Posts tagged Albemarle

Northtown Bike Trail – From Downtown to 29 North – Looks Great

in Albemarle Charlottesville Politics Transportation on

The Northtown Trail is a smart, functional, bold and audacious plan that would likely help shape non-auto-dependent growth, reduce congestion on 29 and maybe help folks using it get more fit .

…The Northtown Trail is tied to several significant roadway projects in the area, including the Route 250 Interchange at McIntire Road , McIntire Road Extended , the Meadow Creek Parkway and Berkmar Drive Extended . The portions of the trail in Albemarle County correspond directly to planned facilities for the Places29 Master Plan, which aims to improve congestion and land use issues along the US 29 north corridor in Albemarle County. … The City’s portion of the conceptual trail corresponds to planned bike and pedestrian facilities along the future McIntire Road Extended and the Route 250 interchange at McIntire Road.

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Should Taxpayers Pay for a Subdivision’s Gratuitous Water Supply?

in Growth on

The Glenmore community has a single source of public drinking water, a 4-mile pipeline that runs along U.S. 250 east of Charlottesville. However, if Albemarle officials decide to add a backup storage tank, they will use $2 million of the county’s capital funds rather than ask the developers or Glenmore residents to pay for it.

“ It is not something that is needed to provide [water] for Glenmore,” said James Bowling IV, legal counsel for the Albemarle County Service Authority. “ It’s a convenience [but] one that you would certainly call a necessity if there was an emergency.”

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A Charlottesville Accidental Landlord Story

in Albemarle Charlottesville General Real Estate on

As a result, we decided to rent out our old house, which is easy to do in Charlottesville with so many people moving in and out every summer for sabbaticals at the university or one-year placements at the JAG school. … We included very specific information on our expectations for how they would maintain the house and yard while they lived there and also what we expected of them when they moved out — including patching nail holes, thoroughly cleaning the house from top to bottom, and steamcleaning the carpets because they had pets. … There were a few minor repairs needed throughout the year and each time, we decided together whether they would take care of it or we would.  If we were going to take care of the repair, we agreed on a mutually convenient time that we’d come over to handle it. … Yes, the tenants had small children, but so did we when we lived in that house and we can promise you that jam was wiped off the wall shortly after it was left there by toddler fingers.

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The Meadowcreek Parkway Might Be Completed

in Albemarle Charlottesville Growth Politics Transportation on

Councilors voted 3-2 — with Mayor Dave Norris and Councilor Holly Edwards opposed — to allowActing City Manager Maurice Jones to endorse the project’s draft memorandum of agreement, which lists the measures the city will take to lessen the negative consequences of building the two-lane road through one of Charlottesville’s largest parks. The proposed measures outlined in the memorandum are to establish two rain gardens that exclusively use native plants; have a landscape plan to integrate the city’s portion of the parkway into the setting’s existing natural features and minimize its influence on McIntire Park; install signage prohibiting truck traffic and posting a speed limit of 35 mph; complete photographic documentation of the eastern side of the park; and complete historical documentation of the McIntire Golf Course.

…I still wonder – if we were designing a transportation solution today rather than trying to implement a 40-year-plus plan , would we create the Meadowcreek Parkway?

… The relationship between the City of Charlottesville and the County of Albemarle is akin to that of divorced parents who really kind of hate each other but are able to keep it together justenough to keep the kids fed.

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Don’t Call it 4 x 4 – Albemarle County’s Semesterization Experiment

in Albemarle Education on

I have talked to quite a few parents and high schoolers about their perceptions and reactions to the block scheduling, and thought it would be useful to ask the opinion of Champion Tutoring for their perspective, and I received this gracious response : Thanks for asking.  … I have been asked before to comment on the block schedule “from a Realtor’s perspective” and here is my comment: From my point of view, the teachers are overworked and not able to teach effectively. … From our personal experience, we are extremely reluctant to miss a day of school, as there is very little chance of ever recapturing what was taught on that day – there is too much information and too little time at school. … Crozet Gazette – Parents Revolt Against WAHS (Western Albemarle High School) 4×4 Schedule Carmen Garcia, the mother of one student at Western and two at Henley (where she serves as PTO vice president), said she called former School Board member Brian Wheeler about the schedule policy change last spring.

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Charlottesville Sellers and Homeowners – Take Pictures of Your House NOW!

in Albemarle Charlottesville Shameless Self Promotion on

This is why: Grayrock Neighborhood in Crozet in the Fall Even if you’re not planning to sell your house in Charlottesville or Crozet in the Spring, you might in two years … and the colors this year are really quite wonderful. … If you are thinking about putting your house on the market in the spring, now is the time to start prepping . … And I just happen to have a lovely house on the market there as well . /shamelessplugformyclients Here’s another thought: If you do think that you might be looking for a Realtor in the spring, start now. … We work with quite a few and I would be happy to recommend some for you.

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C-Ville and The HooK Investigate Biscuit Run

in Albemarle Charlottesville Growth Politics on

But the Biscuit Run acquisition process, from start to finish, was a hasty affair that involved no public input and a network of businessmen and politicians with close ties. No one who negotiated the deal could control how much taxpayers paid—the decision is left to a few unelected bureaucrats in the state tax department.

…It is about something far more prosaic, and possibly more disturbing—how influential people align their interests and justify their actions by saying they did it for you and me. For background on Biscuit Run, do as I do and turn to the RealCentralVA.com archives and, better yet, Charlottesville Tomorrow’s Biscuit Run archives .

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