ACCT SUPPORTS WEST MAIN STREET RE-ZONING & BUILDING PROPOSAL

Click here to see ABC16 coverage of the proposal, including an interview with Zachary Shahan, Executive Director, ACCT.

Letter to City Council: presented to the council on 9/4/07. Submitted by Zachary Shahan, Executive Director, Alliance for Community Choice in Transportation.

September 4, 2007

Dear Charlottesville City Councilors:

As Executive Director of ACCT, the Alliance for Community Choice in Transportation, I am presenting our views regarding the rezoning request for 301 and 315 West Main Street, (from a “West Main Corridor” zoning designation to a “Downtown Corridor” zoning designation).

As advocates for sustainable land use and a balanced transportation system in the greater Charlottesville area, we fully support the rezoning of these properties to this higher density zoning classification. We believe that as the greater Charlottesville area is growing, the urban core of that area must grow and expand as well. Otherwise, the growth will occur largely on the outskirts of the town and will result in a less efficient, less sustainable, less attractive urban spatial structure, including negative ramifications for the environment, the local transportation system, the quality of life, and the economy. The project being considered proposes a very proper, very appropriate expansion of the urban core of the city.

All of that being said, we are aware of a few concerns people have regarding increased density in this area and the proposed project, in general.

1) First of all are fears concerning the negative aesthetic effects and traffic implications of higher density development in this area. We believe these issues can very adequately be addressed through careful design of pedestrian and transit amenities near this site. If residents of this building can safely walk downtown and to the university, they will make much less use of their cars than would any comparably-sized development located in the outskirts of Charlottesville.

2) The second area of concern regards affordable housing. As we understand it, the city would like 15% of the units in new housing projects to be ‘affordable’ housing units. Affordable housing is a very pressing issue of great importance across the United States today, having great significance not only for the well-being of the residents in need of affordable housing, but also for the long-term and short-term health and vitality of these communities and the country at large. We hope that the council will make a responsible decision with regards to their affordable housing requirements for any developments on these sites, or anywhere else in the city.

Thank you very much for your time. And, again, ACCT fully supports the rezoning of 301 and 315 West Main Street, but stresses the great importance for attention to the design and affordable housing provisions of any developments on these sites.

Thank You

Please feel free to contact me (434.295.6554) if you wish to discuss this further.

Sincerely,
Zachary Shahan
ACCT Executive Director