At the end of September, we were excited to see a press release from the City of Charlottesville announcing that the Safe Streets project would begin immediately with a trial at the first site on both of our proposals: the Belmont Bridge.
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 October 19, 2020: An important week for affordable housing
The community has called for more affordable housing, and several major projects are on the dockets at local meetings this week.
Creating a Digital Record – The Formation of Shenandoah National Park
Read about an effort to digitize the thousands of legal documents related to the condemnation of private land within eight counties for the creation of the Shenandoah National Park. The goal is to make all of the deed book records, court proceedings and individual condemnation case files publicly accessible and searchable via an online database. The effort will forever memorialize the sacrifice made by so many, for the creation of a national resource we all enjoy today.
Week Ahead for October 12, 2020: Fifeville multi-family proposal, recycling buildings in Albemarle, and Greene to begin comp plan review
In the rhythm of our local government, the second full week of a month is usually a bit more slow. Yet, there are key meetings worth knowing about so you can listen to the discussions.
George Mason University students to survey Roundabout Meadows vegetation
George Mason University plant ecology students are helping The Piedmont Environmental Council measure the success of our wetlands restoration effort at Roundabout Meadows. With a grant from the Virginia Native Plant Society, the students are establishing a baseline dataset by collecting and identifying all plant species there.
PEC Requests Denial of Rezoning Request within the Germanna Wilderness Area Plan
The Orange County Planning Commission held a public hearing on Oct. 1, 2020 for a rezoning requested by Signature Series Development, LLC. The application would rezone a 75.8-acre parcel from ‘C-2 Conditional’ and ‘R-4 Conditional’ to ‘Planned Development – Mixed Use’ along Route 3 located in the Germanna Wilderness Area Plan.
Albemarle County Adopts Climate Action Plan
On October 7, 2020, the Albemarle County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to adopt its draft Climate Action Plan.
Online Event: Local Update for PEC Supporters in Loudoun County
Thank you to those of you who were able to join us for The Piedmont Environmental Council’s Zoom meeting, A Local Update for PEC Supporters in Loudoun County on Tuesday, September 29, 2020! While we certainly miss seeing folks face-to-face, we hope you enjoyed the online presentation and learned a little bit more about the things keeping us busy these days.
Week Ahead for October 5, 2020 (Alb/Cville/Greene)
Even at this moment of heightened uncertainty after seven months of the pandemic, local government in our area continues to move along under conditions that have shifted. This week features major meetings with items ranging from the climate action plan in Albemarle to a look at the many Council-appointed commissions in Charlottesville. Consider paying extra attention to local issues this week.
Support Conservation Funding and Programs
Thank legislators for supporting VLCF funding and remind them of the importance of all of our state conservation programs in 2021.