A key element of the city’s relatively new Development Code is the ability for a land owner to build significantly more housing on parcels of land without having to ask City Council for permission.
Though a Charlottesville Circuit Court judge temporarily put a pause on the new rules, the firm Shimp Engineering never stopped working on submissions that take advantage of the new development rights.
On Monday, the firm submitted a major development plan for 1906 Stadium Road directly across from Scott Stadium. An entity called Stadium Road Real Estate LLC paid $275,000 for the 0.166 acre property on July 27, 2023.
The land is zoned Residential Mixed Use 3 which allows for unlimited residential density as long as the building fits within approved guidelines. Here’s what page 27 of the Development Code has to say about this district and its cousin RX-5.
“A walkable neighborhood environment intended to accommodate a variety of housing options including duplexes, triplexes, fourplexes, and townhouses up to larger apartment complexes in Higher-Intensity Residential areas designated in the Comprehensive Plan, supporting and within walking distance of neighborhood-serving retail, food, and service uses,” reads the code.
While commercial use is possible in RX-3, it is not mandatory.
This plan calls for 16 residential units. A structure can be as high as five stories or 72 feet if the developer designates additional affordable units. If not, the building could be as tall as three stories of 44 feet.
Because of the code’s inclusionary zoning provisions, a minimum of ten percent of the units must be affordable.
The existing structure is a four bedroom house built in 1949. It would be demolished and replaced with a three story building that would be 62 feet wide.
The plan for 1906 Stadium Road is the third “major development plan” to be filed in October 2025. The others are for a student housing complex in the 200 block of 7th Street SW in Fifeville and the other is for Westhaven. I recently wrote about the latter for C-Ville Weekly.
I’ll write about the former’s appearance before the Board of Architectural Review in a future edition, but several people are calling for the City Council to reopen the zoning code to eliminate development rights granted under the new Development Code. Here’s a recent story.
Before you go: Paid subscribers cover the cost of conducting research for this article which was originally published in the October 28, 2025 edition edition of Charlottesville Community Engagement. You can either subscribe through Substack, make a monthly contribution through Patreon, or consider becoming a sponsor. Another way you can help is to share this article with people you might be interested. Thank you for reading!
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