• Homesharing/ADU Feasibility Study
• Recycling Events
• THA Toolkit Projects
• Transportation News
• Finding Common Ground: Call to Action
• Village of Rivanna Plan Receives Planning Commission and Community Input
• PSW Feasibility Study
• Disability Services News
• TJACH Board Officers Elected
• Sustainability Update
• Community Meetings for Greene County Comp Plan and Multimodal Corridor Study
• RideShare News
• TJPDC Staff News

The TJPDC has partnered with the Jefferson Area Board for Aging (JABA) to conduct a study to ascertain if and how Homesharing and Accessory Dwelling Units (ADU) can increase the availability of affordable housing low for income senior citizens, workforce residents, people with disabilities and the impoverished. Work on the feasibility study is underway, with the next major step consisting of focus groups to gather input from both potential providers of homes and potential “home seekers” who could benefit from such living arrangements. Two focus groups will be held – one for potential home seekers during the evening of January 21st and another for home providers during the afternoon of January 22nd. Each focus group will last about two hours and have 12 participants. More information is available at www.tjpdc.org/housing. An Advisory Council has been formed to serve as a sounding board for ideas and to provide input for the feasibility study. At its initial meeting October 9, attendees heard a presentation on homesharing, engaged in discussion and completed comments sheets with their ideas on potential participants, program design and possible roles for themselves or their organizations. If you are interested in participating in the study or focus group, or have other participants to suggest, please contact Kristen Pingry at kpingry@tjpdc.org or 434-979-7310 ext. 310.

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Electronics Recycling Event Coming Soon

TJPDC is proud to be one of the sponsors of a free Television and Electronics Recycling Event being held on Saturday, January 31 in front of Crutchfield at the Rio Hill Shopping Center. The Charlottesville Community Design Center, Crutchfield, the City of Charlottesville, Albemarle County, TJPDC, Rivanna Solid Waste Authority, Papa John’s Pizza, and UVA Recycling are partnering for this event in anticipation of the switch to digital TV signals on February 17. The event will be held rain or shine from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. that day (though a snow date is scheduled for Saturday February 7). The full press release is available here. The event is free and open to the public, with no strings attached. Click here for a list of acceptable and unacceptable items for this event; click here for the E-waste Fact Sheet.

Composting Workshop Held in Fluvanna County

The TJPDC partnered with the Fluvanna Master Gardeners to offer a very successful workshop on home composting on November 22 at Lake Monticello. Over 80 people attended and all 25 of the compost bins that were offered for sale at cost were sold. Feedback from the event was very positive. Composting is a strategy for reducing waste in the regional solid waste plan. The TJPDC would be interested in partnering with Master Gardeners to offer composting workshops in other locations in the planning district. For more information, contact Rochelle Garwood at rgarwood@tjpdc.org or 434-979-7310 x320.

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THA Toolkit Projects

The Transportation and Housing Alliance (THA) is a statewide initiative linking public and private leaders in the areas of housing and transportation to promote independent living and community inclusion for people with disabilities, the elderly and other underserved populations. As part of the grant continuation awarded by the Virginia Board for People with Disabilities (VBPD – www.vaboard.org) contracts for projects using the THA Toolkit have been awarded. One project is now complete and seven additional projects are underway using the Toolkit. Funds are available to award four more projects. The Request for Proposals (RFP) is available here, with proposals received on a rolling basis. The THA Toolkit is available here. For more information, contact Billie Campbell at bcampbell@tjpdc.org or 434-979-7310 x230 or bcampbell@tjpdc.org. To request a Toolkit or the RFP in Word format, please send an email to info@tjpdc.org.

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Route 29 Transportation Corridor Study Underway

The Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) has initiated an in-depth corridor study for the 219-mile segment of Route 29 stretching from I-66 at Gainesville to the North Carolina state line. The intent of the study is to assess the highway/corridor with regard to the following: safety, congestion, through-travel, access management, land use and transportation planning and economic development.  The study also will develop a set of short-, mid-, and long-term recommendations and action plans to improve the regional functionality of the corridor. Local and regional public forums are planned for this coming spring. The project will be completed by December 2009. For more information please visit the VDOT Route 29 Corridor Study page.

Regional Transit Authority (RTA) Legislation Introduced at 2009 General Assembly

The Albemarle County Board of Supervisors and the Charlottesville City Council have approved legislation authorizing the formation of an RTA to be presented to the General Assembly during the 2009 session. This legislation would grant the City and the County permission to form the Authority when deemed appropriate by both bodies. A second piece of legislation would grant enabling authority for the County and City to ask voters if they would approve of an increase to the local sales tax by up to one percent in each locality. Revenues generated by the tax would be used to fund the operations of the new RTA and for other priority transportation projects. For more information, visit our RTA page.

RTA Toolkit Consultant Selected

TJPDC has selected The Southeastern Institute of Research, Inc. to assist in developing a RTA Toolkit. Given the timing of activities related to the RTA and the Toolkit Project, the TJPDC and MPO will utilize the research surveys involved in the Toolkit Project to support planning related to the RTA. Specific project objectives include:

• Assess public opinion of the existing public transit infrastructure and understand what drives these opinions.
• Identify any unmet needs and/or barriers to use by existing and prospective system riders to recommend specific public transportation system service enhancements or additional services.
• Measure the degree of awareness, familiarity, and support among the general public for the RTA concept; identify what drives support and/or lack of support for this type of authority.
• Package the information related to this study in a toolkit that can be easily used by other regions interested in more actively engaging the public in transportation/transit planning issues.

New MPO Policy Board Meeting Location and Dates!

The meeting time and location for the MPO Policy Board has changed. The MPO has moved its monthly meeting to the CitySpace location in the Market Street Parking Garage at 5th Street NE and the Downtown Mall. The move will mean the MPO's meetings will now be held on the fourth Wednesday of the month, rather than the third Wednesday; however, all meetings will still be held from 4 to 6 p.m.

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A follow-up event was held on October 30, 2008 to continue the work from the Regional Housing Conference held last March. The purpose of the event was to recognize commitments by local government and other partners and to identify potential partnering projects and outcomes. TJPDC and its member localities have adopted resolutions of support for the Regional Action Agenda (available at www.HousingConference08.org) , and committed to participating in this session to report on action items currently underway and to identify at least one specific item to undertake. The session included presentations from each locality and “partnering think tank” work in small groups at stations focused on each of the four categories of the Action Agenda:

• Public-Private Partnerships
• Coordination and Cooperation
• Policy Changes
• Education and Advocacy

For more information, contact Billie Campbell at bcampbell@tjpdc.org or 434-979-7310 x230.

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The Albemarle Planning Commission hosted a community workshop November 19 to receive input on the three different development scenarios proposed for the Village of Rivanna, located on Route 250 East. At this meeting, the community voted on their preference from the three scenarios presented. The preferred alternative is shown here. For more information, contact Bill Wanner at wwanner@tjpdc.org or 434-979-7310 x390.

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Piedmont Sustainable Woods (PSW) contracted with Agricultural & Community Development Services (ACDS), LLC to perform the work on Phase I of a Sustainable Woods Feasibility Study and Operations Plan. That study is now complete. While recognizing current economic conditions, the study identifies an approach and product mix to launch a sustainable operation. PSW is using the feasibility study to pursue additional funding for Phase II, which will comprise a Business and Marketing Plan to include a Technical Operations Plan to select the site, specify the equipment, and develop an operating budget and marketing plan. When completed, the plan will identify a business framework to attract the capital and partners necessary to begin operations. ACDS is a Maryland-based consulting firm providing marketing and economic development services to private, public, and not-for-profit clients. For more information contact Billie Campbell at bcampbell@tjpdc.org or 434-979-7310 x230.

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Disability Services Needs Assessment Survey Underway

The Jefferson Area Disability Services Board is conducting its triennial survey to assess the service needs of people with physical and/or sensory disabilities in the Counties of Albemarle, Fluvanna, Greene, Louisa, Nelson and the City of Charlottesville. This information is used to guide the activities of the DSB, inform local officials of needs within their jurisdictions and advise state agencies. If you feel you have a physical and/or sensory disability, please take the time to fill out the online survey. You may also fill out the survey for a friend or family member, and share it with others who qualify. For more information or for paper copies, contact Rochelle Garwood at rgarwood@tjpdc.org or 434-979-7310 x320.

Disability Services Board Plans Second Home Show Display

Following the success of last year’s Blue Ridge Home Show booth on universal design, the Jefferson Area Disability Services Board is planning to display at the show again this year. Universal design is the design of products and environments to be useable by all people, and is gaining popularity as a way to design homes that people will be able to live in for their entire lives, regardless of physical ability. The Blue Ridge Home Show will be held April 10-12, 2009, at the John Paul Jones Arena. For more information about the show, visit http://www.brhba.org/. For more information about universal design or the DSB’s display, contact Rochelle Garwood at rgarwood@tjpdc.org or 434-979-7310 x320.

Employer of Year Presented in October

The Jefferson Area Disability Services Board presented its tenth annual Martha Tarrant Employer of the Year Award to The Melting Pot in late October at the Disability Champions event in Charlottesville. The event was sponsored by the Department of Rehabilitative Services (DRS) and attended by about 90 people. The Martha Tarrant Award is given to businesses that have demonstrated exceptional support for their employees with disabilities, and is chosen from the nominees for DRS’ Disability Champions. For more information contact Rochelle Garwood at rgarwood@tjpdc.org or 434-979-7310 x320.

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The Thomas Jefferson Area Coalition for the Homeless (TJACH) Board has elected the following officers: Chair - Ed Bain (Attorney); Vice Chair - Mark Lorenzoni (Ragged Mountain Running Shop, Corner Merchants, and Chair of the Task Force to Develop the 2012 Plan to End Homelessness); Secretary - Kate Rosenfield (Adult Education Specialist); and Treasurer - Jim Miller (Realtor). TJACH is moving forward with plans to submit an application to become a non-profit organization to serve as the lead organization on homelessness in the Thomas Jefferson Planning District. The Board held its organizational meeting in late October and appointed a working group to act as a nominating committee and to develop recommendations for structuring the organization. The board met on November 26 to hear from Homeward Executive Director Kelly King Horne on the history of Richmond’s coordinating organization on homelessness and to elect officers. For more information contact Billie Campbell at TJPDC at bcampbell@tjpdc.org or 434-979-7310 x230.

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In 1998, the TJPDC adopted the Sustainability Accords and Sustainability Vision. The TJPDC applies these Accords to guide projects and activities. The current “Livable for a Lifetime” initiative is a recent example of application of the Accords. Livable for a Lifetime advocates the use of Universal Design principles in homes and communities. Universal Design is the design of products and environments to be usable by all people regardless of their age or ability, to the greatest extent possible, without the need for adaption or specialized design. Universal Design is fundamental to achieving sustainability for people with disabilities and for older people who wish to remain in their homes and neighborhoods even with physical limitations. For more information, see the Universal Design article at www.tjpdc.org\housing or contact Bill Wanner at wwanner@tjpdc.org or 434-979-7310 x390.

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In October, three community focus groups were held in Dyke, Ruckersville and Stanardsville, focusing on creating a vision that will guide the Greene County 2009 Comprehensive Plan. In November, a community-wide scenario planning workshop was held to receive ideas from residents on the types and locations of future development and on the needed transportation improvements. The Greene County Planning Commission met in December to review the results of the focus groups and provided additional input toward framing the vision statement. This community input will be modeled to create a series of future scenarios for the County, to which the community will have the opportunity to respond to and modify the scenarios this coming spring. For more information, contact Bill Wanner at wwanner@tjpdc.org or 434-979-7310 x390.

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RideShare celebrated its fifth annual Appreciation & Awareness Week in mid October, with a customer photo contest and luncheon. Commuters submitted photos of their carpool, transit ride, vanpool, walk or bike ride to work to receive a $10 Starbucks Card. The appreciation luncheon, held on October 17, brought together RideShare customers and employers from across the region. Activities featured an awards presentation and filming of testimonials for a new TV commercial.

The University of Virginia’s Department of Parking & Transportation (UVa P&T) received the Commuter Benefits Champion award at RideShare’s luncheon. Over the past year, the University has been a community leader in providing commuter benefits and reducing its impact on the local transportation system. Notably, UVa P&T worked with RideShare to introduce the CavPool program last July, an innovative system that awards employees for carpooling. All CavPool participants are automatically enrolled in RideShare’s Guaranteed Ride Home program.

Visit www.rideshareinfo.org for more information on Rideshare Awareness and Appreciation week, including photo contest entries. For more information on commuter benefits at UVa, visit http://www.virginia.edu/parking/TDM.

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New Planner Hired

TJPDC is pleased to announce that William “Will” Cockrell has joined our staff as a planner. Will previously worked for almost three years as a Senior Planner for Louisa County and for three years as a planning intern for the City of Charlottesville’s Department of Neighborhood Development Services. Will holds a Master’s of Science in Urban Environmental Planning from the University of Virginia’s School of Architecture, with a Concentration in Land Use Planning and a Bachelor’s of Science in Urban Environmental Planning, Minor in Architecture, also from UVA. Will brings to us his experience in comprehensive plans, land use policies, presentation skills, and relationships with staff members and officials throughout the region, including Fluvanna, Greene, Nelson and Albemarle Counties. Will also served as chair of the TJPDC’s Rural Transportation Technical Committee for 2007-2008. You can contact Will at wcockrell@tjpdc.org or 434-979-7310 x440.

TJPDC Continues Executive Director Search

TJPDC is working with Springsted Incorporated to conduct the search for an Executive Director, to fill the vacancy created by Harrison Rue’s departure last year. Position requirements are available here, with a full profile describing the region and position available at www.springsted.com. Applications should be submitted to Springsted at Richmond@Springsted.com or by fax to 804-726-9752.

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Thomas Jefferson Planning District Commission
PO Box 1505 - 401 East Water Street
Charlottesville, VA 22902
www.tjpdc.org
(434) 979-7310