The end is in sight. And by “end”, I mean “getting a cup of coffee and sitting by the fireplace in Trailside Coffee.”
Field School to Lease Old Crozet School?
This seems like a big win-win for the County of Albemarle and the Field School and a loss for Crozet Park, who have been leasing their space to the Field School.
The Daily Progress has the story:
Albemarle County officials have an idea about how to use the abandoned Old Crozet School: lease it to a private school and a nonprofit.
The Field School of Charlottesville, a middle school for boys, hopes to become a tenant, as does Old Crozet School Arts, a nonprofit that would offer classes in dance, visual arts, music, theater and other art forms.
What is your Vision for Crozet?
Start thinking about it, because the time to voice your opinion is around the corner.
From the Daily Progress:
Crozet residents will soon have a chance to weigh in on their concerns over growth in western Albemarle County.
One topic sure to emerge: the Crozet Master Plan’s estimate on the growth area’s long-term maximum population capacity.…
Although the board has approved major zoning to benefit the downtown area, officials said the economy has kept more new businesses from coming in. They hope the zoning and the other projects will boost the downtown area.Other areas in Crozet — including the Old Trail development and a segment of U.S. 250 where a new Harris Teeter grocery store is poised to open and other businesses already are in place — have seen a burst of retail activity. Some see that growth as a complement to downtown Crozet, while others fear it will siphon business from the village’s center.
Mallek said she hopes the revision process will help “take away a cloud that hangs over†the Master Plan. She said the questionnaire is just one of the first steps in deciding what changes need to be made.
“I think we’re going to get wonderful responses [from the questionnaire],†Mallek said. “The people in Crozet are very involved in how their community is going to be. We expect that to continue as we go through this process.â€
In the next six weeks, residents will be able to fill out the questionnaire online or on paper. They can pick up questionnaires, which will have 30 to 40 questions, at the Crozet Library or at a town hall meeting county officials plan to host next month.
My vision is a work in progress –
1 – Downtown Crozet is the hub of Crozet.
2 – Old Trail gets built out and becomes a vibrant part of the Crozet Community (this is a two-way street that requires effort and acceptance of Old Trail for Crozet and Crozet for Old Trail).
3 – We become a bike able and walkable community.
Twitter Weekly Updates for 2009-04-19
- Wish I could remember when the Crozet farmer’s market opens. #
- Anytime Fitness in Crozet now has ESPN! #
- @mudhousecoffee @justincbeck I don’t so much care about any other locations other than Crozet. Might you keep the Crozet account? #
- How long until there’s a traffic light in front of the Harris Teeter in Crozet? Once that happens, I’m fearful of lights’ proliferation #
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A Crozet Commuter Train?
From Charlottesville Tomorrow (read the whole thing) :
Encouraged by the reality of daily passenger service from Lynchburg to Washington, D.C., Albemarle County Supervisor Ann Mallek (White Hall) sought the full Board’s support for a feasibility study for daily commuter service from Crozet to Charlottesville. The Board agreed on April 1, 2009 to send a letter to Senator Mark Warner (D-VA) officially seeking grant opportunities to study the idea further.
The service is proposed to be run on rails operated by the Buckingham Branch Rail Road (BBRR) , according to Mallek. She has met with Charlottesville Mayor Dave Norris to discuss the idea with the railroad company’s officials. Buckingham Branch operates a railroad line that runs nearly 200 miles from Clifton Forge to Richmond on its Piedmont Branch.
The idea sprung up from a conversation between City resident John Pfaltz and Gale Wilson, the General Manager of the BBRR’s Richmond-Alleghany Division. Wilson identified three challenges, according to Pfaltz:
* Amtrak would need to sponsor the project and CSX, which owns the rail line, would need to approve the service
* CSX trains and Amtrak’s Cardinal service would take priority on the line
* Fencing would be required to keep pedestrians off of the track through Charlottesville
Pfaltz said the second item could be overcome by extending a “passing track” that currently exists in Ivy. This extra track would allow either the CSX train or the commuter train to park while the other train passes by. He estimates the start-up costs would be around $5 million.
(Hat Tip: C-Ville)
In a poll on RealCrozetVA last year, nearly 90% of respondents said that they would be willing to use rail service from Crozet to Charlottesville. About 60% of respondents said that they would be willing to pay less that five dollars each way –
The real challenge may lie in the answer to this question – what do you do when you get to Charlottesville? One idea is to have one of the rail cars be a bike car – then use bicycles to get around town.
Some studies have shown that properties close to transit are worth more …
Crozet Family Trying to Come Home
Gerard and Pauline Brikkenaar Van Dijk and their three children had to leave the United States because their visas ran out. Now, red tape and a clerical error are keeping them from returning to Crozet.
The family has been in the Dutch Antilles since October and hoped to return to Crozet, Virginia this week but don’t have the papers to get into the United States.
In a fax to Congressman Tom Perriello’s Charlottesville office, Mr. Brikkenaar Van Diik explains his family’s return was denied by the State Department in March because of a clerical error on the application.
Western Albemarle High School Welcomes New Principal
From the Henley Matters newsgroup:
Mr. David Francis was appointed principal of Western Albemarle High School. Mr. Francis currently serves as interim principal at Western Albemarle, and was a part-time assistant principal at the school since 2004. His administrative experience includes seven years as principal of Nelson County High, four years as principal of Mecklenburg County High, seven years as principal of Goochland County High, and one year as principal of Madison County High School. He also has seven years of classroom teaching experience. Mr. Francis holds a bachelor’s degree in history from West Virginia University, a Masters of Education in secondary education from Madison College and an Education Specialist degree in administration and supervision from the University of Virginia. Mr. Francis was selected from a pool of 30 internal and external candidates.
Waylands Grant Market Update
For those of you not aware, I recently joined Nest Realty. One of our core principles is that we intend to analyze – and write about – the Crozet and Charlottesville real estate markets more intensively than has previously been seen. For example:
However, 2009 may be a different story. With the town home and attached home market in Crozet slowing significantly, Waylands Grant hasn’t been immune to the slowdown. In fact, since January of 2008, there have been 10 different attached homes in the neighborhood that have been listed and either were withdrawn or expired. In that same time, only 2 have sold (one of which was a foreclosure) and 1 is currently under contract.
Until the market stabilizes and the amenities promised in Crozet (like the Crozet Library, the Downtown Crozet Streetscape Project, and the Jarmans Gap Road Expansion) actually start to get closer to coming to fruition, I expect that the attached home and town home market in Crozet will continue to suffer.
Harris Teeter Grand Opening – 6 May 8 O’clock AM
Countering previous rumors that they would be opening on 1 May, the Crozet Gazette says that the Harris Teeter will be opening on 6 May at 8 AM.
Goodbye Uncle Charlies, Hello Mudhouse
The rumor from January – “Rumor – Mudhouse coming to Crozet!” turns out to be true.
Candidly, my feelings are mixed – Crozet needs a good bar, but a good coffee shop as well. (Trailside Coffee is coming soon to Old Trail) Hopefully, this will lead to a continued resurgence of Downtown Crozet.