The unincorporated area known as Crozet in western Albemarle County is one place the Comprehensive Plan calls for growth. However, the zoning there does not quite match the aspirational goals which means that the Board of Supervisors usually has to agree to a higher density than allowed under existing rules.
The final meeting of the Albemarle Planning Commission for 2024 includes a public hearing for a rezoning for a property that is also the subject of a lawsuit. But that item won’t be heard until after a 4 p.m. work session on the update of the Comprehensive Plan. Albemarle refers to this as AC44. (meeting info)
This time around the appointed body will be asked to provide feedback on the draft Environmental Stewardship chapter.
“Albemarle County’s landscape, located in the Virginia Piedmont and on the eastern flank of the Blue Ridge, provides a source of clean water for the community, vegetation and soils that sequester and store carbon dioxide, and a home to a diverse array of native plant and animal communities,” reads the introduction to the chapter. “The County’s policies for environmental stewardship involve both protecting vital resources for the community’s use and protecting healthy terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems.”
This chapter is less about land use and more about how the policies might be fine-tuned in the future. Without going into too much detail, I’ll just post, verbatim, the four questions being asked of the Planning Commission.
1. Does the Commission support prioritizing the implementation of incentives for low impact development (LID) for stormwater management, as depicted in Objective 2?
2. Should the actions include more measures for biodiversity protection or related demonstration projects on County-owned lands?
3. Do the actions for objectives 1 and 3 sufficiently address protection of public water supplies and groundwater supplies?
4. Are there any topics (especially within the narrative) and/or actions that need additional context or explanation?
I am hopeful during the holiday break that I can get caught up on all of the recent work sessions.
The meeting will conclude with several public hearings related to modifications to agricultural-forestal districts. Check the agenda for those details. The main event for this entire week is likely the rezoning that Riverbend Development seeks for a 134-unit development called Oakbluff. The 32.887 acre property is currently zoned for one unit per acre, or R-1. The request is to change that to Planned Residential Development to allow up to 35 units per acre.
“Additional housing density is achieved in this key growth area, affordable housing is provided and environmentally sensitive features of the site are preserved and highlighted,” reads the narrative for the rezoning dated February 20, 2023.
In July 2021, the Board of Supervisors adopted the Housing Albemarle plan which has as its first goal the production of more housing.
The narrative states this development will be at six units per acre which matches the upper range of the Neighborhood Density Residential in the Crozet Master Plan.
Three nearby residents filed suit in Albemarle County Circuit Court on February 1 of this year against two subsidiaries of Riverbend (Oak Bluff LLC and Lickinghole Creek LLC) as well as Stanley Martin Homes. The lawsuit argues that one of the parcels is still subject to a restrictive covenant and that Stanley Martin failed to meet the terms of a declaration by not holding annual meetings of a Homeowner’s Association. (read the complaint and answer)
The public hearing offers a chance for the many opponents of the project to express their concerns before the Planning Commission.
“Staff has received a significant amount of Community Input on this project with nearly all of it expressing opposition to the development as proposed,” reads the staff report. “These emails are on file with the Planning Division but have not been included with this staff report because of the volume of documents.”
This material also does not appear to be included in the online folder for rezoning ZMA202300002. Take a look and see yourself.
Staff recommends approval for four reasons including consistent with the Crozet Master Plan and the provision of right of way for the Eastern Avenue connector project. Opponents have taken issue with the way that project is proceeding. An online petition has 470 signatures at publication. How many will speak tonight?
- Albemarle Supervisors briefed on alternate transportation funding mechanism, April 11, 2024
- Albemarle Supervisors briefed on procurement mechanism for Eastern Avenue, August 16, 2024
I’ll be certain to report what happens.
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 December 16, 2024 Week Ahead edition of the newsletter.
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