Category: Growth

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Crozet is (finally!) getting a gym

This Saturday, and possibly Sunday, keep your eyes out for the Running Man (and please send me your pictures if you see him!)

Captain-Running-Man

An Anytime Fitness franchise will be opening in early 2008. Owned an operated by Melody and Charles Shwartz from Charlottesville, this will be their first gym business.  Melody recently became a certified personal trainer and initially wanted to open a studio, but they felt that a gym would be a better business decision.

Anytime Fitness offers two unique benefits – first, it’s open 24 hours. Second, once you’re a member at one gym, you can visit any gym. This could be  big benefit for those who live in Crozet and work at the NGIC facility up 29 North, as there is another Anytime Fitness facility in Ruckersville.

Anytime Fitness is pleased to announce it has signed a lease for space in the Shoppes of Clover Lawn, off 250 West near Crozet. With construction due to start immediately, the club anticipates opening for business within the next sixty days.  Pre-sale begins soon offering the lowest rates before the club opens it’s doors.

Anytime Fitness will offer a convenient exercise option for the area. At Anytime Fitness, members can workout any time of the day or night. They use a security-access card to enter the club, even when it is not staffed. Once inside, members have full use of state-of-the-art strength training and cardiovascular equipment. Anytime Fitness will also offer tanning, personal training, and membership reciprocity among its clubs.


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Their expectations are to eventually serve about one thousand people. Melody said, “Since we aren’t a big box we are much smaller than the large gyms around here.  That might be a shock for some people but it breaks down nicely.  For instance Gold’s Gym has around 6000 members so their space accommodates that many members.” If they see sufficient growth, they may even consider expansion in the future.

When asked what members can expect, Melody responded, “They can expect a fun environment.  We believe in great customer service and hope to keep our members excited to come to the gym and workout and be in a fun atmosphere”

They will be holding pre-sales in  the space next to Dominos starting the first week in January on Saturdays and Sundays from 10 am to 3 pm, and Melody  will also be there on the 1st from 3-5 to answer questions and hopefully kick off pre-sale.

(Don’t let their racy commercials fool you!)

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Planning Commission Worksession Crozet Downtown Zoning next week

Take the time to exercise your voice and opinion on how you want Crozet to look in the next two, five and thirty years.

For those who don’t receive Albemarle’s excellent A-Mail:

The Planning Commission will hold a worksession on Tuesday, October 30, 2007, at 4:00 p.m., to review and discuss the Crozet Downtown Zoning project, with a focused discussion on a recommendation for a single Downtown Crozet Zoning District and the zoning regulations to be established for that district.

Topics will include: building setbacks, building height, land uses, the requirement for mixed use, parking requirements, sidewalks, landscaping, and buffer/screening requirements.
Click here to view the Planning Commission Agenda.

There will be an opportunity for public comment. If you are unable to attend the meeting and would like to send the Planning Commission your thoughts about the Crozet Downtown Zoning Project, please complete our email Comment Form in the “What’s New” box on the Master Planning webpage.

The regular Planning Commission meeting will follow at 6:00 p.m. The Planning Commission meets in the Lane Auditorium located in the County Office Building – McIntire Road.

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“A victory for Crozet”

From today’s C-Ville:

“It’s a victory for Crozet,” says Atwood, clearly buoyed by the conditional approval. The county is currently looking at changing the zoning in downtown Crozet to encourage mixed-use redevelopment. “We’re taking the old bones of a town and recreating them. They’ve always been talking about redoing Crozet, and it’s time to do some work there. It’s a community that really wants their identity back.”

Redevelopment – good or bad?

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Where are the bike lanes?

Not including bike lanes is a serious flaw in the design of an “improved” Downtown Crozet.

“Where are the bike lanes?” asked one man. There are none planned, answered the consultant.

“Would people have to bike on the sidewalk?” Experienced bikers often ride on the street, explained the consultant. The man didn’t seem satisfied.

As well he shouldn’t have.
{democracy:5}

For a local government with such a great recent track record of embracing green initiatives and active lifestyles, this is a shame.

Whom should we contact at the County to express a desire for bike lanes?

Thanks to C-Ville.

Also, per David Wyant: “We want a walkable, bikable community.” – 1:01 of the White Hall Forum.

Update: Here is some of the relevant Code regarding riding bikes on sidewalks.

Update 2: From Jack Kelsey,

Thank you for your inquiry and the web-links.  In response to your September 25th email, we recognize that this street corridor is really constrained with some existing features that are very important to Crozet residents.  Our primary challenge during the design process is going to be achieving a balance of the improvements to: accommodate the needs of all users (vehicles, pedestrians, bicyclists, and future transit); aesthetically enhance this main thoroughfare of the Downtown; preserve existing unique features and characteristics of Crozet Avenue and Crozet; increase vitality and economic benefit to downtown business owners; and try to provide environmentally sensitive solutions to stormwater management within this constrained corridor.

At this point we have not made any absolute decisions as to design elements, but as a starting point we are using the Crozet Master Plan, Historic Crozet Streetscape Enhancement Project grant application, and the County Sidewalk and Bicycle Facilities plans as our guidance.  That said, bicycle lanes are being provided on Jarmans Gap Road and the new Main Street. In the event that the constraints do not allow for the provision of bikes lanes, we will plan for an alternate means to provide bicycle access and interconnection.   

Through our design and public involvement process we will be welcoming the residents’ input as we work together to achieve the needed balance and help those involved and impacted by this project to find some benefit.

Sincerely,

Jack M. Kelsey, PE
Transportation Engineer
Department of Facilities Development

Update 3: From an unsolicited email from Ann Mallek:

In the UNJAM 2025 long range transportation plan which I have worked on since 2000, the focus is on multimodal, or all forms, of transportation infrastructure. For the first time more than ten percent of the federal funds are to be used in transit improvements.

The stipulation was made that all new roads in subdivisions should be wide enough and properly striped for bike lanes, and that as existing roadways were improved, they were to be brought into conformance by adding striping where width allowed and adding paved shoulder or separate paths where needed.

As the supervising authority over VDOT’s road projects, it is up to the Board of Supervisors to make sure about those details, as projects are approved and also as the projects are built out. While visiting in the neighborhoods recently, I have learned about poor follow up on project implementation. In one area a house has been constructed on top of a filled in storm water detention pond lot and the water has all been diverted into a pipe and dumped into the field across the street, where it impacts that owner’s basement.

Details are important, from the planning aspect or the follow through. We cannot look away once a decision is made. The community is counting on enforcement of all provisions of permits.

Ann Mallek
Candidate for Supervisor, White Hall district

Regarding Ann’s email – it’s reassuring that one of the candidates for this year’s election is reading and contributing to the discussion. Thank you.

Regarding the sidewalks, it appears that if there’s room, they’ll put in the bike lanes. What we seem to have here is an instance of the County being between a rock and a hard place. People want the bike lanes, but they also want the front porches saved. Read about the petitions to save the Barbershop’s front porch here, Cocina del Sol’s porch here and September’s Crozet Gazette (PDF).  There’s always more to the story, and I am grateful to those who have chosen to contribute to the conversation. Would it be fair and accurate to say that we might have to choose between bike lanes and front porches?

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Should Crozet become a town?

Cvillenews asks the question today. I’ve pondered doing a story about incorporation but want to research it (and try to get some UVA law students to help). There are a couple of reasons that Crozet doesn’t incorporate, and three of those are that

1) We’d have to pay separate taxes to the town
2) We’d have to hire our own police force with said taxes
3) Everybody wants everything but doesn’t want to pay for it.

Maybe we can talk about it this evening at tonight’s Town Meeting at Western Albemarle High School. The fun starts at 7 and (is scheduled to) ends at 9.

The town meeting will also serve as the kick-off for the Downtown Crozet Streetscape Project Phase 2, which will focus on pedestrian-friendly improvements like sidewalks, landscaping, and lighting along Crozet Avenue to Tabor Street and will begin construction of New Main Street to provide access to the new Crozet library.

As always, learn more here.

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