Speeding in downtown Fredericksburg is a significant factor for traffic engineers presenting the “Fredericksburg Downtown Traffic Engineering Study” to a packed house in the new visitor center on Caroline Street.

“We have gotten concerns about the speed,” said Thomas Ruff, a traffic engineer with Timmons Group, working with city officials to look at the one-way streets in neighborhoods right outside the business district.

The study intended to evaluate the feasibility and potential impacts of converting select one-way streets to two-way streets in a downtown area, as described in their description. Bike lanes, traffic calming measures intended to slow drivers, and proposed pedestrian improvements were part of the discussion.

Their traffic studies showed that 80 to 90 percent of the city drivers follow the 20 or 25 mph speed limits downtown, but that still leaves many drivers who don’t. This issue could be solved by moving away from the one-way configurations on Caroline, Princess Anne, William, and Amelia streets. This is the crux of their study, and on the surface, it sounds like a big change, but drilling down, the actual business blocks on Caroline remain unchanged. The two-way switch will be out of that busy area.

Other possible changes include going from signalized intersections to stop signs, implementing new bike lanes, and using more truck-loading zones. Now, the tucks stop in the travel lanes on Caroline, and cars just go around them.

“We’re all very excited about this,” said Camille Hill, who lives in the section of Caroline Street called Darbytown. The streets into Darbytown are currently one-way but could be switched for two-way traffic. She mentioned recent police counts in Darbytown. “There are 3000 cars a day,” she said.

Jay Harrison was born and raised in Fredericksburg and thought they should look in a different direction. “We need police downtown,” he said.

“Sight lines are a problem all over the city,” said another attendee. Others agreed, describing the problem when the drivers poke out into the traffic because they can’t see around parked cars. Having a bike lane could make the situation worse.

One of the mothers was walking her children recently and there was a near-miss so slower traffic and tighter lanes might be an answer. “We almost got ran over on Princess Anne,” she said.

In the lobby of the city’s new visitor’s center, where the meeting occurred, there were diagrams and post-its all around the room so people could comment on the corresponding diagram. Camille Hill posted a few. “It’s my area,” she said, pointing to the map.

Over on Fall Hill Avenue and Washington avenues, a similar plan was implemented with the input from the residents, and this worked, the engineers said. “Ideally, we’ll have considerations done by this spring,” said the city community planning engineer, Mike Craig.

Eliminating the one-way streets in downtown Fredericksburg was first looked at in 1981. With this latest attempt, they said there may be a few street changes in place by late 2025 or 2026.

Fredericksburg’s Christmas parade kicked off in style, with chilly temperatures setting the mood for hot chocolate and family gatherings up and down Caroline and Princess Anne streets on Saturday night, December 7, 2024.

“Fredericksburg Toyland” was the theme of this year’s parade, and this paved the way for creativity in the form of lighted floats and energetic teens. Some may have been staying active just to keep warm on this frigid night. Just about every family gathered on the curbside had a few blankets draped over everyone.

“My face is frozen,” said one man on Caroline Street, but it seemed there were lots of vendors handing out hot chocolate, including the Christian Motorcyclists Association who were up on Princess Anne Street handing out free hot chocolate. This year wasn’t their first parade. “We’ve been doing this for a whole lot of years,” said one of the members.

There was a wide variety of participants in this year’s parade. Of the 83 total entries registered with the city, the city said there were four marching bands, three animal rescue groups, four dancing-cheer-majorette groups, two roller skating organizations, and 30 assorted commercial-corporate groups.

For those who couldn’t make it, Fredericksburg live-streamed it and posted pictures on its social media. Ella Weaver was one of the streaming sources who sat amongst the crowd on Caroline Street with her camera, streaming it for the city. She is an independent contractor the city temporarily hired for this parade.

Everyone seemed to have a favorite part, too. “I like seeing the people and the smiles,” said one of the park employees. “Everyone’s joy on their face,” said a member of the Lighthouse Pond. “The creativity that’s put into the floats,” added another.

The School of Rock had a band on its trailer, playing “Jingle Bell Rock,” “Holiday Road,” “Run Run Rudolph,” and “Rock Around the Christmas Tree” over and over again.

In the music world, the influences and power don’t seem to come from the female side of the industry, so Ionna World is taking a step to change that. She totes her guitar and songs around locally, but World seems to have her sights on the whole world when it comes to women in music.

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Fredericksburg officials used map boards and statistics to present potential plans for another bridge across the Rappahannock River at a public meeting on Wednesday, Nov. 20.

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Uriah’s note: Welcome to another installment of our History and Heritage Feature Series, which was made possible through the support of Sentara. This series celebrates the rich cultural heritage and history of Prince William County, Stafford County, Manassas, Manassas Park, and Fredericksburg.

Through articles on crucial historical events, profiles of notable landmarks, and personal stories from residents, we aim to connect you to the past meaningfully. Sentara’s commitment to community involvement helps bring these stories to life, preserving our region’s heritage for future generations.

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In Fredericksburg, there are a couple of newspapers and radio stations but no local television station. Residents must rely on TV broadcast signals from Washington, D.C., or Richmond, beaming from as far as 53 miles and 58 miles away, respectively.

However, in the early 1970s and mid-1980s, a couple of entrepreneurs took a stab at bringing local broadcast TV to Fredericksburg. In October 1973, WHFV-TV was launched from a building of the current-day TV Drive just off Patriot Highway. The tower is still there.

“It was local, board meetings and stuff like that,” said one of the staff at the Spotsylvania Animal Shelter, which sits across the street from the old TV station and tower. “Used to be in that building…” they said, pointing to a tower right across TV Drive from the shelter. Another member of the staff named Natalie “used to do one of the worker’s hair,” when she dabbled as a hair stylist.

Captain Willy Tydings works in the shelter and remembers his stint at the Rappahannock Cable Company or RCCTV in the mid-1980s. “I remember being on that station when I was a young man,” he said, remembering his role as a representative for the Future Farmers of America he said.

Delegate Bobby Orrock (R-66) was the newscaster at RCCTV and remembers rushing from one job, changing into a coat and tie and dashing into his studio. “I did the evening news for four to six months,” he said, “we never had a large audience.”

The lead sentence in a Free Lance-Star article dated October 8, 1973, states, “Telecasting will begin today by WHFV-TV, an NBC-affiliated television station in Fredericksburg.” It had a local news show called “Newswatch,” and the program director, Monty Smith, quoted it. It mentioned the 499-foot transmitting tower on Hudgins Road, still standing today. In addition to Fredericksburg, it covered Stafford, Spotsylvania, Caroline, and King George counties.

Another Free Lance-Star article, dated December 18, 1974, stated that an evangelist, Chris Panos, was slated to buy that station. Panos was working with executives from the KVRL station in Houston, namely Marvin Picard. While in town, Picard was interviewed by the then-news director Tom Delancy, and Picard discussed a plan to keep the station in operation.

On Wikipedia, the station was listed as WHFV TV 69. It started in 1973 but only lasted until 1975, when it “found itself in debt and losing money. “

Fredericksburg has dabbled with the television station idea several times since the early 1970s. In May 1971, an application was filed to create a UHF station; in 1976, another application was filed to start WNVI, but it was unclear what happened to them. In March 1981, more station efforts went forward, and in 1984, plans were made for another Channel 69 station, which ended up being RCCTV. However, the ads could not support it, so it folded after a few years.

In October 1976, the empty television station building on Hudgins Road was slated to become a media center for various churches. “Media center” was a common term used at that time when libraries expanded by carrying many electronic means too. This effort was led by Tower Ministries and included rooms for the churches for meetings, banquets, counseling with food, and piped-in gospel music. Now TV Drive has the animal shelter, a few car repair shops, and a 499-foot, red and white tower as a reminder of the local stations that once gave it a try.

 

Early Monday morning, November 4, at about 3 o’clock, an infrequent customer of Hyperion Espresso had a crisis and felt a cup of coffee was in order. So he went to Hyperion with a broomstick and broke 72 windows and the glass door.

The alarm went off, and the Fredericksburg police made a quick arrest. “I have a coffee emergency,” could be heard on the surveillance camera recording.

“It looked like someone did a drive-by shooting,” said Amanda Atkins, a shift manager at the shop.

Monday was the start of the work week for many Hyperion customers; the espresso shop couldn’t start as usual for the first few hours. “A lot of regulars were turned away, sadly,” added Amanda.

Owner Jack Scholl worked with his insurance company, and by Wednesday morning, many of the windows were replaced, and the rest were boarded up so the shop could continue business as usual. The remaining windows will be repaired in the next day or so.

According to the police report: On November 4, 2024, at 2:57 a.m., our E-911 Communications Center received a call about a white male wearing a trash bag who was breaking the windows of Hyperion Espresso.

Officer Funez arrived at the scene and found Roger Ruffner standing in front of the business, wearing a trash bag and holding a plastic pole and a broomstick. Ruffner explained that he had broken the glass to protect himself, believing he was being followed. He later told Officer Funez that he intended to enter Hyperion Espresso to make himself a cup of coffee.

Roger Ruffner, 66, of Fredericksburg, was arrested and held without bond and was charged with breaking and entering to commit larceny and with felony vandalism.

In August, we told you Hyperion Espresso transitioned to new ownership for the first time in 30 years. Scholl, a coffee industry professional with roots in Virginia, has taken over from original owners Dan and Anna.

Scholl reassured customers that he intends to preserve the shop’s iconic atmosphere, although he hinted at possible minor adjustments to enhance staff workflow. Known for his work with his family’s 34-year-old roasting business, Scholl plans to bring a coffee “matchmaking” experience to Hyperion, helping patrons discover their favorite brews.

Despite small updates, Scholl emphasized that Hyperion’s charm will remain intact.

Fire alarms went off just before lunchtime on Caroline Street in Fredericksburg, bringing firefighters in from several locations in the area and halting traffic and shoppers.

All eyes were on the building at 1016 Caroline Street, an old theater that currently houses a daycare center. Fire trucks and ambulances blocked the street entrances to minimize traffic surrounding the building, and a ladder was extended to the roof, allowing firefighters to access that area.

“The whole block is closed,” said one shop owner across the street.

“The old Victoria Theater is on fire, might be electrical too, not sure,” said another.

The trucks on the scene included Fredericksburg Engines 1 and 2, Ladder 1, Medic 2, and Stafford County Engine 1.

“It takes a lot to figure out where it’s coming from,” said one firefighter that was down on the street.

Firefighters on the roof found an air handler that may have caused the smoke smell, so they investigated further. About 20 minutes later, some of the trucks pulled away, opening some of the side streets to through traffic. Fire officials have not said what caused the commotion.

To everyone who had an eye on the restoration of Goolricks Pharmacy on Caroline Street in Fredericksburg as recently as this past spring, it seemed like a long time to wait for an old-fashioned milkshake, a cool treat for which Goolrick's became famous.

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