July 25, 2024: Redevelopment of 1193 Seminole Trail as mixed-use project with 165 apartments gets support from Albemarle Planning Commission
Another look at the real estate market through a review of recent price drops
My memory seems to remember that when I was younger, the concept of Christmas in July was more prevalent than it is now. Thinking about this on July 25, 2024, I wonder why other holidays don’t have an echo elsewhere on the calendar.
Perhaps one day there will be a year when all of the important days get scrambled. Imagine, Valentine’s in the fall, Labor Day on the first day of Spring, and Flag Day could go just about anywhere. Personally, I’d like a different birthday in a different season just once.
This is all theoretical, but don’t fret. In Virginia, Saturday is recognized by the General Assembly as National Day of the Cowboy. I’m Sean Tubbs, wondering if you’re ready to giddy up?
In today’s installment:
Albemarle County clears the way to ask for federal funding to cover some of the costs of connecting a portion of Southwood to public water and sewer
The Albemarle Planning Commission recommends approval of a rezoning for up to 165 units at 1193 Seminole Trail just north of the Charlottesville border
Another look at price drops in Albemarle and Charlottesville’s real estate market
First-shout: Rivanna River Forest Health & Resilience Project
Have you ever noticed a tree or an entire forest smothered in vines and wondered what is going on? It’s likely that an invasive species has taken over and tree health is in danger. Several groups in our community are doing what they can to push back pockets of invasives, but a partnership is working this summer to take a broader look.
The Rivanna River Forest Health and Resilience Project is funded through the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation. The idea is to improve the ecology along the urban Rivanna River through planting of native trees and identifying high-risk spots. The scope is the five miles of waterway from the confluence of the North Fork and South Fork down to Moores Creek. Led by the Rivanna Conservation Alliance, this summer will see the creation of forest resilience management plans for three urban parks.
To learn more, visit the Rivanna Conservation Alliance website at rivannariver.org.
Albemarle finds no environmental impact for federally-funded Southwood utility work
Albemarle County has issued a statement that claims there are no further environmental reviews necessary for a project to install new sewer infrastructure in the second phase of the redevelopment of the Southwood Mobile Home Park.
“This project will involve the replacement of failing septic systems serving the existing mobile homes with new water and sewer infrastructure, which will serve a total of 59 newly constructed single-family homes,” reads a public notice published in Tuesday’s Charlottesville Daily Progress.
Of those, 33 will be designated as affordable and 26 are market-rate homes. The Albemarle County Service Authority will accept the new infrastructure as part of the overall system.
The official advertisement in the newspaper of record is required by two actions. First, the county is seeking a Community Development Block Grant from the U.S. Department and must notify the public of the request for $2,723,500 in federal funds. The second is a “finding of no significant impact” or FONSI that makes the claim that an environmental impact statement is not needed.
Members of the public have until August 8, 2024 to submit comments but the public notice puts restrictions on what basis a possible denial would be heard.
“Potential objectors should contact HUD: Richmond Field Office to verify the actual last day of the objection period,” reads the notice.
Albemarle Planning Commission recommends rezoning for 165 units at 1193 Seminole Trail
A basic tenet behind Albemarle’s Comprehensive Plan is that residential density is to be in designated growth areas allowing for the majority of land in the county to be conserved for a variety of purposes.
On Tuesday, July 23, 2024, the Albemarle County Planning Commission recommended approval of a rezoning at 1193 Seminole Trail that would allow up to 165 dwelling units and 10,000 square feet of commercial space.
Several commissioners lamented the project was not as intense as one they had seen in October 2022 at a preliminary discussion when 275 units were proposed.
“I’m disappointed,” said Commissioner Julian Bivins of the Jack Jouett District. “I’m disappointed in what the building looks like today.”
The property is the southernmost lot in Albemarle County on the eastern side of U.S. 29. Just to the north is a new Wawa on Greenbrier Drive and just to the south is a parcel in the City of Charlottesville that is also slated for redevelopment. (See also: Two apartment complexes planned for either side of Albemarle/ Charlottesville border, Sean Tubbs, C-Ville Weekly, July 24, 2024
The applicant is Up Campus Properties and they are seeking a rezoning from Commercial-1 to the Neighborhood Model District as well as special exception to allow only a single unit type. The NMD requires at least two and the Board of Supervisors will make that decision.
The plan was submitted before new rules went into effect in Albemarle under Housing Albemarle that require twenty percent of units created in a rezoning or special use permit to be designated as affordable. The old rules were for 15 percent of the units reserved for 80 percent of the area median income.
“So if they built out to that 165 dwelling unit maximum, that would yield 25 affordable units,” said Cameron Langille, a principal planner in the planning division of the Albemarle Department of Community Development.
The property does not yet have any identified vehicular connections except to U.S. 29. The proposal does build a portion of infrastructure called for in the county’s Comprehensive Plan.
“The proposal is going to be providing a ten foot wide shared use path along the property frontage which is recommended by the Places29 Master Plan,” Langille said.
Langille added that the application shows a location where there could be an interconnection to a neighboring parcel that could be discussed at the site plan. The property owner would need an easement.
“At this time nothing has really been secured or locked down on that,” Langille said.
The application would see two retail buildings constructed on U.S. 29 with the residential structure to the east.
The density proposed is in excess of the upper ranges of the Comprehensive Plan adopted in 2015, and at an October 2022 work session, members of the Planning Commission said this location was exactly where density should be.
“We definitely felt that the density was appropriate and that we could potentially go even higher,” said At-Large Planning Commissioner Luis Carrazana.
Valerie Long with Williams Mullen represented Up Campus Properties and she explained the reasons for the less intense project.
“The challenge as you may well imagine or know is the extreme cost for structured parking,” Long said. “The cost of parking continues to go up even since we submitted the application. The construction costs increased. Interest rates rose substantially.”
Long said the original idea was to have an interconnection to the new Wawa to the north but an arrangement has fallen through. That means an emergency access point for fire and rescue could not be created to allow for a taller building.
“We are very hopeful that eventually we will be able to work with the owners of the parcel to the east and have at a bare minimum a pedestrian bike connection, ideally a vehicular connection as well, but just the timing,” Long said. “None of the parties at this time are able to commit to that process.”
That parcel to the east is owned by the Virginia Institute of Autism for overflow parking for its building on Hillsdale Drive.
David Dies, executive vice president at Up Campus Properties, said negotiations with VIA are still underway, but he mentioned the parcel to the south.
“We have a fairly decent relationship with the brownfields next door and the folks who own the Hibachi Grille,” Dies said. “That property is being marketed and I think we would be able to work out some kind of access.”
A final site plan for 1185 Seminole Trail is under review by the City of Charlottesville’s Department of Neighborhood Development Services for 250 units. There has been no coordination between the city and the county on the two parcels and there is nothing in statute or practice to compel any discussion between the two independent entities.
The only speaker during the public hearing was Rob McGinniss of the Piedmont Environmental Council who argued that the county should have a task force to facilitate urban design to talk about issues such as easements, interconnection, and parking.
The Planning Commission voted to recommend approval with some members still wishing more could have been done to bring forward a bigger project.
Carrazana said he thought the proposal was a step backward from what the Commission saw in 2022. He said he would have liked to have seen a parking structure anyway as this is a location where Albemarle can support density.
“I know that you are the first of a high density project on that side of U.S. 29,” Carrazana said. “It would start to set the tone for what could come in the future and these are the types of sites that we want to maximize in order to preserve the growth areas.”
Dies explained why the parking deck ended up not being viable.
“It’s literally a math problem because the parking deck has to be so wide,” Dies said.
Dies said the inability to guarantee an easement to the Wawa parcel meant the geometry changed and their layout had to be changed to include fire access.
“On top of that, the cost of the parking deck just makes it not a feasible project,” Dies said.
Dies said anything over five stories needs to move to steel or concrete which would increase the construction costs further. Carrazana said he understood but still would like to see a seven or eight story building. There was a back and forth for a while on this topic that touched upon building materials and topography.
Just before their vote, Commissioners indicated their support for the rezoning but several lamented that the project was not taking more advantage of the space. Chair Fred Missel explained why that might have happened.
“We don’t have a window into the financial model of developers and that provides a little bit of a challenge for us,” Missel said.
Missel said he appreciated seeing a higher density at the preliminary meeting, and hoped that would send a signal to other developers. This and the special exception will go on to the
One of the principals behind Up Campus Properties is Stephen Bus, who once represented Campus Acquisitions Holdings when they sought permission from the City of Charlottesville for the student housing apartment building now known as the Lark on West Main Street. Bus is also involved in the property being developed at 2117 Ivy Road.
The public hearing with the Board of Supervisors has not been scheduled.
Second-shout out: Charlottesville E-bike Lending Library
In today’s second Patreon-fueled shout-out: The rolling topography of the Charlottesville area keeps some people away from choosing cycling as an option to get around. Perhaps an e-bike is in order?
That’s where Charlottesville’s eBike Lending Library comes in! E-bikes are a great way to get around the community but there are many brands and styles to choose from. Because many e-bikes are sold online, it can be a challenge to try an e-bike before buying one.
The Charlottesville E-bike Lending Library is a free, not-for-profit service working to expand access to e-bikes in the area. They have a small collection of e-bikes that they lend out to community members for up to a week, for free. You can experience your daily commute, go grocery shopping, or even bike your kids to school, and decide whether e-bikes are right for you. Check out this service at https://www.ebikelibrarycville.org.
Another look at price drops in a slower market than previous years
I am not an expert in real estate. I want to know more about how property transactions work in a community where there is so much happening. One of the sources of information I receive are emails from Realtor.com alerting me to price drops. Periodically I go through these to see what’s happening and share with readers.
A reason I do this is that I’m looking ahead to the 2025 assessments. Spending in Albemarle and Charlottesville has increased in part because of additional resources created by a few years of rising assessments. Will that be the case the next time budgets are developed?
Three notes. All entries assume 2024 is the year. It also gets tedious to keep saying “view listing” in the parenthetical link so I change it up a little for my own amusement. These are in chronological order, so if there’s no date listed for the drop in an entry, the date is roughly around the time of the ones above and below
So, here we go. No trends, no analysis. Just an anecdotal look.
On July 1, the asking price for 2251 Fowler Circle in the Belvedere neighborhood in Albemarle County was lowered an additional $15,900 to $559,000. The structure was built in 2022 and has a 2024 assessment of $513,000. (here is the listing)
On July 1, the asking price for 1805 Meadowbrook Heights Road in Charlottesville was lowered $15,000 to $685,000. The 2024 assessment for the four bedroom house is $628,900. (click for the listing)
On July 2, the asking price for 964 Devon Spring Court in the Redfields subdivision had its asking price dropped $10,005 to $439,995. The 2024 assessment is $407,000. (know the listing)
On July 3, the list price for a three bedroom townhouse at 1253 Clifden Grn in the Riverrun community was lowered $25,100 to $349,900. The 2024 assessment is $337,100. “Grn” is how its spelled in GIS and the listing. (go to the listing)
Another townhouse in Riverrun had its asking price dropped $5,000 to $320,000. This is for a two bedroom unit at 768 Merion Greene. The 2024 assessment is $269,200. (link to the listing)
A three bedroom house at 2111 Tarleton Drive had its asking price lowered $30,900 to $499,000. That’s below the 2024 assessment of $526,700 and just above the 2023 assessment of $496,400. (learn more)
Now for a higher-end anecdote. A seven bedroom, 17,000 square foot house at 621 Woodlands Road had its asking price reduced $2 million to $9.5 million. According to GIS, there are seven properties totaling about 140 acres and they have a combined assessment of $7.93 million. (view more)
A three bedroom house at 424 Carrsbrook Drive was listed at $550,000 in early June and has been lowered to $540,000 and then again to $519,000. An email sent out on July 7 dropped the asking price to $515,000. The 2024 assessment remains at $454,200. (glean more)
A three bedroom townhouse at 119 Blithe Court in the Birnam Wood subdivision had its listing price dropped $14,000 to $535,000. The 2024 assessment is $450,900. (read more)
The asking price for a two bedroom townhouse in the Liberty Hall condominiums in Crozet went down $10,000 to $325,000. The 2024 assessment is $269,000. (inspect more)
In late May, 1036 Locust Avenue in Charlottesville was listed at $1.025 million but the price dropped to $995,000 in early June. On July 10, an email announced the further reduction to $985,000. The 2024 assessment is $882,800. This is a four bedroom house. (discern more)
A four bedroom house at 1801 Wickham Place in Crozet was reduced $10,000 to $565,000. The 2024 assessment is $539,500. (more here)
Around July 10, a four bedroom house at 1158 Farrow Drive in Belvedere had its asking price lowered $4,300 to $955,000. This was lowered another $10,000 on July 23. The 2024 assessment is $714,100. (behold the listing)
On July 11, a three bedroom house at 1476 Wickham Pond Drive in Crozet had its listing price dropped $9,100 to $519,900. In late June, the price had been lowered $9,900 to $529,000. The 2024 assessment is $515,100. (observe the listing)
On July 13, a three bedroom house at 210 Georgetown Road had its listing price dropped $5,000 to $535,000. The split-level ranch built in 1965 has a 2024 assessment of $356,900. (gaze upon the listing)
On July 16, a one bedroom apartment in the Gleason with 900 square feet had its asking price dropped $10,000 to $595,000. The 2024 assessment is $559,900. (go to more)
Also on July 16, a vacant lot at 1418 Hampton Street had its asking price lowered $150,000 to $325,000. For some background, a couple bought the property in February 2023 and demolished the existing structure. They were issued a building permit to construct a duplex according to city permits. However, the listing advertises a “blank canvas [that] awaits your creative touch.” The 0.18 acre property is assessed in 2024 at $170,200. (want more?)
A four bedroom house at 883 Locust Avenue was reduced in price by $20,000 to $949,900 on July 18. The 2024 assessment is $775,800. (educate yourself here)
A three bedroom house at 761 Ridge Street was lowered in price by $5,000 to $355,000 on July 18. The house was built in 1994. The 2024 assessment is $293,900. (go look)
A four bedroom house at 3140 Horizon Road in the new section of Southwood had its list price reduced $9,900 to $650,000. The 2024 assessment is $507,200. The first owner after Southern Development built the house purchased it for $627,663 on June 23, 2023. (learn here)
There’s a further price drop of $10,000 for 3101 Martin Kings Road to $489,000 that was sent out on July 18. In mid-June the four bedroom house on 3.53 acres was $529,000 and I missed one of the reductions. The assessment in 2024 is $451,600. (gander at the listing)
A four bedroom townhouse at 4537 Berwyn Lane in Spring Hill Village had its list price lowered by $21,900 to $478,000. The 2024 assessment is $428,600. This was also in the July 18 email. (ver listagem)
Also on July 18, the asking price for a four bedroom house at 120 Lankford Avenue in Charlottesville was lowered by another $5,000 to $414,900. The 2024 assessment is $307,600 for the house and the 0.43 acre lot. The property last sold in September 2019 for $235,000. (lista megtekintése)
Also a week ago, the list price for 927 Michie Tavern was reduced $20,000 to $1.47 million. This is a six bedroom house built in 1974 that borders the only portion of the City of Charlottesville that extends south of I-64. The 2024 assessment is $912,100. (pogledajte listu)
A three bedroom townhouse built in 2014 at 2126 Avinity Loop was reduced by $6,000 to $469,000 on July 18. The 2024 assessment is $438,200. (visualizzare l'elenco)
A two bedroom house at 1304 Poplar Street was reduced in price $15,100 to $399,900. The 2024 assessment is $381,400. This was in the July 19 email. (vedere l'elenco)
In a city concerned about preserving affordability, the Orangedale section of the Fifeville neighborhood is one to watch. For every nonprofit seeking to provide an affordable rental or unit for sale, there’s another entity looking to maximize profit. The owners of 731 Orangedale Avenue, a three bedroom single-family attached, lowered the asking price by $25,500 to $349,500 on July 19. This unit has a 2024 assessment of $249,800. This is in the Residential Neighborhood A zoning which has fewer development rights than most of the city. (vai a vedere)
On July 23, a three bedroom townhouse at 2082 Elm Tree Court in the Briarwood neighborhood in Albemarle County had its asking price lowered $7,000 to $408,000. The 2024 assessment is $374,700. (voglio sapere di più?)
Also on July 23, a three bedroom house at 223 4th Street SW in Charlottesville had its price reduced $25,900 to $599,000. The 2024 assessment is $376,000. This is also an RN-A zoned property. (leggere l'elenco)
A two bedroom single-family attached house at 31 Creekside Drive n Mill Creek had its asking price lowered $10,000 to $359,900. The 2024 assessment is $341,200. (fare clic per ulteriori informazioni)
A three bedroom house at 1915 English Oaks Circle North in the Forest Lakes South neighborhood had its price dropped $15,000 to $425,000. That’s just above the 2024 assessment of $423,700. (guarda)
In the final listing for this edition, a two bedroom house at 1700 Monticello Road was reduced on July 24 $49,000 to $750,000. This 0.41 acre lot is zoned Residential-B and has a 2024 assessment of $406,800. It has been on the market for over 500 days according to the listing. (saperne di più)
Reading material for #709
Youngkin speaks about energy plan ahead of update in coming weeks, Charlie Paullin, Virginia Mercury, July 20, 2024
The Battle Over the Dewberry Name: A Deep Dive into Dewberry Group Inc. v. Dewberry Engineers, Sharon Urias, Lexology, July 23, 2024
Terry's Run added to swimming advisory, Sharra Klug, CBS19, July 24, 2024
Two apartment complexes planned for either side of Albemarle/ Charlottesville border, Sean Tubbs, C-Ville Weekly, July 24, 2024
Is #709 too late?
Perhaps I take liberties with some of the boring continuity in the newsletter. When there are very long lists of property information, I feel some need to get creative when some of the tasks are so repetitive. So some of that is above. I may regret it, but I had fun in the hours I took to do that work.
But the real question is whether this edition was sent out too late? This summer I’ve been trying to get these posted earlier in the day. But now that it is mostly done (except the podcast) I find there’s no way I can wait until morning to send it out. So, out it goes.
The segment on 1193 Seminole Trail will be in a podcast catch-up edition and on WTJU. As soon as I hit send on this, I’m going to get to work on the next newsletter which I hope to get back on track.
Thanks to paid subscribers and the three new people this week! I much appreciate it, and anyone who wants there to be more of these should appreciate this, too. When I wonder if maybe it’s time to go work at a Denny’s, there’s nothing like a new paid subscription to force me to work harder.
If you’d like to join them, Ting will match your first subscription whether it be at the $5 a month level, $50 a year level or $200 a year level. The latter will get you two shout-outs a month. It’s a bit of an innovative way to fund my work and I’m grateful to Ting for the opportunity which has been underway since sometime in 2021.
In return, I tell you that Ting can help you with your high speed Internet needs. If service is available in your area and you sign up for service, enter the promo code COMMUNITY and you will get:
Free installation
A second month for free
A $75 gift card to the Downtown Mall
