Charlottesville City Council on Aug. 26 approved a resolution selecting Alternative B as the city’s preferred design for Avon Street multimodal improvements and accepted ownership of the proposed pedestrian bridge over Morse Creek. The council also acknowledged the project will remove on-street parking spaces in the corridor.
The action directs the Virginia Department of Transportation, which administers the federally funded Smart Scale project, to proceed with the lower-cost design that consolidates pedestrian and bicycle facilities into a single shared-use path on the east side of Avon Street. City staff said the alternative fits within the existing Smart Scale budget and reduces retaining-wall and right-of-way costs that made the original design unaffordable.
The vote follows months of public comment and a VDOT citizen information meeting in May attended by 27 residents where loss of parking, speeding and sight-line safety were recurring concerns. Ben Chambers, the city’s Transportation Planning Manager, told council that Alternative B costs roughly $13 million, versus about $16 million for the original design. He said both designs include a pedestrian bridge over Morse Creek and that VDOT recommended the city accept ownership of the bridge so it could be built to city standards and at lower cost.
Why it matters: The corridor links neighborhoods to the Rivanna Trail and the Fifth Street Station area; the city’s long-term goals include safer pedestrian and bicycle connections and reduced vehicle speeds entering Charlottesville. Supporters argued Alternative B will slow cars, improve safety and deliver multimodal access within the available funding. Opponents — including homeowners in the lower hill neighborhoods — said losing about 33 on-street spaces will disproportionately affect households that rely on street parking, including several Habitat-for-Humanity homes with only one off-street space.
Councilors and staff said the project will also enable two new bus stops as part of a proposed Route 2 realignment, improving transit access to the Fifth Street Station shopping area. Several council members suggested staff explore mitigations for lost parking such as permit parking, small off-street improvements, or pedestrian access paths to reduce walking distances for nearby residents.
Council action and next steps: The council motion directed staff to notify VDOT of the preferred alternative and to work out maintenance responsibilities for the bridge with Public Works. Construction is estimated to begin in 2028 with completion in 2029; preliminary right-of-way and utility work will occur before that. Staff said bus-stop additions and a possible 25-mph speed designation will be coordinated with VDOT and Albemarle County.
What remains unresolved: Residents asked staff to study specific mitigations — permit parking, small pedestrian cut-throughs, additional trees and potential burial of overhead utilities — and to coordinate speed transitions with Albemarle County to avoid abrupt speed-limit changes. Council members urged robust community outreach as design advances.