If you don’t own it, it’s going to change

Witness the new approvals from the Albemarle Board of Supervisors; pay attention to the “interconnection conundrum.” If you live on a cul-de-sac, it may not always be one – one day it will likely be a through-road.

New residential developments must comply with the County’s standards for, among other things, sidewalks and street trees.  Allowing cars from these new “walkable” neighborhoods to connect through the pedestrian unfriendly streets in existing neighborhoods has been a point of concern of County residents from Crozet, to Biscuit Run, to Glenmore.

Supervisors that find these conflicts in their district often side with the existing constituents and oppose interconnection or only allow it for emergency vehicles.  Other Supervisors point out that it is an important principle of the County’s Neighborhood Model.  Even the General Assembly is starting to suggest they will be less likely to pay for maintenance of roads in cul-de-sac developments and will instead create funding incentives for interconnected neighborhoods that better mitigate traffic congestion.

Related posts:

BOS still hasn’t met a subdivision it didn’t like (RealCrozetVA)
This is why I tell my clients that everything can change

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