C'ville Dems will host City Council candidate forum on Wednesday • Charlottesville Tomorrow

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Tuesday, May 23, 2023

If you’re looking for a new hobby this spring, the Gordon Avenue Library just made it easier to pick up gardening. Staff there partnered with the Piedmont Master Gardeners to open the library system’s first Little Seed Library.

The story Erin O’Hare wrote tells you just about everything about the library. But, the short version is that anyone with a Jefferson Madison Regional Library card can pick up seeds that are ready to plant, along with instructions on how to grow them.

A tub on a bookshelf that has a colorful sign that reads, "Little Seed Library." — Credit: Erin O'Hare/Charlottesville Tomorrow

Want to plant a garden? Gordon Avenue Library is giving away seeds

In case you missed Thursday’s newsletter, this is important: Charlottesville’s City Council Election will likely be decided in June, not November! That’s because there will be no Republican candidates for Council this year, and so far no independent candidates have declared they are running.

There are five Democratic candidates. At the Democrat’s primary election on June 20, those five candidates will be whittled down to three. There are three seats open on Council this year.

Four people sit in chairs in a row with a white wall and flag behind them. — Credit: Eileen Goode/Charlottesville Tomorrow

Here’s why Primary Day could be City Council Election Day in Charlottesville

You do not have to be a Democrat to vote in the Democratic primary, you simply have to be registered to vote. The deadline to register for the primary is May 30 (we’ve included instructions on how to register in this story). But if you miss that deadline, you can still vote using same day registration, recently adopted in Virginia. That means you register on the spot at your polling place, and you’re given a ballot that will be counted once the state confirms you’re eligible to vote.

The Democratic candidates this year are Dashad Cooper, Bob Fenwick, Natalie Oschrin, Michael Payne and Lloyd Snook. There are several places where you can learn about these candidates. The local private organizations Town Crier Productions and the Free Enterprise Forum hosted a forum between the candidates last week.

This Wednesday (tomorrow), the Charlottesville Democratic Committee, also known as C’ville Dems, will host another forum for the candidates. It will be at the Buford Middle School Auditorium, 1000 Cherry Avenue, from 6:30 to 8 p.m. It’s free to attend, and you can also watch the event online at this Zoom link.

C’ville Dems host City Council candidate forum Wednesday

A quick aside: We’re a finalist for 2023 The Next Challenge for Media and Journalism Future of News contest! One part of the program is a $10,000 award that will go to the finalist in each division with the most votes from the public — and we’ve got 24 hours to make it happen. Get to together with your colleagues, friends and family to vote by midnight Wednesday! Here’s more about the challenge.

Three people on chairs on a stage, man in middle talking.

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