November 22, 2024: Charlottesville’s BAR wants a Charlottesville-caliber design for proposed downtown hotel
Plus: The city’s parks and recreation department will close the John Warner Parkway trail briefly in December
An important thing about being human is the seemingly infinite diversity of ways to prepare food. Nearly two years ago, the Virginia General Assembly declared November 22 to be Kimchi Day. According to the resolution, kimchi is “a traditional dish consisting of salted and fermented vegetables [that] has been a staple of Korean cuisine and culture for thousands of years.” The resolution goes on to document the history of the dish which “originated in Korea during the early years of the Three Kingdoms period, between the 1st century B.C. and the 7th century A.D.”
This is Charlottesville Community Engagement for November 22. I’m Sean Tubbs, glad to be a part of all of this.
In today’s installment:
Governor Glenn Youngkin issues an executive order calling for a public health campaign on the dangers social media pose to children
Charlottesville’s Parks and Recreation Department plans a temporary closure of the trail that runs along the John Warner Parkway
Charlottesville’s Board of Architectural Review wants a new design for a hotel planned for downtown
First-shout: Magic on the Mall has begun!
In today’s first shout-out, the winter holidays are here and Friends of Downtown Cville want you to come and experience Magic on the Mall now through January 7. They’ve invested in a new light display that shows off the mall, and there are events like the Peppermint Trail, Elves in Cville, the Downtown Express, plus a host of new activities. You can see all of the details online at friendsofcville.org/magic!
The group is also looking for people to help with Magic on the Mall. They are looking for volunteers to help run the Downtown Express as well as pass out Elves in Cville booklets and stamps, and Peppermint Trail brochures.
Youngkin issues executive order establishing childhood task force to combat social media addiction
Governor Glenn Youngkin has directed several executive agencies to develop materials for parents to reduce the impact that cell phone usage and social media has on children in Virginia.
“I am establishing the Reclaiming Childhood Task Force to sustain ongoing collaboration of these efforts to improve youth mental health outcomes by combatting the dangers of addictive social media and creating opportunities for cultural change,” reads the introduction to Executive Order 43.
The order cites survey data from the Centers for Disease Control that showed that 40 percent of American high school students reported persistent sadness or hopelessness.
Youngkin also refers to research from former University of Virginia social psychologist Jonathan Haidt that claims a link between cell phone usage and rates of anxiety and depression.
“What is also clear is that many social media technology companies benefit from their monetization of data collected by social media youth,” the order continues. “In 2019, Google and YouTube were fined $170 million for allegedly collecting personal information from children without their parents’ consent in violation of the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act.”
The order calls for coordination between the Secretary of Education, Secretary of Health and Human Resources, the Secretary of Public Safety and Homeland Security, the Superintendent of Public Instruction, the State Health Commissioner, and the Commissioner of the Department of Behavioural Health and Developmental Services to work on several information campaigns for parents and other stakeholders.
One of them is to create a social media and mental health toolkit and another is to launch a public health initiative to recommend non-screen alternatives.
Earlier this year, Youngkin issued Executive Order 33 which ordered public schools in Virginia to adopt policies banning cell phone usage during the school day.
Charlottesville to temporarily close John Warner Parkway trail in December
Those who regularly use the shared-use path that runs along the John Warner Parkway may want to plan for early December as the Charlottesville Parks and Recreation Department will close the amenity for maintenance.
“Beginning the week of December 2nd and concluding December 13th, environmental contract crews will begin work on a 9.5 acre tract of City-owned property adjacent to the Rivanna Trail,” reads an announcement sent out this morning.
The trail is called the Butterfly Greenway and the work will remove invasive species.
“A large machine called a forestry mulcher will be utilized to remove undergrowth and clear the unwanted plants and vines,” the announcement continues.
When the work is completed, trees and groundcover will be planted.
This is the latest in a series of projects to reduce invasive plants in city parks. Goats were used in sections of Washington Park and on city-owned land in the Fry’s Spring neighborhood. Herbicide applications were used on about 3.9 acres on Park Street and Agnese Street.
Second-shout out: Camp Albemarle
Today’s second subscriber-supported public service announcement goes out to Camp Albemarle, which has for over sixty years been a “wholesome rural, rustic and restful site for youth activities, church groups, civic events and occasional private programs.”
Located on 14 acres on the banks of the Moorman’s River near Free Union, Camp Albemarle continues as a legacy of being a Civilian Conservation Corps project that sought to promote the importance of rural activities. Are you looking to escape and reconnect with nature? Consider holding an event where the natural beauty of the grounds will provide a venue to suit your needs. Visit their website to view the gallery and learn more!
BAR wants a different design for proposed hotel for 218 W. Market Street
The appointed body charged with regulating the aesthetics of buildings in certain sections of Charlottesville said the design of a proposed hotel at 218 West Market Street has improved but more work is necessary to get their approval.
“In seeing this, I was very disappointed with the design just mainly because of how special the site is and how special our Mall is,” said BAR member David Timmerman Jerry Rosenthal.
The BAR last saw a proposal for this site in mid-April when Jeffrey Levien of Heirloom Development asked what the body would think about that use as opposed to the residential building he had planned to build.
“They have since changed the architect,” said Jeff Werner, the city’s historic preservation planner.
The hotel would be a Marriott under their AC brand.
The building is between two streets so the design has to address two different roadways.
“So it is five stories on Market Street and on Old Preston Avenue it would be six stories,” Werner said.
Werner said that Neighborhood Development Services staff have said there are zoning issues with the project, but he wanted the BAR to be able to take a look.
Levien said he is the principal owner of 218 West Market Street and he brought in a partner to run the hotel. He said the new design follows from feedback from previous meetings.
“For example we did design the façade to break up the mass so it would not read like one large wall and that was important,” Levien said. “We also made the height not only to stay within lower-rise construction costs but to be more contextual and kind of me the smaller more modest building of our neighbors Code and the Omni.”
Levien said the project does include a pedestrian walkway through the building to connect the Market Street to the Mall.
“This is a 24 hour hotel so if anybody wants to walk through that… people can come in and they can walk through to the different side,” said Nitkin Kulkarni, the architect for the project.
All of the parking will be under the building and not visible from the streets. One BAR member liked what he saw on that aspect of the proposal.
“I do appreciate that they’ve solved the parking in a much better way for the multiple approaches to the site,” said Breck Gastinger. “It’s on the ground floor and it is a better solution for Charlottesville.”
However, Gastinger said the rest of the building does not yet reflect nearby buildings and does not do enough to feel like a structure that belongs in Charlottesville. He took issue with the exterior insulation finishing system that has been proposed.
Carl Schwarz, a member of the Planning Commission who is also on the BAR, said the proposed design seemed to degrade from the existing streetscape experience and he urged the applicant to adhere to the new requirements in the zoning code.
“The proposed street experience is mostly a vehicular pull-off and a driveway and no sign of any street trees,” Schwarz said.
Deanna Gould is the executive director of the Lighthouse which is adjacent to the property.
“We teach a thousand students every year and screen films for people of all ages so I think we stand to be among the most impacted by this build,” Gould said.
The conversation was a preliminary discussion and the item will return at a later date for a certificate of appropriateness. A lingering issue is that NDS will have to sign off on the zoning separate from the design review.
“I’m not a code official,” said Werner. “I don’t make zoning determinations. There are things I can look at. I’ll be honest. I don’t think it’s the BAR’s job to be evaluating and making officially a zoning determination.”
However, he said the BAR has long played a role in what ultimately gets built and this is one of the first tests of how the appointed body will function moving forward.
Reading material:
County Board votes to appeal Missing Middle ruling, Dan Eggito, ARLNow, November 20, 2024
Court rules Virginia’s removal from RGGI was ‘unlawful’, Lauren Hines-Acosta, Bay Journal, November 20, 2024
A Virginia Circuit Court Finds Youngkin’s Withdrawal from RGGI ‘Unlawful’, Jake Bolster, Inside Climate News, November 21, 2024
Virginia joins push to break Google’s search monopoly, Markus Schmidt, Virginia Mercury, November 21, 2024
FOIA Friday: Louisa resident wants more county government meetings advertised, Virginia Mercury, November 21, 2024
6 Republicans, 1 Democrat vie for McGuire’s state Senate seat, Elizabeth Beyer, Cardinal News, November 21, 2024
“They are just really more engaged:” teachers and students notice improvement with locked away phone policy, Maggie Glass, November 21, 2024
3 strategies to help Americans bridge the deepening partisan divide, Alex Hinton, Virginia Mercury, November 22, 2024
#767 takes flight
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I also prepped a dish for my slow cooker. Cooking my own meals has added a nice component to my life which adds a lot of balance. I’m very glad to get to do this.
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Thanks for posting info on Magic on the Mall. I don't recall seeing this anywhere else.
There was an error in the 218 West Market Story. The version sent out identified the wrong speaker for the first quote. David Timmerman is the correct member of the BAR. I regret the error.
My correction policy is to update the story with the correct information, leave a comment, and then post this as a note on Substack. I'll also make a mention in the next edition of the newsletter which will come out later today.