Although the current economic recession is affecting the City of Charlottesville, Mayor Dave Norris said that in many ways the city is better off than many other localities in the commonwealth heading into next year. The city will look to advance its affordable housing programs and pursue some new transportation efforts even in tough economic times, Norris said.
“We’re not looking at any substantial service reductions or staff layoffs ... or tax increases,” Norris said, noting, though, that the city has frozen hiring. The biggest cuts will be in the capital improvement budget, which funds major infrastructure projects, Norris said
“It will be a tight budget, but it will still be a stable budget,” Council member Satyendra Huja said.
Despite tight budgets across the board, the city will continue its efforts to ensure all citizens have access to affordable housing in Charlottesville. There is still a great deal of work to do before that ideal becomes reality, Norris said, noting, though, that he believes the city’s efforts and projects will “bear some significant fruit down the line.”
Providing housing for the homeless and preventing foreclosures are some of the city’s main goals, Norris said.
“The good news is that we haven’t been hit nearly as hard by foreclosures as other parts of the state and country, but it’s still a problem here and there’s more that we can be doing to keep people in their homes,” Norris added.
Norris said the regional housing task force is addressing this issue. Comprised of city, Albemarle County and University community members, the joint task force represents the first sustained discussion among the three entities to address the issue of affordable housing, he said. He added that the task force’s final report and recommendations will be published in the near future.
While affordable housing was one of Council’s top priorities in 2008 and will remain so in 2009, it is likely that there will be a “pretty significant cut in funding from this year to next year,” Norris said. Huja noted that a majority of Council members do not favor maintaining the current funding levels, especially in the current economic climate. Huja, however, said he still expects the affordable housing allotment during the next fiscal year to exceed $1 million.
Another project in which Council has been heavily involved recently involves trying to create a regional transit authority. Both the city and Albemarle County have expressed their support for such an organization and are currently working for the state legislature’s approval to create the authority, Charlottesville Transit Service Director Bill Watterson said.
“The city and county have both passed resolutions by their governing bodies to pursue legislation to create a regional transit authority and have drafted legislation that they intend to submit to the General Assembly,” Watterson said.
The first piece of legislation would grant authority to Charlottesville and Albemarle to create a governing structure for the authority, Norris said, adding that he believes this proposal will “be pretty noncontroversial.”
The second piece of legislation would allow the city and county to hold a referendum to gauge whether citizens would support a local tax increase to support both the transit authority and other transportation projects such as the building of new roads, Norris said. This piece will likely “face some stiff opposition” because it involves potentially raising taxes, he explained.
Both pieces of legislation will be presented to the General Assembly during the upcoming session in Richmond, Norris noted. If both proposals are approved, the transit authority could be created as early as fiscal year 2009-10, Watterson said.
The current economic downturn, though, may affect the county’s willingness to apply funding to the project, Norris said. He added that the city is “very committed” to the proposal and said a tighter budget would not impact its willingness to budget money for the establishment of the transit authority.
Watterson also noted that the city and county are interested in possibly partnering with the University to develop a more efficient transit service. The best way to “make [transit service] a success would be for the University to partner with the city and county,” he said.
Rebecca White, University parking and transportation director, stated in an e-mail that there are “many areas” in which the Charlottesville Transportation System and the University Transit Service are coordinating efforts.
“For example, U.Va. funds a hugely successful program whereby U.Va. staff, faculty and students can show a U.Va. ID and ride any CTS route without paying the fare,” White stated. “Also, as CTS and UTS adjust route alignments, we have eliminated overlap and enhanced transfer capability.”
White added that the University is currently participating in a joint working group composed of city, county, University and Jefferson Area United Transportation Board representatives to advance the idea of a legislatively enabled regional transit authority. According to White, CTS and UTS have also worked together on various community initiatives, including Clean Commute Day, a commuter information Web site and coordinated transport to and from football games.
These transit improvements are one of many ways Charlottesville is trying to become an environmentally-friendly city, Norris said, including city investments made in alternative energy and the city’s promotion of “green buildings” and a “more robust tree canopy.”
“These are all very positive developments,” Norris said, adding that it “felt great” to receive recognition from several independent organizations in regards to Charlottesville’s sutainability efforts. The city has been recognized 12 times in the last calendar year for its efforts to become more “green,” Norris noted.
He added that, along with Charlottesville residents, University students have been participating in these green efforts this semester as well as in other aspects of community life. He cited Student Council as an example of student organizations that have taken an increased interest in Charlottesville issues.
“There’s a real commendable increase in the attention students are paying to local affairs, and that’s a great thing for all of us,” he said. “Too often students live in their own little bubble.”
Read More
University sees increase in fraudulent emails and phishing attempts
By Bertie Azqueta | 9 hours agoSome of these phishing attempts come from @virginia.edu email addresses, making it more challenging for University Outlook users to differentiate fraudulent emails.
Faculty Senate discusses proposal to separate faculty position renewal from promotion
By Lexie Stadler | YesterdayAGF are non-tenure-track professors who hold roles primarily focused on teaching, research, academic librarianship and clinical service.
Board of Visitors approves increased tuition and other rates for 2025-26 school year
By Brandon Kile | December 11, 2024Increases for tuition at the graduate schools ranged from a 0.6 percent increase on the lower end at the Graduate School of Engineering to a 4.1 percent increase on the higher end at the Graduate School of Data Science.
