🌱 Officials Visit, Discuss Gun Violence + Recycle Right In The City

Hey, Roanokers! Happy Friday! I'm here with a new edition of the Roanoke Daily, including updates on:

• An Old Southwest house goes up in flames
• A local business is offering a 'yappy hour'
• Salem High School honored by Special Olympics

To the Batmobile!

But first, today's weather:

Mostly sunny.

High: 70 Low: 44.

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Here are the top stories in Roanoke today:

1. The Roanoke City government has announced that people putting things in recycling bins that shouldn't be there is costing the city a chunk of money — $40,000 since the beginning of this summer alone to be exact! To battle back and try to reduce the extra cost, the city is launching a new program called "Recycle Right" to educate citizens on what can and cannot be recycled in the city's containers. "Single-stream recycling has made recycling an easier process for our community, but we’ve got to be diligent about making sure only accepted recycling materials are in our containers. When we 'wish cycle,' we bog down the collection process, jam equipment, and increase costs," said Sustainability Coordinator Leigh Ann Weitzenfeld. The city said the focus will be on education and inspectors will mark containers found to have improper materials with an "oops tag." (WDBJ)
2. A house on Albemarle Avenue SW caught fire early Wednesday morning and many area residents woke up to the sound of sirens and the sight of flashing lights. Roanoke City Fire & EMS were alerted just before 6 a.m. and responded to the scene to find the interior of the house almost completely engulfed. Fred Donaher, a next-door neighbor, said, "It was alarming. I thought, ‘Could this have a domino effect?’ Because these are old houses here in Old Southwest. They could go up like a Christmas tree in no time flat. It’s really scary when it happens that close to home.” The cause of the fire was deemed by the Fire Marshal to be improperly discarded smoking materials and reports say that three people were inside the residence. Two escaped, one died, and two firefighters were also injured while battling the blaze. (WSLS, WFXR)
3. Virginia's Attorney General Jason Miyares, former Virginia Governor George Allen, and former Attorney General Jerry Kilgore all visited Roanoke Wednesday morning and took part in a roundtable discussion on preventing gun violence with local law enforcement officials. The primary focus of the discussion was the rising violent crime rates in the Star City and across the state and several solutions were mentioned, including the effectiveness of gun buy-back events. "To say the results are mixed is an understatement. The single most effective way to lower gun violence has been to target repeat offenders that are using guns in the commission of a crime and get them off the street," said Miyares. Also on the discussion table was the increase in fentanyl overdoses to which Miyares said he's asked President Joe Biden to declare fentanyl a weapon of mass destruction. (WFIR, WDBJ)
4. In recognition of National Adopt a Dog Month, Crescent City Bourbon & BBQ is teaming up with the Regional Center for Animal Care & Protection to offer "Yappy Hour," an event where people are able to grab food, drinks, and a new pet to help them eat it all. A Crescent City representative said, "Every Thursday [in October] we do Yappy Hour and RCACP will be here with different dogs up for adoption and we'll have some fun dog-themed cocktails plus you can get [the dogs] a little snack — some brisket, or pork, or chicken, whatever their flavor is." The American Humane Society estimates that 3-4 million animals are waiting in shelters every year and this includes Lilo and Larry, who were the two dogs at the most recent Yappy Hour. (WFXR)
5. Salem High School recently received an honor when it was named a Special Olympics Unified Champion School, one of only 16 in the state. At a school board meeting Tuesday night, board members took time to recognize and congratulate teachers Candice Zimmerman, Megan Johnson, Rebekah Grooten, Erik Largen, and Karen Cook as well as the school's athletes, all whose efforts helped the school receive the national banner recognition. Being a Special Olympics Unified Champion School means a school has "a climate where students with disabilities feel welcome and are routinely included in, and feel a part of, all activities, opportunities, and functions," according to the Special Olympics website. (WSET, Special Olympics website)

Today in Roanoke:

• GO Fest in Downtown Roanoke (5 p.m.)
• KISS America at Dr Pepper Park (6 p.m.)
• Harvest Homecoming at the Virginia Museum of Transportation (6:30 p.m.)
• “Steel Magnolias” presented by Attic Productions (7:30 p.m.)
• “Dracula Rides Again” presented by Showtimers Community Theatre (7:30 p.m.)
• Dance Candy at Martin’s Downtown Bar and Grill (10 p.m.)

From my notebook:

• Roanoke College: "Roanoke College's MBA is a 4+1 program allowing students to complete their undergraduate degree in four years and their MBA after a fifth year. Our program will be implemented as a face-to-face degree with a focus on teamwork and leadership." (Roanoke College via Instagram)
• Roanoke City Public Schools: "Fishburn Park Elementary School held a Hispanic Heritage Month event for families on Monday, complete with dancers, a mariachi band, tacos, and piñatas! Thank you to our Fishburn Park administrators, teachers, and staff!" (Roanoke City Public Schools via Facebook)
• City of Roanoke Government: "We want to hear how housing instability has impacted you. Take a few minutes to complete this brief and anonymous survey. Your participation can help inform how future funding will be used to strengthen efforts to prevent and end homelessness." (City of Roanoke Government via Facebook)
• Roanoke Public Libraries: "⭐️Big Program Alert⭐️ The Roanoke Public Libraries and the Roanoke Public Library Foundation present: "A conversation with Beth Macy" at the The Grandin Theatre on Friday, Oct. 28 at 10 a.m. This event is free, with no registration required." (Roanoke Public Libraries via Facebook)
• Shield Chap: "I LOVE MY THIN BLUE LINE FAMILY! Thank you for making this happen for my wife while I am out of town. I am truly grateful for you all. HAPPY 10,000 DAYS of Marriage, Melanie! ❤️" (Shield Chap via Facebook)
• Roanoke Valley SPCA: "Although Laverne is still looking for her new home, she can rest easy knowing that her feline friends can get free vaccines this weekend so they can stay happy and healthy!" (Roanoke Valley SPCA via Instagram)
• Roanoke Regional Small Business Development Center: "Heather is Botetourt famous 👸In many of the areas we serve, we have community navigators to be the point person for small businesses. They become the go-to expert in the area of small business matters to business owners." (Roanoke Regional Small Business Development Center via Facebook)

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There you have it. You're officially in the loop for today. See you all tomorrow!

— Ian

About me: Ian Graham is a novelist, screenwriter, and freelance contributing writer. He is a firm believer in being yourself… unless you can be Batman. Always be Batman. To connect with Ian you can visit him on Facebook and Instagram. He doesn't bite. Except on full moons.

Have a news tip or suggestion for an upcoming Roanoke Daily? Contact me at roanoke@patch.com