Week Ahead for October 6, 2025: Charlottesville City Council to consider $6.2 million purchase of office building for low-barrier homeless shelter
Plus: Fluvanna County's Planning Commission will hold public hearings on Tenaska's request for a permit to build a second gas-fueled electric power station
It is time once again for a round-up of items coming up at meetings of local and regional government in the area around Charlottesville. This particular edition is a little late, so I’ll dispense with the rhetorical placeholding and just tell you some highlights.
Charlottesville will begin the budget development process with a work session at 4 p.m. on Monday where they will get the first sense of what the FY2027 budget will look like.
Late in the evening, Council will consider spending about $8 million from previous surpluses including $6.2 million to buy 2000 Holiday Drive for use as a low-barrier homeless shelter.
Louisa County Supervisors will take a vote Monday on whether to move forward with a federal grant to hire additional firefighters.
Fluvanna County’s Planning Commission will hold public hearings Tuesday on a proposal to build a second natural gas electric-generation station.
The Greene County Board of Supervisors and the Planning Commission will take a bus ride around various developments on Thursday.
Thanks as always to the Piedmont Environmental Council for their weekly sponsorship of this newsletter!
Monday, October 6, 2025
Charlottesville City Council to consider purchase of 2000 Holiday Drive
Charlottesville City Manager Sam Sanders will present a budget for FY2027 five months from now in early March. Like last year, Council will kick off their process with an introduction at a 4 p.m. work session to be held in City Council Chambers. Here is my equivalent story from last year. (agenda)
The second item at the work session continues the budget development process with a deep dive into public safety with John Oprandy, the Emergency Management Coordinator hired earlier this year.
The third work session item is on the Charlottesville Area Alliance, a coalition of groups who seek to make the community “age-friendly.” According to the World Health Organization, that means one that “enables people of all ages to actively participate in community activities and treats everyone with respect, regardless of their age.”
The regular meeting begins at 6:30 p.m. with two proclamations.
October is Alzheimer’s Awareness Month and you can learn more here
October 15 is Support Your Local Chamber of Commerce Day
There are some items on the consent agenda worth noting.
One is the first of two readings of a $25,000 grant from the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development that will go to the Blue Ridge Coalition for the Homeless from the Virginia Housing Solutions Program (V.H.S.P.) Continuum of Care Balance of State Local Planning Group Capacity Building (C.B.) Program.
Another is first of two readings of a $275,000 payment from the Risk Management Fund to the Kokosing Construction Company. The city entered into a contract for the company to repair four bridges.
“During the course of the project, work was delayed on the 250 bypass over the Norfolk Southern Railway while the City sought additional funding from [the Virginia Department of Transportation] for additional repairs,” reads the staff report. “KCC submitted claims for costs allegedly caused by the delay.”
There is a lot of regular business on the agenda including a lease for Cultivate Charlottesville for a vacant lot on 210 8th Street NW where there are raised beds and accessory sheds. The rate for the first year is set at $1 for the first year with $450 for the second year. That’s the first public hearing. (learn more)
The second public hearing is a lease for the International Rescue Committee for the city-owned property at 410 Old Lynchburg Road.
“Since 2015, IRC has operated New Roots Farm at 410 Old Lynchburg Road, providing garden plots to over one-hundred (100) refugee and immigrant households over the past decade,” reads the staff report.
Next up is the first of two readings on the allocation of $7.95 million of contingency funds for three purposes including $6.2 million for the purchase of 2000 Holiday Drive for use as a low-barrier shelter. I wrote about that on Friday for C-Ville Weekly.
Another $1.5 million will be used to hire consultants to conduct two studies on behalf of the Department of Neighborhood Studies. One would be on environmental policy and the second would be on community mobility. Another $150,000 would be for renovations at City Hall to add more office space.
If agreed to by Council, there would be about $14.8 million left in the contingency fund. There’s a list of how this has been used in the packet which you can see here.
A public hearing for this expenditure will be held at Council’s next meeting on October 20.
The fourth item is renewal of a franchise agreement with Cogent Fiber LLC that has expired. The company is otherwise known as Sprint. (learn more)
Next is an ordinance for a temporary easement for the Rivanna Water and Sewer Authority for land at the city-owned Heyward Community Forest for the expansion of the pool area for the Ragged Mountain Reservoir. The RWSA needs additional land during construction.
“In exchange for the use of this area, RWSA has agreed that, upon completion of the Project, that its contractor will grade the site to create additional public parking to benefit both Ragged Mountain and Heyward Community Forest visitors,” reads the staff report.
Then Council will vote to approve a sales agreement for 2000 Holiday Drive.
“The Property consists of two (2) contiguous land parcels totaling approximately 3.8 acres of land and a building with 27,000 gross square feet,” reads the staff report. “The building has most recently been used as an office space accommodating over one-hundred (100) employees on site.”
The cost to renovate the site to be used as a low-barrier shelter is not yet known.
Under general business, Council will get an update on the Bennett’s Village Project. You can take a look at that report here.
Finally, Council will have another discussion of legislative priorities. I recently wrote up a summary on the first discussion from mid-September. Since then, the Planning Commission, the Human Rights Commission, and the city’s Office of Sustainability have refined their requests.
Louisa Supervisors to approve $1.7 million SAFER grant for hire nine firefighters
The seven members of the Louisa County Board of Supervisors will meet at 5 p.m. in the Louisa County Public Meeting Room. They start with a closed session for which the agenda does not have a stated reason. (meeting info)
There are some items on the consent agenda worth noting.
There is a request from Louisa County Fire and EMS to apply for a $200,000 grant from the Commonwealth of Virginia for a generator for the Betty Queen Center emergency shelter. (learn more)
There is a resolution to waive landfill tipping fees for the Fluvanna / Louisa Housing Foundation for a project they are building on Chalklevel Road. (learn more)
There is a resolution to award a contract to ProSeal pave the Louisa County Airport. (learn more)
There is a resolution to appropriate an Amazon community grant of $4,500 to the Louisa County Department of Parks and Recreation for the 21st Annual Fall Festival. That takes place on October 11 at Walton Park from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. (learn more)
There is a resolution to authorize Dominion Energy to operate an emergency medical service at the North Anna Power Station. This is a renewal of a service that’s been in place since 1988. (learn more).
There is a resolution to update the fee schedule for the landfills to include structural and non structural fill.
Under informational items there will be an update from the Louisa 4-H and a presentation from the Louisa Land Preservation Initiative titled “Options for Preserving Rural Lands.” Neither are available in advance.
There are two items under new business.
The first is an authorization of funding from the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s SAFER program to provide the initial money to hire firefighters. SAFER stands for Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response.
“The grant will provide 75 percent of all usual employee costs for the first two years and 35 percent of those costs for the third year of the three-year grant period, following which those costs are the responsibility of the governing body,” reads the staff report.
Albemarle County has used the program to hire dozens of new personnel and raised the real property tax rate this year to help pay for the new personnel. Albemarle Supervisors were briefed on how that’s going in May as I reported at the time.
The second is to appropriate $409,298.18 in funding for Fire and EMS through the Assistance to Firefighters Grant for Fire Equipment to purchase “replacement fire hose, turnout gear extractors, RIT Packs, and direct source vehicle exhaust filters.” Learn more here.
There are no public hearings.
Albemarle ARB to review proposed amendments to Rio29 form based code
The Albemarle Architectural Review Board has two items on the agenda for a meeting that begins at 1 p.m. in Lane Auditorium. That’s in the county’s office building at 401 McIntire Road. (meeting info) (agenda)
A parody version of a famous Rolling Stones song could perhaps go like this: “I see a Fasmart and I want it to be black.” The owners of the convenience store at 1248 Crozet Avenue want to revise the exterior and that’s the main idea behind their plans. There’s also the idea to add “Nichiha panels” but staff is recommending that idea be discarded.
Since September 2001, the Rio29 Form-Base Code has been in place as an optional zoning district to encourage density to satisfy the goals of the Comprehensive Plan and the Places29 Master Plan.
“Unlike traditional zoning districts that focus on land use, the Rio29 FBC emphasizes building form – specifically, the shape, size, location, and design of buildings in relation to streets,” reads the staff report. “Buildings must be positioned close to streets and developments, include attractive and walkable sidewalks, and contribute to a connective bike network.”
The rules are now being reviewed as part of the zoning modernization that is currently underway. The ARB will take a look at proposed changes. Take a look at Engage Albemarle to learn more.
The Planning Commission will have a work session on November 18 and the Board of Supervisors will do so on December 10.
In other meetings:
The Albemarle Electoral Board will meet at 1 p.m. in Room C of the county’s office building at 1600 5th Street. This is another meeting “to prepare for the upcoming general election and to address personnel matters.” (learn more)
The Albemarle County Fire and Emergency Medical Services Committee will meet at 6:30 p.m. at 460 Stagecoach Road, Suite F. They’ll discuss Tier 1 policies. (learn more)
Tuesday, October 7, 2025
Fluvanna Planning Commission to review request for Tenaska power plant
The Fluvanna County Planning Commission will meet at 6 p.m. in the Morris Room at the Fluvanna County Administration Building for a work session followed by a regular meeting at 7 p.m. in the Fluvanna County Circuit Court. The Board of Supervisors will also join the meeting. (meeting packet)
The work session will be on the Capital Improvements Plan. Departments asked for over $61 million in projects for FY2027 and a total of $106 million for the five years between FY2027 and FY2031.
There are four public hearings with the first three related to a request from Tenaska Power Generation LLC for a natural gas electric generating station with a capacity of 1,540 megawatts. The company already operates a similar facility next door.
“The growing market demand for reliable power in this region and the existing infrastructure in Fluvanna County have created an opportunity for Tenaska to bring additional investment to this community,” reads a FAQ from the company that was distributed at an August 14 community meeting.
The company claims the project will generate $247 million in local taxes over the first 30 years of operation.
The first public hearing is to amend the county code to amend the height regulations for power production plants to allow the Board of Supervisors to grant a special exception to exceed the 145 foot height limit. Tenaska needs a taller one due to new technology that has increased the size of turbines to be used. (learn more)
The second is to review the power station against the Comprehensive Plan to determine if it would be in accord as a “public utility facility.” (learn more)
The third is for a special user permit for the above. (learn more)
The fourth is for a request for a project called Zion South to rezone 182.6 acres of land on U.S. 15 from Agricultural to Industrial for future flex industrial space. (learn more)
Under new business is for a zoning text amendment to change the county’s rules to change data centers from a by-right use in industrial districts to one that requires a special use permit. (learn more)
In other meetings:
The University of Virginia Board of Visitors Presidential Search Committee will meet at 10 a.m. in the Boar’s Head for an additional meeting. The meeting will not be live-streamed and space for the public to attend is limited. (agenda)
The technical committee for the Charlottesville-Albemarle Metropolitan Planning Organization Policy Board will meet at 10 a.m. at 407 Water Street. (MPO page)
The Charlottesville Tree Commission meets at 5 p.m. in the Parks and Recreation Office in the Market Street Parking Garage. On the agenda are updates on the urban forest management plan, invasive plant control, tree planting in the city, and Downtown Mall Trees. Parks and Recreation will hold a walking tour of the streets on October 13 and October 22. (agenda)
The Charlottesville Electoral Board meets at 6 p.m. at 120 7th Street NE in Room 142.
The Nelson County Planning Commission will hold a special meeting at 7 p.m. in the former Board of Supervisors room at 84 Courthouse Square in Lovingston. The topic is “to review the zoning and subdivision ordinance updates” that are underway. Learn more about the process here. (meeting info).
Wednesday, October 8, 2025
A slow day but two meetings to list all the same.
In other meetings:
The James River Water Authority will meet at 9 a.m. in the Fluvanna County Administration Building at 132 Main Street in Palmyra. (learn more)
The Crozet Community Advisory Committee will meet at 7 p.m. in the Crozet Library at 2020 Library Avenue. The main item on the agenda is a resolution related to AC44. (agenda) (meeting info)
Thursday, October 9, 2025
Greene Supervisors to take a tour of development sites across the county
Greene County’s population doubled between 1990 and 2020 going from 10,297 to 20,552. The Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service at the University of Virginia projects that it will increase to 27,366 by 2050.
To get a snapshot of existing conditions, the Board of Supervisors and the Planning Commission have been invited by the Ruckersville Area Plan Committee to take a guided tour of nine developments. They’ll leave from the administration building at 4 p.m.
“Members of the public are invited to follow behind the bus and visit each site,” reads the agenda.
Cell tower in Louisa out of compliance with terms of 1994 permit
The Louisa County Planning Commission will meet at 7 p.m. They meet in the Louisa County Public Meeting Room. (agenda)
The first public hearing is for an amendment for a conditional use permit for a cell tower built by Southwestern Bell Mobile that was approved in 1994. One of the conditions of approval was that the permit for the tower could not be transferred to another owner.
“It has come to Staff’s attention that the tower operator and landowner has changed over the years,” reads the staff report. “The requested updates to the Conditional Use Permit would allow the tower to remain in operation.”
At the time, a Comprehensive Plan review was not conducted so that will take place at this time.
The second public hearing is a rezoning of the Christopher Run Campground which opened in 1973. The land was originally farmland but became shoreland as Lake Anna was constructed and the property owners built a picnic shelter and boatramp.
“However, they decided to make the best of things and built a small picnic shelter and boat ramp in preparation for the coming lake,” reads the company’s website. “When Hurricane Agnes filled the lake in 1972, their picnic area and boat launch were put to use by friends and family. The public soon noticed the boat ramp and would ask to use it.”
However, the land is not zoned for this use, but the campground is what’s known as a “legally nonconforming use.”
The land is currently split between agricultural and residential zoning and the landowner is requesting a zoning to Commercial 2 to allow for Recreational Vehicle sales and service. As part of the conditions, they are stating that they give up several potential business types that could be allowed under the district.
In other meetings:
The Albemarle Electoral Board will hold their monthly meeting at 9:30 a.m. in Room C of the county’s office building at 1600 5th Street. (learn more)
The Albemarle Conservation Easement Authority will meet at 4:45 p.m. in Room 235 of the county’s office building at 401 McIntire Road. The agenda is not available at publication time. (learn more)
The Charlottesville Redevelopment and Housing Authority’s Board of Commissioners has a work session scheduled for 6 p.m. in City Council Chambers. No agenda is available. (learn more)
The Charlottesville Police Civilian Oversight Board is scheduled to meet in the Neighborhood Development Services Conference Room at 6:30 p.m. There is no information available in advance. (meeting info)
Friday, October 10, 2025
Charlottesville Historic Resources Committee to meet
Charlottesville’s Historic Resources Committee meets at 10 a.m. in the Neighborhood Development Services conference room in City Hall.
There will be an update from Beloved Community Cville, a review of Historical Surveys, and an update on the 50th anniversary of the Downtown Mall. There will also be a discussion of the Liberty Bell, potential corrections to a historic marker for Monticello and a discussion of plaques for City Schools. (agenda)