Well, the Crozetians to commented on this Facebook post at least want infrastructure, greenspace, and more businesses.
So many of us want sidewalks. I’d add a request for wider, more welcoming, and inviting sidewalks that connect our neighborhoods and our communities.
I ask each of you to email our supervisor and CC the Board of Supervisors. We need to be the persistently squeaky wheels. Commenting on FB, Nextdoor, Bluesky, or here matters less than direct contact. Again. And Again. And Again.
If we want things, we need to work to get them — for years and years. Status quo depends on and encourages apathy.
What do you want in/for Crozet next year?
Picking and choosing a few of the comments from the post:
- Sidewalk or multiuse path the entire length of Three Notched Road. Real progress on Barnes Lumber area. And where the heck is that traffic circle at 240/250 Mechums trestle?
- Eastern Avenue south to 250
- Traffic calming measures on neighborhood streets. So our kids don’t get run over by the many drivers who treat our neighborhood streets like speedways.
- Sidewalks and trails connecting town with neighborhoods
- Fewer hideous monstrosities like what is being built on 250 and Miller School Rd. It is sooo incongruous with the surroundings. Ugh
- To turn back time……
- Less plans for unaffordable housing and more for the community that already lives here. Sidewalks. Community activities for children. More at the park that doesn’t revolve around alcohol. More that doesn’t revolve around alcohol in general
- Safe cycling option to get from Crozet to Cville and back (bike lane?)
- Change the traffic light in front of Western to a large roundabout. Either that or widen the intersection and entrance the school to include extra lanes – we need something to facilitate much smoother entrance in the mornings and afternoons because right now it’s a semi-controlled disaster
- Sidewalks and bike lanes making us less reliant on cars!
- Sidewalks. Everywhere. I have never lived anywhere that the children cannot walk to school. Crozet is very unwalkable considering how small the area is. Hopefully one day. And I would also like to see bike lanes.
- Sidewalks from Tabor along Park Road and past the park! I see so many children walking in the road.
- Bodos, Chandlers, more sidewalks, a reduced speed limit on Jarmans Gap Road from 40 to 25/30 like the rest of the road. No safe space for the many bikers and walkers after Greyrock to Lanetown intersection and now fully developed! Thx
- Sidewalks. All the sidewalks.
- Wish list-Fix the malfunction junction @ the 4-way stop and the Square. It’s awful and no one knows how to use a 4-way stop properly. Someone will get hurt soon, possibly a pedestrian. The 240/250 is even more unsafe, so any improvement with that would be appreciated . TY for asking and for all of the hard work to keep us safe & moving forward!
- Avoid car cenric planning. The best country in the world to drive in is one that prioritizes other forms of transportation like walking, cycling, and public transport: https://youtu.be/d8RRE2rDw4k
- Downtown Crozet plaza and successful small business growth/incentives to sustain the larger downtown area. And connected sidewalks & bike paths on 240, 250, down Crozet Ave, and around the Park
Here’s to a great 2025.
It is clear by what you write that you do not know what people living in this Growth Area want. Using FB as a basis all I can say is that you need more friends. To answer some of your points:
The new storage facility, since it will look like most of the tract housing that the migrants are living in, is a “hideous monstrosity”. If this is true that is what you people chose to live in. If you want sidewalks and connecting neighborhoods, bike paths, streetlights, and other parts of Urban living these are readily available in areas called cities. Go 20 miles east or west and you will find one. Man made trails are not nature trails and destroy natural areas. You are using the wrong words to describe what these people want. Children are not in danger when they play and most of you will again flee from this place when safety becomes a concern. The reason people are overpaying greatly to live here is demographics. They want an urban lifestyle without the urban fear that they are running from. They are trying to recreate what they left only with different faces. Why would you move to an area where your needs are not met expecting that all these things will be built for you? It is totally unreasonable to expect this and for Taxpayers like me to have to help fund it. Thankfully a majority of the newcomers are still just happy to be here. I do not understand why people that want an urban lifestyle do not just move to an urban area. You would save a lot of money and would not have so much to complain about…
“You are using the wrong words to describe what these people want”
You say I don’t know what people want; what do you think they are saying when they say they want sidewalks, bike lanes, better infrastructure, etc?
“If you want sidewalks and connecting neighborhoods, bike paths, streetlights, and other parts of Urban living these are readily available in areas called cities.”
Streetlights are bad. Dark skies are good. There is nothing wrong with wanting and working for connectivity between neighborhoods.
“Why would you move to an area where your needs are not met expecting that all these things will be built for you?”
Agree 100%. Expecting is irrational. Hoping for and working for change is reasonable.
“It is totally unreasonable to expect this and for Taxpayers like me to have to help fund it.”
“taxpayers like me” — we’re all part of the same society. Part of society is paying for infrastructure and improvements as well as fire, rescue, police, etc.
Crozet had an opportunity to be a truly walkable/bikeable urban area. Inertia got in the way.
This area has been pushed for growth for years. Some like it some don’t and I understand that. Clearly Mr. Duncan feels he can speak for the masses on his desire for more bike accessibility. The problem is it is not realistic nor should it be. We have many people who simply are not able to bike or walk.
Crozet was designated a growth area decades ago; this is where the growth is supposed to go.
1 – I absolutely acknowledge that some people are unable to walk or ride. I’m not advocating for banning cars and roads for cars (although that would be great!)
2 – Walking and riding is better:
– for the community – better human interconnectivity (how many times have you stopped to talk to a neighbor when you’re both driving cars? How many times when you’re both walking or riding?”
– for health
– for well being
– less sound sound pollution
– less pollution affecting people’s breathing and respiratory functions
– for businesses:
“1 – A 2016 study by the New York City Department of Transportation examined the impact of protected bike lanes and improved pedestrian infrastructure on retail sales. They found that businesses along streets with bike lanes and enhanced pedestrian access saw up to a 49% increase in retail sales compared to those on car-only corridors.
2 – Research published in Transport Reviews by Elizabeth Bent and Kristen Singa (2019) analyzed data from multiple cities and found that customers arriving by bike or foot visited retail establishments more frequently and spent more money per month than those arriving by car, despite spending less per visit. Businesses located along corridors with bike and pedestrian infrastructure saw average revenue increases of 20-30% compared to car-only locations (bolding mine)”