Development Digest: Martha Jefferson apartments on Pantops close to becoming reality

Plans to build 250 apartments next to the Sentara Martha Jefferson Hospital on Pantops are close to becoming reality with construction projected as soon as this spring.

The zoning allowing the apartments has been in place since 2003, and Riverbend Development purchased the property from the hospital for $5.5 million in July 2018.

The six, four-story Presidio Apartments are now working their way through the Albemarle County Architectural Review Board process and have to return to the board for a final site plan approval. The ARB offered suggestions on what to include in that final site plan during a review of the designs on Aug. 5.

Ashley Davies, vice president of Riverbend Development, said that the apartments are intended to be “best in class” for Charlottesville, with beautiful views and a large pool and gym. 

“There’s a large employment base in both State Farm and the hospital, and we imagine that employees of both these and the surrounding businesses will be likely residents,” Davies said.

• location: south of Peter Jefferson Parkway
• scale: 250 apartments in six, four-story buildings
• amenities: pool, gym, views
• next steps: final site plan review by the Architectural Review Board, construction potentially next spring or summer  

Southern Development looks for right density on Stribling Avenue in Fry’s Spring

Southern Development is looking for guidance on what kind of housing is appropriate on Stribling Avenue in Charlottesville’s Fry’s Spring neighborhood.

Neighbors asked the Charlottesville Planning Commission on Tuesday to consider that Stribling Avenue does not have sidewalks.

The commissioners agreed that this area of Fry’s Spring was ideal for more population density because residents could walk to several large employment centers. Additionally, higher density zoning often creates smaller and more affordable kinds of housing than the single-family housing that can be done under current zoning. 

Some commissioners encouraged Southern Development to apply for more density in exchange for providing housing to low-income Charlottesville residents. Planning commission chairwoman Lisa Green focused on solutions to the neighborhood’s infrastructure issues. 

Southern Development plans to revise its initial application and return to the planning commission at a later date.

• address: 240 Stribling Ave
• scale: 68 houses, including duplexes, rather than 42 single-family, detached homes
• next steps: Charlottesville Planning Commission work session

Community shares hopes for Scottsville tire factory

The Hyosung Tire Plant building has sat empty in Scottsville since 2009 when the plant closed and 106 employees lost their jobs. 

A dozen Scottsville residents gathered on Thursday at the Town Office to discuss what they would like in that space. Some focused on job opportunities, like technology, education or defense companies, and there was some debate about a desire for more affordable housing while balancing the small-town feel of the area.

Several residents expressed a desire to create a place where the 15,000 people who live in the surrounding area would want to stay or relax. A small business consultant, Kelly Carver, pitched the idea of a recreation center that would have a movie theater, bowling alley and small studios for artists to appeal to a wide variety of people. 

The Town of Scottsville has a $30,000 planning grant from Virginia and has hired Waukeshaw Development, which specializes in the renovation of historic but abandoned buildings, to analyze which redevelopment ideas for the tire plant and western downtown area would work financially. Scottsville could then use zoning and grants to help make the vision happen.

Thomas Jefferson Planning District Commission and Timmons Group are also part of the planning team.

Resident feedback is also being gathered through an online survey. 

• location: Bird Street, Scottsville
• next steps: initial results shared at community meeting on Sept. 16