Sean Tubbs, Author at C-VILLE Weekly

News

Planning Commission recommends approval of small changes to city’s zoning code

When Charlottesville City Council adopted a new zoning code in late 2023, it wanted to help developers make it easier to build new places to live. The city’s Department of Neighborhood Development Services is moving forward with changes designed to further that goal. “We’re jumping into 2026 with lessons learned, and to try to move […]

Sean Tubbs | January 21, 2026

News

Albemarle Supervisors approve permit allowing floodplain fill-in

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 […]

Sean Tubbs | January 21, 2026

News

Charlottesville’s economic development director addresses AI-powered parking

The company that now operates both municipal downtown parking garages only collects data in order to make it easier for vehicles to get in and out, Charlottesville’s economic development director told City Council on January 5. “The system involves a camera, optical character recognition, and/or license plate recognition to start and end a parking session,” […]

Sean Tubbs | January 14, 2026

News Real Estate

City Council majority wants further negotiation with UVA on housing project

In 2019, former University of Virginia president Jim Ryan announced an affordable housing initiative in which the public institution or its real estate foundation would provide land to help bring down the overall cost of a given project. So far, no such developments have broken ground. The one furthest along in the process, at 1000 […]

Sean Tubbs | January 14, 2026

News Real Estate

Developer’s bid to fill in floodplain for Woolen Mills building not recommended

The Albemarle Planning Commission has recommended denial of a developer’s second request to fill in a portion of the floodplain in order to build a commercial building in the county’s Broadway Blueprint. The Commission had voted 4 to 3 in April 2025 to recommend approval of Elemental Ecotech’s first version of the permit, but the […]

Sean Tubbs | January 7, 2026

News

Design panel votes against permit required for planned student housing

In yet another test of the city’s new zoning code, the Charlottesville Board of Architectural Review has denied a necessary permit required for the current design of an apartment complex. The December 16 vote against the certificate of appropriateness was 6 to 1. On December 31, an attorney for developer LCD Acquisitions filed for an […]

Sean Tubbs | January 7, 2026

News

Charlottesville City Council briefed on next set of affordable housing requests

Charlottesville City Council will not officially see a draft of the next budget until March, but City Manager Sam Sanders spent some time on December 15 setting up the next round of requests for affordable housing funds. “Our goal would be to begin to have conversations with you about prioritizing these considerations for the budget, […]

Sean Tubbs | December 24, 2025

News Real Estate

Planning commission recommends approval of rezoning

The Albemarle County Planning Commission has recommended approval of a rezoning that would allow a mixed-use development with 600 homes on 62.5 acres of land close to the junction of U.S. 29 and Interstate 64. In September, members of the appointed body thought the plan was too vague with a proposed minimum of 100 units […]

Sean Tubbs | December 24, 2025

News

City using AI-powered license plate readers to charge for garage parking

Those who use public parking garages in downtown Charlottesville experienced big changes December 16 when the city moved to a system where access is controlled by new software. “With the new system, residents and visitors will be able to enjoy an easy experience where their vehicle becomes their parking pass,” reads a press release sent […]

Sean Tubbs | December 17, 2025

News

Amtrak adjusting Northeast Regional schedule to accommodate bridge construction

People accustomed to catching a morning train to Washington, D.C., and other points north will have to make some adjustments in the next few years as Amtrak makes service changes while a key construction project is underway. In December 2019, then-Gov. Ralph Northam announced an investment of $3.7 billion in rail infrastructure as an alternative […]

Sean Tubbs | December 12, 2025