The amount of the Woolen Mills neighborhood to be filled in was reduced to 1.3 acres.
T
he developer of a future industrial building in the Woolen Mills neighborhood has succeeded in a second attempt to convince the Albemarle Board of Supervisors to allow land to be elevated out of the floodplain.
Last June, the six-member BOS deadlocked on a request from Elemental Ecotech to fill in the floodplain. A tie vote in Albemarle means a motion does not pass. Since then, two new Board of Supervisors members have been elected. On January 14, the board voted 4 to 2 in favor of a modified request.
“This has only improved in my eyes from the last go-around relative to the impacts,” said Rio District Supervisor Ned Gallaway.
The seven-acre property is within the scope of an economic development plan called the Broadway Blueprint, which generally encourages industrial uses in a portion of Albemarle on the western side of the Rivanna River that is only accessible via city streets. The property is zoned industrial, but it’s also within a flood hazard overlay district, which requires supervisors to approve a special use permit to fill in the floodplain.
The applicant slightly reduced the amount of area to be filled to 1.3 acres. Rebecca Ragsdale, a planning manager in Albemarle County said the Federal Emergency Management Agency, whose guidelines govern Elemental’s plan for the floodplain, has granted approval conditions on consent of the local governing body.
County staff found that the fill would not worsen flooding and placed several conditions on the permit, including additional treatment of stormwater runoff. There would also have to be an archaeological survey conducted by a third party, and Elemental could only use dirt from the adjacent parcel for the fill.
The property is on Franklin Street, which borders Charlottesville. Several city residents spoke out against the permit. Alana Horning of Franklin Street said there was no guarantee there would be economic benefits because the developer has not specified what will take place in the building. “Without a defined purpose,” she said, “there could be a possibility that the floodplain is filled with no building ever constructed.”
“This site has limited road access, it has potential Monacan and cultural resources, it is adjacent to a low-income residential neighborhood, and it borders an ecological preserve,” said Eli Connell, also a Franklin Street resident.
When the Planning Commission voted to deny the in December, the nay votes included Fred Missel, now the Samuel Miller District Supervisor. At the January 14 BOS meeting, Missel said the county has to balance economic development with environmental stewardship.
“I believe in leaning towards trusting our natural systems to do what they’re designed to do, and in acknowledging we need to do things to help them, especially in areas like this,” Missel said. “Filling more of the floodway is not, in my opinion, something we should consider a help.”
Supervisor Ann Mallek of the White Hall District repeated her opposition, but Supervisor Mike Pruitt of the Scottsville District changed his vote to yes.
“I’m not sure that the justice concern of siting something like this in a working-class neighborhood is entirely convincing because part of how it is able to retain a working-class neighborhood is the proximity of industrial uses,” Pruitt said.
Supervisor Bea LaPisto-Kirtley of the Rivanna District voted yes again and
said the industrial building would help with the county’s efforts to diversify the tax base.
Jack Jouett District Supervisor Sally Duncan said she trusted staff’s recommendation. “We have over 2,000 miles of streams and rivers in the county,” she said. “If we really want to protect the health of our waterways, then we need to keep industrial areas in the development area and maximize their usage.”
