Some highlights for this week:

• Someone wants to bring back the Fork Union Drive-In and the Fluvanna County Planning Commission will weigh in Tuesday.
• Albemarle County’s Planning Commission will get an update Tuesday on housing policies from county staff.
• Charlottesville’s Planning Commission will consider two special exceptions for a 24 unit apartment complex on Barracks Road
• Greene County Supervisors on Tuesday will hold a public hearing on employee bonuses
• Nelson County Supervisors on Tuesday will consider assigning the Berkley Group the task of creating an overlay district for the Route 151 corridor
• Louisa County’s Planning Commission will have a work session Thursday on allowing homeless shelters as a condition use permit

Places29-Hydraulic Committee to discuss security at Albemarle County Public Schools

The designated growth areas in Albemarle County each come with a community advisory committee intended to serve as a venue for discussions about implementation of various master plans.

The Places29 Master Plan covers an area so large that a decision was made to split it into three groups. One of them covers the Hydraulic Area and this group will meet at 5:30 p.m. in Journey Middle School in the Media Center at 210 Lambs Lane. (agenda) (meeting info)

The main item on this meeting is a presentation from Ralph Bradley, director of Albemarle County Public Schools School Safety and Security.

“The Office of School Safety and Security works to increase awareness; train and empower students and staff members to be responsible participants in effective security and safety practices; and develop the essential skills necessary to successfully navigate life experiences and employ those skills when needed to ensure personal wellness and safety,” reads the website.

There’s no advance material available for this item.

In other meetings:

• The Albemarle Board of Equalization will meet at 8:30 a.m. in Lane Auditorium in the county’s office building at 401 McIntire Road. There’s no agenda available in advance. (learn more)
• Albemarle’s Fire EMS Executive Committee will meet at the Albemarle County Fire Rescue headquarters at 460 Stagecoach Road. They will continue a discussion about a mutual aid policy. (meeting info) (agenda)
• The Economic Development Authority of Fluvanna County will meet at 5 p.m. in the Morris Room at the county administration building at 132 Main Street. There will be a discussion of the mission statement. (agenda)

Tuesday, June 10, 2025

Greene County Board of Supervisors to hold public hearing on bonuses

The five members of the Greene County Board of Supervisors will meet at 5:30 p.m. for a closed session followed by an open session at 6:30 p.m.

What will the closed session be about? The citation listed in the agenda packet is vague. It just says “Matters pursuant to Section 2.2-3711 (a, 1-7) of the Code of Virginia.”

The first item after public comment will be a public hearing regarding an ordinance for employee bonuses pursuant to §15.2-1508 of Virginia Code. There’s no staff report but a resolution. From that we learn that Governor Glenn Youngkin amended the state budget to provide for a 1.5 percent bonus for eligible state employees.

“There are Greene County departments that are staffed by employees whose salaries are funded by state funds and employees whose salaries are funded with county funds,” reads one paragraph.

“The different funding methods make some county employees eligible for the one-time bonus given by the state, while other employees doing the same job are ineligible,” reads another.

“This bonus given by the state will create inequalities within county department,” reads another.

The minutes from the May 27, 2025 meeting indicate the same kind of tension among elected officials as exists in other Virginia localities such as the City of Lynchburg. Here’s a section from the public comment portion:

“At-Large Supervisor Francis McGuigan addressed the Board as a private citizen to discuss what he said was a verbal attack at the May 13, 2025, by Chairman Steve Catalano. Mr. McGuigan explained his Facebook post about the potential policy of purchasing development rights from landowners to preserve the rural character of the County. He clarified his use of the pen name Greene Sentinal and the legal basis for it. He requested a public apology and further expressed concerns about the chairman’s behavior that he feels threatens First Amendment rights.”

The consent agenda contains some hefty action items:

• There is a resolution to adopt the Move Safely Blue Ridge Comprehensive Safety Action Plan. (learn more)
• There is a resolution to accept and appropriate $193,495 in state funds for school resource officers.(learn more)
• There is a ratification of a contract renewal with Davenport and Company to serve as financial advisor for water infrastructure projects. (learn more)
• There is a resolution to approve participation in the Thomas Jefferson Planning District Commission’s five-year update of the Regional Hazard Mitigation Plan. (learn more)

Greene County Supervisors will return on June 24, 2025.

Nelson Supervisors to consider paying Berkley Group more to create Route 151 overlay district

The five members (well, likely just four members) of the Nelson County Board of Supervisors will meet at 2 p.m. in the General District Courtroom in the Courthouse in Lovingston. (agenda packet)

The consent agenda contains a resolution to adopt the Move Safely Blue Ridge Comprehensive Safety Action Plan (learn more) and another to pay the Berkley Group $2,410 for work to add an overlay district to the Route 151 corridor as part of work to craft a zoning update (learn more).

There will be four presentations. A fifth had been scheduled by the Albemarle Charlottesville Regional Jail regarding permanent financing for the renovation project, but all bids came in over budget. While not on the agenda, there is additional material from Superintendent Martin Kumar who said next steps will be to reduce the scope.

“The intent is to [get] the project within budget while preserving the core components of the project, such as focusing on inmate housing in the original 1975 portion, HVAC, visitation area, ADA compliance, mental health housing and complying with the updated building codes to the degree possible,” Kumar wrote in a June 3 email.

The remaining presentations are from the Virginia Department of Transportation, the Department of Public Works, on Virginia Resources Authority financing for the new social services building, and water and sewer rates for the Piney River area.

There are five items under new and unfinished business.

• There’s an authorization to hold a public hearing on July 8, 2025, on reporting for the Transient Occupancy Tax. (learn more)
• There’s an authorization to hold a public hearing on July 8, 2025, on business license requirements. (learn more)
• There’s an adoption for a policy to govern county vehicles. (learn more)
• There is a request from the Roseland Rescue Squad for an interest free loan of $40,000 to purchase air conditioning units for their building. (learn more)
• There will be an adoption of the FY2026 budget as well as the budget appropriation. (learn more)

There is a closed meeting for personnel matters.

There is no evening meeting this time around. The Nelson County Board of Supervisors will next meet on June 25 for a joint work session with the Planning Commission.

Albemarle Planning Commission to get update on county’s affordable housing efforts

Albemarle County Planning Commission will devote their entire June 10 meeting to affordable housing and an update on a policy adopted by the Board of Supervisors in July 2021. They meet in Lane Auditorium of the county’s office building at 401 McIntire Road. (meeting info) (agenda) (presentation)

The first dozen slides in the presentation provide a background on the definitions of affordability before providing information about what Albemarle has done.

There are 12 objectives in the Housing Albemarle Plan with 93 strategies and action steps. Of these, 20 have been implemented, 43 are in progress, and 30 have not been started yet. I hope to write about this, but I’ve not been able to write up the Board of Supervisors’ May 21 discussion on the Affordable Housing Investment Fund. There’s so much to write about and so little time.

Fluvanna PC to review permit request to reopen Fork Union Drive-In

The Fluvanna County Planning Commission will meet at 7 p.m. in the Morris Room of the county administration building at 132 Main Street in Palmyra. (agenda packet)

There will be a resolution related to a rezoning request from BHL Group / Fluvanna County before a public hearing. This particular request is to rezone just over 36 acres of county-owned land from Agricultural-1 to Industrial-1.

“A rezoning of this property would serve two purposes,” reads the staff report. “Further the County’s efforts for economic development in Zion Crossroads area, andadvance the site to a higher Site Characterization Tier Level under the Virginia Business Ready Sites Program.”

Other public hearings include a special use permit for the Fork Union Drive-In and one to amend the zoning code related to the definition of solid waste.

The Fork Union Drive-In closed in 2011 and now there is an attempt to re-open it. The permit is required to be approved again.

“The renovation includes a new bathroom building with facilities for four men and seven women, an upgraded concession stand, a new digital movie system and screen, and additional sound and light barriers along Winnsville Drive as needed,” reads the staff report.

There is a review of a site development plan for the Fork Union Fire Training building. (learn more)

Under unfinished business there is to be an update on the Comprehensive Plan review, an update on the status of food trucks, and an update on various community meetings being held.

Charlottesville Planning Commission to take up 2030 Barracks Road

The adoption of a new Development Code in Charlottesville lightened the workload of the city’s Planning Commission. Previously the appointed body would hold public hearings for rezonings and special use permits, but that happens less often now that such requests are rare. There have been at least two times in the last year and a half where there wasn’t enough for them to do so meetings were canceled.

The June 10 meeting has not been canceled. After a series of reports, the director of Neighborhood Development Services will present a work plan for the second half of the calendar year. Among the long list of stories I have not written is the Planning Commission’s review of how NDS wants to update the zoning.

One thing the work plan must anticipate is a new requirement that localities provide comments to development applications within 21 days, down from 30 days. That has to happen at a time when everyone is still learning the new rules and new intake and permitting software.

Other highlights from the NDS work plan.

• The small area plans for the 10th and Page neighborhood and the Rose Hill neighborhood are now to be “vision plans.” The planning process is supposed to kick off this summer.
• Work is to be undertaken on the Charlottesville design guidelines to study existing districts and “balance Comp Plan goals for housing and historic resources.” This work takes place in an era when a developer seeking the demolition of 1301 Wertland Street did not appear before the Board of Architectural Review. Instead the company is appealing to Council staying that new housing outweighs historic preservation. (read a recent story)
• The city is going to hire a consultant to come up with a Comprehensive Transportation Plan. A lawsuit against the development code argues that the city did not comply with state law by providing a thorough review in advance.

I’ll write up this discussion in order to preview when it goes to Council on June 16.

On the consent agenda is an item of the kind that will no longer go to the Planning Commission in the future under new state law. The Planning Commission will sign off on a major subdivision of the Seminole Square Shopping Center. This is to reconfigure three existing lots. A final site plan is under review. Two new public streets would be created. This story needs an update.

On the actual agenda are two actions related to 2030 Barracks Road. One is a critical slopes special exception and the other is a special exception to allow the structures to not face a primary face on Barracks Road.

“We would like to waive the primary street-facing entry standards as this site condition is unique compared to other properties in the zoning district since the existing topography involves critical slopes related to the diameter of the entryway to the site,” reads a letter from Shimp Engineering requesting the exception.

Under the old zoning, the property was zoned R-1 but is Residential-B under the new rules. The developer, Greenshire Holdings, has filed plans to subdivide the lot into two in order to place two 12-unit apartment buildings. That level of density is allowed by-right, but the Planning Commission has to make a recommendation to Council on special exceptions.

There is no public hearing requirement.

Staff recommends denial of both special exceptions. The staff report makes no mention of the hearing held by the Board of Zoning Appeals about an administrative modification. I’ve got a story on that here.

Wednesday, June 11, 2025

Louisa County lists a “neighborhood meeting” happening at 4 p.m. at the county office building at 1 Woolfolk Avenue in Louisa. There’s no other information and that’s the only meeting I see. (meeting info)

Thursday, June 12, 2025

Louisa PC to review draft zoning change to allow churches to seek permits to operate homeless shelters

The Louisa County Planning Commission will hold a work session at 5 p.m. followed by a regular meeting at 7 p.m. (work session info)

One of the biggest issues of our times is providing shelter to people who do not have a place to live. Earlier this year, a coalition in Louisa County petitioned the Planning Commission to consider a zoning amendment to allow for churches to host emergency shelters without additional permission. I wrote a story about this for C-Ville Weekly.

The Planning Commission’s work session will go through suggested language changes to allow for churches to apply for a conditional use permit to operate a shelter. These include a definition of a homeless shelter, a separation from daycare and child-centered uses, requirements for supervision, and intake and screening requirements.

This item is not on the regular agenda.

There are three public hearings on the regular agenda. (regular agenda packet)

• The first is for a conditional use permit for Louisa Properties sought by Shimp Engineering for equipment sales and rentals including a new 4,000 square foot building. (learn more)
• The second is for a conditional use permit for Builders Cabinet Company to for “Custom Manufacturing” and “Contractor’s Office and Shop.” (learn more)
• The third is for a conditional use permit for a natural gas unloading station in order to expand an existing Compressor Station. (learn more)

In other meetings:

• The Albemarle Charlottesville Regional Jail Authority will meet at noon in the Muster Room at the jail. Meeting materials were not available at publication time, but I suspect they will be here.
• The Fluvanna Board of Equalization will meet at 1 p.m. Unlike Albemarle County and Charlottesville, the individual cases are listed on the agenda. (agenda)
• The Albemarle County School Board will meet at 5:30 p.m. in Lane Auditorium. The “agenda “has not been approved for public viewing” at publication time. (placeholder)
• Charlottesville’s Police Civilian Oversight Board will meet at 6:30 p.m. in CitySpace. There is no agenda available at publication time. (agenda info)

Friday, June 13, 2025

Charlottesville Historic Resources Committee will meet

Most Fridays do not have an entry, but once a month the Charlottesville Historic Resources Committee holds a meeting. They do so at 10 a.m. in the Neighborhood Development Services conference room in City Hall. (agenda)

This time around they will discuss planning for the 50th anniversary of the Downtown Mall next year, updates from the Bike and Pedestrian Advisory Committee, social media for the Historic Resources Committee, and a reprint of the map for a downtown walking tour. There will also be a discussion of the digitization of From Porch Swings to Patios, a 1990 oral history conducted by the City of Charlottesville.

There will also be a review of the work plan for city preservation staff as well as collaborations with the public schools.

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This post was contributed by Sean Tubbs. Sean is a journalist working to build a new information and news outlet centered around Charlottesville and Virginia. In 2020, he launched a daily newscast and newsletter and also created a semi-regular podcast on the pandemic.

Support for Sean’s “Week Ahead” update comes from The Piedmont Environmental Council.