Maybe. (as usual) CvilleTomorrow provides an outstanding summary of last night’s work session. Read the whole thing. Referring to Crozet Pizza and the neighboring businesses:All existing buildings would be demolished with this redevelopment proposal.Part of what makes “Crozet” is Crozet Pizza … what will Crozet look like without its foundations?
Another development in Crozet
Coming soon … Crozet Station: A conceptual redevelopment project located in Downtown Crozet along the north side of Three Notched Road from Route 240/Crozet Avenue to the Crozet Shopping Center parcel. The proposal is mixed use commercial and residential, including approximately 42,000 square feet of commercial and 72 residential units. This is a pre-application submittal scheduled for a work session with the Planning Commission on May 23 30, 2006. Staff contact is Rebecca Ragsdale. Via Albemarle.org. The sign has been there for some time announcing the impending development … go to the Planning Commission to learn more.
Crozet Community Association May meeting
There is no dearth of ways to get involved and learn more about the goings-on of Crozet. Mark your calendars for this Thursday at 7pm.Our May Crozet Community Association Meeting is this Thursday at 7:30 at the Firehouse. Please send me any items for the agenda you would like presented or discussed. At the moment we have these items: a report from the newly formed Crozet Advisory Committee of the Board of Supervisors; announcement of a new newspaper serving Western Albemarle; a paid job opening; and several other matters.A new newspaper in Western Albemarle?
More than 12,000 people in Crozet …
This outstanding report by Charlottesville Tomorrow shows what the County apparently is unable to accurately determine and/or admit to. While nobody can predict accurately the speed with which those homes will be built and occupied, it is news that County staff are bringing this to the attention of the Board. On paper, the twenty-year Crozet Master Plan approved in December 2004 has crossed the threshold of a population of 12,000 people.Go read the report, educate yourself and contact your representative in Albemarle County.
Crozet residents speak
But have they been heard?Charlottesville Tomorrow has the podcast.Members of the Crozet community appeared before the Albemarle County Board of Supervisors to deliver a petition signed by 1,316 area residents asking the County to not let Crozet’s population exceed 12,000 people. In this podcast, Charlottesville Tomorrow presents the public comments delivered in this portion of the Board’s meeting. Seven of the six speakers focused their remarks on the Crozet Master Plan.
“A Call to Arms”
Attempting to notify Crozetians the day before any action is too late.From the Crozet Community Association – We urgently need a number of people who can come to the Board of Supervisors’ Meeting, 9 A.M., Wednesday morning, March 1, at the County Office Building, room 241, on McIntire Road downtown. You will not have to speak; just be there to stand up and make the presence of Crozet felt…. Some of us will present the over 1100 signed petitions urging the BOS to respect the Master Plan and keep to the promised 12,000 buildout population. We have found using the County’s own figures that the current population including all the developments that have already been approved is over 11,000!… We have never agreed to the twenty year date; the 12,000 figure was the total build-out figure continuously quoted to us during the Master Planning period…. Or are they going to ignore the 12,000 figure and continue to make Crozet a population land-fill?… We need Crozet citizens and other concerned people to be there on Wednesday to support our contention that the BOS has to take control of the uncontrolled building taking place and STOP it now…. At the most recent Crozet “Town Hall,” he made a few seemingly prepared remarks but did not take public questions.
Crozet is in Waynesboro’s “market area”
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.
This pretty much sums it up
From today’s DP article by David Hendrick – Fabienne Swanson, manager of the nearby Fabulous Foods, also expressed guarded optimism about impending change.”I do have to say I’m looking forward to growth and some of the changes,” Swanson said. “I really hope they think about the roads before they allow all the growth.”If only they would listen to the people …
Crozet meeting tomorrow night
Albemarle County has updated their Crozet site. Check out the agenda for tomorrow, the infrastructure update and more. Based solely on the agenda, I think the County may be continuing the disconnect that currently exists. Is the planned population for Crozet 12,000 or 24,000? Without addressing this, I think that Crozetians are going to be less able/willing to move forward. Who wants to work with someone they don’t trust?
Crozet’s Master Plan petition
An effort is being made to request the County to review its Master Plan for Crozet. You can sign the petition here.The petition reads:Citizens of Crozet diligently worked thousands of hours over two years with Albemarle Count planners and and consultants to design a Master Plan that would create a Crozet of 12,000 residents. In good faith, Crozetians negotiated with Albemarle County leaders for a Master Plan in which the maximum population of Crozet was publicly and repeatedly projected at 12,000 total residents. This projection would quadruple the size of Crozet. Now the County says we have it wrong! The County says the plan calls for a population in the Crozet Growth Area as high as 24,000 residents! The want Crozet to grow to half the size of the City of Charlottesville.The County currently has a credibility problem. They certainly have some ‘splainin’ to do.