Santa is Coming! Santa is Coming! And Other Holiday Events in Crozet – 2010

3 DecemberToy Lift at Great Valu – 10am – 7pm

4 DecemberSanta is coming to Trailside Coffee.

11 DecemberChristmas Parade at 3pm

From a commenter:

Santa Claus is coming to Crozet. The Crozet Volunteer Fire Department’s Annual Christmas Parade is approacing very quickly and we are all very excited!! The Parade will run from Wayland Drive, Crozet Avenue and end at Crozet Park where Santa will greet children of all ages. We will sell hotdogs, chips and bottled water! No invitation needed to participate in the parade. Line up will begin at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday, December 11th on Wayland Drive and the parade will start at 3:00 p.m.! Hope to see everyone there!

11 DecemberInnisfree Village Holiday Open House – wreath-making workshop, crafts for sale, children’s activities and more!

18 DecemberHoliday Cookie Decorating and Christmas Story Reading! At Crozet Mudhouse

Santa is Coming! Santa is Coming!

How Many Residents in Old Trail Walk to School?

I’m just curious. With so many families and rooftops in Old Trail, and it being less than a 30 minute walk, how many kids in Old Trail walk to school?

The above is a question that I am asked frequently when I am working with buyer clients who are considering buying homes in Old Trail.

This isn’t a slam on Old Trail, but a question to which I’d love an answer.

I would love to see a story about the restrictions that Western Albemarle, Brownsville and Henley place on walking to school … from someone who has the time to investigate such things. I know whom to talk to and have the story outline, but don’t have the time.

More kids should walk to school.

See the map? It’s not that far! Is a mile and a half really too far for an able-bodied kid (or parent!) to walk? Sure there aren’t sidewalks, but I don’t think anyone would be harmed by walking on the path that has started to be worn into the grass.

Every day that I drive through Old Trail, I see several kids waiting at the Old Trail Town Center for the bus.

As of September of last year, there were 129 kids who attended Brownsville Elementary that lived less than two miles to school. I’d bet quite a few of these are in the Old Trail neighborhood.

And here’s the thing – I know that the schools have prohibitions against kids walking to school (schools, jump in and correct me if I’m wrong) but if parents stepped up and advocated for their kids’ rights and their rights as parents to allow their kids to walk to school, the schools would have to listen.

Have a look at some the the population/density/walkability data yourself.


View Larger Map

I’d be interested in seeing more “walking the walk” – it’s one thing to walk around one’s neighborhood; it’s another to exercise that option beyond. Continue reading “How Many Residents in Old Trail Walk to School?”

Pictures with Santa + Help the Toy Lift = Win

We all win.

Trailside Coffee and Angie Brement Photography again will be offering Pictures with Santa Saturday, December 4th, 10 am – 2pm at Trailside Coffee, located in the Old Trail Village Center. Like last year’s event, this charity effort will benefit the Toy Lift. Families bringing children for pictures with Santa are asked to bring a toy or make a donation ($10 suggested) to the Kids Lift Foundation (http://www.kidslift.org/). If a family chooses not to make a donation, they may also take their own pictures with Santa.

Swimming in Crozet – Part 1 – Old Trail Pool

Old Trail Pool

The newest addition to Crozet – Old Trail Pool. Open to the public.*

The Old Trail Village pool, surrounded by breathtaking views of the Blue Ridge Mountains and Old Trail Golf Club course, incorporates features to entice all users of all abilities:

  • Zero-depth walk-in beach entry and expanses of walkable submersion
  • Plenty of room for 25-meter lap swimming
  • A 12-foot diving well for the more adventurous
  • A wading pool with fountains (for our young ones or those wishing a more restrained pool experience)
  • An enclosed area for protecting small ones.

RATES for 2010

$600 Family (household)

$400 Couple/Two-person (household)

$300 Individual

Continue reading “Swimming in Crozet – Part 1 – Old Trail Pool”

Black Bears Hanging Around Old Trail

From a reader:

My husband and I just moved to Crozet this March and enjoy your blog. We just moved into our house that is close to the trail connecting Wayland’s Grant with Old trails. In the past two weeks we’ve had about 4 bear sightings on this path. I called the local game warden and was told they will move on when there is no food – I am not sure where/what food source they have found here. I’m also not sure how many bears are around, but just this past friday (4/2), we took this picture of a little cub in our driveway. I’ve told our neighbors, but it might be good to let all the people who use the trail that this bear/s hasn’t moved on yet! No signs yet of a mam bear, but I am pretty sure the bear I saw from the distance wasn’t a cub so I think there is more than one.

Black Bear in Old Trail

And when I asked permission to post:

You can definitely post, I think it is a good idea to let people know and so they can secure any trash or food they may have outside- The first sighting was by my sitter when she took my son for a walk on 3/24. Then my sister and I saw another bear in the same area (this is in the Creekside neighborhood on the trail that goes behind the homes) on 3/28. I thought the bear/s had moved on but this photo is from 4/2 and in our yard instead of on the trail.

Update 7 April 2010The Newsplex saw the story here and then did what reporters do – interviewed a bunch of people and discovered it’s an orphaned bear.

People are on the lookout for an orphaned bear cub in Crozet. It seems the furry creature is creating quite a stir in the Old Trail subdivision.

People are being told not to pet the bear or go near it, even though it’s a tiny cub, only about forty pounds. The bear has become a fixture in the western Albemarle County development.

“When I left that day it was right at the edge drinking,” says Sandra Terrell. The nanny was taking ten-month-old Sammy for a stroll in the neighborhood when she heard a loud noise.

“Something went running across the bushes. I thought it was a fat cat, but when I looked over at the tree it was a baby bear,” says Terrell.

She says it’s the same bear Sammy’s parents saw in their driveway just days ago.

“I startled it, and it startled us, and when I looked over there, the bear was hugging the tree and turned and looked at me,” says Terrell. The Newsplex has learned the bear is an orphan yearling. It’s too old to be considered a cub, and too young to be out on its own. The bear’s parents likely died, forcing it to fend for itself.

Someone Needs to Fix the Morning Lights at WAHS

Gingergermani says on Twitter:

Seriously, the light at WAHS is the worst timed light ever.

From a reader:

Have you noticed how screwed up the lights have gotten at WAHS and Henley? Seems they have been reprogrammed to “rest” where it is green for WAHS. Do you have any contacts at the County that we could point this out to? I thought originally that this had to do with Old Trail, but that is not the case as Old Trail’s direction still “rests” red.

This photo is from last Wednesday morning sitting at Old Trail trying to get to Western Albemarle High School –

Whoever is manning the intersection at WAHS needs to wake up

The traffic in the mornings in front of Western Albemarle High School, Henley Middle and Brownsville Elementary School varies from abominable to irresponsible.

Someone, please, Fix It.