Category: Growth

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CCAC Meeting 21 January 2015 – Foothills Rezoning and More

A large crowd showed up, including Charlottesville Tomorrow and NBC 29 to hear and learn about the proposed Foothill Crossing rezoning.

A great discussion was held, mainly with community members expressing the need and desire for infrastructure in Crozet as the developer described how the rezoning will route traffic through Westhall, Foothills, Westlake Hills, and Parkside Village.

What followed was a  pretty good discussion about economic growth & development in Crozet, the future of downtown Crozet, what Crozetians want,  what the community can and will support and more.

I’ll update this when Charlottesville Tomorrow,NBC 29, and Crozet Gazette  post their stories.

If you want to learn and exert your opinion/influence, come to these meetings. Again. And again. And again.

Storify story recapping all of the tweets after the break. Please, please read them all and get involved.

  Continue reading “CCAC Meeting 21 January 2015 – Foothills Rezoning and More”

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Foothill Crossing Rezoning Hearing – 21 January

As noted on the Crozet Calendar,  there is going to be a community meeting about the rezoning hearing for the next phase of Foothill Crossing on 21 January at Crozet Library at 7pm. Based on the comments I’ve received, I suspect it should be well attended.

It looks like the big change is that the developer is seeking to add attached homes to the mix, a change from having only single family homes. More information here.

Disclosure: I’m a Realtor. I have a professional opinion about this. If you’re interested, ask me.

Dig into the project at Albemarle County’s great County View site; search for Application# SUB201400214, which reads (prior to this rezoning coming forth):

Continue reading “Foothill Crossing Rezoning Hearing – 21 January”

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Jobs in Crozet?

The RFP (Request for Proposals) for the next life of the old Crozet Library/Train Depot has gone out, (as noted here in November) and the discussion about “what jobs/businesses does Crozet needs” has been refreshed.

I submit Robert Gutowski’s comment on the RealCrozetVA Facebook page as a starting place, once you’ve read (okay, skimmed) these stories: What should become of the old Crozet Library and Result of the “what should become of the Crozet Library poll and What Businesses should come to Crozet.

Real jobs, not just retail and restaurants. Young people graduate from WAHS or UVA, where can they work in town? Some apartments within walking distance of the Square, with the median housing price in Crozet being above $275K, where can a young WAHS or UVA graduate live in town even if there were employers? A town needs all these things to maintain its own identity, otherwise it becomes a mere bedroom community for Charlottesville.

(big) Questions:

  • Where should the jobs go?
  • What could/should Albemarle County do to encourage jobs coming to Crozet?
  • How much input is reasonable for the public to have beyond typical zoning, etc?
  • How to accommodate/counter NIMBYism?

 

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Special CCAC Meeting Tonight – 2 October – What’s a CDC?

If you can make it, this could be an important CCAC meeting.

CCAC is hosting a meeting on Thursday night, October 2, with Nate Cunningham who comes to share his knowledge of Community Development Corporations.    Frank Stoner and Ann Mallek have invited him to come speak to us at 7:00 p.m. at the Field School in Crozet.

A community development corporation (CDC) is a not-for-profit organization incorporated to provide programs, offer services and engage in other activities that promote and support community development. CDCs usually serve a geographic location such as a neighborhood or a town. They often focus on serving lower-income residents or struggling neighborhoods. They can be involved in a variety of activities including economic development, education, community organizing and real estate development. These organizations are often associated with the development of affordable housing.

 

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Barnes Lumberyard Proposal Decision Deferred 8 Weeks

– The Applicant (Milestone Partners) requested and was granted an 8 week deferral.

– The Planning Commission seemingly relied heavily on the CCAC’s opinion and resolution concerning the proposal (I assume this is the one).

– The Barnes Lumber property is currently zoned for heavy industrial.

– Apparently the CCAC voted 10-3 in support of this resolution, but you wouldn’t know that if you didn’t follow the CCAC meeting on Twitter or read the Storify of the tweets as the CCAC have no minutes online for the entirety of 2014 and most of 2013 (and the roster is out of date).

– I’m grateful for those who give their time to tweet these meetings; without them the community would be less informed. Thank you!

– When is the next CCAC meeting? If you support or oppose this proposal, now’s (really, 6 months ago) the time to get informed and involved. These decisions affect all of us.

– Update: the Sec. of the CCAC just called and said that he had just sent all of the missing minutes to the County. We can expect them to be online in the next 48 hours. Thank you to those who alerted the CCAC about this. Transparency is good for all.

Continue reading “Barnes Lumberyard Proposal Decision Deferred 8 Weeks”

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Recapping the CCAC Meeting – 20 March 2014

Lots happened at the Crozet Community Advisory Council Meeting on 20 March 2014. Click through to read the embedding of the tweets from the meeting. Hopefully you find this helpful. I hope I captured everything accurately; between my tweets and Tim’s, there are 118 tweets in this story.

– 13 members of the public attended. A relatively huge crowd.

– More members of the public are needed to tweet. Really. Please?

– Brief update on Barnes Lumberyard development. In short: process is ongoing, comments going back and forth between developer and county. CCAC wants to stick to the master plan. The focus is said to be on bringing employment centers to downtown Crozet. But what kind? Suggestions?

– A brewery may be interested in building in Albemarle County, specifically in Old Trail. NOTHING is set or proposed; it’s merely a conversation at this point. But bringing in 376 jobs would be an outstanding addition to Crozet.

– Would some neighbors from Old Trail please attend these meetings? We’d all benefit from more participation from our neighbors.

– Lots of good conversation at this meeting.

Continue reading “Recapping the CCAC Meeting – 20 March 2014”

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CCAC Meeting – 20 March 2014

Who’s up for tweeting what should be a really interesting meeting? (bolding in the agenda below is mine)

CROZET COMMUNITY ADVISORY COUNCIL The Meadows, Crozet (5735 Meadows Dr.) Thursday, March 20, 2014 from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.
Agenda

Agenda Review. (Meg Holden – CCAC chair)

Approval of Minutes from January 16, 2014 meeting.

Project Updates/Information:

– Library updates– Bill Schrader
– CCAC officers and new CCAC members
– Any Streetscape issues – including how we can continue to support local businesses during this time
– Restore-n-Station
– Acme Visible records
– Update and discussion of Downtown development (Barnes Lumber Property), pursuant to email with county comments
– Discussion of commercial development in Old Trail

News concerning area schools which affects development area.

Future meeting date and place (library) – Bill Schrader.

Items not listed on the agenda.

Announcements.

Future Agenda Items.

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Recapping the CCAC Meeting of 20 February 2014

The Albemarle County school budget, Barnes Lumberyard and the developers’ intentions, the Crozet library is busy and needs funding and more. Huge thanks to @CVilleKim and @TfjTolson for tweeting the meeting!

As a reminder, this is the Crozet Master Plan (it’s referred to a lot).

Click through, scroll to the bottom and read the tweets from tonight’s meeting. Continue reading “Recapping the CCAC Meeting of 20 February 2014”

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Recapping CCAC Meeting – 16 January 2014

– The redevelopment of downtown Crozet was the big point of discussion – about 90 minutes’ worth. The gist: this is a huge thing, let’s get more information, follow the Crozet Master Plan. Community is cynical and cautious.

– The pedestrian crossing at Harris Teeter is funded.

– There may be openings on the CCAC board. Interested?

– Field School will have Catholic Mass on second Sunday.

Click through, scroll to the bottom of the embedded tweets to see what was discussed. Big thanks to Tim Tolson for tweeting.

Questions? Thoughts? Continue reading “Recapping CCAC Meeting – 16 January 2014”