🌱 Ten Years Of Top Dawg + Transportation Museum Senate Bill Fails

Good morning, Roanokers! Here's the Hump Day edition of the Roanoke PATCH newsletter with lots of what's going on in town, including news on...

• Home invasion defendant enters plea deal
• 5th Annual Roanoke College Film Series
• Federal funding awarded for Wood Haven

Let's motor!

But first, today's weather: Cloudy and very warm. High: 72 Low: 51.

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Here are the top stories today in Roanoke:

1. A Senate bill that would have made Downtown Roanoke's Virginia Museum of Transportation into a state-run agency and offered it additional funding failed to move forward in the House Education Committee. SB 1020, filed by Sen. John Edwards (D-Roanoke), had survived the crossover to the House of Delegates where it first faced a severe pairing down from its original form that stripped the funding and moved towards a simple study of the idea. "This is a substitute, that’s all it does, move forward with the work group. There’s no financing involved, no money," Edwards said of the paired down bill, apparently hoping to salvage at least something. But the bill still failed in a 10-12 vote along party lines with the committee chairman Del. Glenn Davis (R-Virginia Beach) declining to even hear testimony on the idea. (Roanoke Times)
2. Roanoke County's Wood Haven Technology Park, which is being constructed at the I-81/I-581 interchange, has received an $820,000 grant to increase water capacity at the site. The Western Virginia Water Authority's director of public relations, Sarah Baumgartner, said "One of the challenges to get water in this area that this grant fund is really going to help us with, is we have to bore under Interstate 81, which is an expensive project to do." The grant money was secured from the federal government with the help of Congressman Morgan Griffith and will fund the running of a a second water line into the property from Spring Hollow Reservoir. With better water quality and volume, the county hopes to attract larger scale manufacturing facilities to the site. (WDBJ)
3. The 5th Annual Roanoke College International Film Series begins today and will feature a series of viewings throughout community venues including The Grandin Theatre and The Taubman Museum of Art. There are a total of eight foreign language films in the selection this year and each has been subtitled into English. "Film is a powerful vehicle of culture. The International Film Series encourages our students to engage with the cultures of the languages that they study and get that multi-layered exposure and language input," said Teresa Hancock-Parmer, a Spanish lecturer with Roanoke College and committee chair for the film series. Each year the film series has a central theme in which all the films center around and this year that theme is ghosts. (The Roanoker)
4. One of the defendants in a Glenvar area home invasion case entered a plea deal in Roanoke County's circuit court on Monday. The case stems from a May 1, 2022, home invasion that took place on the 4100 block of Daughtery Road in which the two homeowners were awoken by the violent entry of three individuals including Troy Pierre Taylor, 32, of Roanoke, who pled no contest to the charges brought against him. Taylor was ultimately charged with robbery using force, entering a house to commit assault and battery, and two counts of malicious wounding and has a sentencing hearing scheduled for June. (Roanoke Times)
5. Top Dawg Pub, located in the tiny bit of Botetourt County that has a Roanoke address, is celebrating 10 years of business in 2023. The pub is owned and operated by mother-daughter duo Kim Bradley and Tammie Lafferty and is known for their homemade wing sauces and their love of four-legged friends. Patrons bring their dogs to the pub all the time where they receive treats and burger patties. The establishment is celebrating with some menu changes including new wing sauce flavors, new burgers, and new hot dogs. "The Mac attack. It has a pile of mac n’ cheese on it, crispy onions on it and it’s just piled high. Cowboy burger — it has coleslaw, BBQ, the onions on it and it’s piled high too. The Bulldog which has bleu cheese and bacon on it. The Southern Belle has the homemade pimento cheese and bacon on it," said Bradley of the new burgers. Top Dawg is open every day and also delivers using DoorDash and GrubHub. (WSLS)

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Today in Roanoke:

• Themed Trivia at Twisted Track Brewpub (7 p.m.)
• Black History Month Screening "The Wiz" at the Grandin Theatre (7 p.m.)

From my notebook:

• Roanoke Valley SPCA: "If you're looking to adopt, but haven't checked out our rehoming gallery lately, you should! We've added several pets who really need to find new homes including a couple of gorgeous labs, cuddly cats, and several other wonderful pets!" (Roanoke Valley SPCA via Facebook)
• City of Roanoke Government: "Black History Month Day 13: Margie Jumper. Margie Jumper (1914 - 2007) was an activist who is often referred to as 'Roanoke’s Rosa Parks.' In the mid-1940s, Jumper was arrested for refusing to give her trolley seat to a white man." (City of Roanoke, Virginia - Government via Facebook)
• Dr Pepper Park at the Bridges: "It's not too late to get the perfect gift! Pop into our offices to get 50 percent off any Dr Pepper Park merch with the purchase of two tickets to any show in 2023!* We'll be in the office from 9 a.m. - 3:30 p.m. today and tomorrow from 9 a.m. - 5 p.m.!" (Dr Pepper Park at the Bridges via Facebook)
• Botetourt County: "One of the many things we love about Botetourt is our Botetourt County Libraries❤️ Check out Blind Date With a Book! Thank you, Hazelmarie Anderson, for visiting!" (Botetourt County via Facebook)
• Virginia Children's Theatre: "VCT is looking for a college theatre student to work with us during our summer camps! The position runs end of May to early August. All candidates must be enrolled in a university or collegiate theatre program." (Virginia Children's Theatre via Facebook)

There you have it. Like a good Sherpa I've got you all caught up for today and ready to get climbing. I'll be back with another update!

— 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 Patch newsletter? Contact me at roanoke@patch.com