Woodard Properties has purchased the Water Street lot where the Charlottesville City Market takes place. The market will continue its operations as normal.
One of Charlottesville’s most prolific developers has added another high-profile property to its portfolio by purchasing a parking lot where the City Market operates on Saturdays for seven months of the year.
“Woodard Properties has acquired the surface lot at 100 E. Water St., converting our leasehold interest in the property into ownership,” said CEO Anthony Woodard. “The Charlottesville City Market will continue to operate as it has. We value the Market’s role and support its continued presence downtown.”
The company paid the Charlottesville Parking Center $15 million for the 0.99-acre property, a price that is more than three times the assessed value. According to Charlottesville City Assessor David Milton, this transaction will not count toward the real property assessment in 2027 because it is not considered a valid sale.
“This was an option that had the amount of the sale agreed upon when the lease was written [in 2014],” Milton said in an email.
Two days later, CPC paid $9.1 million for 1150 Fifth St. SW to a subsidiary of Riverbend Development called RBD Bent Creek, LLC. That is the site where a Wawa franchise recently opened and CPC now collects its rent.
This transaction is also not considered a valid sale because it utilizes Section 1031 of the Internal Revenue Service code to allow capital gains to be transferred to another property tax-free.
“I think these sales are more indicative of the lease and extenuating circumstances than they are of actual market value,” Milton said.
CPC owner Mark Brown had no comment. The company continues to collect at least $1.8 million a year from the City of Charlottesville for the ground lease of the Water Street Parking Garage at 200 E. Water St.
Woodard Properties began leasing the surface parking lot at a time when the company was planning to build a 10-story building called Market Plaza on the adjacent block of 200 E. Water St.
In 2014, Charlottesville City Council selected Woodard to develop the lot, and granted a special use permit for additional height and density in April 2018. The project was abandoned several months later after the Board of Architectural Review rejected a certificate of appropriateness on a 5 to 3 vote in August 2018.
The city continues to own all but one of six lots that make up the adjacent block. Another subsidiary of Woodard Properties paid $5 million for a 0.167-acre property in June 2014.
Woodard said there are no plans to pursue any development of the city-owned site, but the company’s commitment to Charlottesville is demonstrated by this latest purchase.
“Woodard Properties pursued the acquisition of this site because it has the potential to add to the vibrancy of downtown,” Woodard said. “We have a long-term commitment to the city and have been part of Charlottesville for almost 50 years.
The company is also seeking to build a seven-story residential building at 601 Albemarle St. and a five-story mixed-use building at 801 Cherry Ave.
