The State of Virginia and the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority are close to signing an agreement that cedes state control over the Rail-to-Dulles project and toll revenues from the Dulles Toll Road to the authority — and Stewart Schwartz wants details. Schwartz, executive director of the Coalition for Smarter Growth, argues that the turn-over is…

Garren Shipley, who covers the General Assembly for the Northern Virginia Daily, demonstrates once again that his dispatches are critical reading, for he covers topics you won’t read in any of the major metro dailies. Today he previews the legislation that the House of Delegates will submit next month to overhaul the relationship between state…

In their latest work, “Revolutionary Wealth,” Heidi and Alvin Toffler argue that different institutions evolve at different rates of speed as the economy, society, culture and political system shift from an industrial-wave to a knowledge-wave “wealth-creating system.” Businesses are adapting most rapidly — indeed, they are largely driving the shift — followed closely by nongovernmental…

The Bacon family is heading to the once-great state of West Virginia (“once great” in the sense that it once was part of Virginia) for a little R&R at the Showshoe resort. Last year, there was no Wi-Fi access, so I do not anticipate doing any blogging. Which is just as well. While others in…

New Delhi has had zoning laws banning businesses from residential areas since the 1950s, but they’ve been honored only in the breech. The result, according to Shikha Dalmia, writing in the Wall Street Journal, is that “until now, ordinary citizens arranged their homes, businesses and neighborhoods according to their own private plans. Over the last…

Tom Morris, the secretary of education, has hit the road to build support for Gov. Timothy M. Kaine’s universal pre-k child care proposal. In a public forum in Charlottesville city hall, Morris noted that the state has provided a preschool program exclusively for at-risk 4-year-olds since 1995. It has been difficult, however, for the Virginia…

During their 2005 fiscal years, Virginia hospitals provided almost $1 billion in charity care to patients — more than triple their 2000 contributions, according to a report filed by Virginia Health Information. Where does that money come from? From hospitals — and their privately insured patients. Which paying customers? Not Medicare or Medicaid. The federal…

The Virginia Department of Transportation has opened the first design-build roadway project in Virginia, doubling the out-bound shipping capacity of APM Terminals in Portsmouth. The private design-build team, which included contractor Tidewater Skanska and engineering firm Vanasse Hangen Brustlin, completed the $22 million project ahead of schedule. Said Greg Lassiter, director of Design-Build Delivery for…

“Walkable” communities are the hot concept in real estate development these days. Certain elements are necessary for building them. The communities must contain a finely grained mix of land uses — houses, shops, offices, civic buildings — within walkable distances of each other. These land uses must be integrated with one another, not separated by…

The December 18, 2006, edition of Bacon’s Rebellion e-zine has been published. You can view today’s edition in its entirety here. Make sure you don’t miss a single issue — subscribe for free here. Here are today’s columns: Design by Fire TruckWhy can’t developers today create walkable communities like the small towns of the 1920s?…

It’s hard to imagine now, but there was a time when most of the region we call “Northern Virginia” was like the rest of Virginia. Once upon a time, Fairfax County was known for its dairy farms. Once upon a time, people referred to the Rest of Virginia as “south of the Occoquan.” Today, the…

After the latest round of press releases and media coverage, the transportation debate is still being framed purely as a budgetary issue: How much money needs to be injected into Virginia’s failing transportation system and where should it come from: General Fund budget surpluses or new, dedicated taxes? The House Republican leadership fed that perception…

Gov. Timothy M. Kaine’s proposal to steer $500 million in General Fund surplus revenues into transportation projects is too little and too late, charged the Republican leadership of the House of Delegates. (Read the House press release here.) Too little: The Governor proposed dedicating only $161 million of the anticipated $475-$550 million surplus — about…

Gov. Timothy M. Kaine still wants to increase taxes for transportation, but until he can do so, he’s willing to spend funds from Virginia’s bounteous General Fund budget surplus on road and transit projects. Yesterday, he outlined plans for spending $500 million in General Fund surpluss on a mix of road, transit and technology projects.…

The Virginian-Pilot is conducting an interesting experiment: converting its letters to the editor into blog posts that allow other readers to comment. So far, the reader interaction has been meager. That may change, and I hope it will. If the idea fails to take off despite the massive readership that the Pilot can drive to…