County planners approve Treesdale Park affordable housing development on Rio Rd

By Connie Chang
Charlottesville Tomorrow
Wednesday, November 11, 2009

On Tuesday, the Albemarle County Planning Commission approved a preliminary site plan for the Treesdale Park development to be constructed by the Albemarle Housing Improvement Program (AHIP). Because of federal tax credits, all units in the development will be made available for rental to residents who earn below 60 percent of the area median income.

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Location of Treesdale Park off Rio Rd, between Towne Lane and Stonehenge Road.

Treesdale Park is an 88-unit multi-family community that will be located on East Rio Road. AHIP plans to construct three multi-story buildings which will contain a mix of both two and three-bedroom apartments. Treesdale Park will also be sustainably constructed and certified through EnergyCraft and EnergyStar to further minimize maintenance burdens for its residents.

Back in December 2007, the 6.64 acre site received approval from the Board of Supervisors to be rezoned from an R4 zoning to a Planned Residential District, which increased the allowable units to be built from 4 units per acre to between 3 and 34 units per acre.
At the Planning Commission’s meeting in 2007, several nearby residents expressed concerns over the impact the denser site would have on nearby traffic, stormwater management, and schools. Approximately 25,000 vehicles a day travel on the portion of Rio Road adjacent to the proposed development and many worry that Treesdale Park will overburden the existing traffic flow.

Although no members of the public made comment at Tuesday night’s meeting, the applicant’s representative, Scott Collins, addressed issues regarding stormwater management and excavation on the site.

Scott Collins

According to Collins, the development shares the same stormwater management facility with the adjacent Stonewater subdivision to the south. He expects the proposed biofilter design to add aesthetic value to Treesdale Park and enhance the stormwater quality for the surrounding area.

The preliminary site plan was called up for review by the Commission by an adjacent property owner who lives across Rio Road and is concerned about noise impacts of blasting during excavation of the site. Collins noted that the excavation will not occur at a depth where the majority of rock is located and does not anticipate any problems with the issue.

Construction of Treesdale Park is expected to begin in 2010 pending approval of a final site plan at a future date.

TIMELINE FOR PODCAST

• 0:50 - Senior planner Summer Frederick presents staff report
• 3:30 – Applicant Scott Collins presents
• 4:45 – Commissioner Linda Porterfield asks about retaining wall heights
• 5:52 – Commissioner Marcia Joseph asks whether pathway includes planting
• 9:25 – Porterfield asks about stormwater management
• 10:18 – Commissioner Calvin Morris asks whether development will be 100% affordable
• 10:50 – Public comment period
• 11:14 – Frederick addresses adjacent property owners concerns
• 12:25 – Collins discusses excavation
• 13:00 – Joseph wants to add a condition “to landscape area around the walls with variety of small trees and shrubs”
• 15:23 – Porterfield moves for acceptance of critical slopes waiver with the two conditions
• 16:02 – Porterfield moves for approval the preliminary site plan with conditions