Places29-Rio Community Advisory Committee to review Burley Pointe project on U.S. 29

When the Places29 Master Plan was adopted in September 2011, there was originally only one advisory committee set up to make recommendations to the Albemarle Board of Supervisors.

However, the Board of Supervisors agreed to disband what had been called the Places29 Community Advisory Council at their final meeting of 2014. Three months later the body was split into three groups including the Places29-Rio Community Advisory Committee.

That group will meet at 6 p.m. in Room 235 of the county’s office building at 401 McIntire Road. (meeting info)

The main item on the agenda is the official community meeting for a rezoning sought for 1305 Seminole Trail, a project known as Burley Pointe. Here are two paragraphs from a story I wrote in July for C-Ville Weekly.

This spring, the Columbus, Ohio-based Woda Cooper Companies filed plans with Albemarle County for a rezoning to build just under a hundred affordable apartments right across the eight-lane highway.

“Burley Pointe will consist of 92 apartment units, with 16 one-bedroom, 48 two-bedroom, and 28 three-bedroom units in a single four-story elevator building,” reads a description of the project.

All of the materials for this project are available through Albemarle County’s development portal. The case number for the rezoning is ZMA-2025-00009. Navigate to the “attachments” section to download the documents.

“Burley Pointe will be 100 percent affordable, with compliance maintained through the Housing Tax Credit program administered through Virginia Housing,” reads a portion of the narrative.

One of those documents is the first comment letter sent to the development from staff. Here are some of the highlights:

• Staff note that the Places29 Master Plan call for a ten foot wide multiuse path along U.S. 29 and the initial proposal only shows a path that is five feet wide.
• Staff recommend showing a pedestrian connection to the property to the north.
• The project does meet the county’s requirements under Housing Albemarle to provide at least 20 percent of the units as affordable.
• Staff recommends the applicant take a deferral in order to address concerns about the project.

Before you go: The time to write and research of this article is covered by paid subscribers to Charlottesville Community Engagement. This particular story was posted in the August 24, 2025 Week Ahead edition. To ensure this research can be sustained, please consider becoming a paid subscriber or contributing monthly through Patreon.