SHARES
New rider David Ludeke hits the trails on his mountain bike at Luton Park in Rockford. Image: Lindsay McCoy
By Lindsay McCoy
Capital News Service
David Ludeke and his wife bought a Peloton early in the pandemic as a way to stay active. After almost a year of riding the stationary bike, this spring he decided it was time to take his spinning out of the house.
“I figured I’d take the skills from the bike to nowhere and go outside and get on a mountain bike,” said Ludeke, who is from Rockford, Michigan
. “I ran into the issue of ‘there’s no bikes anywhere.’ I even dabbled with the idea of getting a mountain bike last year, but bikes were super back-ordered then as well.”
Environmentalists applaud greener laws but see âlong road aheadâ Virginia General Assembly (Source: Capital News Service) By Veronica Campbell | Capital News Service | May 14, 2021 at 4:56 PM EDT - Updated May 14 at 5:56 PM
VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (CNS) - New legislation in Virginia will soon give some power to local governments and help environmental organizations and businesses combat plastic pollution.
Jim Deppe is an advocacy coordinator for Lynnhaven River Now, an organization that believes in restoring and protecting Virginiaâs waterways. Deppe also coordinates the Virginia Coastal Alliance, which comprises 17 organizations in Virginia that focus on off-shore drilling and single-use plastics.
âBags, polystyrene and balloons are all significant problems in the marine environment,â Deppe said. âTwo years ago, there was no option for municipalities to put laws in place locally that would allow the elimination of plastic bags, polystyrene and ba
The Diamond baseball stadium towers over booths at its PopUp Market. (Photo: Aaron Royce/Capital News Service)
This story, reported by Aaron Royce, is posted as part of VPM s partnership with the Capital News Service at VCU.
The usual nest for the hometown baseball team converts on Saturdays to a haven for local merchants and shoppers.
The PopUp Market at The Diamond baseball stadium where the Richmond Flying Squirrels play is a new outdoor market for small business owners. Vendors set up in the parking lot to sell products like food, clothing, home goods and art.
Brian Sullivan, CEO of River City Festivals, partnered with The Diamond to make the pop-up event possible. It launched in early April. Over 2,000 visitors have attended each Saturday, Sullivan stated over email. He anticipates the audience to grow this summer until the event ends in July.
Capital News Service
A new Environmental Protection Agency mobile app will help communities track water quality at their beaches.
The agency says the Web-based app will help communities and “citizen scientists” protect swimmers and other recreational users from contaminants and identify sources of pollution.
To download the free app, users must request credentials from the EPA.
In 2007, Michigan received an EPA grant to develop BeachGuard, a website that showcases data from 1,778 beaches where water samples are collected.
Local health departments collect samples from those beaches, run lab tests to look for bacteria, compare the results with water quality standards and then determine if it’s safe for people to swim there.
The ICA building in 2020. (Photo: Kevin Morley/VCU Marketing)
This story, reported by Anya Sczerzenie, is posted as part of VPM s partnership with the Capital News Service at VCU.
The Institute for Contemporary Art at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond recently celebrated its third anniversary after a year marked by a four-month pandemic closure and declining attendance.
The institute hosted a “Lunch & Launch” event in late April to commemorate the milestone and to preview upcoming exhibits. Previously featured artists spoke at the event. Guests previewed the upcoming exhibit “It Will Always Come Back to You,” by Cairo-based artist Ibrahim Ahmed, who creates work based on textiles and other mediums. Ahmed’s exhibition will feature a large sculpture commissioned by the ICA.