A post-Jim Ryan UVA is still working to accomplish his promised 1,000-1,500 units under his community initiatives.
Though Jim Ryan is no longer the president of the University of Virginia, planning work continues on three affordable housing projects called for under one of his community initiatives.
In March 2020, Ryan announced that, over the next decade, UVA would build between 1,000 and 1,500 units to help increase its housing supply. After a delay related to the COVID-19 pandemic, three locations were selected and two of the projects have progressed to the point where local officials are reviewing applications for 555 places to live.
In December, the Piedmont Housing Alliance filed for a rezoning of just over 12.7 acres on UVA-owned land off Fontaine Avenue in Albemarle County.
“This is the right location for this project and having affordable housing in this location will be a major community benefit,” reads the narrative filed with the rezoning.
More than 60 units currently on the Piedmont property have been used for years to house faculty and staff. All but two historic structures will be replaced with several buildings that total 375 units. Rent for each will be capped at a cost considered affordable for households making 60 percent of the area median income.
PHA is also seeking an exception or modification to allow structures as tall as 70 feet, one to reduce the number of required parking spaces, and to have stepback requirements removed for buildings constructed 30 feet away from Fontaine Avenue.
PHA is still working on a financing plan for the project, and construction would not begin until 2028 at the earliest. The next step in the public process will be a community meeting at a date yet to be announced.
Another project being overseen by an out-of-town group would see 180 units constructed in a six-story building at the corner of 10th and Wertland streets in Charlottesville. Preservation of Affordable Housing has requested $3 million from the city to help improve its application for low-income housing tax credits. City Council will make a decision during the budget development process after directing staff in January to pursue negotiations with UVA.
Charlottesville’s Board of Architectural Review has twice seen a preliminary review and still must sign off on the design for 1000 Wertland St., which would be by-right under the city’s development code.
The third site occupies a portion of the UVA Foundation’s North Fork Discovery Park. The Board of Supervisors approved a rezoning in February 2024 to allow residential uses on a 172-acre parcel. Bluestone Land LLC has been hired as the development partner.
“North Fork is a very different site from the initial two properties in terms of size, scale, project phasing, and affordability mix,” reads the website of Ryan’s Council on UVA-Community Partnerships. “We anticipate market rate and workforce/middle-income housing in addition to affordable units at this site.”
The earliest that project might go to construction would be 2027, according to the website.
