From the News Leader –

According to Frank, there are 45,000 people in the Waynesboro market area, which does not include Staunton or the western part of Augusta County, but does include places such as Ivy and Crozet. To make his point, Frank said that even though the Ivy exit on Interstate 64 is only five exits from U.S. 29 in Charlottesville, a shopping mecca, it’s easier and quicker for motorists to travel the I-64 corridor because of traffic congestion in Charlottesville. Another reason for the rise of heavy hitters like Wal-Mart, Starbucks, Martin’s Food Market, Lowe’s and Home Depot is that since 2004 1,151 new single-family lots have been approved in Waynesboro, Frank said, along with 3,000 new lots in Crozet. He attributed the growth to retirees and spillover from Charlottesville.

One of the best things about Crozet is Waynesboro. Home Depot, Lowe’s, Super WalMart (as distasteful as that may be) … the people are more friendly and the stores less crowded. Hopefully Waynesboro will learn from Charlotteville’s mistakes.