UVA Foundation seeks firms to build 600 units of mixed-income housing at North Fork

In February, the Albemarle Board of Supervisors approved a rezoning requested by the University of Virginia Foundation that allows up to 1,400 residential units at the North Fork Discovery Park.

This month, the Foundation has issued a request for qualifications from firms to partner on building some of those places to live and to identify financing for construction. 

“UVAF intends to select the most qualified development team with demonstrated experience and expertise in thoughtful community design and execution [of] market rate, middle-income and affordable housing development,” reads the RFQ.

The document defines middle-income as between 80 percent and 120 percent of the area median income, and affordable housing as everything below 80 percent. 

The UVA Foundation bought the land for what would become the 562-acre North Fork Discovery Park in 1986. The original zoning to Planned Development Industrial Park allowed as much as 3.7 million square feet of commercial development and so far nine class A office buildings have been constructed totaling around 650,000 square feet. 

This year’s rezoning allows for residential to be built on 150 acres, but this specific proposal is for 28 of them and for 600 units. 

“UVAF’s goal is to work with a Selected Developer that can create a new community differentiated from others in the area,” the RFQ continues. “Examples of this differentiation could include aspects of innovative, sustainable design and stewardship organized around a community exhibiting excellence in master planning, site and building design and mix of uses.”

One of the project goals states that the focus will be on market rate housing with “strategically” placed affordable and middle-income housing. 

The affordable units would be part of a previously announced initiative for UVA and its real estate foundation to build between 1,000 and 1,500 units priced below 80 percent of the area median income. 

UVA made selections in August 2023 for two other sites as I reported at the time. The Piedmont Housing Alliance has been selected to redevelop the 12 acre Piedmont site off of Fontaine and a group called Preservation of Affordable Housing is developing a two acre site at 10th and Wertland. Charlottesville’s Board of Architectural Review had the chance to get an early look in May. 

At North Fork, this RFQ is for two parcels of land, each of which would feature 300 units. However, the request does state another approach could also be taken. 

At this time, the UVA Foundation intends to retain the land with a ground lease with the developer. At the end of the lease, the units would revert to the foundation. 

Statements of qualification are due by January 23, 2025. Questions will be answered publicly and posted to the UVA Foundation’s procurement page. 

Before you go: The time to write and research of this article is covered by paid subscribers to Charlottesville Community Engagement. In fact, this particular installment is from the November 25, 2024 edition of the newsletter. To ensure this research can be sustained, please consider becoming a paid subscriber or contributing monthly through Patreon.