January 20, 2026: Charlottesville Planning Commission gets a look at a tool to review cost of housing, effect of tax abatement
Plus: Virginia Humanities gets an investment from a local foundation
Today’s edition is sponsored by the Ragged Mountain Running and Walking Shop
Throughout human history there have always been disputes over how society should be organized and there will be further ones well into the future. On January 20, 1265, representatives of towns met as part of the English parliament in addition to Lords. This was a significant moment toward more democratic forms of government. Charlottesville Community Engagement is an attempt to describe some of what’s happening in municipal government 761 years later. I’m Sean Tubbs, and this is the closest I’ll come to having a TARDIS.
In this edition:
Albemarle Supervisors take a look at transportation projects moving forward the planning and design
Albemarle County is taking applications for funding through its housing trust
Charlottesville seeks projects to be funded through federal Community Development Block Grants
Virginia Humanities announces support from the Anne and Gene Worrell Foundation
The Charlottesville Planning Commission is briefed on a tool to measure the cost to build housing units as a way of figuring out how to increase the number of affordable units
First shout-out: Paul Giess and Untethered at Visible Records on January 29
The Charlottesville Jazz Society and WTJU are presenting another concert, this time at Visible Records at 1740 Broadway Street. Here’s a blurb from the latest Charlottesville Jazz Society newsletter.
Untethered, a collective formed by trumpeter Paul Giess in the summer of 2024, plays what the drummer Grant Calvin Weston dubs spontaneous creative composition. Their album “Grasping for the Moon” received critical acclaim and was featured as album of the day on Bandcamp in August, which wrote “the music is in constant flux, opening up and tightening, cooling down and catching fire, riding stasis and exploding with hyperactive motion.”
Through inventive and unpredictable improvisation, they display musical personalities that have range and depth, holding a deep pocketed funk next to chamber music-esque sound design. Intricate, profound and otherworldly, the ensemble’s inventive nature allows each performance to be a one-of-a-kind experience to resonate with their audiences. For this performance, Paul will be joined by drummer G. Calvin Weston and bassist Timothy Ragsdale.
Tickets to see Paul Giess and Untethered at Visible Records (1740 Broadway Street) are available online. General Admission is $20; $15 for Paid Supporters of CJS. Students pay $10. No one will be turned away for lack of funds. For more information visit Cvillejazz.org or call 434-249-6191.
Albemarle Supervisors begin 2026 with a transportation update
At their first regular business meeting of the year, the Albemarle Board of Supervisors got a snapshot of various transportation projects in the county ranging from what’s under construction to what’s still being planned.
Carrie Shepheard, resident engineer for the Virginia Department of Transportation’s Charlottesville residency, said some of the work going on now is part of a bundle of five projects rolled into one contract.
“The Route 240/250 roundabout and the Route 680 Brown’s Gap turnpike bridge replacement is underway,” Shepheard said. “Construction is also underway at the Old Lynchburg Road Fifth Street roundabout and construction plans are under review for the John Warner Parkway / Rio Road Road roundabout project and the Belvedere Green-T.”
This bundle also includes a roundabout at Route 20 and Route 53 down the hill from Piedmont Community Virginia College but those plans are still in the final design awaiting the right of way phase. The estimated cost for this bundle is $42.3 million according to a project website with more details on the five projects.
A second bundle involves a roundabout at Hydraulic Road and District Avenue, a shared use path on Fontaine Avenue, and a reconfiguration of the interchange of U.S. 29 and Fontaine Avenue. The Commonwealth Transportation Board awarded a nearly $31 million contract to Curtis Contracting on December 9, 2025. (project website)
This marks the first time a Smart Scale project awarded to the City of Charlottesville has gone to contract. The Fontaine Avenue Streetscape was one of three projects Charlottesville secured funding for in 2016 but failed to deliver. In recent years, city officials agreed to give up management of the project to VDOT in order to move it forward.
Supervisor Bea LaPisto-Kirtley of the Rivanna District noticed that the timeline to reconstruct the intersection of U.S. 250 and Route 20 on Pantops keeps shifting. The $22.4 million project is another Smart Scale funded initiative.
“That date’s been going back and forth, back and forth,” LaPisto-Kirtley said.
Shepheard said the project is in the right of way phase which involves a lot of talks with property owners about securing easements.
“Along that corridor, there are a lot of property owners that we need to get permission from so that’s what they’re working through right now,” Shepheard said. “I think it’s about 45 business owners.”
Some other transportation information.
Albemarle County secured funding in the fourth round of Smart Scale for a shared use path along U.S. 29 in Albemarle County. VDOT advertised the project for construction last year but all bids came in over the estimate. The project was re-advertised in November. (project website)
Bids for a park and ride lot at Interstate 64’s exit in Crozet have come in and will be opened on January 28. This was also funded through Smart Scale. (project website)
Shepheard said a project to extend Berkmar Drive northward to Airport Road will go to construction in the winter of 2027, likely in January 2028. The project website states Fall 2026.
Another Smart Scale funded project is to build a trail hub at 5th Street Station. That will go to advertisement in the spring. (project website)
There was no information about the Commonwealth Transportation Board’s award of $20 million for a county-led project to extend Boulders Road as part of the Rivanna
Albemarle taking applications for county housing funds
When the Albemarle County Board of Supervisors adopted a budget for FY2026, they approved an increase in the real property tax rate. A portion of the new revenue will now go directly into the Affordable Housing Investment fund, a fund that is periodically augmented by infusions of one-time money.
One of those additional amounts is a $3 million transfer that also came with the FY2026 budget.
Albemarle is now taking applications for projects that would like to use some of the funds for financing.
“Eligible projects can include new construction, rehabilitation, or conversion of properties within Albemarle County’s designated Development Areas that commit to long-term affordability, with at least 20 percent of units reserved as affordable housing,” reads an information release sent out on January 16.
The deadline to apply is January 31 and decisions will be made in the spring.
To learn more and apply, visit the county’s website.
Charlottesville accepting applications for federal housing funds
There are several ways that money flows from the federal government to localities and one of them is the Community Development Block Grant that comes from the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Another is HUD’s HOME Investment Partnership.
Charlottesville is taking applications from groups that believe they have a project that would qualify through February 7. Here is a very long sentence with a description.
“Through the CDBG and HOME programs, the City provides valuable financial and other programmatic support to a wide range of local partners that enable them to design and implement programs that foster vibrant and healthy communities through activities related to economic development, commercial and residential revitalization, affordable housing & other important public services and/or job creation,” reads an information release sent out January 5.
Would-be recipients must attend an in-person or virtual information session.
Wednesday, January 21, 1:30 PM — CitySpace
Wednesday, January 28, 1:30 PM — CitySpace
Wednesday, January 21, 7:00 - 8:00 PM — Virtual via MS Teams
Wednesday, January 28, 7:00 - 8:00 PM — Virtual via MS Teams
A city taskforce is charged with reviewing applications and there are currently four vacancies according to the city’s Boards and Commissions website. One is reserved for a resident of 10th and Page, one for a resident of Ridge Street, one appointed at-large, and a member of the City School Board.
The materials for the worksessions are available.
Virginia Humanities receives $300,000 for local programs
Last year, the Trump administration eliminated funding that had already been granted for humanities councils across the entire county. For Virginia Humanities, that mean an expected $1.7 million disappeared.
In response, the organization vacated their offices in the Dairy Market complex and reduced staff. The Mellon Foundation stepped in with some replacement funding but Virginia Humanities is still operating at a lower capacity.
Now a local foundation has come through with additional funding to support programs in the immediate region around Charlottesville. The Anne and Gene Worrell Foundation have provided $300,000 to support the Virginia Festival of the Book, the Virginia Folklife Apprenticeship program, and a grantmaking program.
“This investment by the Anne & Gene Worrell Foundation will support our work in Central Virginia to help inspire human connection and preserve the cultural richness that defines the region,” an information release quotes Matthew Gibson, executive director of Virginia Humanities. “The Foundation has been an incredibly generous partner in our efforts to expand and deepen cultural programs across Virginia.”
The funding will take effect in the fiscal year that begins on July 1.
Second-shout out: Tree Basics: Learn the herbal, elemental, and spiritual properties of Gingko, Sumac, and Willow
The Charlottesville Area Tree Stewards implement their mission to educate the public through a series of classes and January concludes with two ways you can learn about how to identify three different types of trees.
Tree Steward Amanda Williams will lead a Zoom presentation on January 28 on Gingko, Winged Sumac, and Black Willow. Participants will learn about these species’ native habitats, herbal actions and remedies, elemental energetics, and spiritual correspondences. Sign up here!
Three days later on January 31, Williams will follow-up with an in-person workshop at the Ivy Creek Natural Area on tea tasting and how to craft herbal remedies with Gingko, Sumac, and Willow. Registration is limited to 35 people so sign up today!
Learn more about Amanda Williams’ work here.
Charlottesville Planning Commission briefed on tax abatement, student housing review
A big theme for the Charlottesville City Council in 2026 will be continuing to tweak land use policies as the impact of the Cville Plans Together initiative begins to be measured.
To recap, the city hired the firm Rhodeside & Harwell in late 2019 to oversee a holistic reform of the rules for building. This included an affordable housing plan adopted in March 2021, a Comprehensive Plan adopted that November, and a new Development Code in December 2023.
There are two overarching questions.
What can the city do to incentivize developers to build units that are required by the new zoning code?
Should the City Council further adjust policies related to the placement of student housing complexes as well as increase the fees developers pay to avoid building those affordable units.
Let’s take the first first.
Resources:
April 2025 staff report on Charlottesville Affordable Housing Tax Abatement Program
Presentation from the January 13, 2026 Planning Commission meeting
In April 2025, Council got an initial presentation on a potential tool to be called the Charlottesville Affordable Housing Tax Abatement Program. Under such a program, developers who build affordable units would be reimbursed through a payment based on the additional tax revenue generated by the building.
A policy known as “inclusionary zoning” requires one in ten units to be designated as affordable to households below certain income thresholds for a period of 99 years.
“According to some claims and implications for particular sub-markets/areas of the City, this requirement is being deeply reviewed for any measurable financial constraints to developers, particularly in the rental market, where the gap between market rents and capped affordable rents impacts operational revenue and project feasibility,” reads the staff report for the April meeting.
The city hired the firm 3TP Ventures in June 2025 to model the tool and conduct further study of whether it would make a difference in getting the units built.
The firm’s Jeremy Goldstein told the Planning Commission that the development community is having a hard time seeing a profit in any developments, let alone one that would require affordable units.
“If you’re hearing from the local development community that it’s difficult to make projects work right now, this data concurs with that,” Goldstein said.
Goldstein said the abatement study is not intended to be a definitive answer but is part of an effort to better understand the costs of constructing places for people to live. Developers seeking funding from the government have to share their financial documents, but those seeking to build market-rate units do not.
“The more that private sector math is understood by those making public sector decisions, I think the better off we’re all going to be,” Goldstein said.
Under an abatement scheme, a property owner would pay the full property tax but could account for some of that revenue coming back in the form of a reimbursement.
Goldstein said the creation of a tool would allow for different variables to be updated as market conditions change.
“The cost of wood changes quickly,” Goldstein said. “The cost of steel changes quickly. Sometimes consultant fees change quickly. Time changes quickly.”
Other variables include the size of a unit as well as labor costs. Goldstein said inputs came from several in the community but there was not agreement on all of them.
“While we were able to sort of reach a reasonable consensus on construction costs, there just wasn’t a real consensus on land costs. I expect these numbers are very likely to change over time,” Goldstein said.
The tool also projects revenues to be collected by the project to cover costs. When everything is put together, this tool would allow staff to model different levels of abatement.
“Mostly what this thing is doing is it is giving users an opportunity to make selections about the development type in the sub-market, how many affordable units you’re supposed to have at various [Area Median Income] bands if you want, what kind of policies do you want to test,” Goldstein said.
Goldstein said tax abatement can work to help developers recoup their costs but won’t so entirely even at 100 percent. And if the abatement rate for a project is 100 percent, that means the city would bring in no revenue to cover the cost of providing services.
Ross Harness, a new Planning Commissioner appointed on January 12, said he appreciated having the analysis tool.
“I think it’s not necessarily the point of the study, but having this accessible can really help some people that may not understand how these work and be able to build themselves a model this way can really get in here,” Harness said.
Immediately after the 3TP presentation, Neighborhood Development Services Director Kellie Brown took the Planning Commission through the current scope of work for a proposed study on student housing. See the epilogue for why that story does not immediately flow from this paragraph.
Articles by other journalists you are encouraged to read next:
Dems advance several proposed constitutional amendments, Mark Gad, CBS19 News, January 16, 2026
School zone speed cameras issue nearly 11,000 fines in Albemarle County in 2025, Avery Davis, WVIR NBC29, January 16, 2026
Spanberger EO “gives new Governor the option” to end relationship between ICE and Virginia State Police, Brad Kutner, Radio IQ, January 17, 2026
Spanberger appoints new members to UVA Board of Visitors, Dan Schutte, CBS19 News, January 17, 2026
Habitat for Humanity ceremony honors new homeowners in Albemarle County, Kyndall Harrison, WVIR NBC29, January 18, 2026
Literacy Volunteers connect community members with English learning, Kyndall Harrison, WVIR NBC29, January 19, 2026
DCR funding to help Greene County with flood resilience planning process, CBS19 News, January 19, 2026
Report on U.Va. Health details alleged misconduct under Kent and Kibbe’s leadership, Cecilia Mould and Lauren Seeliger, Cavalier Daily, January 19, 2026
The #987 gambit is complete
This wasn’t the newsletter I intended. I had two other segments which were foiled by a technology error.
For instance, the intent was to have a story about the Planning Commission’s January 13 discussion of the student housing study, but technology I use is not cooperating with me. So it’s likely I won’t report on that but will instead do something with what Council has to say today.
I also wanted to get more information on Governor Abigail Spanberger’s executive orders, but may have to let that one go. I want to cover Virginia’s government as well, but paid subscribers do so because they know I’m looking at the local level.
It has been 30 years now since my first professional gig working as an intern at WVTF Public Radio. Will I still be working in 30 years from now? After all, my father worked up until about that time.
I can’t know that future, but I can now I’m grateful for the stability I have had to explore this kind of journalism. I know what I do may not always be for a wide audience, but what if it were? What if more people understood how government works? Understood the challenges of governance in a fracturing world?
In any case, I’m grateful for paid subscribers for helping me to keep this going.
I’m also grateful for the Claypool-Lennon Delirium which released a new song today and it doesn’t appear to be a cover of another song that likely would cause me to lose subscribers if they made it to the bottom.
I hope this makes someone else as happy as this made me when I heard it before sunrise!
This is such a solid breakdown of the affordability puzzle! Its really eye-opening how the tax abatement tool could help bridge that gap between what developers need and what the comunity needs for affordable units. I've watched similar struggles in other cities trying to make inclusionary zoning work without killing development entirely. The transparency around actual construction costs is a smart move.