WHRO Reports
1,195 episodes - English - Latest episode: about 20 hours ago - ★★★★★ - 1 ratingA collection of WHRO feature news including WHRO stories, interviews and in-depth reporting from Southeastern Virginia.
Homepage Apple Podcasts Google Podcasts Overcast Castro Pocket Casts RSS feed
Episodes
Virginia gets $156 million to expand access to solar power
April 25, 2024 15:26 - 55 seconds - 890 KBThe money from the EPA is part of the Biden administration's efforts to tackle climate change. It'll be used to help low-income households access solar infrastructure.
Regulators reject latest effort to restrict menhaden harvest in Chesapeake Bay
April 24, 2024 20:41 - 1 minute - 982 KBThe Virginia Marine Resources Commission this week voted down the petition filed in December by environmental and recreational fishing groups.
Centuries ago, Black freedmen found refuge harvesting oysters in Suffolk. A descendant is carrying on their legacy.
April 24, 2024 13:16 - 4 minutes - 3.96 MBOysterwoman Mary Hill is trying to keep the village of Hobson alive. This story is part of an NPR project documenting historical markers throughout the U.S.
Hampton Roads’ first free-standing hospice house opens in Virginia Beach
April 23, 2024 17:47 - 1.22 MBWith 12 rooms, the Dozoretz Hospice House of Hampton Roads in Virginia Beach puts only a small dent in the number of hospice beds needed in the region.
Nonprofit working to boost public access to Great Dismal Swamp
April 22, 2024 17:53 - 57 seconds - 901 KBThe Friends of the Great Dismal Swamp recently got a half-million dollar grant from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation to implement planned improvements at the wildlife refuge.
International climate change workshop comes to Norfolk
April 17, 2024 19:44 - 1 minute - 921 KBCommunity members took part in a French-inspired “Climate Fresk” to learn about the science behind global climate change.
HRBT expansion marks breakthrough as boring machine completes first new tunnel
April 17, 2024 18:55 - 52 seconds - 1.2 MBAfter a 5-month U-turn, the monster drill will bore a second tunnel back to Norfolk.
Part of former Lambert's Point Golf Course opens as public green space
April 15, 2024 18:45 - 1 minute - 978 KBResidents had been pushing the city for nearly a year to preserve the 15 acres it owns as a park. And some questions remain.
Residential, retail and a new hotel: Norfolk targets MacArthur Center for a mixed-use development
April 12, 2024 19:25 - 50 seconds - 1.17 MBNorfolk's mayor announcement was big on ambition and light on details, but included plans for a new 400-room hotel alongside high-rise apartments and condos.
Zwerner’s lawyers say Newport News schools could face state, federal investigations
April 12, 2024 14:17 - 1.09 MBLawyers for former Newport News teacher Abby Zwerner say new information from a grand jury report indicting a former school administrator may give grounds for state and federal agencies to investigate Newport News schools.
After grand jury indictments, prosecutors are still investigating Richneck Elementary Shooting
April 11, 2024 16:32 - 53 seconds - 1.24 MBThe grand jury report released this week suggests additional investigation into school district officials. Newport News Commonwealth's Attorney Howard Gwynn says his office will follow the facts where they lead.
After grand jury indictments, prosecutors are still investigating Richneck Elementary shooting
April 11, 2024 16:32 - 53 seconds - 1.24 MBThe grand jury report released this week suggests additional investigation into school district officials. Newport News Commonwealth's Attorney Howard Gwynn says his office will follow the facts where they lead.
City employees, residents tell Virginia Beach to let firefighters collectively bargain
April 10, 2024 00:48 - 57 seconds - 1.32 MBA union representing city fire and EMS staff has requested the ability to collectively bargain a contract with the city, the first such request in Virginia Beach since public-sector bargaining was allowed by the state in 2021. The city must accept or reject the request by the end of May.
VB wants to know: should city let employee unions bargain contracts?
April 08, 2024 16:40 - 1 minute - 1.52 MBVirginia Beach is facing a request from the International Association of Fire Fighters to let fire and EMS staff jointly negotiate a contract with the city. The council is holding a special meeting to get resident input.
Williamsburg officials say a resident survey prompted them to look at an independent school system. The survey didn’t ask that question.
April 05, 2024 19:58 - 1.09 MBWhen Williamsburg officials introduced the idea of splitting the Williamsburg-James City County Public School System last year, they cited feedback from a resident survey as one of the main reasons to consider ending the nearly 70-year partnership. But the survey, obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request, doesn't ask residents if they want Williamsburg to be an independent school system.
Portsmouth leaders try different approach to nurture small businesses, downtown retail
April 05, 2024 16:52 - 4 minutes - 5.83 MBBloom Market is both a boutique and an economic development experiment. Small-scale local artisans will have a place to get some brick-and-mortar retail experience in the hope that they grow into their own locations.
Citing lack of affordable land, Hampton Roads Habitat for Humanity groups suspend new home applications
April 05, 2024 16:47 - 1 minute - 1.51 MBLast year, the Peninsula and Greater Williamsburg Habitat chapter got a record 280 new homebuyer applications. Now, it's suspending the program until it can find more land to build on.
Suffolk's real estate tax rate will stay the same — but bills will rise, according to city budget proposal
April 04, 2024 18:05 - 854 KBSuffolk’s tax rate isn't changing from $1.09 per $100 of assessed value — but new assessed property values went up by 5.4%. Residents’ real estate tax bills will go up because of the new assessment increase.
North Atlantic Right Whale found dead off the Virginia Beach coast this week was likely hit by a ship, NOAA says
April 04, 2024 18:02 - 866 KBThe whale, first spotted in 1989, suffered catastrophic damage to her spine, NOAA says. This kind of blunt force trauma is most consistent with a vessel strike. Vessel strikes are one of the leading causes of death for right whales.
Another right whale has turned up dead off the coast of Virginia, NOAA says
April 02, 2024 19:10 - 772 KBThe dead whale was found floating around 50 miles off the coast of Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge. She was identified as Female #1950, first seen in 1989. She birthed a calf this past winter, which crews haven’t spotted yet.
5 million pounds of contaminated sediment removed from Portsmouth’s Paradise Creek
April 02, 2024 14:52 - 55 seconds - 881 KBThe Coastal Virginia Conservancy recently finished the first phase of the cleanup project, which included replacing the polluted sediment with clean sand.
New research looks at underwater heat waves in the Chesapeake Bay
April 01, 2024 16:27 - 53 seconds - 848 KBThe study out of the Virginia Institute of Marine Science focuses on deeper waters, where the impacts of heat waves are lesser known.
Downtown Norfolk Council refocuses after residential growth, workforce decline
April 01, 2024 16:22 - 51 seconds - 1.18 MBThe population of Downtown Norfolk has tripled since the last time the Downtown Norfolk Council wrote up a strategic plan nine years ago.
Health roundup: New health rankings, a year of N.C. Medicaid expansion and more
March 29, 2024 20:31 - 4.3 MBThis month in Hampton Roads and Virginia health news.
Hampton, Newport News chosen for three-year national climate initiative
March 29, 2024 15:46 - 40 seconds - 628 KBThe Peninsula cities will join 23 others in Bloomberg Philanthropies' Sustainable Cities Program.
Scope, Chrysler Hall would get massive facelifts under proposed city budget
March 28, 2024 16:01 - 36 seconds - 873 KBNorfolk's city manager wants to spend a combined $150 million to fully renovate the facilities, which were built in the early '70s.
Norfolk plans to create housing trust fund to tackle affordability woes
March 28, 2024 15:58 - 39 seconds - 934 KBCities all over the U.S. have used city-funded trusts to invest in and incentivize the development of affordable housing.
Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel expansion project will take an extra 18 months to finish
March 28, 2024 15:56 - 45 seconds - 1.06 MBThe new tunnels were supposed to be available by the end of 2025. Now, the project is expected to take until mid-2027.
Carnival reroutes Baltimore-bound cruises to Norfolk through April
March 28, 2024 12:43 - 47 seconds - 1.09 MBCarnival announced late Tuesday it would move its operations from Baltimore to Norfolk as crews continue cleanup efforts of the collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge.
Energy demand is rising. Hampton Roads officials say doing nothing 'is not an option'
March 26, 2024 17:04 - 1 minute - 969 KBThe Hampton Roads Alliance is pushing local leaders to address the issue by considering more energy infrastructure.
Citizen science project aims to spot otters in the Elizabeth River
March 25, 2024 16:15 - 55 seconds - 892 KBThe Elizabeth River Project wants people to report river otter sightings to collect data on their comeback.
Laskin Road widening project delayed again; VDOT still figuring out for how long, how much it'll cost
March 22, 2024 14:58 - 48 seconds - 1.13 MBFor the second time since the project broke ground in 2019, contractors have told VDOT that unexpected field conditions mean it'll take longer to get done - until at least sometime in 2025.
Stricter federal air pollution standards likely won’t help Norfolk, Newport News communities plagued by coal dust
March 22, 2024 13:37 - 4 minutes - 4.28 MBFor half a century, residents of Lambert’s Point and Southeast Newport News have complained about coal dust from nearby terminals. They say they can't keep waiting for officials to collect more data to show there's a problem.
Williamsburg-James City County Public Schools proposes 4.5% employee raise in 2025 budget
March 21, 2024 17:57 - 960 KBThe Williamsburg-James City County school board approved a $199 million budget increasing staff salaries by an average of 4.5%. Superintendent Olwen Herron proposed a 3% salary increase for all employees, but some board members and district staff said it didn’t go far enough.
Sentara executives ordered to give additional testimony in federal fraud investigation
March 19, 2024 17:50 - 507 KBA federal judge ordered Sentara executives to answer more questions about an ongoing case in which the U.S. Department of Justice is investigating whether Sentara Health Plans — formerly Optima Health — unfairly increased premiums and pocketed an extra $665 million in 2018 and 2019.
CNU, ODU will consider tuition increases for second year in a row
March 19, 2024 16:54 - 1.29 MBThe raises follow several years of tuition freezes at public colleges supported by state funding.
New federal lawsuit seeks to halt Dominion's offshore wind farm in Virginia
March 18, 2024 17:40 - 1 minute - 950 KBThe suit, filed by a coalition of conservative groups, argues that the offshore wind industry threatens endangered whales. Scientists say there's no evidence of that.
Virginia Beach considers dorm-style residences for student workers
March 18, 2024 13:27 - 50 seconds - 1.15 MBCity Council will decide this week if an Oceanfront business can convert it's second story into hostel-like accommodations for international workers.
Suffolk will build its first "diverging diamond" interchange. We asked an expert to explain.
March 14, 2024 23:56 - 887 KBPart of Suffolk’s improvement plan for the congested Godwin Boulevard route includes redesigning where the four-lane road crosses the Suffolk Bypass just south of Sentara Obici Hospital. But just what is a diverging diamond interchange? WHRO asked Old Dominion engineering professor Mecit Cetin how they work.
Rosie’s Gaming Emporium in Hampton will expand to 24/7 operation
March 14, 2024 19:46 - 482 KBRosie’s Gaming Emporium in Hampton will expand to 24-hour, 7-days-a-week operation after a unanimous vote Wednesday night by Hampton City Council. Colonial Downs Group, the company that operates Rosie’s, applied to extend the gambling parlor’s hours after Rivers Casino in Portsmouth opened last year. That casino already runs 24/7.
Virginia's "clean cars" standards now in effect
March 13, 2024 15:28 - 1 minute - 966 KBThree years after Virginia lawmakers voted to adopt the standards, the state is rolling them out. Here's what that does -- and doesn't -- mean.
NIMBYs, flooding and a fading middle class: Norfolk’s housing study reveals city’s challenges
March 13, 2024 15:21 - 53 seconds - 1.22 MBA new housing study highlights the need for affordable housing for lower incomes and the disappearance of the city's middle-income residents.
In state SOLs, James City County students outperformed Williamsburg students in math, science and reading
March 12, 2024 16:34 - 661 KBIf Williamsburg and James City County decide to split their school district, Williamsburg test scores may drop. James City County students outperformed Williamsburg students in math, science and reading SOL tests according to the city's feasibility report, released this week.
Williamsburg estimates an independent school district would cost $18 million in first year
March 12, 2024 14:31 - 692 KBThe City of Williamsburg says a plan to split its school division from James City County wouldn’t happen until August 2028 at the earliest and cost $18.9 million in the first year. The report, released Monday, said accounting for staffing costs, utilities, materials and other services, there would still be a $2.4 million operating deficit during year one.
Big changes coming to trash in Hampton Roads
March 11, 2024 15:51 - 1 minute - 976 KBWith Portsmouth's waste-to-energy plant closing soon, a lot more trash is headed to the Regional Landfill in Suffolk. Long-term, that could change too.
New state budget proposal would give Newport News a loan for major Navy housing project
March 08, 2024 18:29 - 38 seconds - 900 KBThe $40 million in state funding originally passed by the House of Delegates has become a loan to the city of Newport News in the latest budget compromise.
Virginia has lost thousands of small, family-owned farms in the last few years
March 08, 2024 18:25 - 54 seconds - 1.27 MBMany smaller farms in places like Chesapeake are being absorbed into larger farming operations or bought up for development.
Virginia approves bill on abandoned boats
March 08, 2024 14:46 - 40 seconds - 952 KBLawmakers say the new legislation will simplify the process for officials to get abandoned and derelict vessels out of the water.
New localities join Hampton Roads mutual aid agreement for emergency response
March 07, 2024 19:38 - 767 KBSuffolk’s Assistant Fire Chief David Harrell said the city responds to any locality that requests mutual aid where no formal agreement exists. In 2023 alone, the department sent or received mutual aid 462 times. The city formalized that process with other Hampton Roads by approving an ordinance this week at City Council that adds the last few localities to the official agreement: the city of Poquoson, and counties of Gloucester, Southampton and Surry.
Minke whale washes up dead in Outer Banks
March 06, 2024 16:01 - 30 seconds - 475 KBIt's the third dead whale found in the region in as many days.