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Autonomous Transit Shuttles! So Cool

via press release:

ALBEMARLE COUNTY, VA – Albemarle County, Perrone Robotics, Inc. (“PRI”), and JAUNT, Inc. are pleased to announce a Letter of Intent to enter into a partnership to develop, test, and operate an autonomous transit shuttle service pilot in Albemarle County. The partnership, totaling $600,000, will launch autonomous transit shuttle service in March 2019.

“Perrone Robotics is beyond excited to apply its ground-breaking autonomous technology to deliver modern mobility in our community” said PRI founder and CEO Paul Perrone. “It’s so satisfying to apply our technology to provide a zero-emission transit approach that will benefit businesses and neighbors – right here and right now in Albemarle County.”

“This partnership positions Albemarle County to lead in the development of the next generation of transit service with a cutting-edge local business, Perrone Robotics, and a trusted transit provider in JAUNT,” Albemarle County Board of Supervisors Chair Ann Mallek shared. “Albemarle County has long supported vibrant communities and an autonomous, zero-emission transit service brings the promise of reduced parking needs and greater use of green technologies in our urban centers – allowing our community to continue to flourish into the future.”

The location of the pilot autonomous transit shuttle service is still under review, but the service will allow riders to embark and disembark along a fixed route. While the shuttle will operate autonomously, a safety-trained transit “ambassador” will be on-board to address customer questions, offer any required assistance, and step-in as driver if needed.

“Over the next decade autonomous technology will change many aspects of public transportation. It will transform how we think about providing equitable and meaningful mobility to our communities, said Brad Sheffield, CEO of JAUNT. “Being at the forefront offers JAUNT to opportunity to understand how to best position itself to help the community prepare for these changes and opportunities. JAUNT will help explore new ways to adapt autonomous technology to enhance how it offers equity and accessible mobility through customer-oriented public transportation, the professional development of our staff and explore new service markets for transit.”

As part of the partnership, Albemarle County, through its Economic Development Authority and its Economic Development office, will promote economic development and existing business expansion by supporting Perrone Robotics. Perrone Robotics will develop and adapt their technology to enable the NEV for autonomous shuttle service. JAUNT will provide their proven expertise for scheduling and operating the shuttle during the pilot. This partnership is detailed in the Letter of Intent approved on November 14, 2018.

The University of Virginia plans to join the partnership with the pilot launch. “UVA is rapidly expanding its research capabilities related to autonomous systems and their societal impact,” explains Tom Katsouleas, EVP & Provost. “We are thrilled to partner with Perrone Robotics, Albemarle County, JAUNT, the UVA Research Park, and others to continue exploring the transformative potential of autonomous vehicles. Our faculty are developing technologies for safe, efficient self-driving cars, and envisioning a sustainable, equitable urban future. We are delighted to bring that expertise to this partnership at such a pivotal moment in transportation.”

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Crozet Angel Tree 2018

Update 29 November 2018 – Success!

On Behalf of the CBC Mission Team,  I want to extend our most sincere thanks to the Crozet community for the outpouring of generosity that will make Christmas a little brighter for some children, and a little less stressful for some parents.  Angel Tree is 100% supported.  The need was great again this year, and we couldn’t do it without the support of so many.  I count it a gift and privilege to be able to meet and partner with so many people.

 

via email. Continue reading “Crozet Angel Tree 2018”

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CCAC Meeting – 14 November 2018 | Water Quality, Police, Pleasants Industries

Local government, folks. It matters. Whether you like it or not.

Question: where are the minutes from the June, September, October CCAC meetings?

CROZET COMMUNITY ADVISORY COMMITTEE

Crozet Library
Wednesday, November 14, 2018 from 7:00 p.m. to 8:45 p.m.
Agenda

1. Introductions and Agenda Review (Allie Pesch – CCAC chair)

Continue reading “CCAC Meeting – 14 November 2018 | Water Quality, Police, Pleasants Industries”

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Crozet Trails Will Cross Lickinghole Creek!

This is fantastic news. In the CTC email today.

Be sure to vote tomorrow–every vote matters! Then celebrate at Pro Re Nata Brewery this Wednesday 11/7, 5:30-6:30 pm with the Crozet Trails Crew’s Appreciation of our Albemarle County Parks & Recreation Crew partners–Tucker Rollins, Jim Barbour, and Matthew Smith–who help us in so many ways all year by mowing, clearing trail, laying crushed stone, and clearing fallen trees.

This weekend, join us for a Guided Trail Walk on Saturday, Nov 10 at 10 am. Meet at the kiosk in Crozet Park. This walk was postponed from October 27 due to weather.

Great news! The County has received permission to extend the Crozet trail system across Lickinghole Creek toward Route 250. This is a big step in connecting neighborhoods on the south side of Lickinghole, such as Cory Farms and Liberty Hall, to Crozet Park and downtown Crozet via the Crozet Connector Trail. *We will begin work on building the trail on the south side of the creek at a CTC Workday at 9 am on Saturday, Nov. 17. To get there, take Park Road past Crozet Park into Westhall. Turn left on Westhall Drive. Meeting place is one block on the right, where Eastern Avenue ends in a dead end. Wear long pants and sturdy shoes. Work gloves, hats, and insect repellent strongly advised, as we may be clearing thick underbrush.

…

Our next monthly meeting will be Thursday, Nov. 15, 6:30-8 pm at Mi Rancho in Old Trail.

Clover Carroll, Secretary
Terri Miyamoto, President
Crozet Trails Crew www.crozettrailscrew.org

*that bolding is mine.

 

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Three Things about Voting in Albemarle – 6 November 2018

You might have heard. 6 November there’s an election.

 

  1. Make sure you know where you’re supposed to vote. (things may have changed)
  2. Check the sample ballot before you go in.
  3. You’ve studied the constitutional amendments, right? Right?
    1. Read a bit more about them.
  4. Now’s a good time for homebuyers to search out neighborhoods and try to discern if they might like the neighborhood.

 

 

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Crozet Sports- Upcoming Football Clinic and Winter Break Kids Camp

I was tempted to not post this, as it is essentially a free ad,, but I’d like to see
1) RealCrozetVA as a place to inform the community and
2) if we can support this type of programming, maybe sooner rather than later, we’ll have a facility here that will require less driving out of Crozet, and that’s good for all of us.

via email –

Join Crozet Sports for the following upcoming youth programs in Crozet!

Youth Football Clinic-  JoinPatrick Estes, former UVA standout and San Francisco 49er, as well as other former NFL and NCAA Division 1 football players for an instructional youth clinic being held on Sunday, November 18th at 4pm at the Old Trail Community Park Field.  Beginners, flag, and tackle players ages 6-12 are welcome.  Players will learn essential fundamentals and the best ways to safely play the game.  No gear is needed.  All players must register at https://crozetsports.com

Winter Break Kids Camp-  Join Crozet Sports, licensed educators, former athletes, and coaches for the upcoming Kids Camp being held at Brownsville Elementary on December 20th & 21st from 8am-4pm.  Participants of the Kids Camp will experience a well-structured academic and athletic environment including fun character-building activities, STEM learning challenges, academic-themed games, athletic opportunities, and much more.

All participants must register for the camp at https://crozetsports.com

Our recent youth baseball, softball, and field hockey clinics were a huge success!  We’d like to once again thank the participating families, youth sports leagues and WAHS for their role in supporting our mission and the growth of these sports in our community.  Action photos and highlight videos of each clinic are available on the Crozet Sports website.  Like our FB page and complete the email sign-up on our site to stay updated on our plans for 2019!

Thank you,

Crozet Sports

FAMILY | COMMUNITY | SPORTS

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Fixing the Hum at Yancey Lumber

Here’s the website the lumberyard has set up for sharing information about the hum.

via press release (bolding below is mine)

R.A. YANCEY LUMBER COMPANY RESPONDS TO NOISE DISTURBANCES IN CROZET

CROZET, VA (Oct. 23, 2018) – R.A. Yancey Lumber Company (Yancey Lumber) announced today that lumber production will scale back significantly beginning this evening in response to the noise disturbances reported by neighborhoods surrounding the mill. The noise is stemming from the exhaust stack of the boiler for the company’s kilns. The company has ordered a custom-made sound muffler for the stack as a solution; however, it is estimated it will take two weeks to manufacture and ship. Until the muffler is installed, the kiln will run in “pilot light mode,” allowing the boiler to maintain enough heat at night to power up and treat lumber during the day, but halting all lumber curing operations at night.

Local citizens began reporting noise disturbances in neighboring communities last month. Several companies – Yancey and Dominion, among others – were approached about the source of the noise. At that time, Yancey Lumber did not believe the mill was the source, as no new equipment had been installed. A kiln was refurbished in August, but that kiln had been used since 1992 with no prior complaints. Given the community’s concerns, Yancey Lumber hired Acentech, an acoustical consulting firm, to investigate and measure sound levels at the mill and properties of several neighbors who had reported disturbances.

On Wednesday, Oct. 17, Acentech determined that the noise’s origin was the Yancey boiler’s exhaust stack. The company immediately began attempting to source the right equipment to muffle or cancel the noise. It has ordered a “silencer” insert that will be custom built on an expedited basis. In the meantime, the company has been making adjustments to the drive frequency of the boiler fan to reduce its speed; however, based on the reports, the reduction did not have the intended effect.

The Yancey family has owned and operated the mill in Crozet since 1949. “We are committed to being a good neighbor and community member,” said President Donnie Rose. “We are extremely sorry for the disturbances and sleepless nights the kiln has caused. We want the community to know that we’re doing everything we can to keep that from happening again.”

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Humming Update

Sounds like (get it?) the sound is coming from Yancey Mill. Maybe?

via Nextdoor (having to pull information from private sites where logins are required sucks; this stuff should be open to all). Neither Nextdoor nor Facebook are the Internet.

Update: Crozet Gazette has the story.

White Hall Supervisor Ann Mallek confirmed Friday, Oct. 19, that the noise plaguing residents for weeks has been tracked to Yancey Lumber Corporation.

(oldest Nextdoor post first)

Continue reading “Humming Update”

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October 2018 CCAC Recap | Baseball Lights & more

Well, that was fun. Read the tweets. Watch the video.

Video of the meeting, thanks to Crozet Gazette, is below.

Highlights

 

Continue reading “October 2018 CCAC Recap | Baseball Lights & more”

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Letter from Rich Pleasants

via email: (on Nextdoor, too)

It has come time for me to speak my mind; on some of the happenings in our wonderful community.  Most Crozet area citizens have little knowledge of the dark side of what is going on in Crozet, right under our noses.  Let’s me start by saying, that when I moved my family here in August 2014, I had high hopes of retiring here. I still feel that way.  However, I can’t sit idly by and watch what is going on around us and not exercise my right to free speech.

Continue reading “Letter from Rich Pleasants”