December 29 is upon us and this is perhaps the final sonic edition of Charlottesville Community Engagement for the year. This certainly is the antepenultimate day of 2025, a year in which there is still much to say in the coming week or so before 2026 begins to find its identity. In any case, today there are four editions of stories that have already gone out in newsletter form but are now assembled with soundbites, actualities, and the occasional double-breath.

I’m Sean Tubbs, and I’m glad for those who take a listen.

In this edition:

* Charlottesville City Council briefed on potential new areas of spending on housing (read the story)

* Charlottesville City Council agrees to sell cul-de-sac to Jefferson Scholars Foundation (read the story)

* Albemarle Supervisors get a briefed on the Annual Comprehensive Financial Report, also known as the annual audit (read the story)

* Charlottesville’s Annual Comprehensive Financial Report to be published by December 31 (read the story)

Charlottesville Community Engagement is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Today’s shout-out: Town Crier Productions

When I was a kid decades ago, I dreamed of creating my own newspaper or having my own radio show. I lived on a cul-de-sac in a neighborhood in a community that was not the most exciting, but my imagination put me on the pathway to now when I’ve somehow managed to cobble together a newsletter with over 4,600 subscribers.

This week I’m trying to clear out the backlog from 2025 which includes at least a couple of newsletters of regular content before there will be a series of editions that look back on the specifics of the year.

My upbringing as a first generation American fueled me with a passion to understand a country so different from where my parents had grown up. For an entire career now I’ve been powered by a desire to know what’s going on, and to share what I know with people who also are curious, thoughtful, and independent.

What I am not is a business person, and the growth of Town Crier Productions has been slow and steady because my focus is on putting forward as much information as possible while pointing people to the places where they can contribute should they want to do so. Here are some current options:

* Take out a paid subscription to Substack with the yearly option being the most beneficial

* Consider a Patreon contribution to support more than just this newsletter

* Send a check to Town Crier Productions, PO Box 1754, Charlottesville, VA 22902

* Consider becoming an experimental sponsor of both this newsletter and Information Charlottesville.

I’m still dreaming of what this could all be, knowing I’ve got a lot of growth to do in terms of being a business person. I believe there is value in what I do each and every day, and I am able to pay my bills because there are enough of you who agree.

If you’re not sure, please keep reading and listening to the content. Share with friends. Share links to social media. Leave a comment!

The goal of this work is intended to advance conversation about complex topics in a country experiencing a lot of soul-searching as the 21st century steam-rolls on.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe