Dear Ace: It seems as though people are trying to squeeze things into the smallest spots these days. What are they building near the corner of 29 and Barracks Road, next to Arby’s?—Rocky Rhodes
Rocky: In these situations, Ace is frequently reminded of the oft-quoted (and covered) Joni Mitchell song, “Big Yellow Taxi,” in which the songstress laments the loss of “paradise” to a “parking lot.” But, that doesn’t seem to be the case with the spot next to Arby’s on 29.
The Charlottesville Zoning Administration told Ace that what’s going there is another Arch’s Frozen Yogurt location! (Forgive the juvenile usage of an exclamation point—Ace loves him some fro-yo.) They also told him that the city Planning Commission just gave the project an award for Outstanding Sustainable Development, which sounded pretty important, but Ace wasn’t sure what it really meant. So, Ace called Mark Humbertson, one of the architects for the Arch’s project, to get a better idea.
Mark says that both the plan for the building and the site itself enhance the qualities of the location. “The building features,” Mark says, “which aren’t as evident as the site features, really improved the site beyond what it was: asphalt.” Plus, Mark told Ace, the addition of more landscaping and trees will work well with Meadow Creek, which runs nearby.
After Ace hung up with Mark, he got a hold of Rob Archer, Arch’s co-owner, via e-mail, to see how many more frozen yogurt joints Ace can expect! (There he goes again.) Unfortunately, Rob said they’re just focusing on getting the new store up and running before they consider anything else. Luckily, though, that should happen “sometime towards the end of June,” Rob said.
As excited as he is about frozen yogurt, Ace’s one complaint is, as a non-cash-carrying gent, that he’s always forced to whip out his checkbook before devouring his delicious treat. So, Ace inquired, will the new Arch’s take credit cards? Rob says they are “a possibility.” Huzzah!
That was just embarrassing. Ace apologizes.
