CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA (CVILLE RIGHT NOW) – Transportation projects and educational needs highlight the agenda for Wednesday’s Albemarle County Board of Supervisors meeting.
Over the past four months, County staff has been working to update the Albemarle County Transportation Project List and revisit the prioritization methodology, according to the agenda briefing.
“The Albemarle County Transportation Project List (i.e., “Project List”) includes all major transportation projects recommended through any planning process in which Albemarle County has participated. These planning processes include the AC44 Comprehensive Plan, Area Master Plans, Small Area Plans, corridor studies, and other transportation plans, including bicycle and pedestrian plans and greenway plans,” according to the briefing.
The top priority item on the list is the 5th Street/I-64 interchange configuration, and County Communications Director Abbey Stumpf said that project could be bolstered by state or federal funds.
“Just because the rank is No. 1, or No. 2, or No. 3 does not necessarily mean that it will be easy to fund, or it might not be connected to some state or federal funding very easily,” said Stumpf. “So, they also put a lens of what are the ones that are most likely would meet the good criteria of getting some matching money.”
The 5th Street and Stagecoach intersection RCUT (Restricted Crossing U-Turn) and sidewalk and shared use path is second on the list.
The 29 and Airport Road intersection reconfiguration project and a bike/pedestrian mobility project with Rivanna River Bicycle and Pedestrian Crossing, Moore’s Creek Greenway Trail Segment 2 – Old Lynchburg Rd to 5th St Station Parkway, and a Berkmar Drive Shared Use Path from Rio Road to Woodbrook Drive on the list.
“There are 169 transportation improvement projects throughout the county,” Stumpf said. “And if you opened up your lines and said ‘name your projects that you want to happen’, you could easily identified those 169 with your callers. Staff looked at land use, looked at safety, they looked at ways to combat congestion, or if there’s an economic development aspect of that particular project.”
Stumpf said this is an action item, so supervisors can give the go-ahead to the rankings as are or make changes as they deem appropriate.
Supervisors will also be hearing from School Board Chair Rebecca Berlin in the last item of the afternoon session in the quarterly board-to- board report.
The agenda item package was blank Wednesday morning.
“This is an opportunity for them to present and have public discourse between the two boards as they talk about what are the higher priorities and highlights and interesting things that have been happening over in the school district,” Stumpf said.
