Students who have walked along or driven by the intersection of Emmet Street South and Stadium Road this semester may have noticed a new construction site in this area. The site will eventually house the Verve, a complex which will provide additional off-Grounds housing for students. However, according to some students, the location of this construction — behind Kerchof Hall — has hindered students’ walks to Clark Hall, New Cabell Hall and other locations on Central Grounds.
Existing sidewalks on both Emmet St. S and Stadium Rd. have been closed due to the construction and pedestrian pathways have been rerouted to the opposite sides of the construction on each respective street. Charlottesville City Traffic Engineer Caleb Smith said that this was done in response to safety concerns for pedestrians from overhead objects such as trees, but that these pathways may change further as construction progresses.
“That area is just historically congested in high pedestrian volumes anyway, so a bunch of that has been there and it’s just been displaced [by the construction],” Smith said. “As the project pushes forward, there are plans to continue to improve the temporary condition.”
Smith said another concern is that large vehicles and heavy equipment are regularly moving in and out of the area, posing potential hazards for pedestrians and bikers. He said that these were the primary motivations for redirecting traffic behind the barricaded temporary walkways.
“I get that it can feel inconvenient or less than optimal to have to walk behind those barricades,” Smith said. “Ultimately, it’s because it’s safer than having somebody be in the wrong place at the wrong time.”
Second-year College student Brett Barton said he walks by the construction most days of the week on his way to class. He said that in order to traverse this area, he now has to cross Emmet St. S multiple times in order to follow the designated walkways, whereas he previously was able to take a more direct path.
“It’s a pretty big inconvenience,” Barton said. “I have to cross the street to get across, walk on the detour, and then cross back to go to the next crosswalk … it’s not ideal.”
Barton also frequently drives in the area and said that the construction has made the already congested traffic around the site even worse due to additional waiting. Barton mentioned a blind spot that he has encountered when turning left onto Stadium Rd. from Emmet St. S which has made driving conditions more unsafe. He said that he understands why changes to traffic patterns and sidewalks are being made but that he hopes the paths eventually return to normal.
“Traffic there is already bad … but I think [the construction] is definitely adding to it,” Barton said. “I wish [the sidewalks] were back to normal, but I understand why it is being done.”
Second-year College student Kushan Dixit also walks by the construction side almost every day on his way to class. Dixit said that he does not see the detours as a huge inconvenience but that the new walkways took some time to get used to. He also said that the barriers surrounding the construction could be improved to better enclose the site.
“I wouldn’t say [the new walkways] are a big inconvenience, but I would say at first it was definitely weird,” Dixit said. “I don’t know if it would be a safety hazard, but it just doesn’t seem like [the barriers] are properly encapsulating the construction site.”
Construction of the Verve was first approved by the city in December 2023. The project began with the demolition of Woodrow Apartments along with numerous other structures to make way for the planned twelve story building that will provide over 1,300 beds.
Construction at this site is slated to finish within two years. Smith said that pedestrian detours will likely be in place for most of this period as streetscape elements tend to be the final aspects finished, but that the city is working to reclaim as much public space as possible for pedestrian use.
“As the site develops and comes up out of the ground, we will push to reclaim as much of the public space for student use and everybody’s use as we can,” Smith said. “I think some of the sidewalk closures around this project are going to be there for a good little while, and that’s why we’re taking steps to ensure that they’re the best temporary facilities we can make.”
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