A TRIBE GAMBOLS IN LEESBURG
Goats are having their moment. Not only are they great at eating weeds, but they even offer a special form of yoga–goat yoga–balancing on the backs of people working out!
On a recent busy Saturday evening on a street in Leesburg, a tribe (the proper term for a herd of goats) of 40 joined the usually crowded area for a goat’s night out on the town..
According to the town’s mayor, the tribe were reportedly seeking some good music when, about 9 pm, they somehow wandered from the back of a parking lot where they were penned into the intersection of two cross streets. The details of the manner of escape remain under investigation, but they were safely rounded up. It was not immediately known whether the herd had any kids in tow for the outing.
The goats are in Leesburg as part of an effort to remove weeds along the creek beds. Their services and appetites were commissioned from a Maryland farm for $26,568, with an expected stay of about 2 weeks. But they may stay longer, if the music is good.
Their battle cry might be, “Don’t fence me in!”
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LEESBURG ISSUES VACCINE MANDATE FOR TOWN EMPLOYEES
Eight Police Officers Had Written in Support Following Earlier Plea by Three Others Opposed
Eight Leesburg police officers wrote to the Town Council in support of a vaccine mandate, indicating that there are already a number of vaccines that are mandatory for their employment and that adding the COVID-19 vaccine to that list “will not dismantle the police department as it was described to you [in an earlier letter in opposition].” [The first letter had predicted that many officers would quit the force if a mandate were implemented.] The letter from the eight officers in favor stated, “In fact, if an argument must be made, it should be that a vaccine mandate would save officers’ lives as COVID-19 was the leading cause of law enforcement deaths in the first six months of 2021.” It further revealed that several currently unvaccinated officers within the department have indicated they would get the vaccine should the council go forward with the mandate.
A recent New York Times article reported that more than 460 law enforcement officers nationwide have died from COVID-19 since its inception.
Vaccine mandates are consistent with the oath to protect and serve.
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THREATS AGAINST LOUDOUN COMMONWEALTH’S ATTORNEY
Residents expressed understandable concerns about a continued lack of communication from the potential buyer of the property, and unease over what would happen to them, plus their sense that their request for information is being bounced between Loudoun County and Leesburg. Meanwhile, the Leesburg Town Council and staff pledged to provide answers.
In August, residents received a letter stating that a possible buyer had offered $11 million for the property, with the sale to be potentially closed by mid-December. A concerned resident leading a recent protest stated, “There is no zoning option for mobile homes anywhere in the town of Leesburg. There is nowhere else for us to live in our homes legally. Any solution that would involve redevelopment would cause massive disruption of the community and cause major financial stress.”
The potential buyer in a September letter invited residents to write to an email address for updates, but the buyer has not responded to emails. Likewise, the buyer has not provided residents with a phone number or an address beyond a P.O. Box. A meeting between the proposed buyer and Leesburg Mayor Kelly Burk was scheduled for last Thursday, October 28–and was not open to the public.
The mayor explained that she was limited by state law, adding that providing affordable housing “is the responsibility of the county.” Yet the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors directed residents back to the Leesburg government.
Remember ping pong diplomacy? The mobile home residents are the ball in this exchange.
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Categories: AROUND THE NOVAHOOD, CIVIL RIGHTS, Issues, Local, pandemic, police, POLICING, political discourse, prosecutors, RULE OF LAW, State
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