed these irregular payments—both for the early stretch of A Moveable Feast’s operations, before the company switched to the first of two different payroll processors, and the last few months, when it stopped paying its payroll provider and lost those services. During both periods, employees would receive payments directly from Friedman, net of taxes.

J.H. “Rip” Verkerke, a UVA professor specializing in employment and labor law, says payments like those raise potential red flags. Employers face “the greatest legal risk” if they fail to properly withhold and pay state and federal taxes from employees’ wages, he says. Under state law, those checks must be “accompanied by a written pay statement detailing gross wages and all deductions, and make only legally authorized deductions.”

It’s possible that Friedman did withhold and remit the proper amount of taxes from employees’ paychecks during the periods when his business wasn’t using third-party providers to run payroll. The source familiar with his operations could not say for certain, given the lack of bookkeeping, and what they described as Friedman’s refusal to let anyone else look into or use the company’s bank accounts.

While many employees and contractors have been paid since February 6, others are still waiting. That includes Black, who says she’s still owed more than $5,900 for her portion of a January catering job she subcontracted for Ace at UVA Hospital. “The money was direct-deposited to [A Moveable Feast] on [February 4] for the job,” she says. “And they decided to keep it, instead of sending it on to me.” Black provided C-VILLE with a copy of a February 24 email she sent to Friedman asking for payment on the invoice; on March 3, Black said Friedman had sent her $500 of the outstanding balance.

“I was trying to give them the benefit of the doubt because of all this stuff going down,” says Black. “But here’s the most recent thing I heard from them, and this is a quote from Stefan: ‘I fully intend [on] paying everyone as soon as I have the money. I just don’t know when that will be.’”

2.

The borrower

Philip Conlin is a real estate agent in Ann Arbor, Michigan. He’s listed on a November 5, 2008, state filing incorporating Gemstar, LLC there. Reached by phone, Conlin described Gemstar first as “a partnership I had with a couple other people,” then later said that he wasn’t involved in running it at all.

But he’s blunt in his assessment: ”[Gemstar] was a shell game of trying to find a loophole in the federal tax system.”

According to Conlin, Gemstar found people in need of a quick tax break, and sold them gemstones—“semiprecious … not topshelf diamonds”—that Gemstar, through a third party, would help them turn into finished jewelry. Customers could donate the jewelry to charity, taking advantage of an apparent IRS loophole for a timely tax deduction. “The donor got his write-off right away,” Conlin says, “and these guys made some money in between, on upcharging the value of the gemstones.”

Was this legitimate? “It wasn’t illegal,” Conlin says. But “it rarely survived IRS scrutiny.” He says most of the people who tried Gemstar’s approach wound up audited.

On May 20, 2009, court records show Gemstar accepted a promissory note from Virginia-based Ultraseed Capital. Ultraseed would receive $140,000 worth of finished gemstone jewelry—roughly 17,000 pieces—and pay for it within three months, with interest.

Three months later, Ultraseed hadn’t paid. “They’d personally guarantee,” Conlin says, “and when you got to a deposition, or any time you’d get them to sit down, it’s just a shell.”

After more than a decade, Conlin’s fuzzy on the details. He remembers Gemstar dealing with more than one person from Ultraseed, and he isn’t clear on their names. But Michigan court records list a single individual as co-defendant in the October 8, 2009, lawsuit Gemstar filed against Ultraseed: Steve Friedman.

Stefan Friedman lists himself as Ultraseed’s founder and manager on his public LinkedIn page. Steve Friedman and Ultraseed’s shared address in court filings matches a property in the Charlottesville area where, according to public records, Stefan

Friedman appears to have lived since the early 2000s. That same address appears on the December 29, 2004, Virginia filing establishing Ultraseed Capital, LLC, with Steven Friedman as its registered agent. Steven Friedman’s name, signature, and apparent initials, “SMF,” appear on a copy of the promissory note from Ultraseed to Gemstar included in court files, which is certified by a notary public in Albemarle County.

By January 2010, the Michigan court had ruled in Gemstar’s favor, finding that Friedman and Ultraseed owed Gemstar more than $152,000. Gemstar pursued Ultraseed, Friedman, and its money to Virginia, filing suit in Charlottesville Circuit Court on January 10, 2012, for an interest-boosted sum of more than $162,000. Seeking to garnish Friedman’s funds, Gemstar’s local counsel gave the court a list of bank accounts it said belonged to Friedman and Ultraseed.

Court records include a letter from Virginia National Bank, dated February 7, 2012, stating that “all accounts for this customer have been closed.”

In April 2012, the court summoned Friedman to appear, and Gemstar subpoenaed documents from him; filings state that he initially failed to comply. Threatened with contempt, Friedman showed up in August 2012 with the requested documents. The official record ends there.

“The solution was … give it all back,” Conlin says. “Of course, they didn’t give it all back, but quite a bit. I mean, I’d say 80 percent, 90 percent, and then it just—there’s no way to collect anything.”

The Gemstar case wasn’t the last time court records show Friedman running up debts he at least initially failed to pay. On November 12, 2025, EKV Corner Properties, owners of 1427 University Ave., sued Friedman, Wampler, and Tapt Charlottesville for more than $85,000 in unpaid rent. According to court filings, Tapt signed a lease there in September 2023, but stopped regularly paying rent as of January 2025. After smaller payments in March and April, and larger catch-up amounts in May and July, EKV says in filings that it received no further payments.

On November 20, 2025, the original owners of Vitae Spirits Distillery asked the Charlottesville Circuit Court for a confession of judgment against Friedman, seeking

$270,000. Friedman purchased Vitae in October 2023. As part of the price, court filings show he promised to pay Vitae’s owners $250,000, plus 3.75 percent annual interest, over the next three years. The contract obliged Friedman to make a $200,000 lump-sum payment two years after its signing.

Based on the amount Vitae’s owners say they’re owed, and the timing of the filing, calculations suggest that Friedman may have not only failed to pay that $200,000 after two years, but also made none of the monthly interest payments the contract specifies. Vitae founder Ian Glomski declined to comment, citing the ongoing proceedings.

Two sources familiar with Friedman’s business dealings say that the more than $350,000 total debt documented in court records is just the tip of the iceberg. One says Friedman owes rents, state sales and city meals taxes, and other debt payments to businesses he purchased, “and it seems most of the bank accounts are empty.”

A second source with knowledge of Friedman’s operations says that collective debts of $25,000 to two individual food vendors “sounds reasonable,” estimates that Friedman owes between $50,000 and $75,000 in unpaid city meals taxes, and places Friedman’s additional obligations in rent and other promised payments at more than a quarter of a million dollars.

These additional figures could not be independently verified.

When reached for comment, city officials declined to discuss whether Friedman owed meals taxes. Virginia law forbids public officials from divulging a private individual’s tax records or returns. C-VILLE attempted to reach various vendors and property owners to ask about unpaid bills. Nearly every business either declined to comment or did not respond.

Travis Wilburn is the cofounder and managing partner of Stay Charlottesville, which sold Old Metropolitan Hall to A Moveable Feast in March 2025, and which once again took control over the Downtown Mall wedding and event venue’s operations shortly after Friedman’s other properties shut down.

“Stay Charlottesville has resumed all operations under a new entity to ensure that

TL;DR Based on public records, media accounts, and firsthand interviews, here's

Summer 2023

12/7/2022

Friedman incorporates the first of two LLCs for A Moveable Feast.

02/24/2023

Friedman registers Fellini’s as an operating name for his LLC.

3/23/2023

Friedman buys Ace Biscuit & Barbecue.

Fellini's lease apparently ends amid reported disputes with property owners about renovations.

8/3/2023

Friedman incorporates Moveable Feast LLC and Tapt Charlottesville LLC.

9/1/2023

Friedman and Rick Wampler, as Tapt, sign lease for 1427 University Ave.

10/19/2023

Friedman buys Vitae Spirits, promising its owners $250,000 and monthly interest over next three years.

11/2023 Bonny & Read opens.

1/12/2024

Littlejohns announces plans to reopen at 1427 University Ave.

1/26/2024

More than two months after opening, Bonny & Read gets its liquor license. 4/6/2024 Littlejohn’s reopens.

5/9/2024

Speaking to The Daily Progress, Friedman floats plans to reopen Draft Taproom, add second spot at 1427 University Ave.

5/10/2024

Vitae Spirits Taproom, closed since 2023, reopens on Downtown Mall.

8/20/2024 Taproom becomes Omakase Obscura.

all of the couples and corporate contracts that were signed under Old Metropolitan Hall, Stefan Friedman’s business, are taken care of,” Wilburn says. “Stay Charlottesville will fully operate Old Met into the end of 2026 to make sure that Charlottesville does not have another negative story.”

A source familiar with Friedman’s negotiations says he is working on payment plans with his creditors, but that the amount he is able to repay “pales in comparison” to what he owes.

3.

The businessman

Dwight Gibbs was the first chief technology officer at Alexandria, Virginia’s The Motley Fool. (Full disclosure: This reporter worked for the Fool for 20 years starting in 2005, after Gibbs left the company.) Gibbs met Friedman—whom Gibbs knew as “Steve”— in 1997 through a mutual friend, and hired him to help assess the fledgling investing advice company’s data security.

“He seemed like a smart guy who understood the online space,” Gibbs says. “In ’97, that was rare.”

According to Gibbs, Friedman said he’d helped to build the first online brokerage, digiTRADE. The New York-based company pioneered Internet-based stock trading in 1994 and was purchased by Thomson Financial in 1998. Gibbs hired Friedman for a single monthlong project; the two didn’t work together after that, but Gibbs says they remained friendly.

Other associates testified to Friedman’s skill in investing and business. Arlingtonbased New Media Strategies, founded in 1999, was one of the first marketing agencies to focus on social media. Friedman “took an early bet on us, and he was wonderful,” says founder Pete Snyder.

Here in Charlottesville, Friedman cofounded the Companion Animal Fund in 2018. The charity runs a trap-neuter-release program for stray cats, and a pet food bank that distributes to local food pantries.

Friedman also quietly funded Charlottesville: Our Streets, a 2018 documentary about the 2017 Unite the Right attack. Daedalus Books owner Jackson Landers wrote the film.

He said Friedman’s involvement, which Landers described as donating the money without attempting to exert control over the project, was “incredibly generous.”

“He’s an all-around good dude,” Landers says. “He’s a little bit odd, but I’ve never known him to be anything but completely honest with the people around him.”

But while C-VILLE verified many of the accomplishments Friedman listed on his public LinkedIn page, others appeared to vary from how he described them.

Friedman’s LinkedIn page says he served as “Managing Director at National Capital Companies.” In a statement, National Capital Companies told C-VILLE, “Mr. Friedman was not employed as a Managing Director with our firm or its Broker Dealer. He did work closely, for a very short period of time, with one of our investment bankers (an [independent contractor], not employee either) introducing potential early-stage tech clients, but we elected not to pursue any of these opportunities.”

Then there’s digiTRADE. Friedman’s LinkedIn page says, “Companies co-founded by Mr. Friedman include digiTRADE, which invented the first technology for internet stock trading.” A May 9, 2024 Daily

Progress profile describes him as “a former venture capitalist who helped develop the first online stock trading platform in the 1990s.”

New York state documents list Theodore Tsung as digiTRADE’s first CEO upon its incorporation in 1994. Mr. Tsung is now the CEO and CTO of AppCrown, where his bio page describes him as digiTRADE’s founder.

“I was quite fortunate enough early on to be one of the founders of a tech company,” Friedman said, when asked about digiTRADE. “And we had the right idea and were lucky enough for it to be at the right time with some talented people. And we created the first technology for internet stock trading, which was back in the mid-’90s.”

One source familiar with digiTRADE’s founding said they did not recall hearing Friedman described as a co-founder. They remembered seeing Friedman around digiTRADE’s offices in its early days, but recalled his father, Allen, as the company’s crucial early investor.

A second source familiar with the company’s founding said that the younger Friedman “had no interaction with digiTRADE. He was definitely not a co-founder of digiTRADE. His father was an investor in digiTRADE.”

Who is Stefan Friedman?

The answer varies depending on whom you ask.

“I don’t think any of this was malicious or anything of the sort,” Chris Humphrey says. “He owned all these other businesses that he actually made money on, and I think that he put his focus on those, and not the restaurants that were just breaking even at best, like most do.”

“I think he was a passionate and ambitious individual,” Leo Schultz says. “That he was looking around at a town where a lot of the things he loved and cared for were about to go away. And he thought he was in a position with experience and funds where he might be able to do something about it. I think he overestimated what he was capable of, and what a lot of the people underneath him were capable of. And that he went too far, too fast. … I don’t think any of it was from a place of malice.”

“That job was years of gaslighting and sabotage,” Lauren Black says. “I would love to never think about Stefan or his empire of chaos again, but people need to know what kind of person he is, so that next time he [tries] to lure a business partner in, they are aware of more than his slick words.”

“I’m very upset by what happened, and obviously I lost a lot of money,” Friedman said in the February 16 interview. “Thank goodness it was my money and not, you know, investor money or anything like that. But the fact is that I’m more thinking about what next, and a lot of people are going to say that I’m crazy. All right.”

“Look how much of what went wrong that is on my shoulders,” he said. “But you have to learn lessons from what went wrong.” Looking back, Friedman says he would have “tackled significantly fewer projects,” brought in “the most experienced team,” listened to “some of my best people earlier and more carefully,” and kept more money in the bank—“the reserves needed for this industry were bigger than I had realized.”

Friedman concluded the February 16 interview by quoting silent movie star and early film producer Mary Pickford: “She said, ‘This thing we call failure, it is not the falling down, it is the staying down.’”

the history we could assemble of how Friedman's roster of restaurants rose and fell.

1/1/2025 Tapt stops consistently paying rent on 1427 University Ave.

3/10/2025 Friedman buys Old Metropolitan Hall LLC from Stay Charlottesville.

6/14/2025 Littlejohn’s closes.

7/25/2025 Last rent payment on 1427 University Ave. 9/14/2025 Bonny & Read closes.

10/19/2025 Friedman owes Vitae sellers $200,000, per contract.

11/12/2025 1427 University Ave. landlords sue Tapt et al for $85,757 in unpaid rent and interest.

11/20/2025 Vitae sellers sue Friedman for $250K plus $20K promised interest. 12/2025 Wine Guild owners sell to Friedman.

1/12/2026 Friedman served papers in 1427 University Ave. suit.

2/4/2026 Property owner serves eviction on Ace Biscuit.

2/6/2026 Ace, Omakase, Wine Guild, and Old Met shutter.

2/10/2026 Stay Charlottesville announces take-back of Old Met.

Staff at Ace Biscuit & Barbecue arrived February 4 to find an eviction notice on the restaurant door, according to social media posts.

One unforgettable week of music, art, ideas exploring how we act boldly, bridge divides, and shape the future.

2026

THEME

2026 HIGHLIGHTS

Innocence, Justice, and the Courage to Confront a Broken System : A Conversation with John Grisham and Deirdre Enright

Wednesday, April 22

Join bestselling author John Grisham and Deirdre Enright, founder of the UVA Innocence Project, for a powerful conversation at the Paramount Theater on justice, wrongful conviction, and the moral courage required to confront systemic failure.

CIVIC FUTURES SUMMIT

Wed. April 22

Join 75+ regional leaders exploring community flourishing.

Internationally recognized journalist and Presidential Precinct CEO Toyosi Ogunseye shares lessons from courageous reporting and global democracy work, exploring how citizens and leaders can strengthen civic culture.

INNOVATION SUMMIT

Thur. April 23 - Fri. April 24

Join 150+ technologists, investors, and entrepreneurs exploring the future of innovation.

LÄRABAR founder Lara Merriken shares how a kitchen experiment became a national brand and what it takes to build a values-driven company in a fast-growth world.

BADGES & TICKETS

Unlock five days of inspiration, connection, and transformation.

ALL TOM TOM EVENTS CIVIC FUTURES SUMMIT INNOVATION SUMMIT INVESTOR ROUNDTABLES MIXERS & GALA VIP LAUNCH PARTY AND MORE!

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Toyosi Ogunseye

UVA MUSIC EVENTS

Date/Time/Place

Friday, 03/13, 3:30pm 107 Old Cabell Hall

Saturday, 03/14, 3:30pm

Sunday, 03/1 , 3:30pm

Saturday, 3/ 1, 3:30pm

Saturday, 3/ 1, 7:30pm

Sunday, 3/ , 3:30pm

Friday, 3/ 7, :00pm

Saturday, 3/ , :00pm

Saturday, 3/ , 3:30pm

Saturday, 3/ , :00pm

Sunday, 3/ , 7:00pm

Saturday, 4/4, 3:30pm

Friday, 4/10, :00pm

Saturday, 4/11, :00pm

Event (* Denotes free events)

Dr. Jasmine Henry * Colloquium

Katherine Tang's 4th Year Recital * Two Hands, One Breath: Where Air Meets Keys

UVA CMS: Piedmont Duo: I-Jen Fang, percussion, Ayn Balija, viola

Performance Showcase Recital * with L. Kim, J. Lawson, T. Ledbetter, E. Mayhood

Charlottesville Symphony All-American—Celebrating VA250

Charlottesville Symphony All-American—Celebrating VA250

Michael Angelucci Piano Recital * wor

groups directed by Jazz faculty

Baroque Orchestra directed by David Sariti

University Singers, directed by Michael Slon America250 Anniversary Concert

Percussion Ensemble: A ight of Percussion with special guest Eric Willie

All artists, programs and venues are subject to change.

Office: 434.924.3052; music@virginia.edu; https://music.virginia.edu

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CULTURE

FRIDAY 3/6 – SUNDAY 3/8

OUTSIDE IN

The Banff Centre Mountain Film Festival showcases exhilarating and inspiring short films centered on mountain sports and culture from around the world. If you’ve never attended a screening, imagine the X Games taking place within an episode of “Planet Earth,” but with more human interest. The films capture the true magnificence of our natural world while sharing amazing feats of adventure, determination, and survival. Each day of the festival brings a unique slate of shorts featuring stunning scenes and incredible action. $32.25, times vary. The Paramount Theater, 215 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. theparamount.net

CULTURE TO-DO LIST

Wednesday 3/4

music

An Evening with Larry Keel & Jon Stickley Duo. Two of the finest flatpicking guitarists of this generation perform acoustic Americana. $32, 8pm. The Southern Café & Music Hall, 103 S. First St. thesoutherncville.com

Open Mic Night. Mic check to all musicians, poets, and everyone in between. Free, 9pm. Holly’s Diner, 1221 E. Market St.

Wavelength. Original music, deep-cut rock tunes, and more. Featuring Gary Green and Kent Raine. Free, 6:30pm. The Whiskey Jar, 227 W. Main St., Downtown Mall. thewhiskeyjarcville.com

dance

Weekly Swing Dance. Beginner-friendly swing dance lessons teach the Lindy Hop, Charleston, Balboa, and blues. No partner needed. Stay for social dancing after the class. $10, 7pm. The Front Porch, 221 E. Water St. frontporchcville.com

stage

Rory Scovel: Know Your Enemy Tour. Actor, comedian, and writer Scovel brings his standup tour to town. $44, 8pm. The Jefferson Theater, 110 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. jeffersontheater.com

classes

Acrylic Paint Blending Workshop. Hone your skills through focused demos, practice, and design exploration. No experience necessary, all materials included. $30, 6pm. Blue Ridge Brushes Studio, 1110 E. Market St. #13h. blueridgebrushes.com

Thursday 3/5 music

Berto Sales & Vincent Zorn. Lively flamenco rumba with Latin and Cuban influences. Free, 7pm. The Bebedero, 201 W. Main St., Downtown Mall. thebebedero.com

Lenny Burridge. Playing a wide variety of musical styles, ranging from blues and jazz standards to current radio hits and alternative. Free, 5pm. Eastwood Farm and Winery, 2531 Scottsville Rd. eastwoodfarmandwinery.com words

Pursuits of Knowledge: Conversations at Monticello. Scholars and authors explore the enduring legacy of curiosity, innovation, and learning inspired by Thomas Jefferson. $10, 6pm. Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello, 931 Thomas Jefferson Pkwy. monticello.org etc.

Brewery Puzzle Hunt. An escape room meets a pub crawl. Visit the Preston Avenue breweries, crack codes, unravel riddles, and sample Charlottesville’s best brews. Players get $1 off pints at each brewery. $15, noon. Starr Hill Brewery, Dairy Market. puzzledbee.com

Vineyard Puzzle Hunt. Like an escape room but at a winery. Crack codes and unravel riddles while sampling Charlottesville’s best wine, beer, and cider. Play when you want and go at your own pace. $15, 5pm. Eastwood Farm and Winery, 2531 Scottsville Rd. eastwoodfarmandwinery.com

Friday 3/6

music

Bob Bennetta Trio. Live jazz. Free, 6:30pm. Afghan Kabob House, 200 Market St. afghankabobhouse.com

FRIDAY 3/6

PARTY LINE

Louisiana Calling pairs Sonny Landreth Band with The Iguanas for a show fit to rock any venue in the Big Easy or bayou. Horn-laden and harmonyheavy, The Iguanas traffic a monster mashup of danceable stylings—Tejano and Conjunto sounds and fiery Caribbean influences mingle with Southern blues, jazz, and R&B. Whether sultry and smooth or wailing with electrified intensity, Landreth’s slide-guitar blues will make you want to move. This is a fully reserved event, which means you’ll have to contain your head noddin’, toe tappin’, and rump shakin’ to your own seat. $38.80, 8pm. The Jefferson Theater, 110 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. jeffersontheater.com

Chickenhead Blues Band. Charlottesville’s premier boogie-woogie, beat, rhythm and blues dance band. Free, 9pm. Holly’s Diner, 1221 E. Market St.

John Kelly. Singer-songwriter with more than two decades of solo acoustic performing experience. Free, 5pm. Eastwood Farm and Winery, 2531 Scottsville Rd. eastwoodfarmandwinery.com

Louisiana Calling ft. Sonny Landreth Band and The Iguanas. The deep roots caravan of Cajun slide-guitar wiz Landreth and New Orleans LatinAmericana rockers The Iguanas advances into the new year. $38, 8pm. The Jefferson Theater, 110 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. jeffersontheater.com

SONOSYNTHESIS: Little & Fierce. Cari Shipp (flute/piccolo) and Jeremy Thompson (piano) present a program featuring pieces by esoteric composers to benefit the Blue Ridge Area Food Bank. $35–40, 7pm. North End, 801 Park St. victoryhallopera.org

Travis Elliott. Legendary acoustic music. Free, 5:30pm. Potter’s Craft Cider, 1350 Arrowhead Valley Rd. potterscraftcider.com

stage

Emma Jane Austen’s most mischievous matchmaker bursts onto the stage in Kate Hamill’s effervescent adaptation of this beloved classic novel. $30, 7:30pm. Live Arts, 123 E. Water St. livearts.org First Friday Improv. Ninty minutes of comedy featuring the premiere of Big Blue Door’s winter group, The Vortex. Plus special guests Billionaire Robot Dogs. $10, 7pm. McGuffey Art Center, 201 Second St. NW. bigbluedoor.org

Vineyard Puzzle Hunt. See listing for Thursday, March 5. $15, 5pm. Eastwood Farm and Winery, 2531 Scottsville Rd. puzzledbee.com

Saturday 3/7 music

Bob Bennetta Blues Revue. Blues tunes by an all-star cast of players. Free, 5pm. Glass House Winery, 5898 Free Union Rd., Free Union. glass housewinery.com

Cheick Hamala Diabaté Band & Corey Harris. Music of Mali meets the blues. $25–30, 8pm. The Front Porch, 221 E. Water St. frontporchcville.com

Donna The Buffalo. One of the most dynamic and determined bands continuously touring America since 1989. $35–38, 8pm. The Jefferson Theater, 110 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. jeffersontheater.com

Goth Takeover. DJs and Goth bands bring spookiness galore. Free, 9pm. Holly’s Diner, 1221 E. Market St. Her Checkered Past. Anne O’Brien and Frank Bechter perform music by the hearth to warm your heart. Free, 2:30pm. Albemarle CiderWorks, 2545 Rural Ridge Ln., North Garden. albemarleciderworks.com

Josh Mayo. One of Charlottesville’s finest entertainers takes on the party porch. Free, 9pm. Vision BBQ & Catering, 247 Ridge McIntire Rd. vision bbqcville.co m

Kat & The Travelers. Up-beat music to dance to. Free, 5pm. Eastwood Farm and Winery, 2531 Scottsville Rd. eastwoodfarmandwinery.com

Mirabelle & Matty. The talented Metcalfe fatherdaughter duo grooves along with fun and fabulous tunes. Free, 2pm. DuCard Vineyards, 40 Gibson Hollow Ln., Etlan. ducardvineyards.com

Mr. Spacecat. Straight-up rock ‘n’ roll band plays great songs that make you feel good. Free, 7pm. The Batesville Market, 6624 Plank Rd., Batesville. batesvillemarket.com

Night Teacher with Diane Cluck. Indie songwriter and vocalist Lilly Bechtel headlines with support from singer-songwriter Cluck. $25–40, 8pm. The Southern Café & Music Hall, 103 S. First St. thesoutherncville.com

Porch Dogs. Come bark with the Dogs. Free, 12:30pm. Eastwood Farm and Winery, 2531 Scottsville Rd. eastwoodfarmandwinery.com

The Hound of the Baskervilles When Sir Charles Baskerville is found dead on the moors with a look of terror on his face and paw prints by his body, Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson are called to unravel the curse of the hound. $35–75, 7:30pm. Blackfriars Playhouse, 10 S. Market St., Staunton. americanshakespearecenter.com

words

Friday Night Writes. An open mic featuring emerging musicians and writers performing their unpublished music, poetry, and short stories. Free, 7pm. New Dominion Bookshop, 404 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. newdominionbookshop.com etc.

Banff Centre Mountain Film Festival. Get ready for an exhilarating cinematic journey featuring breathtaking stories of adventure, culture, and the power of the outdoors. $32, 7pm. The Paramount Theater, 215 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. theparamount.net

Brewery Puzzle Hunt. See listing for Thursday, March 5. $15, noon. Starr Hill Brewery, Dairy Market. puzzledbee.com

Pokémon Party. Craft Pokéballs, make buttons, and design custom Pokémon cards. Embark on a scavenger hunt or battle other trainers in Pokémon trivia and bingo to catch ’em all and win special prizes. Free, 2pm. Central Library, 201 E. Market St. jmrl.org

The Eastern Boundary Quartet. Hungarian folk rhythms collide with fearless New York jazz in an electrifying night of cross-cultural improvisation. $20–25, 7:30pm. Unity of Charlottesville, 2825 Hydraulic Rd. cvillejazz.org

stage

Emma See listing for Friday, March 6. $30, 7:30pm. Live Arts, 123 E. Water St. livearts.org

The Hound of the Baskervilles. See listing for Friday, March 6. $35–75, 7:30pm. Blackfriars Playhouse, 10 S. Market St., Staunton. americanshakespeare center.com

Twelfth Night, or What You Will Shipwrecked and alone, Viola disguises herself as a man and stumbles into Shakespeare’s most tangled love triangle. $35–75, 2pm. Blackfriars Playhouse, 10 S. Market St., Staunton. americanshakespearecenter.com

words

Author Event: Darnell Lamont Walker. Walker speaks about his new book, Never Can Say Goodbye: The Life of a Death Doula and the Art of a Peaceful End. An audience Q&A follows. Free, 7pm. New Dominion Bookshop, 404 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. newdominionbookshop.com

Lights ON Blackfriars. In-person conversations bring together the artists and scholars behind each production to explore the stories, ideas, and creative choices shaping the show audiences are about to see. $7, 11am. Blackfriars Playhouse, 10 S. Market St., Staunton. americanshakespearecenter.com

classes

Mixed-Fruit Painting with Ryan Trott. Arrange and render your own still life compositions of boldly colorful real and papier-mâché fruit with exhibiting artist Trott. $25–30, 9am. Second Street Gallery, 115 Second St. SE. secondstreetgallery.org

Mommy + Me Paint Class. Create a work of art with your little loved one in a step-by-step process, no experience necessary. Recommended for ages 5+. $40, 10am. Blue Ridge Brushes Studio, 1110 E. Market St #13h. blueridgebrushes.com

Needle Felted Opossums. Learn how to make a soft little opossum figure using a specialized notched needle to sculpt dyed wool. Beginning and returning students welcome. Ages 12+. $35, 9:30am. The Scrappy Elephant, 1745 Allied St. scrappyelephant.com

Needle Felted Owls. Learn how to make a soft little owl figure using a specialized notched needle to sculpt dyed wool. Ages 12+. $35, 1pm. The Scrappy Elephant, 1745 Allied St. scrappyelephant.com

Sit, Stay, Slab Pet Bowls. Create a one-of-akind ceramic bowl for your favorite dog or cat using slab-building techniques. Ages 12+. Participants under age 16 must attend with an adult. $45, 10am. The Scrappy Elephant, 1745 Allied St. scrappyelephant.com

etc.

Banff Centre Mountain Film Festival. See listing for Friday, March 6. $32, 7pm. The Paramount Theater, 215 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. theparamount.net Brewery Puzzle Hunt. See listing for Thursday, March 5. $15, noon. Starr Hill Brewery, Dairy Market. puzzledbee.com

Camp Classics Film Screening: Annie An NYC tycoon adopts a vivacious orphan as a PR stunt in his bid to become mayor, but the little girl becomes his saving grace by teaching him what’s truly important in life in this 2014 film. Light snacks provided. Free, 2pm. Northside Library, 705 W. Rio Rd. jmrl.org

New Dominion Storytime. Featuring readings from recent storybooks and the classics kids know and love. Rain or shine. All ages welcome. Free, 11am. New Dominion Bookshop, 404 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. newdominionbookshop.com/

Vineyard Puzzle Hunt. See listing for Thursday, March 5. $15, 5pm. Eastwood Farm and Winery, 2531 Scottsville Rd. eastwoodfarmandwinery.com

Sunday 3/8

music

2 Wishes Trio. Jazzy beats, tight harmonies, and super sweet sounds. Free, 2pm. Glass House Winery, 5898 Free Union Rd., Free Union. glasshousewinery.com

Alkemie: What’s Your Sign? Brooklyn-based medieval ensemble presents music that shows traces of the medieval zodiac. Constellations projected onto the Rotunda dome serve as a mesmerizing backdrop for this performance. Free, 8pm. The Rotunda at The University of Virginia, 1826 University Ave. earlymusiccville.org

Brian Franke. With a versatile acoustic style and a wide range of covers and originals, Franke creates a relaxed, feel-good soundtrack for a classic afternoon. Free, 2pm. Potter’s Craft Cider, 1350 Arrowhead Valley Rd. potterscraftcider.com

SATURDAY 3/7

HUNGARY FOR MORE

The Eastern Boundary Quartet returns, fusing smokin’ hot New York City jazz with infectious Hungarian folk rhythms and melodies. European master musicians Balazs Bagyi (drums) and Mihaly Borbely (sax and reeds) teamed up to tour with the Big Apple’s Joe Fonda (bass) and Michael Jefry Stevens (piano) in 2007, and the group has been bridging cultures through collaborative compositions and avant-garde ethno-music improvisations ever since. It’s a very cool sound, evocative of smoke-filled nightclubs and out-of-your-league lovers you desperately want to impress. $20–25, 7:30pm. Unity of Charlottesville, 2825 Hydraulic Rd. cvillejazz.org

THE WORKS CULTURE

Brush fire

Painter Philip Geiger

leaves a legacy of intensity and art history BY

SARAH SARGENT

Artist Philip Geiger, who taught painting at the University of Virginia for more than 30 years, depicted how things appear to the eye as opposed to reproducing how they appear physically. His perceptual approach was augmented by a deep understanding of art history, imbuing his paintings with weight and power. Geiger spent his life perfecting and developing an artistic practice that was hyper-focused and rigorous. After battling ALS for two and a half years, he died on January 6.

Geiger’s work consisted of painting “what’s close at hand,” which for him, meant domestic life. These everyday scenes, populated with a recurring cast of family, friends, and objects, are deceptively simple, belying the considerable thought that went into structuring their composition.

Characteristic in Geiger’s painting is his use of light—seen though windows, or streaming into a room—sometimes visible in the distance beyond an intermediary area of darkness. Other hallmarks are his astute use of color and his loose, open brushstrokes that add a quality of lush sensuality to the work.

Born in 1956 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Geiger was interested in art from an early age, encouraged by his mother whose artistic aspirations had been thwarted by her father. After graduating from Washington University in St. Louis, he received an MFA from Yale.

“Phil was a dedicated and unsparingly selfcritical artist who painted constantly and seemed not to need or want any distractions,” says his longtime colleague and studio mate Richard Crozier. “His encyclopedic knowledge of historic and contemporary

painting informed his teaching and his own art. … No shortcuts, no half measures, do it over, look again.”

This single-minded, laser focus was central to Geiger’s practice. “His studio time was absolutely non-negotiable,” says his wife, painter Elizabeth Geiger. “Every day he was going to be in there during the daylight hours.” He was dogged in his pursuit, so swept up in the challenges and rewards of creating paintings that, aside from family and friends, he needed little else in his life.

“Being a married couple worked for us as artists,” says Elizabeth. “There was always someone you could show your paintings to. Neither one of us was oversensitive. We wanted criticism and we used it. It was fuel for us to move forward in the painting. We understood each other’s life goals and devotion to art.”

Sticking close to the studio didn’t mean life was dull. Geiger was greatly admired by his peers and his students, and over the years, they sought him out. “People wanted to visit Phil and I got the benefit of that,” says Elizabeth. “I never felt isolated even though we weren’t living in a place like New York. I didn’t go to graduate school, but our lives were like grad school all the time.”

In 2017 the Geigers moved to Staunton, seeking a slower pace of life. Having waited his entire life to pursue painting fulltime, Geiger was finally able to do so. And perhaps best of all, “When we moved to Staunton, we got a second chance at a nuclear family,” says Elizabeth. Both of the Geigers’ children are artists who are happily settled in Staunton.

Philip Geiger lost his battle with ALS in January after a lifetime dedicated to perfecting lush, vivid paintings such as “End of Day.”

CULTURE STAGES

Saturday 3/7

Irish Music & Dancing with Blue Ridge Irish Music School. Start the St. Patrick’s Day fun with a family-friendly afternoon of live performances by BRIMS. Free, 1pm. Eastwood Farm and Winery, 2531 Scottsville Rd. eastwoodfarmandwinery.com

Second Sunday Bluegrass Jam. Musicians gather in a circle to jam and the audience sneaks a spot to listen from the perimeter. Show up with instruments if you got ’em. Otherwise, just show up. Free, 2pm. The Batesville Market, 6624 Plank Rd., Batesville. batesvillemarket.com

Shakedown Citi. A fresh force in the jam band scene, born in the heart of a parking lot at Citi Field in 2023. $23, 8pm. The Southern Café & Music Hall, 103 S. First St. thesoutherncville.com stage

Twelfth Night, or What You Will See listing for Saturday, March 7. $35–75, 2pm. Blackfriars Playhouse, 10 S. Market St., Staunton. american shakespearecenter.com

Rory Scovel

classes

Learn to Knit. Learn the basics of knitting. Leave with a pair of knitting needles, the beginning of a scarf, and enough yarn to finish it. Ages 12+. $25, 11am. The Scrappy Elephant, 1745 Allied St. scrappyelephant.com

Morse Coded Messages in Style. Create a stylish Morse-coded bracelet or necklace that will say either F@CK Trump or F@CK Cancer. Ages 18+. $50, 11am. The Scrappy Elephant, 1745 Allied St. scrappyelephant.com

Oil Painting for Everybody: Landscape Edition. Learn oil painting in an approachable and organized format by rendering a landscape composition. Beginner-oriented, but all levels welcome. Ages 14. $45, 2pm. The Scrappy Elephant, 1745 Allied St. scrappyelephant.com

Paint + Sip: Cherry Blossoms. Paint the supplied design in a step-by-step format. No experience necessary, all materials and first drink included. $44, 3pm. Starr Hill Downtown, 946 Grady Ave. Suite 101. etc.

Brewery Puzzle Hunt. See listing for Thursday, March 5. $15, noon. Starr Hill Brewery, Dairy Market. puzzledbee.com

Alot of indie singer-songwriters stop in Charlottesville on their tours, and many of them are not to my taste. So when I discovered that Rory Scovel was coming to town, I was reasonably certain I was in for another acoustic guitarpicking, overly emotive turnip. To my delight, I was completely wrong.

You may be smarter and more with it than I am (not difficult, really), so you know that Scovel is a standup comedian, writer, and actor. You might have seen him in comedies that include You’re Cordially Invited (with Will Ferrell and Reese Witherspoon 2025), The House (Ferrell and Amy Pohler, 2017), Old Dads (Bill Burr, 2023), I Feel Pretty (Amy Schumer, 2018), and Babylon (Brad Pitt, Margot Robbie, 2022). (The upside to him telling jokes instead of reenacting movie appearances is that the ticket price would be much higher if any of the aforementioned actors had followed him around on tour.)

Scovel, who is credited as a contributing writer for 20 episodes of the mindbending “The Eric Andre Show” in the last

decade, is on the Know Your Enemy Tour, a followup of sorts to his 2024 HBO special, “Religion, Sex, and a Few Things in Between.” The last round of his material, while not nearly as explosive and furious in pacing as the Andre vehicle, was outlandish in a different way.

Scovel’s “oh well, guess this is my life now” approach reflects a self-defeating charm that explodes at a hint of crowd apathy. His style causes more laughs in exponential, compounding comedy rarely exhibited by his peers. Targeting the trappings of domesticity, he explains how Los Angeles turned his wife into a witch, and shares gripes with his real romantic history versus pornography exploits.

But the South Carolina native is maybe funnier still when his usually faint Southern accent gets fully country-fried as he imitates himself as the loser in the (hopefully) theoretical universe where his punchlines exist. Regarding the tour name, it seems that the enemy to know would be himself, and for our benefit, that knowledge yields hysterical results.—CM Gorey

Banff Centre Mountain Film Festival. See listing for Friday, March 6. $32, 3pm. The Paramount Theater, 215 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. theparamount.net Vineyard Puzzle Hunt. See listing for Thursday, March 5. $15, 5pm. Eastwood Farm and Winery, 2531 Scottsville Rd. puzzledbee.com

Monday

3/9

dance

Rhythm of the Dance. The Irish dance and musical spectacular is a completely captivating experience of pulsating rhythms and slick choreography. $47–74, 7pm. The Paramount Theater, 215 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. theparamount.net etc.

Astronomy on Tap. Join UVA astronomers for talks, trivia, prizes, and telescope observations aimed at a general audience. Free, 7pm. Firefly, 1304 E. Market St. astronomyontap.org

Tuesday 3/10 music

Open Mic Night. Test the waters, showcase what you’re working on, or just do what you love. Hosted by The Open Mic Music Exchange/Nicole Giordano. Free, 9:30pm. Rapture, 303 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. rapturerestaurant.com

Tuesday Jazz with Jeff Massanari. A cast of great players joins the jazz guitar virtuoso. Free, 6:30pm. Rapture, 303 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. rapturerestaurant.com

words

A Conversation About God, Torah, and Being a Jew in America Today. Author Arnold Eisen visits UVA for a conversation with Religious Studies professor Elizabeth Shanks Alexander. Free, 5:30pm. Wilson Hall, University of Virginia. jewishstudies. as.virginia.edu

An Evening with Presidential Advisors Jean Becker and Tom Collamore. A conversation with best-selling authors Becker and Collamore as they discuss their new book, Don’t Tell the President: The Best, Worst, & Mostly Untold Stories from Presidential Advance. Free, 6:30pm. Center for Politics at UVA, 655 Leonard Sandridge Rd. centerforpolitics.org

Moms Lit Society: Books After Bedtime. A book club for moms who love to read and connect. Free, 6:30pm. Starr Hill Brewery, Dairy Market. charlottesvillefamily.com

Plot Twisters Teen Book Club. Avid teen readers ages 11–18 are invited to read a book of choice on a monthly theme or genre, then meet to discuss. February genre: classic sci-fi. Registration required. Free, 5pm. Central Library, 201 E. Market St. jmrl.org classes

Paint + Sip: Blue + Orange Sunset. Paint the supplied design in a step-by-step format. No experience necessary, all materials and first drink included. $44, 6pm. Ellie’s Country Club, 16 Elliewood Ave. blueridgebrushes.com

The Courage to Repair: An Introduction to Restorative Justice Practices. Explore how a punitive response to harm and conflict is engrained in us, but how restorative justice responses often bring more repair, safety, and healing. $17–33, 6:30pm. Tom Tom Founders Festival Headquarters, 100 W. South St. tomtomfoundation.org etc.

Geeks Who Drink Trivia. Good trivia, good times. Teams of two to six people compete to win prizes like gift certificates and pint glasses, plus bragging rights. Free, 7pm. Firefly, 1304 E. Market St. fireflycville.com

March Exhibitions

City Clay 700 Harris St., Suite 104. “New Work,” hand sculpted ceramics by Leslie McDonald. March 6–28. First Fridays reception, 4–6pm, featuring music by Rough Draft Blues. Crozet Artisan Depot 5791 Three Notch’d Rd., Crozet. “Kindhearted Woman,” handbuilt and embellished ceramic pieces by Rachel Brown. “Good Humor,” oil paintings combining animals, food, and decorative elements in playful, yet contemplative ways by Mary Jane Check. Both shows run through March 31. Meet the artists event March 14, 11am–1pm.

C’ville Arts Cooperative Gallery 118 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. “A Study in Texture,” a collection of unique and functional pottery by Laura Vik. March 6–29. First Fridays opening reception with the artist, 5–7pm.

The Fralin Museum of Art at UVA 155 Rugby Rd. “The World Between: Egypt and Nubia in Africa,” showcasing the deep cultural embeddedness of ancient Egypt in Africa, beyond merely acknowledging its geographical position on the African continent. “Pélagie Gbaguidi: Excavation and Knowledge,” a site-specific installation exploring the histories and tenets of faith that connect us all. “Crafted for Tea: Connecting Cultures with Teaware and Traditions,” exploring how the preparation and enjoyment of tea have traveled, transformed, and inspired across time and place, through images and objects. “Nakeya Brown: Refutations,” photographs honoring the complex entanglement of identity, memory, femininity, family legacy, and the marketing of cultural assimilation in the context of Black hair. All shows run through May 31.

The Gallery at Studio IX 969 Second St. SE. “Letters to Vivian,” variable silkscreen prints archiving an ephemeral correspondence between a young couple during their courtship in the 1940s, by Jacob Chandler Perkins. Through March 29.

Infinite Repeats Gallery 1740 Broadway St. “Teenbeat 603: Teenbeat Grafika Exhibition,” a collection of graphic works and Teenbeat Records ephemera collected by Mark Robinson. Through March 29.

IX Art Park 522 Second St. SE. “The Looking Glass,” an immersive art space featuring a whimsical enchanted forest and kaleidoscopic cave. Ongoing.

Kluge-Ruhe Aboriginal Art Collection of UVA 400 Worrell Dr. “In the Beginning: Paintings by Senior Artists of the Spinifex Arts Project,” presents the bold, dynamic work of internationally renowned artists from the Spinifex Arts Project. Through March 15. “Ngiya Murrakupupuni amintiya Jilamara (My Country and Art),” painting, sculpture, and fiber art by Michelle Pulatuwayu Woody Minnapinni. Through July 26.

Jefferson School African American Heritage Center 233 Fourth St. NW. “Swords into Plowshares: Recast/Reclaim,” original never-before-seen photographs documenting the dismantling and melting of Charlottesville’s Robert E. Lee monument by Ézé Amos and Kristen Finn. March 14–May 30. Opening reception March 14, 6–8:30pm, where representatives from three firms vying to recast bronze from the Lee statue will present design proposals to the public. Permanent exhibition, “Pride Overcomes Prejudice,” exploring the history of peoples of African descent in Charlottesville. Ongoing.

The John P. & Stephanie F. Connaughton Gallery UVA McIntire School of Commerce Rouss & Robertson Halls third floor, East Lawn. “Secrets of Botanical,” acrylics and watermedia works by Matalie Deane. Through March 6.

Les Yeux du Monde 841 Wolf Trap Rd. “On Reflection,” a two-person exhibition of new works in watercolor by Lincoln Perry and new paintings in oil by David Summers. Through April 4. Lunch and conversation with the artists March 15, 12:30pm.

Live Arts 123 E. Water St. “People, Places, & a Dog,” colorful and narrative photographs by Susan Albert. Through March 22.

New City Arts 114 Third St. NE. In the Welcome Gallery, “holding ground,” an installation of cast clay fired into ceramic and reconfigured with welded metal objects and armatures, by Stephanie Germosen Salazar, where sculptural works explore time, displacement, and instability in the present day. Through February 18. First Fridays opening reception, 5–7:30pm.

Phaeton Gallery 114 Old Preston Ave. In the Main Gallery, “So Rich a Mantle,” richly layered oil paintings of forests, mountains, lakes, and streams by Lindsey Luna Tucker. In the 1915 Gallery, “George Beller: Photographic Journeys,” a compelling body of work shaped by travel, patience, and reverence for the natural world by Dr. George Beller. March 6–28. First Fridays opening reception 5–8pm.

The PVCC Gallery V. Earl Dickinson Building, 501 College Dr. “Community Connections: Creative Pathways to Understanding,” showcasing diverse voices and perspectives with a multimedia collection of artworks made possible through the work of local organizations that offer creative access and artmaking spaces for all. Produced in collaboration with the University of Virginia Center for Health Humanities & Ethics. Through March 28.

Ruffin Gallery UVA Grounds, Ruffin Hall, 179 Culbreth Rd. “We Dream of Life,” featuring painting, monotype, collage, and textile art by iris yirei hu and Paula Wilson. Through March 20.

SCAN—Gallery on Valley 460 Valley St., Scottsville. In the Main Gallery, “Open Spaces 2026,” an evolving exhibition where works on view constantly change, unrestricted by a theme or limited by time and expectation. Through March 29. First Fridays reception, 4–7pm.

Second Street Gallery 115 Second St. SE. In the Main Gallery, “Mixed Bag,” paintings and papier-mâché sculptures paired with original musical compositions by Ryan Trott. In the Dové Gallery, “Everyday Illuminations,”

GALLERIES CULTURE

FRIDAY 3/6 THROUGH SUNDAY 3/29

McGuffey Art Center presents a slate of new exhibitions of various media and interests this month. In the Sarah B. Smith Gallery, “Kinship” offers a collection of paintings that celebrate the connections between us all by Eileen French. In the First Floor North Gallery, “Holding What Time Leaves Behind” captures memory, impermanence, and the energetic imprint in fiber and encaustic works by Mimm Patterson. In the First Floor South Gallery, “Moving Through” explores thoughts and questions about life and death, body and soul, and moving through space and time, by Ann Cheeks, with an artist talk March 14, 11am–noon. In the Second Floor North Gallery, “Along The River,” shows small, everyday watercolors of the area around Avignon and Aix-en-Provence, France, by Blake Hurt. Hurt presents a second body of work in the Second Floor South Gallery, “Fruits and Flowers,” displaying small still lifes in oil. All shows run March 6–29, with a First Friday opening reception 5:30–8pm. McGuffey Art Center, 201 Second St. NW. mcguffeyartcenter.com

acrylic paintings depicting luck symbols and human archetypes by Sarah Hand. Both shows run through March 20. First Fridays musical performance and Q&A with Ryan Trott, 5–7pm. Ticketed Mixed-Fruit Painting workshop with Ryan Trott March 7, 9–11am.

Ticketed Creative Happy Hour workshop with Sarah Hand March 12, 5:30–7:30pm.

Free Family Studio Day with Sarah Hand March 14, 10am–2pm.

The Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Charlottesville 717 Rugby Rd. “Joy of

Creation,” acrylic and watercolor works by Adriana Nicholson. Through April. UVA Health University Medical Center 1215 Lee St., Main Lobby. “Figuring the Sublime,” film photography by Brett Goerl exploring the relationship between humans and dramatic natural environments. Through March 12. Visible Records 1740 Broadway St. “5000,” paintings and prints centered in Afrofuturism by Hampton Boyer. March 6–May 16. First Fridays opening reception, 6–9pm. Artist talk March 27, 6–8pm.

IMAGES COURTESY OF THE GALLERIES AND/OR ARTISTS

George Beller at Phaeton Gallery

Mary Jane Check at Crozet Artisan Depot Blake Hurt at McGuffey Art Center

Eileen French, “Whits,” on view at McGuffey Art Center.

THE WINE DOWN -

WHAT’S DELISH AT LOCAL WINERIES?

pineapple and distinct mineral characteristics. It exhibits a vibrant acidity with a hint of oak and a weighty finish. Pairs well with food. Produced in a Mâcon style and aged 5 months in French oak, 100% Chardonnay.  2026 San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition Gold Medal Winner.

We are open 7 days a week throughout the month of March with live music every weekend. Visit our website and our social media pages for the most up to date listings of our upcoming live music and events!

Saturdays & Sundays - Live music every Saturday in January from 2-5 pm. Come to DuCard for the afternoon with family and friends and enjoy a variety of live music (no cover). Bring a picnic or select some local fare from our lite noshing menu to pair with our award-winning wine for a fun afternoon in our amazing mountain setting.

53RD WINERY AND VINEYARD

A note from Winegrower and Owner, Dave Drillock

Unfortunately, Dave has been out in the vineyard working diligently to prepare for springtime! It’s a crucial moment for vines as bud break begins. But not to worry- we have the lowdown on what is happening with all of us here at 53rd!

Results have been announced, and we have won three gold medals at this year’s Governor’s Cup! Our 2021 Merlot, and our 2023 Romulus and Two Springs all came home bearing the gold medal this year. Make sure to swing by the tasting room to pick up all three for your home cellar!

We invite you to visit our serene, meadow-like location in rural Louisa County. We pride ourselves on being genuine and approachable, eager to share our passion for wine without any scripted lines or memorized facts, just a warm and welcome atmosphere. We are a Winery that just wants to be a Winery!

March events

Saturday, March 21st: Wine Club Appreciation Day with specialty

selected wines and more. Live Music: Jerad Romero from 1-4 pm

Food Truck: Fine Line Catering

Saturday, March 28th: Chambourcin Uncorked: A Vertical Tasting and Food Pairing Experience

Join us on Saturday, March 28th, for Chambourcin Uncorked: A Vertical Wine Tasting Experience at Fifty-Third Winery and Vineyard. This exclusive event offers a unique opportunity to explore the evolution of our Chambourcin wines with exquisite culinary pairings. $53 per person, and advanced reservations required!

For more details, please check our website at www.53rdwinery.com or call us at 540-894-1536.

Cheers!

Open 7 days a week, 11 am – 5 pm 13372 Shannon Hill Rd Louisa, VA 23093 (540) 894-5474 • 53rdwinery.com

DUCARD VINEYARDS

2023 Tana Chardonnay

This vineyard designated Chardonnay comes from our TANA vineyard and exhibits a lovely bouquet of

Barrel Tastings with the Winemaker - March 7, 14, and 21 at 1:00 and 3:00 pm.

Want a sneak peek taste of the DuCard Vineyards 2025 vintage? How about a personal session with our winemaker? Just how does he make the magic happen? On selected Saturdays in March, guests will meet in the barrel room for a behind the scenes Barrel Tasting with winemaker, Julien Durantie. He will open up his barrels and provide a sample taste of the 2025 harvest. An in depth discussion of the differences that vineyard terroir and the sensory impacts that barrel qualities make on the wine follows. It’s a personal and intimate glimpse into wine and the winemaking process that you surely don’t want to miss! Tickets available for 1:00 and 3:00 pm on March 7, 14, and 21, 2026. Limited to 10 guests, spots can be reserved for $75 per person. Wine Club Members, please email beth@ducardvineyards.com to receive your discount. All others purchase tickets on the DuCard website at https://ducardvineyards. com/events/ Sorry no pets allowed in the barrel room.

Open daily

Mon-Thurs. 12-5 pm Fri. 12-9 pm Sat/Sun. 12-6 pm

40 Gibson Hollow Ln Etlan, VA 22719 (540) 923-4206 www.ducardvineyards.com

EASTWOOD FARM AND WINERY

Enjoy Friday night shrimp boils and weekly live music—along with awardwinning wines, ciders and beers, and all your favorite menu items, from mulled wine to flatbreads and fondues to roasting s’mores around our fire pits.  Also enjoy a refreshing lineup of non-alcoholic beverages - from vibrant mocktails and mimosas to extensive NA

beer offerings.

Upcoming at the Winery:

Low-Country Shrimp Boil | Every Friday 4-7:30PM (open 12-8PM)

Get ready for a delicious, flavor-packed Shrimp Boil Feast Friday nights this Winter! We’re bringing the best of Southern tradition right to your plate with succulent shrimp, juicy sausage, tender corn on the cob, and perfectly seasoned potatoes – all served hot and ready to enjoy in a relaxed, fun atmosphere with live music from 5-8pm on the stage in our tasting room.

Paws and Pours | Thursday, March 5th 5-8PM (open 12-8PM)

Join us for an evening of fun in support of our furry friends.  We’re hosting a showcase of local dog-focused rescues and nonprofits.  They will take to the stage to share their mission, stories and adoptable pups (featured through photos). Guests can enjoy complimentary tastings at each organization’s booth, learn more about their work, and cast raffle ticket votes for the nonprofit closest to their heart.  Make it an evening with dinner and live music by Lenny Burridge 5-8PM.

Enjoy St. Patrick’s Day All Week (and BEFORE!)

Live Music and Dancing with Blue Ridge Irish Music School | Sunday, March 8th 1-3PM (open 12-5PM)

Start the St. Patrick’s Day fun with a family friendly afternoon of live Irish music and dancing from 1-3PM, plus an interactive dance lesson at 2PM hosted by BRIMS & the Blue Ridge Mountain Rotary Club.  Festive treats, kids activities and lots of lucky vibes.  Eastwood will donate 10% of all flight sales to support Blue Ridge Irish Music School.

Mahjong for a Cause: Lesson & Open Play | Thursday, March 12th 5:308:30PM (open 12-8PM)

We are partnering with Mountain Mahj to offer a Mahjong 101 lesson for beginners or Open Play if you already have experience and are ready to play with others.  Tickets available online.  Proceeds benefit Reclaimed Hope Initiative.  Tickets not required to visit the winery.

Shrimp Boil & Live Music | Friday, March 13th (open 12-8PM)

Low Country Shrimp Boil 4:30-7:30PM Irish music by crowd-favorite, Matthew O’Donnell 5-8PM

Live music all day | Saturday, March 14th (open 12-8PM)

Traditional Irish Instrumental Music: Dusty Hedgehog 12:30-3:30PM Eastwood After Dark: Speidel Goodrich & Friends 5-8PM

Music Bingo with Irish Music Round | Sunday, March 15th 2-4PM (open 12-5PM)

Everyone loves singing along with their favorite songs and who doesn’t love a competitive game of Bingo? Music Bingo brings together the best of both worlds for a high energy game that is fun for everyone. Simply listen to the music, match the songs to the titles on your music bingo cards, and win great prizes!

St. Patrick’s Day | Tuesday, March 17th

Open All Day 12-5PM.  Lunch Specials. Open Mic Writer’s Night | Thursday, March 19th, 6:30PM (open 12-8PM)

Join us for our newest feature, Open Mic Writer’s Night, an evening celebrating the written word. Local writers will take the mic to share readings from their short stories and poetry, showcasing their creativity and unique voices in a warm, welcoming setting.

Paint & Sip | Sunday, March 22nd 12-2PM (open 12-5PM) Grab a glass of wine (or your favorite drink!) and let your creativity flow in our relaxed and fun Paint & Sip classes. Whether you’re an experienced artist or a first-time painter, the talented instructors of Blue Ridge Brushes will walk you through the painting process as you create your own masterpiece. Ticketed Event - Reserve Your Spot On Our Website

Spring in Bloom Market | Sunday, March 29th 12-4PM (open 12-5PM)

Celebrate Spring with a fun family day filled with local makers, live bunnies, a special cookie pop-up with “Kooking with Kam” and live music. You won’t want to miss the wine and cookie flight! The market will be featuring Women’s Month Portraits with Karolina McLean Photography & Pura Photo. These donation-based portrait sessions include 5 professionally edited images, and 100% of portrait donations will benefit Shelter for Help in Emergency (SHE), a local organization dedicated to assisting women in need. To further support SHE, Eastwood Farm and Winery will also be donating 10% of all wine flight sales that day.

Easter Celebration | Sunday, April 5th  (open 12-5PM)

Hop into Easter weekend fun at the winery! Celebrate the season on Sunday, April 5 with family-friendly activities including our annual Easter Egg Stroll, festive crafts for kids, and live BUNNIES! Enjoy live music in the Tasting Room from 1–4 PM while sipping your favorite wines.

MUSIC AT EASTWOOD!

Join us for the popular Eastwood After Dark featuring upbeat, danceable music on Saturday nights from 5-8pm (in addition to our more mellow Saturday afternoon music program).  Eastwood also hosts a range of live performances by talented local and regional musicians every Thursday and Friday night (and Sundays!).  See the Winery Calendar on our website for details.

Every Thursday (open 12-8 PM): Live Music 5-8PM

Thursday “Thank You” Community Day at Eastwood— $5 Taps (Beer & Cider)

Every Friday (open 12-8 PM): Live Music 5-8PM

Shrimp Boil 5-8PM

Every Saturday (open 12-8 PM): Live Music 12:30-3:30PM + Eastwood After Dark with Live Music 5-8PM

Every Sunday (open 12-5 PM): Live Music or Music Bingo (See the Winery Calendar on our website for details.)

Also Open Monday through Wednesday 12-5 PM

What about the kids?

Kids can share in the experience with their own juice tasting flights and cheese boards!

OPEN 7 DAYS A WEEK!

Winery Hours: Sunday-Wednesday (12-5 PM); Thursday-Saturday (12-8 PM)

We look forward to welcoming you to our cozy tasting room, seven days a week. Join us for award-winning wines, beer, and cider, as well as a delicious seasonal menu by Chef Andrew Partridge that is perfect for lunch or dinner. Delight in lounging on our enclosed & heated veranda with a glass of our gold medal 2022 Meritage Reserve. Or, stay inside and enjoy live music with a seasonal toasty flatbread or our scrumptious Cast Iron Baked Brie. Escape to Virginia Wine Country, only five miles from Downtown Charlottesville. Open year-round, seven days a week.

Pet friendly and large groups are welcome. Ample indoor and outdoor seating.

Rt 20 near the intersection with Avon Extended (5 mi from Downtown Mall) Charlottesville, VA 22902 (434) 264-6727

www.eastwoodfarmandwinery.com

HARDWARE HILLS VINEYARD

Cabernet Franc

A Virginia staple!  Long and strong but restrained and elegant! Lightly oaked with herbaceous aromas and hints of bell pepper and spice complimenting deep dark fruit. Expressive but graceful with balanced structure, weight and depth.

Our social media is worth taking a look!  Check us out on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube... fun wine humor here.

EVENTS:

February 28 – 6-9 p.m. March 5 –6-8:30 p.m. CALLING ALL COUNTRY

MUSIC FANS! Get your boots on and join us for a fun night of line dance classes and open floor boot-scootin!

March 12 – 6:30 p.m Music Bingo Night! Guest DJ Andrea brings the fun, the tunes, and the prizes!!  Grab your whole group and be ready to sip, sing and maybe... dance with us!

March 15 – 6:30 p.m Get Lucky Bingo Night! Grab your group and Head for the Hills for some GREEN THEMED fun. BINGO -- we all love it! Prizes all afternoon and a few surprises. Cover is $5 to play... ages 21+.

March 21 – 6 p.m Murder Mystery Night! Welcome to the Deadly Wedding Murder Mystery Dinner at Hardware Hills Vineyard! Get ready for a night of suspense, intrigue, and delicious food. Put on your detective hat and join us for an evening of interactive fun. Unravel the mystery while enjoying a gourmet meal and sipping on fine wines. This in-person event promises to be a night to remember. Don’t miss out on this unique experience!

March 28 – 6 -9 p.m Karaoke Night! Warm up those vocals for a most excellent night of ... you!  Take the mic and join us for our first time Karaoke extravaganza!  Who will be the star?  Cover is $10.  Wine and food for purchase.

Fridays - LIVE MUSIC, check out our site for each week’s lineup! Hours - We will be open during our regular winter hours

5199 W River Rd, Scottsville, VA  434.286.4710 • www.hardwarehills.com

KESWICK VINEYARDS

March Up To Keswick Vineyards!  Spring is just around the corner, and there’s no better place to welcome the season than at Keswick Vineyards! March is the perfect time to sip, savor, and soak in the vineyard views with friends and family.

Barrel & Board Food Truck | 12–4 PM Wednesday–Saturday Pair your favorite wines with delicious bites from Barrel & Board, serving up the perfect vineyard fuel all week long. Virginia’s Most Rewarding Wine Club

Exclusive benefits. Incredible discounts. Special access. If you haven’t joined yet, now is the time! Come sign up and experience all the perks our wine club has to offer.

March into the season with us; we can’t wait to raise a glass with you!

Hours:

Monday- Sunday from 10 am – 5 pm

1575 Keswick Winery Drive Keswick, Virginia 22947

Tasting Room: (434) 244-3341 ext 105 tastingroom@keswickvineyards.com www.keswickvineyards.com

PRINCE MICHEL VINEYARDS

Nestled in the heart of Virginia Wine Country and proudly woman-owned, Prince Michel blends tradition with a modern, welcoming atmosphere that invites you to slow down, sip deeply, and enjoy the season of love.

This month, we’re featuring our Rapidan River Chocolate Red, a smooth, velvety blend crafted for cozy nights and romantic celebrations. Made from 43% Chambourcin, 18% Merlot, and 39% Cabernet Sauvignon, this irresistibly satisfying wine layers dark berry fruit with rich cocoa warmth for a truly decadent experience. Enjoy it slightly chilled, over ice, or as a luxurious after-dinner treat—it’s the perfect companion for chocolate desserts, fireside evenings, or special celebrations.

Beyond the bottle, Prince Michel offers more than just great wine. From tastings and scenic views to delicious bites and craft beer at Tap 29 Brew Pub, every visit is designed to feel special!

Live Music every Friday–Sunday (lineup on our website)

Trivia every Monday, 6–7:30 p.m. Tuesday is Beer & Wings Specials Day

Happy Hour every Thursday, 3–5 p.m.

Open 7 days a week at 11 a.m.

154 Winery Lane, Leon, VA  22725 (540) 547-3707 www.princemichel.com A Woman-Owned Business

VIRGINIA WINE

COLLECTIVE

Join us at Eastwood Farm and Winery’s new production facility and downtown tasting room every Friday night from 4-9PM forwinemaker wine flights and a delicious pairing menu

created by Chef Cory Partridge.

Expanded Hours, Wine, Beer and Pizza

Beginning March 25th, the Collective will be open every Wednesday, Thursday and Friday from 5-10PM.  Enjoy wine, beer and pizza as well as a revamped lounge and shuffleboard. Upcoming at the Collective: Winemaker Pop-Ups | Select Fridays 6-8PM

Enjoy free samples and tour the facility with some of our independent winemakers on Fridays! Check out events on our website: (https:// eastwoodfarmandwinery.com/virginiawine-collective/) and Facebook page as we will be adding more dates.

March 13: Julie Linker - Delve Wines

March 20: Jake Busching - Jake Busching Wines

March 27: Josh Cataldo - Cataldo’s Perfezione

Wine Club Pick Up Party | March 6th from 6-8PM (bar and dining room still open to the public)

If you are a member of the wine club, or you would like to be, we hope you will join us for the wine club pick up party March 6th from 6-8PM.  Please RSVP to gabrielle@eastwoodfarmandwinery.com.

Production Tours and Guided Tastings

We look forward to welcoming guests to the Virginia Wine Collective for tours and guided tastings. Please email our Wine Collective Coordinator, Gabrielle Thomas, if you would like to schedule a tour or guided tasting. She may be reached at gabrielle@ eastwoodfarmandwinery.com

Large Party Reservations

Interested in making a large party reservation for your group? Reach out to mary@eastwoodfarmandwinery. com to book.

About the Collective

Eastwood designed the Virginia Wine Collective to include nine winemaker suites and an incubator alongside the main production area. The suites provide a space where independent winemakers can anchor a license and make their wines. The Collective has been designed to reduce the costs associated with independent winemaking, and thereby support further innovation and talent in the Monticello AVA.

Over 21 Policy

You must be over 21 to visit the bar, lounge and dining room at the Collective.

Current Winery Hours  Fridays 4-9 PM

Beginning March 25th Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays 5-10PM

1585 Avon Street Extended Charlottesville, VA 22902 (434) 264-6727

https://eastwoodfarmandwinery.com/ virginia-wine-collective/

FOR FUN PUZZLES

SUDOKU

#1

#1

#2 #5

#4

CROSSWORD BY

MATT JONES

OK, OK

1. Words after “give” or “lend” 6. Beginning of an idea 10. Octagonal sign 14. Use crayons 15. Buttery substitute 16. Zanesville’s state

17. Dance with a lot of moving parts?

19. Part of a telescope

20. And others, in a footnote

21. “Sure thing”

23. 1970s-’80s sketch comedy show with Catherine O’Hara

25. “No seats” letters

26. “Drugs are bad” ad, e.g.

29. “Gymnopedies” composer Satie

31. Video chats, in the 2010s

36. Play opener

38. One of the Inner Hebrides

40. Before the kids’ bedtime, say

41. Investigated further

44. Sharpened

45. Nearly nonexistent

46. “Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album Pt. 1” rapper ___ Fiasco

47. Takes without asking

49. Letters before Q, often

51. ___ Moines, Iowa

52. Not feeling so great

54. Funny reaction

56. Place for knock-knocks

61. Discuss again

65. District

66. Korean simmered rice cake

68. Puzzle’s central focus?

69. URL-starting letters

70. Patch or pipe material

71. District

72. Flue powder

73. “Please?”

DOWN

1. Dull pain

2. Owl sound

3. ___-Seltzer

4. Caroler’s tunes

5. Frozen CO2, familiarly

6. Nonspecific semiliquid

7. City nor theast of Reno

8. Stinks up the joint

9. White House Press Secretary and PBS journalist Bill

10. No longer in stock

11. One of the TV Huxtables

12. Pen noise

13. Prepare for pics

18. “Speed 2: Cruise Control” star Jason

22. One who teams oxen

24. Renaissance string instruments

26. Walkways

27. Hightail it

28. Make amends

30. Grassy spot at Dallas’s Dealey Plaza

32. Southern collective?

33. Beaming

34. Run off for romance

35. Stand-up comic Wanda

37. Store whose Djungelskog toy was adopted by a Japanese monkey in a viral video

FOR FUN FREE WILL ASTROLOGY

By Rob Brezsny

Aries

(March 21-April 19): Many ancient cultures had myths that explained solar eclipses as celestial creatures eating the sun. In China, the devourer was a dragon. A frog did it in Vietnam, wolves in Norse lore, and bears in several Indigenous American legends. In some places, people made loud noises during the blackout, banging drums and pots, to drive away the attacker and bring back the sun. I suspect you are now in the midst of a metaphorical eclipse of your own, Aries. But don’t worry! Just as was true centuries ago, your sun won’t actually be gobbled up. Instead, here’s the likely scenario: You will rouse an appetite for transformation that will consume outdated ideas and situations. Whatever disintegrates will become fuel for new stories. You will convert old pain and decay into vital energy. Your luminous vigor will return even stronger.

Taurus

(April 20-May 20): Maybe you have been enjoying my advice for years but still haven’t become a billionaire, grown into a potent influencer, or landed the perfect job. Does that mean I’ve failed you? Should you swap me out for a more results-oriented oracle? If rewards like those are the dreams you treasure, then yes, it may be time to search for a new guide. But if what you want most is simply to cultivate the steady gratification of feeling real and whole and authentic, then stick with me. P.S.: The coming days are likely to offer you abundant opportunities to feel real and whole and authentic. Take advantage!

Gemini

(May 21-June 20): In 1557, a Welsh mathematician invented the equals sign (=) to avoid repeatedly writing the words “is equal to.” Over the next centuries, this helped make algebra more convenient and efficient. The moral of the story: Some breakthroughs come not from making novel discoveries but from finding better ways to render and use what’s already known. I’m pleased to say that you Geminis are primed to devise your own equivalents of the equals sign. What strengths might you express with greater crispness and efficiency? What familiar complications could you make easier? See if can find shortcuts that aid productivity without sacrificing precision.

Cancer

(June 21-July 22): One benefit of being an astrologer is that when I need a break from being intensely myself, I can take a sabbatical. My familiarity with the zodiac frees me to escape the limits of my personal horoscope and play at being other signs. I always return from my getaway with a renewed appreciation for the unique riddle that is my identity. I think now is an excellent time for Cancerians like you and me to enjoy such a vacation. We can

(Feb. 19-March 20): In systems theory, “critical points” are moments when long periods of small changes gradually accumulate, and then suddenly erupt into a big shift. Nothing appears to happen for a while, and then everything happens at once.

Ice becomes water, for instance. I suspect you’re nearing such a pivot, Pisces. You’ve been gathering strength, clarity, and nerve

in subtle ways. Soon you will be visited by what we might call a graceful, manageable explosion. The slow, persistent changes you’ve been overseeing will result in a major transition.

have maximum fun and attract inspiring educational experiences by experimenting. I plan to be like a Sagittarius and may also experiment with embodying Aries qualities.

Leo

(July 23-Aug. 22): In Scandinavian folklore, there’s a phenomenon called utiseta. It involves sitting out at night in a charged place in nature, like a crossroads or border. The goal is to make oneself patiently available for visions, wisdom, or contact with spirits and ancestors. I suspect you could benefit from the equivalent of a utiseta right now, Leo. Do you dare to refrain from forcing solutions through sheer will? Are you brave enough to let answers wander into your midst instead of hunting them down? I believe your strength is your willingness to be still and wait in a threshold.

Virgo

(Aug. 22-Sept. 22): You are a devotee of the sacred particular. While others traffic in vague abstractions, you understand that vitality thrives in the details. Your attention to nuance and precision is not fussiness but a form of love. I get excited to see you honor life by noticing all of its specific textures and rhythms! Now, more than ever, the world needs this superpower of yours. I hope you will express it even stronger in the coming months. May you exult in the knowledge that your refusal to treat the world carelessly or sloppily isn’t about perfectionism but about respect.

Libra

(Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Architect Antoni Gaudí spent over 40 years designing Barcelona’s Sagrada Família cathedral. He knew he wouldn’t live to see it finished. It’s still under

construction today, long after his death. When he said, “My client is not in a hurry,” he meant that his client was God. I invite you to borrow this perspective, Libra. See how much fun you can have by releasing yourself from the tyranny of urgency. Grant yourself permission to concentrate on a process that might take a long time to unfold. What a generous and ultimately productive luxury it will be for you to align yourself with deep rhythms and relaxing visions! I believe your good work will require resoluteness that transcends conventional timelines.

Scorpio

(Oct. 23-Nov. 21): The ancient Chinese philosophical text known as the Tao Te Ching teaches that “the usefulness of a cup is in its emptiness.” A vessel full of itself can receive nothing. Is it possible that you are currently so crammed with opinions, strategies, and righteous certainty that you’ve lost some of your capacity to receive? I suspect there are wonders and marvels trying to reach you, Scorpio: insights, inquiries, and invitations. But they can’t get in if you’re full. Your assignment: Temporarily empty yourself. Create space by releasing cherished positions, a defensive stance, or stories about how things must be.

Sagittarius

(Nov. 22-Dec. 21): The Yoruba concept of ashe refers to the power to make things happen. It’s the life force that flows through all things, and can be accumulated, directed, and shared. Right now, your ashe is strong but a bit scattered, Sagittarius. You have power, but it’s diffused across too many commitments and halfpursued desires. So your assignment is to

consolidate. Choose two things that matter most and fully pour your ashe into them. As you concentrate your vitality, you’ll get more done and become a conduit for blessings larger than yourself.

Capricorn

(Dec. 22-Jan. 19): What’s holding you back? What are you waiting for? A nudge from destiny? A breaking point when you’ll be compelled to act? A hidden clue that may or may not reveal itself? It’s my duty to tell you this: All that lingering and dallying, all that wishing and hoping, is wasted energy. As long as you’re sitting still, pining for a cosmic deliverance to handle the hard parts, the sweet intervention will keep its distance. The instant you claim the authority to act, you’ll see it clearly: the path forward that doesn’t need a perfect sign, a final push, or fate’s permission slip.

Aquarius

(Jan. 20-Feb. 18): If you’re anything like me, you wince as you recall the lazy choices and careless passivity that speckle your past. You may wonder what you were thinking when you treated yourself so cavalierly, pushed away a steadfast ally, or let a dazzling invitation slip by. At times I feel as if my wrong turns carry more weight in my fate than the bright, gracefilled moments. Here’s good news for you, though. March is Amnesty Month for all Aquarians willing to own up to and graduate from their missteps. As you work diligently to unwind the unhelpful patterns that led you off course, life will release you from the heavy drag of those old failures and their leftover momentum.

Expanded weekly audio horoscopes and daily text message horoscopes: RealAstrology.com, (877) 873-4888

CLASSIFIEDS

DEADLINE

Friday at

SIZES AVAILABLE

PRICING

Rates

Employment Legals

Habitat for Humanity of Greater Charlottesville is accepting proposals from qualified contractors for vertical construction for 25 residential units in Village 3 of the redeveloped Southwood community. The contract award will be based on several factors, including experience, schedule, and price. Equal opportunity employer and female/minority owner businesses are encouraged to apply, as well as protected groups such as those covered in Section3. Proposal packages are available by request.

To obtain a proposal package including the final site plan, drawings, and HFHGC specification manual please contact:

Noah Gaylor

Habitat for Humanity of Greater Charlottesville 1801 Broadway Street, Charlottesville, VA, 22902 By phone at (434) 293-9066 Or email at ngaylor@cvillehabitat.org

Data

if Interested Contact: mailto:elevancehealth533@gmail.com Elevance Health

Email salesrep@c-ville.com

classifieds.c-ville.com

ESTATE OF JOHN FRANCIS HANSEL

NOTICE

OF TAKING OF DEBTS AND DEMANDS

At the request of the Administrator, I appoint Tuesday, March 17, 2026, at 11:00 a.m., as the time and my office at 420 Park Street, Charlottesville, Virginia, as the place for receiving proof of debts and demands against the decedent or his estate.

Edward H. Bain, Jr. Commissioner of Accounts Circuit Court for the City of Charlottesville, Virginia

ORDER OF PUBLICATION Case No. JJ41782-04-00 JJ41782-05-01

Commonwealth of Virginia VA. CODE § 8.01-316

Charlottesville Juvenile and Domestic Relations District Court

Charlottesville Dept. of Social Services v. Unknown Father & Sam Diaz

The object of this suit is to terminate the residual parental rights of unknown father and Sam Diaz of a girl child I.S. born to Emily Sherman on 2/12/2025.

It is ORDERED that Unknown Father & Sam Diaz, appear at the above-named Court and protect his or her interests on or before April 15, 2026 at 9:30 a.m.

2/11/26

Areshini Pather DATE JUDGE

NEWS TRENDING

The good, the bad, and the Charlottesville

Submit your own at c-vile.com.

C-VILLE

Rep. John McGuire’s Western Albemarle High School presentation is well-attended by students on both sides of the political aisle, including the school’s newly formed Dream for America. Goat snuggling season starts at Caromont Farm. Charlottesville Albemarle Airport considering direct flights to Boston. Escapee kangaroo from Arrington wildlife sanctuary found in Nelson County and reunited with its joey. Snow finally begins to melt. UVA baseball season begins. Gov. Abigail Spanberger delivers Democratic response to President Donald Trump’s State of the Union. Four University of Virginia undergrads buy 50-year-old Heartwood Books, now called Ginkgo Books, on the Corner. Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visits UVA. Prom Closet Donation Drive collects dresses, suits, shoes, and accessories so Albemarle High School students have formalwear for the big night.

C-VILE

Rep. John McGuire finally makes a public appearance—for a Turning Point USA (now called Club America) meeting at WAHS. BitterSweet closes after 25 years in business. Grubby dregs of snow cling to life in parking lot piles. Vehicular mishaps plague UVA—a stolen golf cart from Scott Stadium, a car that smashes through the Shannon Library roadside sign. Charlottesville mentioned in the Epstein files. (Ewwww.) City rent spikes 1.3 percent since January. UVA men’s basketball team gets shellacked by Duke, 77-51. UVA women’s basketball team loses to Virginia Tech, 83-82, at the last second on Senior Day. More snow falls on Monday, March 2. Charlottesville and Albemarle remain in a severe drought.

U ASK, UVA ANSWERS

Join us on the second Sunday of each month at the Central Library for a free, public speaker series showcasing UVA Research.

JMRL Central Library

201 E. Market Street

Swanson Case Courtroom, 3 Floor rd

Curious Minds Welcome.

Mar. 8

2 pm

Nature as Infrastructure: Research from UVA's Natural Infrastructure Lab

Brian Davis & Michael Leugering, School of Architecture

Apr. 12

2 pm

HIV Research and Health Policies to Help End the Epidemic

Kathleen McManus, School of Medicine

Find out how UVA Research impacts our world every day. Join us at more events this Spring.