‘Occupy Courthouse’ Rally Tuesday Against Rezoning
CAPE CHARLES WAVE
December 8, 2014
Three Eastern Shore civic organizations are calling on Northampton County residents to attend an “Occupy the Old Courthouse” rally 6 p.m. Tuesday, December 9. The rally comes just before the Northampton County Board of Supervisors meeting at 7 p.m. and is intended to raise awareness of the proposed major revisions to the county’s zoning. Billed as a “peaceful demonstration,” the rally will include speakers and musicians and is aimed at encouraging the Board of Supervisors to solicit more public involvement in any changes to the Comprehensive Plan and associated zoning ordinances.
“We are encouraging everyone who is concerned about this issue, one way or the other, to join us December 9 at the Administration Building at the old courthouse greens for this rally,” said Dave Kabler, one of the organizers. “What we do, or do not do, in the next several months could and will have a profound effect on this county and the lower Eastern Shore for generations,” he emphasized.
Kabler represents the group “Citizens for Open Government,” formed with Exmore activist Ken Dufty. Also sponsoring the rally are Virginia Eastern Shorekeeper Jay Ford and his organization. “We will be gathering in a show of support for a repeal of the proposed zoning ordinance that threatens our water quality, our property rights, and our agriculture, and aquaculture industries,” Ford said. “The Board of Supervisors has circumvented the citizen-created Comprehensive Plan that is to serve as our road map for the future,” he charged. The citizens of Northampton deserve better, and they deserve to have their hard work and consideration honored when it comes to the zoning code. Come out and let the Board know that they need to repeal this zoning overhaul and engage the public in a meaningful process in line with the spirit of our law,” Ford urged.
Also sponsoring the rally is the environmental preservation group Citizens for a Better Eastern Shore. [Read more…]
LETTER
Supervisors: Read Your Own Report, Ditch Sewer Plan
December 8, 2014
DEAR EDITOR,
I have sent the following letter to the Board of Supervisors:
Dear Northampton County Board of Supervisors,
In considering the need for a central sewer system, I’d like you to study the attached report, produced by Northampton County. You’ve probably heard before that Northampton County is losing population. The attached report illustrates how the county population has declined steadily from 18,565 people in the 1930 census to just over 12,000 today (see Figures 3.2 and 3.3 in the attached report). We currently have less people in our county than in any time in the past century. We are nearing the point where we will have lost 50% of our population. This trend is predicted to continue for the forseeable future. Projections going out to 2040 predict a continued decline in population (see Table 3.3). [CLICK to download report.]
Population density has a direct bearing on the ability of an area to treat sewage effectively with septic systems as opposed to centralized sewer systems. “On June 28, 2013, EPA released a model program for onsite wastewater treatment systems in the Chesapeake Bay watershed to help states more effectively prevent nutrients from entering the Bay from onsite or septic systems, which will improve water quality. When properly designed, sited and maintained, decentralized systems like septic systems can treat wastewater effectively and protect surface water and groundwater.” (http://water.epa.gov/
The EPA also “concluded in its 1997 Response to Congress that “adequately managed decentralized wastewater systems are a cost-effective and long-term option for meeting public health and water quality goals, particularly in less densely populated areas.” (http://water.epa.gov/
Danceable Drama Is Not Your Father’s Christmas Carol
By WAYNE CREED
December 8, 2014
In Cape Charles, Christmas is our best of times, and this season, Arts Enter and the Palace Theatre are excited to bring you their unique interpretation of the Dickens classic, “A Christmas Carol: An Original Danceable Drama.” Rather than just blowing dust off the pages, and trotting old Ebenezer out in a nightgown once again, we wanted to re-examine the story, not just relative to a mosaic of other literary work, but as a play between the elements of speech, music, and dance.
This sounds like a daunting task, but working with the brilliant Amy Watkins makes it so much easier. Her original choreography pushes our dancers’ movement and form in space, shape, time and energy. For Amy, it is the art of movement, using the language of ballet, contemporary dance, jazz, hip hop, folk dance, GaGa, and even pedestrian movement, all fused together in a spiritual, emotional, and even non-literal textual context to create a vivid and intense narrative that invokes dance’s grandest ghosts of the past and present, Martha Graham and Twyla Tharp.
We are also blessed to have a supremely talented costume designer (who can lift a great deal of stress off of the directors), Vera Miller, who uses fabric to create the characters and fill the stage with texture and color. For period pieces, such as “A Christmas Carol,” she is marvelous in her ability to plot color, changing social status or period through the visual design of garments and accessories. This may sound simple, but it requires a unique knowledge of not just fabric and pattern development, but also an in-depth education in the history of textiles and fashion. [Read more…]
ESO’s 24th Nutcracker Dedicated to the Roll Family
Jeanne and Walt Roll
Chris Roll
By DONNA BOZZA
December 8, 2014
For many, their introduction to Eastern Shore Own Arts Center starts with a young daughter mesmerized by the Center’s annual performance of the Nutcracker ballet. With an “I wanna be a ballerina” proclamation, it’s off to ESO. It was much the same for parents Jeanne and Walt Roll and their daughter Erin. But their involvement with ESO morphed into an amazing two decades of selfless donation of time and talents that soon included their son Chris. Their mark is most evident during the months of intensive preparation for the Nutcracker and the reason this year’s 24th production is dedicated to the Rolls.
“Between creating elaborate costumes and props and producing countless videos and photographs, the Rolls have been instrumental in making the ballet happen for 20 years,” said Dana Floyd-Sutter, ESO Dance School Director. It would not be hard to dub the Rolls the First Family of ESO. Their dedication has greatly enabled the non-profit to keep the Nutcracker going year after year.
“Nutcracker is so important to the students,” said Floyd-Sutter. “It’s exciting for them to be part of the tradition and it builds their confidence. It is a great vehicle for team building — I see how it teaches them to love and support each other. It certainly makes them better dancers.” [Read more…]
