Posts tagged Growth

A Big Shift in Albemarle County’s Board of Supervisors

in Albemarle Charlottesville Growth Politics Transportation on

Virginia Board of Elections - Election Night Results - November 5th, 2013 - Snow-Palmer.jpg

A lot of money was raised and spent in these elections.

The Albemarle County elections last night brought about a resounding change on the Albemarle County Supervisors. Gone are Rodney Thomas and Duane Snow; in are Brad Sheffield and Liz Palmer. For what it’s worth, the Democrats won and the Republicans lost.

Looking at the races through the lens of VPAP data, I saw this in a Facebook conversation:

So which Supervisors are beholden to real estate development groups? Here are some of the top donations by industry… Notice a pattern?

Duane Snow, $17,800 Real Estate/Construction
Liz Palmer, $26,043 Miscellaneous
Rodney Thomas, $12,300 Real Estate/Construction
Brad Sheffield, $17,386 Miscellaneous

It’s hard to argue with money. Seemingly more than the ballot box, money matters.

Local elections matter. The localities vote on growth management strategies, property tax rates, the ways in which the emergency services operate and cooperate (or not) and notably transportation and infrastructure improvements. And yesterday, about 13,000 people in Albemarle County helped decide the near (and long) term future of Albemarle County.

J. Reynolds Hutchins at the DP says:

Palmer, Sheffield and McKeel ran campaigns hinged on the county’s growing transportation problems and angst over the Western Bypass of U.S. 29.

Whether the Western Bypass gets built will be an interesting (continued) debate. Will they build it? Will they shut it down? Will they study it more? Will they extend it so it’s a more logical and functional road?

The County needs infrastructure improvements … let’s see how the new Board chooses to take up that task.

Read More

The Walkable City – Achievable in Charlottesville?

in Albemarle Charlottesville Growth Transportation on

What would it take to make Charlottesville and Albemarle truly walkable? People who live in areas that are walkable are happier, leaner, have more money for leisure, spend more time with their families … is that really achievable in the Charlottesville area?

The answer is – the public would have to express its desire for this, the leaders would have to listen to the people, collaborate, plan and execute a vision that would enable the City of Charlottesville and County of Albemarle to create more walkable and bikeable localities. Of course, in an area that takes 30+ years to build a short Parkway, I think there’s a better chance of flying cars gaining prominence than thoughtful infrastructure being implemented.

What could be done to craft a truly walkable City/County?

Walkability matters – there are growing urban cores within Charlottesville and Albemarle and the sprawlish segmentation continues. But … what if each of these urban cores grows up and densely?

This is the original Google Map I did in 2007. I’ve updated it for today’s world. Biscuit Run is no longer planned. Albemarle Place is now Stonefield (and is built). North Pointe is far off in the horizon.

This is a map of the “town centers” in the Charlottesville – Albemarle area

(If you’re looking for homes near these, use the radius search on my search site)

Read More

West Main Street – The Solution to UVA’s Housing Crunch?

in Charlottesville Growth Transportation on

That’s what it’s seeming like, and the Charlottesville City Planning Department is starting to realize the ramifications of being said solution to UVA’s growth.

Charlottesville Tomorrow reports (read the whole thing):

Several members of the Charlottesville Planning Commission said Tuesday they leaned toward not approving an apartment complex on West Main Street unless the needs of an adjacent public housing site are taken into consideration.

“I have grave concerns about the social justice and the environmental justice issues of putting a project like this next to Westhaven,” said CommissionerGenevieve Keller.

The developers of the proposed 189-unit development, the Standard, had a preliminary discussion with the commission during its meeting Tuesday night. The developers need a special use permit to allow for additional density and building height.

The ramifications – rents, homeownership rates, transience, transportation, the demand for ancillary services – of so many rental units coming on the market at pretty much the same time will be … interesting. We’ll know more in 24 months.

And here you have the story of transportation/infrastructure/”planning” of Charlottesville and Albemarle … in a nutshell (bolding mine):

The Planning Commission is slated to vote on the special use permit later this year, but Keller said she wanted to wait until the results of a $350,000 study of infrastructure required to guide redevelopment of West Main Street. No timetable for that study has been made available.

Look … I’m not saying they should wait for the study results, but I am saying that our localities’ respective proclivities to plan and study and plan to study and study the plan – while growth happens is harmful. To the localities, to businesses, to basic qualities of life of those of us who live here.

Background story on RealCentralVA from October 2012. Some of the other stories I’ve written about West Main Street.

A look at West Main on Google Maps.

I *really* wish Flickr allowed for geographic searching; searching for “West Main” isn’t so useful.

COeverywhere looks really promising from a mobile perspective for (hyper)local insight.

Read More

Local Elections Matter – Charlottesville and Albemarle Edition

in Albemarle Charlottesville Growth Politics on

The Virginia Public Access Project - Albemarle County

Local elections matter immensely – they’re where our growth, land use, property taxes, police and more relevant policies are implemented. I’ll be writing about the Albemarle, Charlottesville and Greene elections more as we get nearer to the elections, but for now, three of the most important resources available for Charlottesville and Albemarle and local/state politics, respectively are:

– Charlottesville Tomorrow’s Candidate Forum Calendar. They will be posting their comprehensive Election Guide soon.

– VPAP, the Virginia Public Access Project tracks money in elections. Sadly, it appears that Albemarle and Charlottesville are the only two local localities participating.

— Albemarle – So far, $86,303 is being reported as having been raised between the three races. Duane Snow is getting killed in fundraising – Liz Palmer reporting nearly $30k versus his $8,500
— Charlottesville – So far, about $12k is being reported as having been raised. Will this be the year a non-Democrat gets elected to City Council?

– C-Ville’s recent Albemarle County Supervisor interviews. Rio District, Samuel Miller and Jack Jouett.

Read More

Downtown Charlottesville Expanding

in Charlottesville Growth on

Essentially, that’s what’s going to happen if this Strategic Investment Area plan in the the City of Charlottesville comes to fruition – even in part.

More bike lanes, more connectivity, more density – Charlottesville could truly become more citified through the implementation of these proposals.

“It’s the center of the town, people live there, there are no cars and it’s wonderful,” Kuttner said. “This is such an amazing opportunity.”
 

The centerpiece of the plan is a linear park that would span the study area. A stream would flow through a central plaza on the Ix property to provide a public gathering place. Meadows and gardens would be created to filter stormwater. 
 
“There’s been a big focus on moving on this city to be a more green city,” Quill said. 

Several streets would be reconfigured with bike lanes and wider sidewalks. Second Street Southeast and Garret Street would be modified to accommodate additional buildings. 
 


View Larger Map

Click through to read the options presented to the City, or download the PDF here.

Read More

Development in Charlottesville – Future and Present

in Charlottesville Growth on

Bill Emory asks some great and important questions about current and future development in Charlottesville, “Charlottesville” being the “City of Charlottesville” not “Charlottesville MSA” or “Charlottesville and Albemarle.” A must-see photo essay.

The overreaching question is: How do we move to excellent urban planning?

(and how do we connect Charlottesville and Albemarle and the greater Charlottesville area?)

Thanks to Sean for the pointer.

Read More