In this installment, I draw your attention to the many links to Information Charlottesville that contain links to stories I’ve written in the past several years. Most come from the regular edition of this newsletter, which exists to increase awareness of what’s coming up at local meetings and to write down a lot of what has happened.
Our Region
PEC focuses on nine counties and one city in the northern Piedmont of Virginia: Albemarle, Charlottesville, Clarke, Culpeper, Fauquier, Greene, Loudoun, Madison, Orange, and Rappahannock.
We also team with local organizations to promote thriving communities and healthy natural resources in a much larger region, including the Shenandoah Valley, the central Piedmont, and the Journey Through Hallowed Ground Corridor. In addition, we are proud to serve as fiscal sponsor of the Coalition for Smarter Growth, an organization that focuses on land use and policy in the greater Washington D.C. area.
Week Ahead for April 24, 2023: Budget public hearings in Albemarle and Greene; Greene Supervisors to consider emergency communications tower
This may or may not be a slow week.
Questions Swirl Around Data Centers – How Many, Where and at What Cost?
Although DEQ’s proposed variance for data center diesel generator has been pulled, the underlying issue remains: Is this continued boom in data center development sustainable?
Video: Gilberts Corner Regional Park: A Conservation Success Story
Over 300 acres of land is conserved around Gilberts Corner, where Rt. 15 and Rt. 50 meet. The Piedmont Environmental Council has been working with NOVA Parks for over a decade to permanently protect the land there through conservation easements, while also opening significant parts of it up for the public to use. The results of this work are evident to anyone driving by and will be for generations to come.
PEC in Albemarle & Charlottesville – A Local Approach
From soaring mountaintops high on the Blue Ridge to the bustling Downtown Mall, Albemarle County and the City of Charlottesville are rich with beauty, history and life.
Decision Time Nears for Wilderness Crossing Rezoning
On April 6, the Planning Commission voted 3-2 to recommend approval of the project. The decision now rests with the Board of Supervisors, which will hold its own public hearing on the proposed Wilderness Crossing rezoning on April 25.
Piedmont Environmental Council Statement on Department of Environmental Quality Variance Withdrawal
The Virginia Department of Environmental Equality’s withdrawal of its proposed variance that would have allowed data centers to circumvent Virginia’s air pollution control regulations limiting the use of heavily polluting, industrial sized, emergency diesel generators is a step in the right direction, and although we’d like to think it’s an indication that DEQ recognizes its waiver would be harmful to human health and the environment, the DEQ notice unfortunately makes it clear that the agency has done the right thing for the wrong reason.
Week Ahead for April 10, 2023: Charlottesville’s FY24 budget continues to grow; Eight-story building proposed for 1709 JPA
The primary reason this newsletter exists is to make it easier for people to learn what’s happening in local government. One of the main tools at my disposal is to provide direct links to meeting agendas of various meetings.
Week Ahead for April 3, 2023: Large solar project to go before Albemarle Supervisors; Charlottesville City Council to consider $5M grant to CRHA for Dogwood Properties
This is one of those weeks where being a single-person information provider hits against the harsh reality of also being a human being and family member. I had to attend to other business on Sunday, when this newsletter is usually put together. The end of that era has now approached, so I am hopeful to get back to my usual routine shortly.
Planning Commission Defers Vote on Wilderness Crossing to April 6
Thank you to everyone who attended last Thursday’s public hearing on Wilderness Crossing.