Week Ahead for October 13, 2025: Albemarle Supervisors to learn about growing fire and police calls; Economic development groups to learn about Innovation Corridor
Plus: The Charlottesville Planning Commission will have a listening session to inform the first set of amendments to the new zoning code
This weekly look at what’s coming up in local government is sponsored by the Piedmont Environmental Council
At the heart of it, the purpose of Town Crier Productions is to present information about policy choices coming up before local officials. A prominent conviction during my entire 30-year career in journalism is that community members understand more when they look first to local government before turning on the national news.
In a healthy democracy, people should be able to get information about what’s happening from third-party sources not directly connected to the government. I spent eleven years working for an organization originally created to deliver information on how land use planning worked until there was a management shift and I stepped away.
For the past seven years or so, I’ve written this weekly newsletter on Sundays to make sure I know what’s coming up so I can decide what I would like to write about each week. I write deliberately about the region because decisions made in one place will affect others. I became an independent again in 2020 because stories about complex processes were not being told.
My work is not recognized in a recent local study by the Karsh Institute of Democracy of the news ecosystem. You can see here on this interactive map.
“The city of Charlottesville and Albemarle County each has a distinct local government, but together they form a shared community with many intertwined services, institutions, and cultural events,” reads the study. “As a result, local news outlets often cover both the city of Charlottesville and Albemarle County as a singular community.”
Obviously, they didn’t count my work. Or notice that Albemarle County as a whole is underreported. I’d market my work, but I don’t have the resources. I have this box, though!
Perhaps I’m not a real journalist in the eyes of the Karsh Institute of Democracy, despite having written perhaps the most cohesive set of stories about expansion of the University of Virginia and the ability of the University of Virginia Foundation to pay way, over market price to get the land they want. My work requires constant vigilance and hard work.
I’m an independent journalist with a growing business, spending my time to keep you informed. My work speaks for itself.
And here is some of what’s coming up this week:
There are two different meetings related to removing some properties from Agricultural-Forestal Districts in Albemarle County including a public hearing at the Albemarle Planning Commission.
Greene County Supervisors will consider a rezoning Tuesday for land near intersection of U.S. 29 and and U.S. 22 that was deferred in August following concerns about displacement at a mobile home park.
Nelson County Supervisors on Tuesday will learn about the feasibility and costs of drilling wells to supply water to whatever the Board decides to do with the recently purchased Larkin property.
Albemarle and Charlottesville’s economic development authorities will have a joint meeting Tuesday and will learn about regional efforts to create an Innovation Corridor along U.S. 29 from Fauquier County south.
There’s a rezoning request before the Albemarle Planning Commission Tuesday for a rezoning that would allow 40 more homes in a section of Hollymead for a total of 410.
The Charlottesville Planning Commission will hold a listening session for developers and builders to comment on potential changes to the new zoning code, but who gets to speak?
Albemarle Supervisors on Wednesday will get a report on how a growing population will increase service calls for fire and police.
Supervisors will also have a public hearing on the Comprehensive Plan update, but I’ll have details on that in the next newsletter.
Fluvanna Supervisors will discuss their legislative agenda for the 2026 General Assembly.
There are no meetings in Louisa County this week, but please check out Tammy Purcell’s Substack to be certain.
Thanks again to the Piedmont Environmental Council for their sponsorship each week!
Monday, October 13, 2025
Special meeting for Albemarle ag-forest group
On Tuesday, the Albemarle Planning Commission will take up a review of three Agricultural-Forestal Districts and staff recommends removing property from at least one of them. That decision will ultimately be up to the Board of Supervisors
The night before, the Agricultural-Forestal Districts Advisory Committee will have a virtual meeting to further discuss the item. This will take place at 5:30 p.m. (meeting info)
A quorum was not reached for the September 30 meeting, a meeting I previewed here if you want more background in this segment. A recommendation from this committee is needed before the Board can take action.
“Six members of the public were in attendance,” reads the draft minutes. “One member of the public, a landowner in the Batesville District, represented the six and spoke in opposition to their recommended removals from the District.”
At heart in this issue is the use of county taxation policy to preserve rural land. More in the Planning Commission write up.
In other meetings:
The Albemarle County Electoral Board will meet at 9 a.m. in Room C of the 5th Street County Office Building. I am very grateful that these meetings are now being recorded and placed on the Albemarle County Youtube page (meeting info)
Tuesday, October 14, 2025
Greene Supervisors to take action on Route 33 Holdings rezoning after August deferral
The five members of the Greene County Board of Supervisors meet at 5:30 p.m. in the administration building at 40 Celt Road. They’ll hold a closed session first followed by an opening meeting at 6:30 p.m. (meeting overview)
There will be two presentations.
One is on an update of the county’s bond ratings. This is not yet available in the meeting overview.
The second is a community resources update from the director of Greene County Social Services. This is not yet available in the meeting overview.
The consent agenda includes a letter of support from the Town of Stanardsville for renovations of the William Mills House. This is not yet available in the meeting overview.
There are no public hearings.
There are two action items. One is to take action on a rezoning deferred after a public hearing on August 12, 2025 for a rezoning for a portion of an 18.55 acre property in Ruckersville owned by Route 33 Holdings. The request is to rezone 0.29 acres of land from Residential-2 to Business-2 and 6.14 acres from Residential-2 to Business-3.
At the August 12 meeting, one member of the public appeared to express concerns about displacement of people who live in mobile homes there.
“[Ms. Patricia McCoy] highlighted the emotional and financial stress caused by the situation, pointing out that the promises of of help or alternative housing had not materialized, and that many residents now face the prospect of homelessness,” reads the minutes for the meeting.
So many stories to write and I feel like I failed by not writing this one in detail at the time. Supervisors opted to defer a decision until more information is received. Milestone Partners has provided a letter with more information about the trailer park constructed in the 1970’s by Ricky Daniels.
“At the time, there was little government oversight,” writes Frank Stoner, managing partner at Milestone Partners / Route 33 Holdings. “The park sewage was directed to septic fields but there was no requirement at the time to provide backup fields, as would be required today.”
The letter explains that septic fields showed signs of failure six years ago and the company purchased land for a second lot to accommodate residents. A plan was crafted to add this project to public water and sewer but this proved to be too costly. There’s a lot of detail in the letter and I hope to write about this after a vote is taken.
The second is to designate a representative to cast proxy votes at the upcoming Virginia Association of Counties conference.
Nelson Supervisors to get update on feasibility of well for Larkin property
Four of the five members of the Nelson County Board of Supervisors will meet at 2 p.m. in the General District Courtroom at the Courthouse in Lovingston. North District Supervisor Tommy Harvey has not attending a meeting in over a year. (meeting packet)
The consent agenda has one resolution of note.
The Virginia Department of Environmental Quality is now requiring the development of regional water supply plans for individual watersheds. Nelson County is in the Middle James River 2 basin. The other localities of the Thomas Jefferson Planning District Commission is in the Middle James River 1 basin as I’ve reported.
The resolution expressed Nelson’s support for a planning grant to develop the plan.
There will also be a proclamation recognizing October as Domestic Violence Awareness Month.
“The problems of domestic violence are not confined to any group or groups of people but cross all economic, racial and societal barriers, and are supported by societal indifference,” reads the resolution. “The Shelter for Help in Emergency and the Nelson County Victim/Witness Program have led the way in the County of Nelson in addressing domestic violence by providing 24-hour hot line services to victims/survivors and their families, offering support and information, and empowering survivors to chart their own course for healing.”
There will be a presentation from the Virginia Department of Transportation followed by a report on the feasibility of drilling of a well to support public uses at the Larkin property recently purchased by Nelson County. Three questions were asked:
1. Is the site’s geology favorable for a groundwater well(s)?
2. Where should the wells be drilled?
3. How much is it going to cost to drill and develop the well for potable and non-potable water?
There will also be a report on Nelson County’s utilization of the Albemarle-Charlottesville Regional Jail.
“Generally, Nelson County experienced an increase in criminal justice metrics, despite a county population decrease of 1.37 percent from 2015 to 2024,” reads a presentation in the board packet.
Under new and unfinished business, there will be a further discussion of the possibility of Nelson County identifying a Sister City from students at the Blue Ridge Virginia Governors School.
“NCHS Seniors Brayden Murphy and Odin Clark-Cearley were present to discuss their Sister Cities proposal,” reads the minutes from the September 8, 2025 meeting. “Mr. Murphy stated that he and Mr. Clark-Cearley would like to discuss bringing a “Sister City” to Nelson County, explaining that the goal is to establish a relationship with a foreign locality and help build a bridge between the two communities.”
There will be a presentation from the Friends of Gladstone on the relocation and restoration of the depot. They’re seeking a contribution in the 2026 budget. (learn more)
“This project has been in development since 2017,” reads a letter to the Board of Supervisors. “The Depot will serve the Gladstone community well as both a future community center and a tourist attraction.”
The firm Coleman-Adams Construction has developed a cost estimate of nearly $3.2 million. The letter does not state how much the Friends of Gladstone are seeking from the county.
There will be an authorization for a public hearing on November 13, 2025 for two battery energy and storage siting agreements requested by the Central Virginia Electric Cooperative. Nelson County would get a one-time payment of $8,000 and can select a one-time contribution of $10,000 to a charitable organization. Learn more.
There will also be a resolution to authorize an application for a $333,000 planning grant from the Virginia Department of Historic Resources and to mitigate damages to historic districts during Hurricane Florence in 2018.
There will be a closed session under §2.2-3711(A)5 of Virginia Code which allows for . “discussion concerning a prospective business or industry or the expansion of an existing business or industry where no previous announcement has been made of the business’ or industry’s interest in locating or expanding its facilities in the community.”
The evening session begins at 7 p.m. and will include a public hearing on changes to water and sewer rates for those on the Piney River public system. Learn more about that here.
Supervisors will next meet on October 22, 2025 for a joint work session with the Planning Commission.
Albemarle and Charlottesville economic groups to learn more about CVPED’s Innovation Corridor
If you want to understand where the community will be in ten years, you want to pay attention to the story of economic development.
Both Albemarle County and the City of Charlottesville have recently adopted strategic plans for economic development. These documents list action steps that should be taken and metrics be measured to determine success.
Last year, the Economic Development Authority for each locality held a joint meeting that I previewed but did not write about in detail. The two bodies will meet again at 4 p.m. in Room 241 of Albemarle County’s office building at 401 McIntire Road. (meeting info)
The second and third items are presentations on each strategic plan and the fourth is a small group discussion of the plans to be led by Emily Kilroy, Albemarle’s Economic Development Director.
But the first item is perhaps the most important. In addition to localities, there is the Central Virginia Partnership for Economic Development. The CVPED a nonprofit, public-private partnership formed in 1995 and is now co-mingled with the group GO Virginia Region 9.
“Our service territory includes the City of Charlottesville, Albemarle, Culpeper, Fluvanna, Greene, Louisa, Madison, Nelson and Orange Counties,” reads the CVPED website. “We serve as regional liaison for the Virginia Economic Development Partnership.”
GO Virginia Region 9 extends to Culpeper, Fauquier, and Rappahannock counties. Both entities are planning for an Innovation Corridor that would cover all of the localities.
“Momentum is growing in Central Virginia to build upon recent innovation-driven, technology-based public and private sector investments in biotech, digital technologies, and national security,” reads the website for a strategic plan for this corridor.
That momentum may be heading into lightspeed with the news last week that AstraZeneca will invest $4.5 billion in two pharmaceutical plans in Albemarle County at the Rivanna Futures site.
Are all localities on board with this approach? Will people who come to Albemarle County for new jobs be able to find homes? In which direction will they seek them? Can Greene, Orange, Madison, and other localities to the north handle residential growth? Do people who live there want that?
For that matter, do people who live here want growth? Do they have a choice?
This is why I cover economic development and encourage my colleagues in journalism to do so as well.
Albemarle PC to review three ag-forest districts, potential property removals
The seven members of the Albemarle Planning Commission will meet at 6 p.m. in Lane Auditorium of the county’s office building at 401 McIntire Road. (meeting info)
There are four public hearings with three of them being reviews of agricultural-forestal districts.
“Ag/For Districts are rural conservation areas reserved for the production of agricultural products, timber, and the maintenance of open space land as an important economic and environmental resource,” reads the county’s website. “Districts are voluntary. They are initiated by a landowner or group of landowners as a mutual undertaking with the local government.”
Being in a district allows a property to enter into land-use taxation where owners get a reduced property assessment in order to incentivize rural conservation. Learn more in this flier from Albemarle County.
According to staff reports for the three public hearings,the Board of Supervisors adopted a policy in October 2016 to state that properties with no development rights should not be accepted into the program. While reviews of districts are to be done every ten years, the Board also voted in November 2018 to do the next set of renewals on a five-year basis to determine continued eligibility.
The Planning Commission holds three of this reviews at this meeting:
The Green Mountain Agricultural and Forestal District was created on December 2, 2015 and consists of 1,248 acres of land across six parcels. Staff recommends all parcels remain in the district due to the potential of small-lot development. (read the report)
The Nortonsville Agricultural and Forestal District was created on October 6, 1999 and consists of two parcels totaling 43 acres. Staff recommends removing one 2.56 acre parcel because there are no remaining development rights. It appears this parcel is not in land use taxation. (read the report)
The Batesville Agricultural and Forestal District was created on May 2, 1990 and has 33 parcels totaling 979 acres. A review has found that 18 parcels totaling 266 acres do not have development rights and are being recommended for removal. (read the report)
Developer seeks more residential units at Hollymead Town Center
The Albemarle County Planning Commission’s fourth public hearing on October 14 provides another example of a previously approved rezoning that now seeks to amend plans to add more residential units and decrease required space for commercial uses.
The area known as Hollymead Town Center was developed across several rezonings including one called Area C. Each area comes with a Code of Development that lays out what will be built in each block.
Shimp Engineering has submitted an amendment for Area C to increase the number of residential units from 370 to 410 and to eliminate the requirement for any commercial space.
“Over the years, as many of the commercial parcels sat vacant, it became evident that the incorporation of additional residential units within HTC Area C was necessary to support the commercial areas within Area C as well as the large commercial areas that were constructed within Hollymead Town Center Areas A and B,” reads the narrative for the project.
The Albemarle Planning Commission’s next meeting is October 28.
Charlottesville PC to hear special exception request, provide feedback on minor zoning amendments
Under the new Development Code, the Charlottesville Planning Commission has much less work to do than at any point in the 18 years I’ve been covering the body. This meeting, however, is a substantive one. (agenda packet)
After providing reports, they’ll adopt a consent agenda that consists of minutes from two meetings.
There are no public hearings because the new Development Code eliminated the role City Council and the Planning Commission play in approving residential density.
At this meeting, the Planning Commission will take action on a special exception request for a critical slopes waiver at a sublot at 1000 2nd Street SE. This required a public hearing under the old rules but not under the new ones.
“[Joseph] Baber (applicant & property owner) is proposing improvements to the above referenced sublot (Subject Property) that could include between two (2) and five (5) residential dwelling units as permitted by the [Residential-A zoning],” reads the staff report. “The applicant has yet to determine final unit count, as securing a critical slope exception is a determining factor that needs to be addressed prior to Mr. Baber developing a final site plan.”
This special exception is being made before submission of a Major Development Plan review, meaning that property owner has not gone through zoning compliance yet.
In a letter to the Planning Commission, Baber argues that the need for housing outweighs the need to preserve slopes.
“This range of housing types—which can include duplexes, triplexes, or small multiplexes—is essential for creating diverse, accessible neighborhoods but is often difficult to achieve on infill parcels,” Baber wrote.
You can look up the materials for this item here.
Afterwards they will discuss potential amendments to the Development Code in a listening session. The Planning Commission took a first look on May 27 as I reported at the time.
“Originally staff and the Planning Commission intended to hold this meeting on July 8, 2025, but due to [an] issue outside of our control, the meeting was postponed,” reads the staff report.
The staff report does not tell you the issue was a court ruling by Charlottesville Circuit Court Judge Claude Worrell on June 30, 2025 that temporarily threw out the Development Code. A second ruling seven weeks later restored the code, but a trial will be held next September.
At this listening session, builders and developers will be invited to make comments. Will other members of the public be allowed to do so as well? The Public Housing Association of Residents have been calling for amendments to the Development Code to reduce building heights on West Main Street.
The Commission will vote on November 12 to officially initiate the study period for the first round of zoning changes.
The Charlottesville Planning Commission will meet on October 28 to review the environmental review project requested by the Department of Neighborhood Development Services. That study will take a look at whether the city’s rules to protect environmental features should be streamlined.
“For the environmental policy and regulatory review, we are actually looking at a number of different areas of natural resource management,” NDS Director Kelly Brown said to City Council on October 6. “So stormwater management, floodplain management, tree canopy and preservation, stream buffers, critical slopes and energy efficiency.”
Charlottesville Community Engagement and Information Charlottesville continues to pay attention and provide the most thorough coverage. Thank you for your support.
Wednesday, October 15, 2025
Report: A growing Albemarle will need more police and firefighters
The Albemarle Board of Supervisors will meet at 1 p.m. for their second regular meeting of the year in Lane Auditorium in the county’s office building at 401 McIntire Road. (meeting info)
The first item will be the annual economic outlook from Dr. Sheryl Bailey, a visiting professor of practice at Virginia Tech’s School of Public and International Affairs. This is a chance for Supervisors to get a sense of macroeconomic factors that will influence the upcoming development of a budget for FY2027.
“The U.S. economy entered 2025 with strong momentum with healthy economic growth and a solid job market, after growing 2.8 percent to 2.9 annually in 2023–2024 and forceful rebounds from the pandemic with 2.5 percent growth in 2022 (even with pandemic-era inflation) and 6.1 percent in 2021,” reads the executive summary. “However, the U.S. economy distinctly slowed in the first eight months of 2025, with slower economic growth, inflation notching higher, and labor market cooling.”
The phrase “policy uncertainty” appears two and a half dozen times throughout the document. This is an academic phrase that has been tracked for a quarter of a century. The analysis recommends that Albemarle County prepare for slower economic activity.
“Virginia’s economic growth and labor market performance are projected to trail the nation in 2025 and 2026, with evidence of slower trends in key metrics in the state and local region manifesting in the first eight months of 2025 due to their close ties to the federal government and the instituted and planned federal employment and contracting cuts,” the report continues.
Next up, Supervisors will get a report from Emergency Services Consulting International (ESCI) on what the appropriate levels of staffing for both the police and fire department.
“The staffing study was designed to provide the County with a detailed understanding of current and future needs and includes tiered findings and recommendations for moving forward regarding the department’s staffing for daily operations, emergencies, and administrative support functions,” reads the staff report.
Earlier this year, the Board of Supervisors approved a four cent increase on the real property tax rate that in part raises additional revenue to pay for recently hired firefighters and police officers. In May, I reported on a briefing on details of they would pay for that but also learned that the ESCI report was in the works.
The third item on the Board of Supervisors’ agenda will be a report from The Roosevelt Group on ways to advocate for federal funding. Specifically how to secure two Congressional earmarks.
The group has advised pursuit of two projects in the FY2026 federal budget.
“Two projects were submitted: funding requests to support Boulders Road extension at Rivanna Futures and funding to support dam maintenance at two locations in the county,” reads the staff report. “The Roosevelt Group will provide status of the FY 26 federal budget as part of the presentation.”
What will The Roosevelt Group have to say about “policy uncertainty” and the federal shutdown?
In the evening session, there will be a public hearing on AC44. I’m going to save the preview until tomorrow’s newsletter because I still have to do more reporting. For instance, the Crozet Community Advisory Committee adopted a resolution last week and I’ve not been able to go through the details. Here is the staff report.
To tide you over, here is the link to all of the various stories I’ve written on the process.
Fluvanna County Supervisors to discuss legislative priorities
The five members of the Fluvanna County Board of Supervisors meet at 6 p.m. in the Circuit Courtroom in the Fluvanna Courts Building. (agenda packet)
There are two presentations to begin the meeting with the treasurer going first. The second is a discussion of the Supervisors’ legislative priorities for the 2026 General Assembly. (learn more)
They’ll hear from David Blount, legislative liaison for the Thomas Jefferson Planning District Commission. The TJPDC each year drafts a general set of statements and the staff report for the Fluvanna discussion reveals some changes.
“New language recognizes that the federal government is fundamentally changing its funding relationship with states, and that state legislators are pledging to exercise caution when developing the next state biennial budget (also noting that $1.7 billion more will be needed to meet higher state K-12 education rebenchmarking and Medicaid costs),” reads one bullet point.
“New language stresses that the state should not shift costs for programs previously supported by federal funds to localities, and should collaborate with local governments to implement required changes to programs with shared state/local responsibility,” reads another.
Policy uncertainty is affecting everything.
There are four action items.
The first is appropriation of $40,798.12 in local funding for a supplemental budget to purchase services to be compliant with the Children’s Service Act. (learn more)
The second is related to voting credentials for the upcoming Virginia Association of Counties conference. (learn more)
The third is for an agreement to have someone from the University of Virginia Physicians Group serve as Operational Medical Director for Fluvanna County’s public safety agencies. (learn more)
The fourth is to authorize an advertisement for a public hearing for an ordinance amendment that would allow jurors to donate their pay to recovery court service organizations. (learn more)
There are two public hearings:
One is a public hearing to amend the definitions of “Outdoor Entertainment” and “Outdoor Gathering.” (learn more)
The second is for a supplemental appropriation for Fluvanna County Public Schools for the FY2026 budget related to the reception of $3,605,471.42 in grants. (learn more)
In other meetings:
The Charlottesville Housing Advisory Commission meets at noon in CitySpace. The agenda is not posted. The website for this group is not currently available, either. (meeting info)
The Albemarle Fire EMS Board meets at 6 p.m. in the EOC Room at the county’s office building on 5th Street. They’ll go over the ECPI report. (meeting info)
Thursday, October 16, 2025
Just a couple of meetings today:
Charlottesville Parks and Recreation Advisory Board will meet at 5:30 p.m. in the Carver Recreation Center. (meeting info)
The Charlottesville Human Rights Commission will meet at 6:30 p.m. in CitySpace. (meeting info)
Friday, October 17, 2025
The only meeting at the moment I know of is the Albemarle County Electoral Board. (meeting info)
In preview of the Albemarle County Planning Commission meeting, I left out a key word out of a sentence which should have read: “The Board of Supervisors adopted a policy in October 2016 to state that properties with no development rights should not be accepted into the program.”
I regret the omission and thank a reader from bringing this to my attention.