Oak Bluff rezoning in Crozet deferred after lengthy public hearing; commissioners request additional traffic and stormwater detail

Riverbend Development and Greenwood Homes presented a rezoning application for a 33-acre Oak Bluff neighborhood in Crozet to the Albemarle County Planning Commission on Dec. 17, 2024. The proposal requested rezoning from R-1 to Planned Residential Development (PRD) for up to 34 units on the northern block and additional units on the southern block, with a 15% affordable housing commitment (per policy in effect when application was submitted). The applicant proposed to dedicate about 4.2 acres for a public greenway and to construct roughly 500 feet of a proposed Eastern Avenue connector roadway and to dedicate right-of-way for additional roadway construction.

Kevin McDermott, deputy planning director, outlined the site context: the property straddles Licking Hole Creek, includes flood plain and water-protection buffers, and is framed by preserved slopes. The application proposes public trail connections along the creek and a 30-foot buffer in edge areas adjacent to West Hall Drive, with a 3-story / 35-foot maximum building height and an affordable housing commitment. Staff's written report recommended approval with conditions, but raised concerns about impacts to preserved slopes, the lack of full Eastern Avenue construction and the need for clearer transportation connections.

Traffic and access were the dominant themes in public testimony and commission questioning. The applicant provided a targeted traffic analysis that looked primarily at trips from the northern block and modeled operations at the Park Ridge/Route 240 intersection. Traffic engineer Carl Hultgren (Grove Slate Associates) said staff-commissioned counts in August 2024 found that adding Oak Bluff traffic would not materially change the peak-hour level of service at key intersections in the northern direction. The applicant also told the commission it would construct the first 500 feet of the Eastern Avenue connection and dedicate right-of-way for roughly 1,400 feet more of future roadway.

But commissioners and many public speakers said the broader Crozet traffic network remains constrained and that the Eastern Avenue connector has been planned for decades and is not yet funded or fully designed. Speakers raised that: - the county's Crozet transportation study assumed the Eastern Avenue connector in its 2045 forecasts, and the projected operations in that study are different than current conditions; - multiple recent and planned projects in Crozet raise cumulative traffic concerns not captured by a single-project TIA; - Radford Lane and Liberty Hall entrances are narrow and could see concentrated traffic if the southern block uses existing neighborhood access; and - school capacity and bus routing at Henley Middle and Western Albemarle High School are already strained and new students from any new development will add pressure.

Several neighbors asked the commission to delay action until the county had either a funded plan for Eastern Avenue or a more complete, multi-project traffic analysis. Residents also raised concerns about stormwater management on the southern block, noting nearby neighborhoods have experienced issues with buried underground detention systems. The applicant's civil engineer, Scott Collins, said options under study for Block 2 included underground detention, use of an existing pond on site and potential drainage tie-ins to nearby stormwater facilities; the applicant agreed to provide more specific stormwater plans.

On affordable housing, the applicant told the commission it planned to deliver for-sale affordable units and that the 15% commitment reflected the policy in effect when the application was filed; commissioners asked staff about incentives and the county's newer 20% policy and how it applies to applications filed under the earlier rules.

After a lengthy hearing that included scores of public speakers both for and against the proposal, the applicant asked for an indefinite deferral to revise the application and provide additional transportation and stormwater detail. A motion to defer indefinitely passed on a roll call, and staff said the application will return once the applicant supplies the requested information and county staff has had time to review it.

Why it matters: Oak Bluff is one of the last large infill parcels within Crozet's development area. Its design, access arrangements and stormwater treatment will shape nearby neighborhoods, trail connectivity and the timing of the long-discussed Eastern Avenue connector. The commission deferred action to allow more detailed evaluation of traffic impacts, stormwater design for the southern block and a clearer path for off-site improvements.

What's next: Applicant and staff will provide updated transportation analysis (including additional intersections and cumulative effects), detailed stormwater design options for Block 2, and clarification on phasing and right-of-way dedications. The commission will resume review once staff and the applicant confirm the new materials are complete.