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By ALAN SUDERMAN AND SARAH RANKIN, Associated Press
Virginia public schools will remain closed for the rest of the current school year and certain types of businesses, like bowling alleys, salons, gyms and theaters, must close in response to the coronavirus outbreak, Gov. Ralph Northam said Monday. Northam’s order would not apply to businesses deemed essential, including grocery stores, pharmacies, banks and gas stations. State-owned liquor stores will also remain open.
By MARIE ALBIGES AND SARA GREGORY, Virginian-Pilot (Metered Paywall - 2 articles a month)
Gov. Ralph Northam on Monday put in place the most restrictive measures the state has seen thus far to combat the spread of the coronavirus as he emphasized that Virginia is entering a period of “sacrifice."
By MICHAEL MARTZ, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Access to this article limited to subscribers)
Virginia’s top finance official says the state is likely to lose $1 billion in revenue in each year of the pending two-year budget — and that’s the best scenario, assuming significant aid from the federal government for workers and business owners who have lost their livelihoods because of the coronavirus pandemic.
By SHRUTI DATE SINGH AND JORDAN FABIAN, Bloomberg News
Governors and mayors across the U.S. issued orders to shut down normal human contact and commercial life even as the Trump administration debates dialing back guidance that officials fear is smothering the economy....“We will be back in business as a country pretty soon, and you’ll be hearing about that also pretty soon,” Trump said. “I’m not looking at months.” The president has little direct power to order sectors of the U.S. economy to start and stop, and American federalism means governors hold sway in their states. Many are issuing their own directives that go further, closing schools for weeks or months, shuttering nonessential businesses and setting stringent shelter-in-place orders.
By MARIE ALBIGES, Virginian-Pilot (Metered Paywall - 2 articles a month)
While Gov. Ralph Northam is banning groups of more than 10 people from gathering, and encouraging people to work from home during the coronavirus pandemic, more than 109,000 state employees are getting creative with their workspaces.
By RICHARD CHUMNEY, News & Advance (Metered Paywall - 18 articles a month)
As the coronavirus threatens to spread across the Lynchburg region, Liberty University officials are preparing to welcome back up to 5,000 students from spring break this week. Defying a national trend of campus closures, President Jerry Falwell Jr. has invited students to return to residence halls and has directed faculty members to continue to report to campus even as most classes move online.
By TAYLOR GOEBEL, delmarvanow
As the nationwide coronavirus caseload continues to skyrocket, Chincoteague Mayor J. Arthur Leonard has a message for visitors and other non-residents: Leave the island and postpone traveling here until further notice. Visitors are asked to leave the island by noon on Tuesday, March 24.
The Full Report
40 articles, 15 publications
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By STAFF REPORT, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Access to this article limited to subscribers)
Gov. Ralph Northam on Monday ordered all schools closed for the rest of the academic year, along with additional closings and restrictions for businesses and gatherings of more than 10 people, in an effort to combat the spread of the coronavirus. The shutdown of schools, public and private, and the closing of recreational and entertainment businesses such as theaters and gyms comes as the number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Virginia climbed to 254, ...
By LUANNE RIFE, Roanoke Times (Metered Paywall - 18 articles a month)
Gov. Ralph Northam on Monday ordered bowling alleys, theaters, barber shops, gyms and spas to close in order to help slow the spread of the coronavirus that has so far killed seven Virginians and hospitalized at least 38 .
Richmond Times-Dispatch (Access to this article limited to subscribers)
The following recreation and entertainment businesses are considered nonessential and must close to the public beginning at 11:59 p.m. Tuesday, according to Gov. Ralph Northam: theaters, performing arts centers, concert venues, museums and other indoor entertainment centers;...
By KIMBERLY PIERCEALL, Virginian-Pilot (Metered Paywall - 2 articles a month)
Starting at 11:59 p.m. Tuesday and for at least 30 days, there will be no haircuts, no massages, no tanning, no tattoos, no trampolining, no gym-going, and no indoor public amusement outside of the confines of one’s own home. On Monday, Gov. Ralph Northam ordered all businesses considered recreational or entertainment (see a longer list below) to close.
By CLAIRE MITZEL, Roanoke Times (Metered Paywall - 18 articles a month)
Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam on Monday ordered the state’s K-12 schools to remain closed for the rest of the school year. “School closures are necessary to minimize the speed at which COVID-19 spreads and protect the capacity of our health care system,” he said.
By HANNAH NATANSON, Washington Post (Metered Paywall - 3 articles a month)
Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam (D) said Monday that he is closing the state’s K-12 schools for the remainder of the academic year, prompting school officials across the state to scramble to reassure families that districts can develop a plan to keep students on track. At a news conference, Northam described the closures as a “necessary” step in the state’s fight against the novel coronavirus, ...
Richmond Times-Dispatch (Access to this article limited to subscribers)
The Commonwealth of Virginia continues to respond to the novel coronavirus (COVID19) pandemic. On March 13, 2020, I ordered all K-12 schools in the Commonwealth closed for two weeks. On March 17, 2020, I, along with the Virginia State Health Commissioner, issued an Order of the Governor and State Health Commissioner Declaration of Public Health Emergency (later amended) limiting the number of patrons in restaurants, fitness centers, and theaters to no more than 10 per establishment.
By JUSTIN MATTINGLY, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Access to this article limited to subscribers)
Virginia schools will stay closed for the rest of the academic year, Gov. Ralph Northam ordered Monday, a step only one other state has taken in hopes of mitigating the spread of the coronavirus. Northam’s announcement came four days before his first round of mandated school closures was set to expire, on March 27.
By ALISON GRAHAM, Roanoke Times (Metered Paywall - 18 articles a month)
Electoral boards and registrars across the state are concerned about offering in-person voting for the upcoming May and June elections amid the coronavirus pandemic. In a letter sent last week, two associations asked the state to close polling locations and accept only mail-in ballots.
By DAVID MCGEE, Bristol Herald Courier (Metered Paywall - 15 articles a month)
Virginia educators hope to receive some clear direction today on how to proceed with instruction after Gov. Ralph Northam on Monday ordered schools closed for the remainder of this academic year. On Monday, Northam directed that all public and private schools in Virginia close as part of sweeping new regulations designed to reduce the spread of COVID-19.
By FRANK GREEN, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Access to this article limited to subscribers)
Virginia prison inmates are manufacturing masks for offenders and staff to guard against sneezing and coughing. The nonmedical-grade masks are intended to help keep COVID-19 out of the more than 40 state correctional facilities and are being made at four prisons by Virginia Correctional Enterprise apparel plants, the department said in a news release Monday.
By JUSTIN MATTINGLY, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Access to this article limited to subscribers)
A Virginia nonprofit that helps at-risk students graduate high school and get jobs is due for its first influx of state money in a dozen years. Jobs for Virginia Graduates received roughly $574,000 from the state for the past dozen years, but in the budget approved by lawmakers this month, the program is due for $1.7 million over the next two years.
By PETER DUJARDIN, Daily Press (Metered Paywall - 1 article a month)
Sens. Mark R. Warner and Timothy M. Kaine are recommending two federal magistrates — including one from Hampton — for a judicial vacancy in Hampton Roads. The senators sent a letter Thursday to President Donald Trump jointly recommending U.S. Magistrate Judges Douglas E. Miller and Roderick C. Young for the federal district court bench.
By SYDNEY LAKE, Virginia Business
As of Monday, the lodging and hotels industry has lost more than 23,000 jobs in Virginia as a result of the coronavirus crisis, according to Eric Terry, president of the Virginia Restaurant, Lodging & Travel Association. The American Hotel and Lodging Association (AHLA) on Monday released the results of a study estimating that Virginia’s lodging industry will lose a total of more than 78,000 total direct and indirect jobs before the pandemic is over.
By DAVE RESS, Daily Press (Metered Paywall - 1 article a month)
Two workers at Newport News Shipbuilding tested positive for the COVID-19 virus, shipyard president Jennifer Boykin reported in a social media message. The first employee was diagnosed over the weekend and called in Monday to report the positive result to the yard. That individual, who works on the second floor of Building 600, has not been on company property since March 16. Yard executives have met with employees who work near the individual and have advised them to check in at the company clinic.
By PETER COUTU AND KATHERINE HAFNER, Virginian-Pilot (Metered Paywall - 2 articles a month)
The phones are ringing off the hook and firearms flying off the shelves at gun shops around Hampton Roads. “We’re jammed,” said one guy who answered the phone at Superior Pawn & Gun in Virginia Beach, which hosted an outdoor “social distancing friendly” gun event on Friday.
By TOM SIETSEMA, Washington Post (Metered Paywall - 3 articles a month)
“We’ve never closed for any disaster or blizzard in 42 years,” said Patrick O’Connell, chef-owner of the world-renowned Inn at Little Washington, nestled in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains. But there he was on Friday morning, bidding farewell to overnight guests after breakfast service and not knowing when the doors to his fantasy dining destination, the recipient of three Michelin stars, the French guide’s highest accolade, would welcome back guests.
Southside Daily
Elizabeth River Ferry is ending its daily and weekend service 9 p.m. starting Wednesday in response to coronavirus (COVID19). In addition, Hampton Roads Transit also announced on Monday that it will accelerate the cleaning of its vehicles, transit centers and administrative offices using disinfecting agents delivered with an electrostatic misting device that disinfects all surfaces, including hard-to-reach areas.
By ANDREW RINGLE, Commonwealth Times
When criminal justice senior Bilal Ghazi learned VCU had canceled its May commencement ceremony due to COVID-19, his first thought was of his family members who had plans to travel to the U.S. to see him walk. The decisions to cancel the commencement ceremony and in-person classes for the rest of the semester didn’t surprise Ghazi because of similar closures and cancellations happening globally. At first it was exciting, he said, like missing school for a snow day. Then, it became “bittersweet.”
By ETHAN BROWN, Flat Hat
In response to the COVID-19 outbreak’s impacts on student welfare, the College of William and Mary announced Friday, March 20 that undergraduate students will now be able to opt into pass/fail grading for all spring semester courses. This policy change mirrored moves made by higher education institutions across the United States, including the University of Virginia, and was made public shortly after student-run petitions were created within the past week to address perceived flaws in the College’s original grading policy.
By ADIAH GHOLSTON, Collegiate Times
Virginia Tech implemented two changes to grade policies to help students through the unforeseen transition to online classes. The drop deadline will be extended to April 15, 2020, for undergraduate and graduate students without penalty. There will be several grades options undergraduates can choose from for the spring 2020 semester.
By SAM WALL, Roanoke Times (Metered Paywall - 18 articles a month)
Radford University will continue online courses for the remainder of the semester and postpone its spring commencement until winter. Students were notified of the decision in a campuswide email sent by President Brian Hemphill Monday evening.
By PETER COUTU, Daily Press (Metered Paywall - 1 article a month)
A little more than two weeks ago, Virginia saw its first case of the novel coronavirus. A U.S. Marine assigned to Fort Belvoir tested positive for COVID-19 on March 7. A few days later, it reached Hampton Roads, with a couple testing positive after going on a Nile River Cruise. . . . By Sunday, at least 219 people — an increase of 67 from Saturday — had tested positive for the virus, likely a fraction of the total outbreak in Virginia due to limited testing and a lag in reporting from state officials.
By JESSICA NOLTE, Virginian-Pilot (Metered Paywall - 2 articles a month)
The Virginia Beach Health Department reported Monday its first death from COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus. The patient was a man in his 70s, according to a news release from the health department. He was hospitalized and had underlying conditions.
By DAVE RESS, Daily Press (Metered Paywall - 1 article a month)
Jefferson Lab suspended on-campus operations Monday and began procedures to shut down the facility. The aim is to bring the the U.S. Department of Energy research facility into an idled, safe and stable configuration by Friday.
By KATE MASTERS, Virginia Mercury
By March 12, Westminster Canterbury Richmond — a nearly 900-resident senior living facility near the city’s picturesque Bellevue neighborhood — was on lockdown. That day, staff got the news that a resident in neighboring Hanover County had tested positive for COVID-19, the disease caused by a new strain of coronavirus. The proximity of the case activated the emergency response plan at Westminster Canterbury, which offers independent and assisted living as well as a nursing facility, said CEO John Burns. . . .The strict new measures still didn’t prevent COVID-19 from getting in.
Southside Daily
As the Navy gears up to send hospital ships to areas hit hard by the Coronavirus (COVID 19), the one heading to New York likely won’t be ready to operate there for weeks, defense officials said. President Donald Trump said Sunday the Navy’s pair of hospital ships, the USNS Comfort and its sister ship, the USNS Mercy will soon be stationed on the East and West coasts to help relieve stress on American medical facilities.
By ELISHA SAUERS, Daily Press (Metered Paywall - 1 article a month)
Girl Scouts are stitching like the wind. A regional crafting group is sourcing elastic to do its part. As with national crises of the past, people with good intentions are searching for ways to support the cause. With ample social-distancing time on their hands, community volunteers got busy this week sewing masks for their hospitals, which are low on protective supplies.
By SARAH VOGELSONG, Virginia Mercury
Coal mining continues in Southwest Virginia even as workplace constraints prevent miners from following many of the social distancing practices recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. As of Monday, all of Virginia’s coal and mineral mines that had been open before the appearance of COVID-19, the disease caused by a new strain of coronavirus, were still operating, said Virginia Department of Mines, Minerals and Energy spokesperson Tarah Kesterson.
By ELISHA SAUERS, Virginian-Pilot (Metered Paywall - 2 articles a month)
An Eastern Virginia Medical School student training to be a physician assistant was infected with the coronavirus after coming into contact with a patient suspected of having it. The student, who tested positive for COVID-19, the disease caused by the new virus, self-reported the illness to school officials, said Vincent Rhodes, an EVMS spokesman.
By DAVE RESS, Daily Press (Metered Paywall - 1 article a month)
In one of Virginia’s COVID-19 hotspots, the coronavirus is tearing at the social safety net that the Peninsula’s volunteer and nonprofit agencies run. School closings and stay-at-home directives mean groups are struggling to find ways to deliver critical services to some of the Peninsula’s most vulnerable, said Steve Kast, president of the United Way of the Virginia Peninsula.
By LAURENCE HAMMACK, Roanoke Times (Metered Paywall - 18 articles a month)
The company responsible for a chemical spill in Tinker Creek has agreed to pay $425,000 to restore an 11-mile stretch of the creek, where more than 51,000 fish were killed in 2017. Nutrien Ag Solutions, a global agricultural products company, settled the case under a draft plan proposed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The service is accepting public comments before taking final action.
By VERNON MILES, ArlNow
Like other nearby localities, Arlington has entered the community transmission phase of coronavirus outbreak. As of noon Monday, the number of known coronavirus cases in Arlington again increased — to 34 cases from 26 cases on Sunday and 17 on Friday, according to the Virginia Dept. of Health. Some of those are suspected cases of community transmission, which cannot be traced back to travel abroad or contact with a person known to be infected.
ArlNow
All Arlington dog parks, fields and playgrounds are closing in an effort to stop the spread of coronavirus. Amid quickly rising cases and community spread of the virus in the county, Arlington Public Schools and Arlington’s Dept. of Parks and Recreation are locking down most outdoor recreational facilities where people congregate. That follows the last week’s closure of indoor community centers.
By CALEB AYERS, Danville Register & Bee
Many of the area businesses that had managed to remain open during the past few weeks now will be forced to close for at least a month as a result of Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam’s executive order. ... “Obviously there is going to be an impact on our ability to conduct business in the city of Danville,” City Manager Ken Larking said. “It’s not going to be pleasant in the meantime.”
Virginian-Pilot Editorial (Metered Paywall - 2 articles a month)
So, the world has slipped off its axis a bit (maybe more than a bit) and the question is whether we can adjust to a stunning, new set of realities. Prevailing public sector thinking needs to be tested and reexamined. And the same goes for private sector thinking, especially in regards to state policy toward small business.
Richmond Times-Dispatch Editorial (Access to this article limited to subscribers)
“Do your part: Stay at home,” read the slide concluding Gov. Ralph Northam’s press conference Monday afternoon that announced aggressive, extraordinary new restrictions to stem the spread of the coronavirus.
By DAN CASEY, Roanoke Times (Metered Paywall - 18 articles a month)
Looking down the road just a little ways, Virginia’s voter registrars are facing a daunting responsibility. They’re charged with organizing local elections this May, likely congressional primary elections in June, and general elections in November. Along with local electoral boards that oversee registrars, many are wondering how they’re going to pull that off with a highly communicable, potentially deadly virus sweeping the commonwealth and the nation.
By WARREN FISKE, Politifact
State legislators were not in a gambling mood on Feb. 23, 2019 when they overwhelmingly passed a resolution that could strip them of the power to draw their election districts. The maps are drawn once every 10 years after a new census is released. The majority party traditionally rig the maps to protect its incumbents and draw new districts it can control for the next decade. In Virginia, both parties have been adept with the gerrymander.
By MARTIN WEGBREIT, published in Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 25 articles a month)
You would think that COVID-19 — the first worldwide pandemic in more than a century — would put a temporary stop to all evictions in Virginia. But you would be wrong. On March 12, our governor declared a state of emergency. A day later, so did the president. At the governor’s request, on March 16, the Supreme Court of Virginia declared a judicial emergency.
Martin Wegbreit is director of litigation at the Central Virginia Legal Aid Society in Richmond.
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