March 3, 2025: Another thaw in the hiatus with info on meetings in Albemarle, Charlottesville, Fluvanna, and Louisa
In other words, a reprint edition intended to keep the feed going
There is no way for one person to cover the entirety of one of Virginia’s 11 Congressional districts, but how can you know for sure if you don’t try? That’s the intent of this 191st edition of a newsletter created to explore the local governments in the 24 localities within a district that makes a lot more sense than any other in my life time.
Who am I? I’m Sean Tubbs, a 1991 graduate of Brookville High School and I’ve spent a good amount of my professional life writing about civic affairs in Charlottesville, one of three cities in the district and certainly the most northern one. This newsletter has been and will be an attempt to learn more about who else lives here. It’s an experiment, and may continue to be a shadow of previous editions. But, let’s see how it goes!
Today’s edition is more or less a reprint of yesterday’s Charlottesville Community Engagement. I had hoped to write up the recent Appomattox Board of Supervisors meeting but I’m not there yet.
Monday, March 3, 2025
Louisa County Supervisors to hold budget work session
Some readers have told me they’re not interested in what happens in other localities and would prefer if I focused on the one they want. Yet, this publication is written by someone with an undergraduate degree from Virginia Tech in political science. I entered that field out of curiosity, and curiosity powers me through to this day.
One question at the back of my head is: Why do different local governments have different approaches to fiscal policy? In other words, why are the proposed budgets for Albemarle County and Louisa County based on two different philosophies on taxation. Albemarle County Executive Jeffrey Richardson has based his recommended budget on a four cent increase in the real property tax rate whereas Fluvanna County Administrator Eric Dahl is recommending a decrease of more than 12 cents.
What will be the case in Louisa County? The seven-member Board of Supervisors will meet at 3:30 p.m. for a budget work session. The materials aren’t available in advance and I don’t see them on the budget page. But I will make this story one of the priorities this week. (meeting info)
According to the minutes of previous work sessions, Supervisors approved specific amounts for outside agencies at the February 3 work session and continued that activity at the February 18 work session.
After the work session, Supervisors will go into a closed session at 5 p.m before reconvening in public session at 6 p.m.
Under information items, there are four items.
The first is a presentation from the Piedmont Virginia Community College.
The second is a discussion of the county’s subdivision ordinance and the extent to which the Virginia Department of Transportation provides oversight. I’ve been awaiting this discussion but I’ve not written about it except in my notes. There’s no staff report explaining what’s at issue, but there is a link to county code and VDOT regulations.
The third is a draft of a policy on requiring bonds for existing private roads. Take a look!
The fourth is on a policy setting Board expectations for those who serve on appointed bodies. Is this new? If so, did something specific prompt its creation? (take a look)
During the public hearing is the annual report for 2024 for North Anna Power Station from Dominion Energy. (read the report)
Charlottesville City Council to consider higher fees for municipal trash collection
Charlottesville City Council meets at 4 p.m. for a work session with two items followed by a regular meeting which begins at 6:30 p.m. In between there may or may not be a closed session. (meeting overview)
After adopting a budget for the current fiscal year last April, Council really hasn’t stopped talking about budgetary issues. Last September, Council said they wanted to see updated information on how the city charges residents for municipal trash pick-up.
“If we’re subsidizing things, we’re subsidizing things, but let’s at least be thoughtful and own up to what we’re subsidizing versus not,” said City Councilor Brian Pinkston at the time.
Charlottesville hired the firm NewGen Strategies and Solutions of Colorado to conduct the study and the results are in. (presentation) (staff report)
“In the current Fiscal Year, revenues from the sale of stickers and decals is estimated to be approximately $1.1 million, while expenses for collection, disposal, and processing are expected to be $2.7 million,” reads the staff report.
The report notes that the city spends $1.1 million a year on other programs such as leaf collection, large-item collection, drop off programs, and other services.
NewGen is recommending a switch away from decals and stickers to a new “pay as you throw” system where participants would pay monthly rates based on what size of a “cart” they would be issued. To recover the full cost of the service, it would cost $16 a month for a 32 gallon cart, $22 a month for a 64 gallon cart, and $28 for a 96 gallon cart.
Until that system is implemented, NewGen is also recommending the cost of stickers by at least 25 percent.
The second work session is on the decarbonization study that’s been conducted by the firm Black and Veatch. Charlottesville has operated a gas utility for over 150 years; the study is intended to recommend ways operations can be upgraded to help the city accomplish greenhouse gas reduction goals. (presentation)
The consent agenda includes two special exceptions that the Planning Commission considered last week including one for the third phase of Kindlewood. I hope to write up those stories before this meeting.
Before the introduction of both Charlottesville City Schools’ Budget and City Manager Sam Sanders’ recommended budget for FY26, there are three presentations related to specific affordable housing projects.
The first is a resolution to approve a performance agreement for the development of 501 Cherry Avenue by Woodard Properties and the Piedmont Housing Alliance. This is separate from the capital contribution anticipated. Instead, the performance agreement will govern how the city will return a portion of the higher real estate tax revenue back to the developers. Council agreed to this in principle on July 15, 2024. (staff report) (resolution)
The second is for a resolution to designate the University of Virginia Foundation’s property at 10th and Wertland as a “revitalization area.” The foundation has selected an entity called Preservation of Affordable Housing to build an 180-unit apartment building where all of the units will have subsidized rents. There will be 69 one bedroom units, 96 two bedroom units, and 17 three bedroom units.
“If the Low Income Housing Tax Credits ("LIHTC") Application is approved, construction is expected to start in April 2026,” reads the staff report.
Being designated as a revitalization area helps with the scoring of the tax credits.
The third is the first reading of a resolution to amend an agreement that governs the city’s $6 million grant to the Charlottesville Redevelopment of Housing Authority for the South First Street Phase Two project. The resolution needs to be amended because CRHA did not begin construction by September 30, 2024. That actually voided the agreement, according to the staff report.
Under the new agreement, construction must begin by July 1, 2025 and be completed by July 31, 2027. Any extensions must be requested 30 days in advance. There will also need to be semi-annual compliance reports.
The report does not give any information on why the project has been delayed. The redevelopment report for the February 24 meeting of the CRHA Board does not list a start time for construction, nor does it mention the need to extend the agreement.
Then the School Budget will be presented and then the city’s. Materials for the latter are not yet available, so the best I can do for you is to point you to the category Budget - Charlottesville on Information Charlottesville.
Wednesday, March 5, 2025
Albemarle Board of Supervisors to hold public hearing on FY26 budget
There are a lot of items on the agenda for the Albemarle County Board of Supervisors meeting that begins at 1 p.m. in Lane Auditorium. If you’re interested in providing a comment at the public hearing, that won’t begin until after 6 p.m. (meeting agenda)
Last week, County Executive Jeffrey Richardson recommended a budget for FY26 based on a cent increase on the real property tax rate. For background, take a look at the detailed story I wrote last week.
This preview begins by drawing your attention to a study included in the consent agenda. In December 2023, the Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service at the University of Virginia published the latest “Cost of Community Services” report which points out that Albemarle’s population increased by 35 percent from 2000 to 2020.
“The incremental taxable value of residential properties is often less than the public services demand,” reads the summary of the report. “As urbanization proceeds, communities also often require more physical infrastructure and demand higher levels of public services, such as faster public safety responses, additional parks and recreation services, and other urban amenities.”
Analysis in this report took a look at fiscal year 2022 and found that residential land uses generated about $265 million in county revenues but required about $347 million in county services. Commercial and industrial land, however, generated surpluses.
Back to 1 p.m. This time around there are proclamations for the 100th anniversary of the Charlottesville Area Association of Realtors as well as one to celebrate Women’s History Month.
After the public comment period, there will be an action item on a special exception for an expansion of the Greenwood Grocery. Under county code, a historic country store building cannot exceed 4,000 square feet but the applicant seeks to exceed that amount as part of a plan to incorporate a residential building into the public portion of the business.
The narrative in the application explains the history of the business which began in 1951 as a produce stand that grew. The current owners bought the property in September 1999 and soon after there was a fire.
“In order to rebuild and continue our livelihood, we began a lengthy process to demonstrate to the county officials’ and board of representatives’ satisfaction that the business had existed and had been operated out of both structures for nearly 50 years at that point, and to demonstrate that we could comply with ordinances and regulations for operating a Country Store in a Rural Area,” reads the application.
The plan now is to consolidate two properties into one.
After that, Supervisors will hold a work session on the Comprehensive Plan update. This time it will be on the Parks, Recreation, and Open Space chapter. Here are the materials:
The Planning Commission reviewed this chapter on February 25. It is highly unlikely I’ll be able to write that up in time. I choose to prioritize the budget process over the AC44 process when it comes to what to write up. But, take a look at the video:
There are two public hearings in the 6 p.m. session. As mentioned above, the first is on the recommended budget for Albemarle County for FY26. I’ll note there are no direct links to any of the materials in the agenda as of Sunday. (take a look)
Here are some resources:
The full budget has the title “Investment in Action: Prioritizing our Community’s Safety and Well-Being” (download it)
County Executive Jeffrey Richardson has a 36-page presentation. (review it)
The CBS19 story focused on the upcoming budget work sessions and town halls
The second public hearing is for a rezoning and special use permit for a new manufactured home park in the rural area. The request is to rezoning over 50 acres of land in the rural area to R-4 to establish the Chestnut Grove Manufactured Home Park. Staff recommends denial in part because this is not the area designated for growth.
“Additional service delivery will be required to address the needs of the future residents of this park including Fire and Rescue, school, and utilities,” reads the staff report.
The Planning Commission recommended denial on a 3 to 1 vote on December 10, 2024. Read the minutes to see how the conversation went. This is another story I’m disappointed I have not been able to write. I wrote a story in late November for C-Ville Weekly but have not been able to follow-up. That appears to be the only story in “the news.”
To conclude this preview, back to the consent agenda:
There are several appropriations for the FY2025 budget for your review including $100,000 from the Virginia Department of Forestry. I wrote about that earlier this year. There’s also $1.075 million in Community Development Block Grant funding to Habitat for Humanity of Greater Charlottesville to help cover infrastructure costs for Village 3 in Phase 2 of the Southwood redevelopment.
There is a memorandum of agreement (MOA) between Albemarle and the Albemarle County Fire Rescue Foundation. The latter has a mission “to provide resources, assistance, and recognition of the Albemarle County Fire Rescue Department and its members” according to the resolution. (read the MOA)
There is a resolution to accept roads in the Brookhill development into the state secondary system of highways. (read the resolution)
There are two special exceptions for Woodbrook Apartments. One is for the perimeter landscape buffer and the other is for the use buffer.
Fluvanna County Supervisors to hold budget work session
The five members of the Fluvanna County Board of Supervisors will meet at 5 p.m. in the Circuit Courtroom of the Fluvanna Courts Building followed by a budget work session scheduled for 7 p.m. in the Morris Room of the Fluvanna County Administration Building. (agenda packet)
After public comments, there will be three presentations to start the meeting. There will be from the Virginia Department of Transportation, the Monticello Area Community Action Agency, and county planning staff on the Comprehensive Plan.
Under action matters, there will be an update on pay rates for law enforcement and general government employees. Those details are on page 11 of the packet.
Then the budget work session. For background, read my story from the introduction of the budget in February.
Reading material:
As more Amish move into rural Virginia, crashes between buggies and motor vehicles are on the rise. Finding a solution is complicated, Ralph Berrier Jr., Cardinal News, February 20, 2025
Timeline set for Green Ridge landfill hearings in Cumberland, Brian Carlton, February 21, 2025
Herald News Briefs: Commission member resigns, road set to close, Brian Carlton, February 21, 2025
Appomattox County Public Schools reopen after investigating cybersecurity incident, Leslie Johnson, WDBJ-7, February 23, 2025
City Planners advance Hyatt proposal, Chuck Vipperman, Chatham Star-Tribune, February 25, 2025
Chesterfield County acquires 30 acres for Appomattox River park, Billy Shields, VPN News, February 25, 2025
Confederate flag cases runs into another delay, Brian Carlton, Farmville Herald, February 27, 2025
Sprouse’s Corner Ranch eyes expansion, asks county approval Brian Carlton, Farmville Herald, February 27, 2025
Southern Va. Year-in-Review: Major projects landed in region, Cathy Jett, Virginia Business (paywall), February 27, 2025
Halifax County aims for 100% coverage with emergency radio communications, Miranda Baines, Gazette Virginian (paywall), February 28, 2025
Populations in Virginia’s ICE detention centers have increased since 2024, according to TRAC Immigration, Katelyn Harlow, WRIC, February 28, 2025
Black graves are being moved to make way for an industrial park, drawing a mix of emotions, Associated Press (via WTOP News), March 1, 2025