This month’s Gazette has a slew of great and relevant stories. (they all do, but this month felt particularly meaty). Pick up a copy and read the whole thing.
The Master Plan contains a future land use map and a table describing the various land use categories. The idea is that these documents provide a legal basis for the county to evaluate landowner requests for zoning changes and to make changes to zoning regulations. During the presentation, Knuppel highlighted a specific property—White Gate Farm—for which county staff recommended an increase in housing density.
White Gate Farm is a 12-acre parcel on Rt. 240 between Wickham Pond and Western Ridge which is currently classified as rural green space in the 2010 Master Plan. The property owners have requested that its designation be re-evaluated for the 2020 Master Plan, as they are unable to build on the land in any way under current zoning. (See nearby map.)
The proposed project will be called Old Dominion Village and lays out plans for 101 townhouses and 14 single-family detached homes on the combined 24-acre expanse. The current Crozet Master Plan designates Dr. Schulman’s property as 4.5 acres Urban Density Residential, 10 acres Neighborhood Density Residential, 5.5 acres Greenspace, and 4 acres Rural Agricultural. The Urban and Neighborhood classifications allow 12 and 6 units per acre, respectively. Old Dominion Village is requesting a zoning change to “Neighborhood Model” for all 24 acres.
Neither parcel is included in the Albemarle County Service Authority (ACSA) jurisdictional area for water service (though the Vet Center itself is currently connected to county water). Thus, an application to add the parcels to the ACSA service area will also be submitted for county approval along with the zoning request. Since a majority of the land in question is below the elevation of Rt. 240, a private gravity sewer system and pump station will have to be designed and installed to serve the development.
The Western Albemarle Rescue Squad plans to build a new station on two lots in downtown Crozet that it has purchased from lifelong Crozetian Sandy Wilcox. Though only a quarter-mile south of its current location on Crozet Avenue across from Green House Coffee, the squad’s new spot behind the Blue Goose Building will give it room to expand and better access to area residents who need their help.
Crozet resident Hanna Clark has launched an online petition aimed at stopping the Rivanna Water and Sewer Authority (RWSA) from constructing a raw water pipeline along the boundaries of her family’s property. A recent WAHS graduate, Clark has lived on land bordering Beaver Creek Reservoir for 17 years and was shocked when her parents received notice from the RWSA that crews would be surveying the property this summer to determine a potential path to connect the pipeline between a pump station in the reservoir and the Crozet Water Treatment Plant.
The Albemarle County School Board voted 4-3 to offer solely online learning for the vast majority of public school students for the first nine weeks of school beginning September 8. In-person instruction inside school buildings will be limited to students who are English language learners (in grades 4-12), those with special education needs, and those who lack adequate internet access at home. All other students will receive virtual instruction in various forms both synchronously (“live” with an online teacher) and asynchronously (via recorded videos and online assignments).
Lots on the agenda this month, including the proposal for 100+ new townhomes near the Green Olive and the veterinarian on 240, and the bike/pedestrian planning for Crozet. If you’ve not yet attended a CCAC meeting, in person or virtually, this would be a good one to follow.
via email:
Crozet Community Advisory Committee Wednesday, August 12, 2020 7:00 P.M. – 8:30 P.M. Virtual Meeting
This meeting is being held pursuant to and in compliance with Ordinance No. 20-A (6); An Ordinance to Ensure the Continuity of Government During the Covid-19 Disaster.
FOUND. “A Buckingham Branch Railroad employee called and said they found the bikes laying on the tracks a half mile West of where they were taken from. They are in Grottoes, currently. Hopefully they are still in one piece. “
The rebranded Honey Badger- now the NorCro delivery machine
The Honey Badger and I crossing into Iowa
The Honey Badger and I at Niagara Falls
via email:
A friend and I biked from my house on St. George Ave. this morning (8/4) at 7:30am to hike Jarmans Gap. We locked our bikes to the back side of the signal equipment enclosure (the little aluminum hut next to the railroad) just after you cross the tracks on Jarmans Gap (the gravel part).
We returned an hour and forty minutes later to find the bikes, our helmets and the two locks we’d secured them with, gone. I later ran into some Buckingham Branch Railroad employees that called their maintenance boss and no employees had been to that signal enclosure this morning.
My friend had a Specialized StumpJumper and I had, and here’s the issue, my beloved Specialized mid 90’s Allez Elite, dubbed the Honey Badger, that I’d ridden 2,052 miles from Minneapolis to Cape Cod for my wedding. She’d embarked, then called the Green Bean, on what would become a failed, but nevertheless exciting, cross country attempt from Seattle, WA. And most recently I’d painted it bright yellow and put my NorCro branding on it for hauling grocery deliveries around Crozet.
… I’d love to get the word out so she can find her way home!
I put Green Olive Tree in the title, as that’s an area that most people can reference. It’s close, though. I could have said, “near the new car wash,” or “the veterinarian” but there are two veterinarians on 240, with those being different parts of 240.
And I can’t find anything in the news or on the County’s site about the results of the meeting. *Update below
Also, submit comments at this link until I think 17 August (watch the video to confirm).
That said, from the public notice of last week’s meeting (bolding mine)
Dear Neighbor,
We, Meridian Planning Group,invite you to share comments and ask questions regarding our request to rezone the parcels described below from Rural Area (RA) to Neighborhood Model (NMD). The project incudes (sic) 101 townhomes, 14 single family detached homes and will (sic) the Crozet Veterinary Clinic will remain as a commercial use. This proposed project is located at 5258 Three Notch’d Road (TMP 0560-00-00-74A0) and 1263 Parkview Drive (TMP 056-00-00-067B0).
PROPOSAL DESCRIPTION: This is an application to construct a one hundred and eight (108) feet tall monopole tower with two (2) antenna arrays and related ground equipment. A special exception has been requested to exceed the flush mount distances to the tower (SE202000006).
To review regulations and policies applicable to this project, click https://tinyurl.com/y8b4dz46 (18-5.1.40 Personal Wireless Service Facility regulations) or https://tinyurl.com/ybfh9dvt (18-33 Special Use Permit regulations).
… which is unavailable to those without accounts, so I’m posting it here for those Albemarle County residents who don’t have Nextdoor accounts with access to this post.
(go for the comments, but stay for the conspiracy theory)
Tall Verizon Cell Tower Plan near Septenary Winery. Verizon Wireless is proposing to construct a huge cell phone tower directly adjacent to the entrance to Septenary Winery, and Albemarle County is moving to review/approve at a closed hearing in the first week of August.
The wine industry is a major benefit to the County with low impact. If you love the views and the history of properties like Seven Oaks Farm both will be negatively impacted by this project. The proposed tower is 108 feet high with a 30 foot by 30 foot base and a large concrete pad to accommodate additional equipment – all starting just feet away from the vineyard entrance! Time is short and there will not be a public hearing on this due to COVID-19 restrictions.
So how can you help? You can go to: https://tinyurl.com/y7jo6bk9 to comment or you can email the lead reviewer – Christopher Perez, with your comments at [email protected]. Please let the County of Albemarle know if you think the tower at the entrance to the vineyard would diminish your enjoyment of the property’s views, serenity and history as well as that of neighboring properties in Greenwood. If you visit the vineyards regularly, or bring family and friends, please let the County know that too.
The proposed site is part of a much larger property and it would seem reasonable to ask the County to consider it be moved to another part of that farm making it far less obtrusive to the small business of the winery.
One of the best comments on that post
The real question is do you want better cell reception/telecom in western Albemarle? I would assume that you do. This whole NIMBY BS is just that, BS… Stop being entitled/nostalgic and grow up. We’re in 2020 so guess what, there will be cell towers and (especially if you want 5G) they will literally be everywhere.
Did you know that if you agree to have a tower on your property you actually get paid?
Did you know that if you want 5G in Old Trail there will be dozens of towers required to cover the area?
Did you know that our local businesses need this infrastructure development to survive post COVID?
If anything in this COVID world has taught us, it’s support your community and think from a community perspective. Who cares if there is a tower at the entrance because guess what, you’ll have better service, the ability to be contactless and better reception when you’re surfing your phone while patronizing the winery in question. Not to mention the additional benefits for everyone in the area.
Educate yourself rather than be offended by technology. If you want unobstructed views of whatever then guess what, you wont have access to the world that we live in. Move out of Old Trail to BFE to be a luddite if you care that much. Thanks Roger for setting me off on this.
There’s another tower planned in Crozet
And likely more, but this is referencing the one proposed near Wild Turkey Lane (see the not searchable PDF below), and was also discussed at the last in-person CCAC meeting.
“A special message for our Crozet #water customers. The intense heat, combined with increased irrigation, is placing the plant close to full capacity. We ask you to reduce your outdoor use until this heat wave breaks so we can avoid restrictions. Thank you for your help.”
A special message for our Crozet #water customers. The intense heat, combined with increased irrigation, is placing the plant close to full capacity. We ask you to reduce your outdoor use until this heat wave breaks so we can avoid restrictions. Thank you for your help. pic.twitter.com/LHuUMx0Vkd
via email (please forgive the formatting, as the blog doesn’t like this sort of copy paste)
This is awesome. The Crozet Trails Crew are one of the best parts of Crozet. Full Stop.
Trails in the Time of COVID – Share your Story
Share What Crozet Trails Mean to You This Year It has been a delight to see so many out on the trails since the COVID lockdown began. Walking, running, biking, birding, catching frogs, and posting messages in the tunnel, Crozetians are doing it all whether alone or with family, friends, or a treasured pet. Our community is a special place. It feels even more so as we safely enjoy the outdoors and time together, even if it is 6’ apart!
As the saying goes when life gives you lemons, make lemonade! The Trails Crew agreed it was prudent to cancel the annual 5K race. But that doesn’t mean we cannot stay connected. So we decided to create a storyboard to capture Crozetians’ experiences on the trails and parks to memorialize this unique time in our lives. We are asking you to share photos (selfies, families, pets, nature) taken on the Crozet trails and parks and to briefly answer the question “How have the trails eased your COVID experience?”
The plan is to post the storyboard and comments on the Crozet Trails Crew website and to share it with local publications. If we receive a solid response, the Crozet Library has agreed to display the story board. We do need permission to print your pictures and comments. Please join in creating a Crozet trails storyboard by clicking on the link Trails in the Time of COVID which will guide you through the process of attaching pictures and comments about your experience on the trails.
At its retreat on June 26, the Albemarle County School Board voted to reopen schools on Tuesday, September 8. Details around the opening of schools, including instructional schedules and bus transportation information, will be presented to the school board on Thursday, July 9. Read the news release »
Teachers weren’t consulted about the plan before it was released and they not happy about it. https://t.co/qim2m4reIy
— Katherine Knott ????(on bsky.social) (@Knott_Katherine) July 10, 2020
In an email ACPS sent out just now, they say they’re looking at having teachers teach remote classes via Zoom. Are they not aware that this is terribly inequitable? Huge numbers of kids live in places with no broadband access. Are they just second-class students now? pic.twitter.com/ePDR8JDQEM
Use this link https://albemarle-org.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_cYLjIIM0T32Aspkn7sQw3w to register for the meeting. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar. Dial (301) 715-8592. Type in the Webinar ID and Password provided in your email.
