Walk to School Day

It’s this type of community that makes Crozet a nice place to live.

Dear Members of the Crozet Community,

We wanted to let you know that on Friday, March 31, children at Crozet Elementary School will be walking to school. This event is designed to help kids learn that fitness can be fun and practical. Students have been learning about pedestrian safety and are eager to practice their new skills. 

Supported by the Alliance for Community Choice in Transportation [ACCT] and their Safe Routes to School initiative, this event encourages all families who can walk to school to do so. Children who must ride the bus will have the opportunity to take a walk around the outside of the school before entering the building for the day. Parents who drive their children by car are invited to park at Crozet Baptist Church on St. George Avenue and walk to school from there under the supervision of school staff. A second supervised “Walking School Bus” will walk from the Brookwood neighborhood.

Members of the community are advised to be on the lookout for children walking in the neighborhoods and to be extra careful driving between 7-8am.

If you have questions, please contact the following:

Karen Marcus, Principal
823-4800

Linda Kobert
ACCT Safe Routes to School Coordinator
295-6554

Alliance for Community Choice in Transportation
Safe Routes to School
PO Box 1582
(609 East Market Street, Suite 106)
Charlottesville, VA  22902
tel/fax: 434.295.6554
www.transportationchoice.org

More than 12,000 people in Crozet …

This outstanding report by Charlottesville Tomorrow shows what the County apparently is unable to accurately determine and/or admit to.

While nobody can predict accurately the speed with which those homes will be built and occupied, it is news that County staff are bringing this to the attention of the Board.  On paper, the twenty-year Crozet Master Plan approved in December 2004 has crossed the threshold of a population of 12,000 people.

Go read the report, educate yourself and contact your representative in Albemarle County and ask them what integrity means to them.

Crozet residents speak

But have they been heard?

Charlottesville Tomorrow has the podcast.

Members of the Crozet community appeared before the Albemarle County Board of Supervisors to deliver a petition signed by 1,316 area residents asking the County to not let Crozet’s population exceed 12,000 people.  In this podcast, Charlottesville Tomorrow presents the public comments delivered in this portion of the Board’s meeting.  Seven of the six speakers focused their remarks on the Crozet Master Plan.

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“A Call to Arms”

This type of community action is how I would like to see realcrozetva.com grow and be used. Attempting to notify Crozetians the day before any action is too late.

From the Crozet Community Association

We urgently need a number of people who can come to the Board of Supervisors’ Meeting, 9 A.M., Wednesday morning,  March 1, at the County Office Building, room 241,  on McIntire Road downtown.  You will not have to speak; just be there to stand up and make the presence of Crozet felt.  This is a morning meeting, so many people will not be able to attend.  If you are free, we hope you will come.  Try to be there by 8:45.

Some of us will present the over 1100 signed petitions urging the BOS to respect the Master Plan and keep to the promised 12,000 buildout population. We have found using the County’s own figures that the current population including all the developments that have already  been approved is over 11,000!  They have been telling us that 12,000 was the twenty year build-out goal.  We have never agreed to the twenty year date; the 12,000 figure was the total build-out figure continuously quoted to us during the Master Planning period.  Never-the-less, we have already virtually reached the 12,000 build-out.  The question for the BOS is what are they going to do once the 12,000 population is attained?  Are they willing to stop all further development?  Or are they going to ignore the 12,000 figure and continue to make Crozet a population land-fill?  And  where is our representative David Wyant in all this?

We need Crozet citizens and other concerned people to be there on Wednesday to support our contention that the BOS has to take control of the uncontrolled building taking place and STOP it now.  Crozet as a community is being destroyed by developers and politicians who are totally ignoring the Master Plan that Crozet people wrote.

We believe we can make a difference if we continue to stand up to the Board and the Planning Commission.  Thanks for helping at this crucial time.    Call your friends and come on out. 

The most important question from the above (in my opinion) is “where is … David Wyant … “?  At the most recent Crozet “Town Hall,” he made a few seemingly prepared remarks but did not take public questions. Does each BoS member owe his or her allegiance to the constituents in his district or to the County? At what point does he have to stand up for the residents?

By the way, Albemarle’s Calendar page is quite helpful. Shame it doesn’t have RSS capabilities.

Crozet meeting tomorrow night

Albemarle County has updated their Crozet site. Check out the agenda for tomorrow, the infrastructure update and more. Based solely on the agenda, I think the County may be continuing the disconnect that currently exists. Is the planned population for Crozet 12,000 or 24,000? Without addressing this, I think that Crozetians are going to be less able/willing to move forward. Who wants to work with someone they don’t trust?

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Crozet’s Master Plan petition

An effort is being made to request the County to review its Master Plan for Crozet. You can sign the petition here.

The petition reads:

Citizens of Crozet diligently worked thousands of hours over two years with Albemarle CountY planners and and consultants to design a Master Plan that would create a Crozet of 12,000 residents. In good faith, Crozetians negotiated with Albemarle County leaders for a Master Plan in which the maximum population of Crozet was publicly and repeatedly projected at 12,000 total residents. This projection would quadruple the size of Crozet. Now the County says we have it wrong! The County says the plan calls for a population in the Crozet Growth Area as high as 24,000 residents! TheYwant Crozet to grow to half the size of the City of Charlottesville.

The County currently has a credibility problem. They certainly have some ‘splainin’ to do.

Note: Misspellings in public petitions -  aargh!

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New bar in Crozet

I made my way to the new bar in Crozet this afternoon/evening to watch the Redskins’ run end. My conclusion: exactly what Crozet needs. Multiple televisions, five beers on tap – sadly, no Starr Hill beer, but they do have PBR – is that a good thing? This ought to be remedied asap. The wings were great. The service was … casual. Obviously they are still working their systems  out, and the smoke was too much, but nonetheless, this is a great addition to Crozet. I’ll go back.

Better yet, the Hogwaller Ramblers were playing there this evening. Unfortunately I was unable to attend, but hopefully they will return. They’ve always been one of my favorite C’Ville area bands.

From the HooK:

Out in Crozet another changing of the guard has taken place. A smokehouse-style restaurant, bar, and weekend music joint called Uncle Charlie’s will be taking over the old Mountainview Grill/Kokopelli’s spot.

Owner Charlie Mayer, who has been a chef in Pennsylvania for over 20 years, plans to open for dinner Friday, January 13, with musical guests American Dumpster playing later that night. On Saturday, perennial favorites the Hogwaller Ramblers will take the stage. Covers for both shows are only $5 for two people.

Mayer specializes in what he calls “elegant smokehouse” cuisine, which feature tenderloins, fillets, crab cakes, and the must-have wings and ribs as well. Of course, soups and salads will be part of the mix. Mayer hopes Uncle Charlie’s will have a neighborhood bar atmosphere, a casual place where someone can come in and watch a football game, have a beer and some ribs, and stay around to catch a show.