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Tuesday, April 11, 2023

Last night, Sen. Creigh Deeds and Del. Sally Hudson went head to head in a forum we hosted with interns at the University of Virginia’s Center for Politics.

A woman and man in suits sit next to each other in front of a chalkboard and white wall. The woman is speaking into a microphone. The man gazes at the floor.

On the blue side of the ticket, incumbent State Sen. Deeds (of what is now Senate District 25) is campaigning against Del. Hudson (of what is now House District 57) for the chance to represent constituents in the newly formulated  District 11. As one might expect, there was a fair amount of overlap between the candidates who have similar platforms. But Hudson and Deeds also clashed, sometimes sharply, on their legislative track records and on how they want to see the General Assembly evolve.

Keep opening these emails to get a full report on the forum, as well as a subtitled video with audio that is better than our live stream allowed.

A graveled area is in the foreground in front of a line of small trees.

Albemarle Supervisors give developer the OK to move forward with plans to build a solar farm that would be among the largest in Virginia

In other news, a local solar developer is one step closer to installing what would be Albemarle County’s largest solar farm. The Board of Supervisors approved several special use permits that will enable Hexagon Energy to install its 650 acres of panels on an old timber farm in southeastern Albemarle County.

From the community

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The vote came during what will be the only public hearing on the project. Most of the people who spoke at that hearing were in support of the farm.

The land on which it is proposed has soil that is wrecked by the old timber farm, the developer said. Besides installing the panels, Hexagon Energy plans to re-fertilize the soil and plant native vegetation on the site. Once the soil is sufficiently rejuvenated, the developer has loose plans to partner with local beekeepers and sheep farmers who might also use the land.

A person in a chair holding a stack of books, in front of shelves of books, with a band of light across his face.

Listen: ‘When I transitioned, life just started.’

Last but not least, one of the subjects that we got many questions about in the forum last night was trans rights. In My Humble Opinion’s latest podcast episode features Charley Burton, who tells his story of growing up in Charlottesville, and moving from silence to being a trans advocate. Take a listen, and be sure to subscribe to In My Humble Opinion wherever you get your podcasts.

Thanks for reading,

Jessie, and the whole newsroom who pitched in for this newsletter

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I'm Charlottesville Tomorrow's managing editor and health and safety reporter. If there’s something you think we should be investigating, please email me at jhiggins@cvilletomorrow.org! And you can follow all the work we do by subscribing to our free newsletter! Hablo español, y quiero mantener a la comunidad hispanohablante informada. Si tienes preguntas o información que debo saber, por favor, envíame un correo electrónico a jhiggins@cvilletomorrow.org.