Good morning, RVA! It’s 73 °F, and today is the last day of this week’s scorching hot temperatures. Expect highs near 100 °F with maybe some clouds floating around in the afternoon. Don’t get me wrong: Tomorrow still looks real hot, but it marks our transition to a string of days with highs in the 80s. Heck, in a week’s time, you may even need to wear socks!
Water cooler
Local bike and pedestrian advocate John Bolecek has a really well-written and absolutely brutal column in the Virginia Mercury about how long COVID has upended his life. Here’s John on his current condition, almost two years after getting a mild case of COVID back in January 2022: “I’ve never recovered to where I was before that energy crash and have been at a lower baseline ever since. I have to lie down 23 hours a day now and severely limit my activity so I don’t provoke more crashes. Even with careful pacing, I still provoke minor ones. My most limiting symptom is PEM, a medical term that means after expending too much energy all my symptoms get worse, I sleep worse and get weaker. I simply can’t recover like a healthy person, even after minor exertions.” It’s a scary read, but I wanted to share it for a few reasons. First, if you’re dealing with long COVID, you’re not alone, and John links to a lot of resources if you feel lost and underinformed. Second, you can follow John’s lead and reach out to Senator Kaine about his Long COVID Support Act bill. Third, while extremely intense, this is a reminder that we still don’t know a lot about this disease, and, while levels remain low in our region, they are increasing. As we head into the fall, it’s worth remembering the tools in our respiratory disease toolbox: Keep up with your vaccines (including whatever new hotness drops later this month), wash your hands, cover your cough, and, please, stay home if you’re sick!
Quick zoning update: On its second attempt, Planning Commission voted to recommend for approval—with amendments!—the new short-term rental ordinance (ORD. 2023–235, aka the Airbnb ordinance). I didn’t listen along so I can’t say for sure, but I’m guessing the amendments are the two listed in red in this PDF. One would limit the amount of Airbnbs allowed in a multifamily building and one gets real specific about the primary residency requirement when the owner of a building is a company. Now this paper will head to full Council for their vote—maybe as soon as next week. Random aside: Before that vote takes place, I’d sure love to know which, if any, City Councilmembers presently own and operate Airbnbs.
