Planning commission recommends approval for CBI Forest School special-use permit; members cite road-safety concerns

The Albemarle County Planning Commission voted 3‑2 on May 13, 2025, to recommend approval of special‑use permit SP2024‑23 for Congregation Beth Israel’s CBI Forest School in Dudley, subject to staff‑recommended conditions. Commissioners who supported the recommendation cited the school’s educational and conservation commitments; those opposed said Dudley Mountain Road lacks safe, all‑day vehicle and emergency access.

Staff presented the application as a request to authorize a private forest‑school campus on a rural‑area parcel of approximately 156 acres off Dudley Mountain Road. Senior planner Sid Shuff told the commission the applicant proposes to limit development to a roughly 15‑acre disturbance area and that the remainder of the site was described in the materials as being placed in a conservation easement. “For this application … the applicant's proposing for a new private school with a maximum enrollment of 44 students,” Shuff said, and staff summarized the application’s buildings, phased construction and proposed operational hours.

Shuff told commissioners staff found two positive elements — limiting development to a small portion of the parcel and that outdoor environmental education aligns with the comprehensive plan — but recommended denial because of transportation and emergency‑access concerns. He cited Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) measurements showing a 2018 average daily traffic count of about 130 vehicles on Dudley Mountain Road and said the applicant’s Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE) trip‑generation inputs estimate an additional 589 vehicle trips per day for the school, which would raise the road’s estimated daily volume to roughly 719 vehicles, exceeding VDOT thresholds used to determine pavement width and shoulder needs.

The applicant’s team and supporters emphasized conservation and childcare need. Jill Abby Clark, director of CBI Forest School, said the program began during the COVID pandemic and serves young children in an outdoor model, and that donors had offered a large tract of land. “We will protect over a 40 acres of undeveloped land and use it as an educational lab,” Clark said. Kendra Moon of Line and Grade, the project consultant, described a conceptual design that places small, decentralized buildings outside stream buffers, adds screening and uses permeable surfaces; she said the applicant has been in contact with VDOT and that the agency has not objected to the design in principle.

Applicant testimony and consultants disputed some staff traffic conclusions. Moon said the applicant conducted local counts and used a daycare trip generation proxy in ITE data; she also noted the applicant’s review of crash data and contended many recorded crashes on Dudley Mountain Road occurred at night and were related to impairment. “When we look at the actual accidents on Dudley Mountain Road, there have been 14 accidents in the past five years … 10 have been at night,” Moon said. She added that VDOT’s rural‑rustic program has allowed roads in similar condition to remain in place with up to 1,500 vehicles per day in specific circumstances.

Commissioners and staff pressed applicant representatives on sight distance at the Dudley Mountain/Old Lynchburg Road intersection, variable pavement widths (some sections under 16 feet), crash history, and emergency access. Shuff said the applicant’s proposed improvement to the western fire access road was reviewed by county engineering staff and determined to be within a water‑protection ordinance buffer and therefore not allowed as proposed; he said the applicant would need to provide an alternate route that meets Fire Rescue access standards and that this could be addressed at site plan if the permit were approved.

Public comment was deeply split. Dozens of parents, teachers and supporters urged approval, citing the school’s outcomes and the shortage of early‑childhood care in Albemarle County. Rabbi Tom Goodhertz of Congregation Beth Israel said the proposal “represents the largest gift our Jewish community has ever received,” and parents described children who have thrived in the outdoor model. Several environmental professionals commended the conservation and invasive‑species plans; Manuel Lerdau, a professional ecologist, said the proposal is “1 of the best” school conservation proposals he has seen.

Neighbors and other residents urged denial, pointing to narrow widths, limited sight lines, frequent cyclists, heavy commercial trucks, winter icing and several near‑misses. Speakers who identified themselves as Dudley Mountain Road residents repeatedly told the commission there are segments of the road 14–16 feet wide, failing culverts and stretches where drivers cannot safely pass. “My biggest concern is that this is the wrong location for this school,” said Dan Bridal, a Dudley Mountain Road resident. Multiple speakers raised groundwater and well‑yield concerns and asked for stronger guarantees about conservation protections.

Two technical points remained unresolved in the record. First, staff noted that a conservation easement described in the applicant materials had not been received or recorded; staff therefore could not treat the easement as an enforceable condition at the time of the commission vote. Second, transcript materials contain inconsistent arithmetic about the number of acres that would be conserved (the county staff described the parcel as approximately 156 acres and noted the applicant described the developed area as roughly 15 acres while applicant materials also other places state a differing remainder); commissioners asked staff to clarify conservation‑easement scope during the application’s subsequent review by the Board of Supervisors.

The commission’s recommendation included specific conditions drafted by staff and read aloud during the hearing. Staff summarized the principal conditions as: development generally in accord with the conceptual plan (building locations and limits of disturbance), a maximum enrollment of 44 students, hours of operation limited to roughly 8 a.m.–5 p.m., a specified morning drop‑off window, limits on building footprints and heights, a 50‑foot side building setback and screening along property boundaries, requirements to improve the site frontage to applicable VDOT standards and to dedicate a 50‑foot right of way on both sides of Dudley Mountain Road where required for future improvements, and maintaining on‑site stream buffers.

Action: a motion to recommend approval of SP2024‑23 with the staff conditions passed by roll call, 3‑2. The recorded vote was: Commissioner Carzana — yes; Commissioner Bivens — yes; Commissioner Moore — yes; Commissioner Claiborne — no; Commissioner Murray — no. The motion and second were spoken during the meeting but the speakers who made the motion and second are not identified by full name in the audio record provided.

What happens next: the planning commission’s recommendation will be transmitted to the Albemarle County Board of Supervisors for final consideration. Staff and the applicant will be expected to clarify and, where feasible, strengthen documentation on the proposed conservation easement, demonstrate feasible emergency access that meets Fire Rescue requirements, and work with VDOT and neighbors on potential roadway mitigations before the Board’s public hearing. The commission’s split vote underscores the competing county interests in conserving rural character and meeting early‑childhood needs while addressing public safety and transportation infrastructure limitations.

For the record, key on‑the‑record quotations included: “Staff recommends denial … because Dudley Mountain Road does not meet VDOT standards for rural roads with greater than 400 average daily trips,” said Sid Shuff. Applicant consultant Kendra Moon said, “We have corresponded with VDOT multiple times … they have not expressed concern to us about this road” and noted the applicant’s local trip counts. Rabbi Tom Goodhertz said, “What’s at stake here is not only a school, but a model of learning and stewardship and community that benefits its county beyond its boundaries.” Neighbor speakers repeatedly said the road “is too narrow” and described near misses, winter icing and heavy truck traffic.

The commission recessed after its vote; a Board of Supervisors hearing will be scheduled and interested parties will receive notice of that date.