What is Rio Road Going to Look Like in 5 Years?

in Albemarle Charlottesville Transportation on

It’s almost like the County and City leaders don’t care about the ramifications of their collective (in)decisions.

In five years:

– The City of Charlottesville still won’t have built their portion of the Meadowcreek Parkway

– The County of Albemarle will still be approving developments with no regard for their impact on traffic, schools, water, sewer, quality of life.

– The City and County will still be unable to work together as well as they should for the benefit of CharlAlbemarle citizens.

I have long struggled with my opinions about growth in Charlottesville/Albemarle. In the nearly five years since I wrote that post, nothing has changed.

Don’t get me wrong; I love living in Charlottesville (actually Crozet, but we all refer ourselves as being from “Charlottesville”), but how can we achieve balance?

Questions:

– What infrastructure improvements are being planned to accommodate all of these new units?
– The City of Charlottesville is encouraging more employment growth (good – see CFA and Worldstrides) but not working with the County to facilitate infrastructure improvements. Why?

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Forest Lakes and Hollymead -vs- Hollymead Town Center Developers

in General Real Estate on

This will be interesting to watch.

Brendan Fitzgerald at C-Ville reports:

A $3.5 million lawsuit filed by the Forest Lakes Community Association (FLCA) and the Hollymead Citizens Association against some of Albemarle County’s most prominent developers may grow in scope and cost. A lawyer with the Richmond-based Environmental Law Group told C-VILLE last week that the lawsuit, which names Wendell Wood’s United Land Corporation as well as companies tied to Virginia Land Company founder Charles Hurt, will be updated before the year’s end.

One of the best things to take from this lawsuit (particularly for those relocating to the area) is that the Forest Lakes neighborhood has a very active community; have a look at their newsletters (November’s discusses the lawsuit) to get some insight into the conversations and activities they have.

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Christmas Trees in and Around Charlottesville

in Albemarle Charlottesville on

Oh, Christmas tree, Oh Christmas tree:

Where do you get Christmas trees in (around) Charlottesville?

The place where we used to cut ours when I was a kid is now a subdivision.

Here are a few where you can cut your own:

– Ralph’s Christmas Trees in Nelson County
– Foxfire Farm in Buckingham County
– Bit-O-Honey Farm in Fishersville
– An aggregate site for pick your own Christmas trees
– Greene Meadows Farm in Greene County
– Kris Kringle’s Tree Farm in Nelson County

(The ones in Nelson get my vote as they’re on the Brew Ridge Trail)

And here are a few favorites for pre-cut Christmas trees –

– The Ivy Store on 250 West
– Boy Scouts’ locations all around town (we frequently get ours in from the ones in Crozet)
– AM Fog in Nelson (just before Blue Mountain Brewery on 151)
– In Albemarle Square, they have trees and are a local family that has been selling trees and wreaths for over 100 years

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Case Shiller’s Perspective on the Charlottesville Real Estate Market

in Albemarle Charlottesville Fluvanna Greene Market statistics Nelson on

Case Shiller doesn’t track the Charlottesville real estate market. Nor Albemarle, Greene, Fluvanna, Nelson, Waynesboro, Augusta … Case Schiller doesn’t track Charlottesville.

I wrote in early 2008 that The Charlottesville/Central Virginia/Shenandoah Valley markets are not covered by the Case-Shiller index. Real estate is local; while trends may be drawn from this type of research, and while the proverbial turned-corner may still be just over the horizon, it’s important to put his study in the appropriate context.

Crap. That “horizon” to which I referred is still a ways off. But … what I said remains true. Case Schiller doesn’t track our market.

But.

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