Lisa Martin, Freelance Journalist Profile

Articles

Fireworks Celebration Receives County Approval

1 day ago | crozetgazette.com | Lisa Martin

Crozet’s annual Independence Day Celebration will be held this year on Saturday July 5, with fireworks at King Family Vineyard (KFV) following the downtown parade, which features fire and rescue trucks and local community groups. The fireworks show, orchestrated by the Crozet Community Association, was moved to the vineyard location last year after housing developments near Crozet Park made that site untenable because it lacked a large enough debris field for the pyrotechnics.
Shaping Views into Future Crozet Plaza

1 day ago | crozetgazette.com | Lisa Martin

Albemarle County’s Architectural Review Board (ARB) held a public hearing in March to specify the allowable shape and scope of future building projects on the former Barnes Lumber property in downtown Crozet, which is now the site of the planned Crozet Plaza.
Supervisors Finalize Tax Rates

1 day ago | crozetgazette.com | Lisa Martin

The Albemarle County Board of Supervisors finalized its budget for fiscal year 2025-26 and adopted tax rates for the calendar year 2025 at its May 7 meeting. As proposed during the budget process, the board imposed a 4.6% increase in the real estate tax rate, and increased the personal property tax rate—for things like vehicles, boats, and machinery—from $3.96 to $4.28 per $100 of assessed value, an 8% increase.
Construction to Begin on Roundabout at Route 240/250

1 month ago | crozetgazette.com | Lisa Martin

As the flashing signs on Rt. 250 proclaim, work will begin in early May on the long-awaited Rt. 240/250 four-leg, single-lane roundabout that will replace the perilous intersection below the railroad trestle at Mechums River. The Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) project will cost $5.2 million, sourced from the state’s Highway Safety Improvement Program, and will take about two months to complete.
Free Union School Students Win UVA Contest

1 month ago | crozetgazette.com | Lisa Martin

The University of Virginia’s Fralin Museum of Art hosts a writing contest each year called Writer’s Eye, in which local students and community members submit poetry or prose inspired by a work of art in the Fralin’s collection. This year’s competition drew almost 1,100 entries from ten cities and counties, and three of the ten elementary school prize winners attend Free Union Country School, a small independent school just south of Free Union.
Interim Principal Vrhovac Will Stay On at Henley

1 month ago | crozetgazette.com | Lisa Martin

Albemarle County Public Schools announced that Rick Vrhovac will stay on as principal of Henley Middle School for the 2025-26 school year after serving as substitute principal there this year. Vrhovac, a veteran Albemarle County teacher, coach, and administrator, stepped in after former principal LaRuth Ensley took a leave of absence last July. Vrhovac’s wide-ranging career has spanned 42 years in a variety of positions in Albemarle and Louisa counties.
County Seeks Partner for Eastern Ave. Bridge Project

1 month ago | crozetgazette.com | Lisa Martin

Albemarle County’s Department of Facilities and Environmental Services (FES) took another step forward in its quest to find a private partner to build an Eastern Avenue bridge/connector road from Westhall Drive down to Rt. 250. In April the department released a draft of a Request for Proposals (RFP) for the project per the requirements of Virginia’s Public-Private Transportation Act (PPTA) of 1995.
Solar Array to Be Installed on Ivy Landfill Cap

1 month ago | crozetgazette.com | Lisa Martin

Construction is underway on a 13.5-acre solar array that will be installed atop the capped landfill at the Ivy Materials Utilization Center on Dick Woods Road near Crozet. Dominion Energy is leasing the acreage from the Rivanna Solid Waste Authority (RSWA)—the local entity responsible for monitoring and remediation of the landfill, which closed in 1998.
electronic music

1 month ago | makezine.com | Dale Dougherty |Gareth Branwyn |Sophia Smith |Lisa Martin

Skip to content Make founder Dale Dougherty talks with author and music experimenter Kirk Pearson about the book Electronic Music from Scratch.
Locals’ Advocacy Spurs Tree Tube Clean-Up

2 months ago | crozetgazette.com | Lisa Martin

Thousands of white plastic tubes spread over several creekside acres in Crozet are being cleaned up by builder Stanley Martin, thanks to the persistent efforts of neighbors concerned about the environment and the view. The tubes encase tree seedlings that were planted seven years ago behind Western Ridge and Westlake Hills homes overlooking Lickinghole Creek, but the plastic was never removed. Some locals refer to it as “the graveyard” due to its ghostly appearance and sickly trees.

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