August 29, 2024: Alexandria firm seeks higher returns with purchase of Cavalier Crossing Apartments
Plus: The University Guide Service reports UVA has stopped their tours for the fall semester
Front 242 is a musical act from Belgium that has been active since 1981 when they formed to create arrangements with whatever electronic equipment existed at the time. August 29 is the 242nd edition of 2024 and perhaps this is the day to take a deep dive into Front 242’s extensive discography to see how their sound has evolved over the past several decades.
None of their music will be heard in this installment of Charlottesville Community Engagement but mostly because it’s a print-only edition. I’m Sean Tubbs, and I’ll be taking the plunge.
In today’s edition:
The University of Virginia suspends a long-running tour guide program for the fall semester and will continue to have interns perform the work instead
The Regional Transit Partnership votes to endorse creation of a Regional Transit Authority with one transit provider expressing skepticism
The Blue Ridge Health District wants your input on access to health care and other social determinants of health
An Alexandria-based investment firm has purchased a 21-year old Albemarle apartment complex and will convert the 144 units to ones that pay more rent
Three economic indicators from the U.S. Census Bureau
First-shout: Charlottesville Jazz Society to present Sharon Katz and the Peace Train
In today’s first subscriber supported public service announcement, the end of August is a great month to start a new habit of going out to see live music and perhaps you might try the jazz scene? If so, the Charlottesville Jazz Society has you covered with a schedule of upcoming events.
Perhaps Zuzu’s Hot 5 at Potter’s Craft Cider this Saturday?
But save the date for September 17 when the Charlottesville Jazz Society will welcome Sharon Katz and the Peace Train for their first visit to the community traveling from South Africa. They will perform at Unity of Charlottesville and offer a blend of South African rhythms, Cuban influences, and some soul jazz, coupled with topical lyrics about love and adversity.
Sadly last year the organization lost the ability to put out-of-town performers up for the night when the hotel that offered a sponsorship changed hands. So as 2024 year concludes, they’re seeking for new donors who might be willing to be Hotel Heroes to help continue the flow of talent who comes to Charlottesville to play. Visit cvillejazz.org to learn more!
UVA interns will lead admissions tours on Grounds this semester
A volunteer organization that provides tours of the University of Virginia is reporting that the school has suspended their ability to do so until a training plan is in place.
In an August 28 letter posted to Instagram, the leadership of University Guide Service stated they are not able to do either admissions or historical tours this fall.
“The justification for these suspensions is based on the Administration’s view that UGS is failing to fulfill its delegated functions, particularly in terms of reliability and tour quality,” write the two co-chairs and vice chairs. “In contrast, our own accountability measures—including tour feedback solicited from all admissions tours visitors—suggest that this is an incomplete view of our tours.”
The letter goes on to state that UGS is working with the Office of Undergraduate Admission to develop a training plan for volunteers who give admission tours, but there’s no plan in place yet for how UGS might be able to resume historical tours. Representatives say they will work with the administration but only up to a point.
“This will remain true as long as this relationship does not harm our ability to share an honest and complete account of UVA and its history,” the letter continues.
The Cavalier Daily is reporting reports that admissions tours will now be employed by student interns. Follow them for continuing coverage.
In a statement, the University of Virginia confirmed that interns will be used for this fall while a performance improvement plan is in place.
“The University has been in close contact with the student-led University Guide Service, or UGuides, over the past two academic years to address a trend of issues and concerns surrounding guide attendance and tour consistency, and to discuss plans for improvement,” said Bethanie Glover, deputy spokesperson for University Communications.
According to the Student Affairs website at UVA, the University Guide Service is a Special Status Organization which means work is performed that could be done by the school itself if it wanted.
“Students act as University agents and are covered by the University’s risk management plans in the performance of their delegated duties,” a description reads. “Students are required to maintain a close working relationship with a designated University advisor.”
Glover said the University Guide Service has a long tradition of providing tours.
“We are working with the UGuides on a performance improvement plan which will extend through the fall 2024 semester, reviewing the University's expectations for guide attendance and tour content and delivery,” Glover said.
In February 2023, the Cavalier Daily reported the content of text messages from one member of the Board of Visitors who has expressed criticism of the University Guide Service as well as the administration of President James Ryan. Bert Ellis would later apologize for the texts targeting UVA students according to a March 3, 2023 article in the Charlottesville Daily Progress.
Ellis is one of the co-founders of the Jefferson Council, an organization founded to is preserve “the legacy of Thomas Jefferson, the Lawn, the Honor Code, and the free exchange of competing ideas and intellectual diversity one would expect from Mr. Jefferson’s university.” The group’s blog has posted several articles critical of the work of the University Guide Service.
Ellis was in the first round of appointees made by Republican Governor Glenn Youngkin. Another four were made in 2023 and another five this year.
The Board of Visitors will next meet September 11 through September 13.
Transit partnership votes to transition to Regional Transit Authority
An advisory body created in 2017 to pave the way for an eventual government authority to expand public transit has endorsed a letter to elected officials asking them to finally create a long-planned entity.
“For more than 15 years, this community has talked about ‘what does regional transit governance look like?’” said Ann Wall, a deputy county executive in Albemarle County who serves on the Regional Transit Partnership.
The Thomas Jefferson Planning District Commission has twice led efforts to create an authority that could bring in more revenue and coordinate expansion across multiple political jurisdictions.
A previous effort in the late 2000’s was shelved in 2010 after the General Assembly allowed the creation of an authority but declined to allow a referendum to be held on a local sales tax to pay for expanded transit. The idea for the partnership stemmed from a regional coordination study from 2016.
“It was intended to really identify opportunities to improve communication, coordination, and collaboration on transit matters,” Wall said at the August 22 meeting of the Regional Transit Partnership formed as an interim measure. “It was identified in that study that the Regional Transit Partnership was intended to serve as a precursor to an authority.”
Take a look at the whole meeting:
Wall is a member of the working group of Albemarle, Charlottesville, and TJPDC staff have been meeting since March to craft by-laws to run the authority.
For now, only Albemarle and Charlottesville would be official members of what would go by the acronym CARTA. The RTA’s Board of Directors would initially consist of two Albemarle Supervisors, two Charlottesville City Councilors, and four non-voting members to be determined by the Board.
Other TJPDC counties would be allowed to join in the future if they wanted to do so.
There will be a presentation on the Regional Transit Authority at the joint meeting of the Charlottesville City Council and the Albemarle Board of Supervisors scheduled for September 17.
One of the tasks of the authority would be to begin to implement a vision for expanded transit that came out of a study overseen by the Thomas Jefferson Planning District Commission as well as a governance study. (view the vision) (See Also: Regional Transit Vision Plan nearing completion, November 2, 2022)
“The idea was to create an authority where we would collectively look at and address transit needs in the community and also at some point in the future to pursue collection action on a dedicated revenue source,” Wall said.
However, both bodies agree to create the body, Wall said it will not initially have any oversight or operational control over any of the existing transit agencies.
The director of Jaunt suggested that it may be premature to ask elected officials to create the authority given a lack of clarity about what kind of funding it might seek.
“When I see things even in the 2025/2026 plan about applying for grants, is that imagining that CARTA would ask for the [Department of Rail and Public Transportation] money instead of Jaunt?” said Mike Murphy, a former interim city manager and Jaunt Board Member who became the permanent CEO earlier this year.
Garland Williams, the director of Charlottesville Area Transit, said there are many models across the country where an umbrella organization pulls down money for multiple agencies.
“The authority then at that point is a partner because they are spending their money to get the additional services that they want without having to collapse,” Williams said. “But eventually I assume we all know that the region will function better if the organization was sharing resources at some point down the line.”
For instance, Williams said all of the agencies are currently struggling to hire and retain drivers. He supports establishing the authority to begin to move toward cooperation.
Murphy pointed out that he was not part of any of the previous discussions on regional transit until becoming Jaunt’s director in January. He served many years in Charlottesville government before serving as interim city manager from July 2018 to May 2019.
In February, the regional transit governance study produced by the firm AECOM was completed.
“The governance study was very specific to go ahead and activate CARTA through the legislation that was approved,” Wall said. “It’s actually a really good read. It identified communities that were similar and it talked about all these different models.”
Wall said the working group did not have conversations about what the model would be, but that would be the work of the authority’s board of directors.
The Board of the Partnership voted to endorse the letter.
What questions do you have about transit in the area?
Health initiative seeks input from the community
A coalition of area health organizations and medical providers have begun taking another look at the ability of local residents to access care.
“Assessing our community’s health is critical for understanding our community’s strengths and opportunities for improvement,” reads a description of the MAPP2Health program on the Virginia Department of Health’s website.
The Blue Ridge Health District, Sentara Martha Jefferson Hospital, and UVA Health are partnering to develop this latest community health assessment.
“We want to understand the health and health priorities of residents in the Blue Ridge Health District,” reads a purpose statement in the application. “Your participation in this survey will help us to plan and advocate for programs and services in your community.”
The MAPP2Health Community Health Assessment is expected to take a year and a half and begins with an anonymous survey available in both English and en español. The community engagement tool is open to anyone aged 18 and over in Albemarle, Charlottesville, Fluvanna, Greene, Louisa, and Nelson.
The effort will also include a series of focus groups in October “to gather deeper insights from community members.” Applications are available in English and en español.
A third level of community engagement is to ask for direct input from those in the health care field.
“We want to hear from leaders, staff members, and officials from organizations, coalitions, agencies, and community groups working directly with the community,” reads an email announcing the MAPP2Health input opportunities.
Previous reports have been produced in 2012, 2016, 2019, and 2022. The 2022 report has a special focus on the “social determinants of health.”
“The Social Determinants of Health are the underlying community-wide social and economic and physical conditions in which people are born, live, work, and age,” said Charlottesville Deputy City Manager for Social Ashley Marshall in a presentation to City Council back in June.
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Investment company seeks higher returns at Cavalier Crossing Apartments
The new owner of the 144-unit Cavalier Crossing in Albemarle County purchased the property in May in order to maximize returns for an “undervalued” asset.
“Cavalier Crossing will undergo a comprehensive renovation to upgrade unit interiors, amenities, and curb appeal,” reads an announcement of the purchase. “Bonaventure will enhance the existing amenity package which already includes a swimming pool, fitness center, basketball court, and volleyball court, to deliver an upscale community in a market where demand significantly outpaces supply.”
Charlottesville Tomorrow broke the news this week that existing tenants will not have their leases renewed. Seek out their ongoing coverage to follow that story more closely.
Bonaventure Multifamily Income Trust is an Alexandria-based investment firm that sees the purchase as a way to increase stable cash flows from investors who do not want to directly own or manage multifamily units. The company’s announcement describes the company as “an integrated alternative asset manager focused on the investment, development, construction, and management of innovative lifestyle multifamily communities in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions.”
In this case, Bonaventure will take advantage of a tax mechanism called a “1031 exchange” to postpone paying taxes on the sale of an $18 million interest in a 156-unit complex called Attain Downtown In Norfolk.
“[Internal Revenue Code] Section 1031 provides an exception and allows you to postpone paying tax on the gain if you reinvest the proceeds in similar property as part of a qualifying like-kind exchange,” reads a fact-sheet on the website of the Internal Revenue Service. “Gain deferred in a like-kind exchange under IRC Section 1031 is tax-deferred, but it is not tax-free.”
Bonaventure took the proceeds of the sale in Norfolk and used the firm Wahoo Way Investments to purchase Cavalier Crossings for $20.5 million in a deal that closed on May 10, 2024. The property last sold in September 2017 for $11,199,000.
Bonaventure, described as a perpetual investment fund, will continue to manage the Norfolk property because it still has a majority share of that development.
Cavalier Crossing was built in 2003 and is considered a garden apartment complex. When the first residents moved in, they were tenants of what was originally known as University Place. The 14.55 acre property is just to the south of Charlottesville’s Azalea Park but cut off by Interstate 64.
Bonaventure’s announcement about the 1031 exchange refers to Cavalier Crossing as an example of the kind of “undervalued or mismanaged” that the company seeks to invest in. They are moving swiftly to redevelop the property.
The announcement states clearly the intention of the 1031 exchange is to benefit investors by increasing revenues from property. Cavalier Crossing is touted as being in a market with high occupancy rates and relatively little new housing expected in the pipeline.
Albemarle Supervisors adopted a new housing plan in July 2021 which laid out a series of tasks to be worked on to keep people in their homes. Objective 4 in Housing Albemarle is for “Preservation of existing housing and communities” and Strategy 4F called for the “development and implementation of “an Anti-Displacement and Tenant Relocation Policy and associated guidelines.”
The current policy adopted by Albemarle Supervisors applies only to projects where the county has provided funding or made a land use decision to enable more housing. That’s according to Communications and Public Engagement director Abbey Stumpf.
According to a January 4, 2024 letter from Albemarle County to Joseph Hoskins of Bonaventure, the project is subject to a site development plan approved in April 2002 and that would have to be amended for any alterations.
So far, two building permits have been issued to the new owner.
One is for “interior renovation that includes removal of one bedroom and one bathroom from 12 apartment units as well as cosmetic interior upgrades.” This is at Building 10 and is valued at $358,554.
The other is for renovation at Building 1 that includes unit upgrades and a wall removal. This is valued at $346,500.
Work is underway on both units.
Three figures from the U.S. Census Bureau
Finally today, one of the purposes of Charlottesville Community Engagement is to try to learn more about how the world is measured. The United States government tracks all kinds of statistics that are seen as key indicators of how the economy is functioning. This morning the U.S. Census Bureau released three such figures.
“These data are widely used by private economists, corporations, trade associations, investment consultants and researchers for market analysis and economic forecasting; and by the news media in general business coverage and specialized commentary,” reads a description of the advance economic indicators.
The United States exported $172.9 billion worth of goods in July 2024 and imported $275.6 billion in goods, leaving an international trade deficit of $102.7 billion. The gap is up $6.1 billion over June 2024.
Advance Wholesale Inventories in July 2024 were measured at $904.9 billion, up 0.1 percent from June. This data comes from the the Monthly Wholesale Trade Survey.
Advance Retail inventories were at $811.4 billion at the end of July 2024, up 0.8 percent from June. This data comes from the Monthly Retail Trade Survey.
For more detail on what make up those numbers, take a look at the full press release on the U.S. Census Bureau’s website.
Reading material:
Some Chesapeake Bay goals won’t be reached by 2025, EPA says, Eliza Noe, Virginian-Pilot (via Charlottesville Daily Progress (paywall)), August 25, 2024
Aqua Virginia finishes water treatment facility, CBS19 News,
Project Julius to help Home Depot’s redevelopment of Fashion Square Mall, C-Ville Weekly, Sean Tubbs, August 28, 2024
#724 celebrates Front 242
The opening paragraph of each of these still exists as a way of getting myself ready to read the rest of the script for the rest of the program. For over three and a half years or so, the newsletter was tied to a podcast and they went out at the same time. Complexities related to audio production caused me to split the two products.
I wanted to be a musician when I was younger, but anything I did to support that interest ended up going toward the professional career I ended up with. I spent a lot of time making electronic music for fun, and I pick up a guitar and play music a lot, but those are personal pursuits that only sometimes end up in my public audio work.
I don’t think I know a single Front 242 track and that only got selected while I was looking to connect something to the numerical position August 29 has in 2024. I’m so happy for those strangers that they were able to create something using their imagination and hard work.
Charlottesville Community Engagement is the result of mine as I imagined my way into reporting, time and time again. I’m glad to have been able to make a steady living after all this work trying to prove myself. Thank you to paid subscribers, and if you’d like to become one, please remember Ting will match your initial payment.
This is an incredibly generous sponsorship, and if you sign up for service and you are within Ting’s service area, enter the promo code COMMUNITY you’re going to get:
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