AC44 Monthly Digest: November 2022

Welcome back to the AC44 monthly digest for the County’s Comprehensive Plan update! This is where we’ll share the work we’ve done over the past month, the feedback we heard, and upcoming opportunities to participate.

What We Did

The AC44 Comprehensive Plan process is nearing the completion of Phase 1. This Phase included three rounds of public engagement and multiple Working Group meetings to gather community input, which was incorporated into a draft Framework for an Equitable and Resilient Community. After a work session with the Planning Commission in September and a work session with the Board of Supervisors in October, the AC44 team has been updating the draft Framework based on the Commission’s and Board’s feedback. The updated Framework will be shared early next year as we begin Phase 2 and will be used to guide work in the upcoming AC44 phases.

Additionally, the Land Use Buildout Analysis was completed by the consultant Kimley-Horn in collaboration with the AC44 team. The Land Use Buildout provides an estimate of the maximum theoretical buildout of the County’s Development Areas. The Development Areas cover 5 percent of the County’s total land area (about 37 square miles) and are where the majority of new residential and business growth is expected to occur per the current Growth Management Policy. The Land Use Buildout estimates the potential residential (housing units) and non-residential (commercial, retail, light industrial, hotel) buildout of the Development Areas based on the current Comprehensive Plan’s future land use designations. In upcoming AC44 phases, the project team will continue to use the land use buildout as a reference and dataset to help guide recommendations.

Looking Ahead

As we continue to wrap up Phase 1, the AC44 team is also gearing up for the start of Phase 2, which is expected to kick off in early 2023. In Phase 2, we will identify an updated Comprehensive Plan structure and the main Plan topics, update policies (including Goals and Objectives in the current Comprehensive Plan) and develop toolkits to guide coordinated land use and transportation planning. These toolkits may include development guidelines, multimodal transportation planning, and other recommendations. Topics would include areas such as transportation, land use, housing, economic development, natural and historic resources, parks and recreation, and community facilities.

The first round of engagement in Phase 2 will include sharing the Plan topics and providing opportunities for community input, so stay tuned! There will be a variety of in-person and online opportunities for feedback throughout Phase 2. The project team is also planning and preparing for the next Working Group, which will begin meeting in early 2023.

Learn More

All community members are invited to participate. Please take advantage of these tools to get started:

Listen to the Let’s Talk Albemarle podcast episode about the Comp Plan. This is a great introduction to understanding what the Plan is, how it's developed, and what it’s used for. You’ll also get some insight into the project team’s role in the process and some of the challenges associated with such a big (comprehensive!) community project.
Visit the Introduction to AC44 webpage to learn about the background of the project, why we have a Comprehensive Plan, and what the Plan is used for in day-to-day life.
Visit the Planning for Growth webpage to learn the background of the Growth Management Policy (a component of the Comp Plan) and review the initial ideas about ways we might update the Policy.
Sign up here to receive email updates and participation opportunities. Select the "Albemarle 2044 - Comprehensive Plan Update" box and any other topics you are interested in.

About the Comprehensive Plan

AC44 (or Albemarle County 2044) is the project name for the County’s Comprehensive Plan update and is one of the ways the County is planning for an inclusive and resilient future. The Comprehensive Plan sets priorities and serves as a guide for the future physical development of Albemarle County. The Plan includes recommendations for how and where the county should grow, supporting local businesses and industry, protecting and enhancing natural resources, providing transportation options for walking, biking, taking transit, and driving, and allowing and encouraging a variety of housing types.

The goals for the project are to:

Update plan content to reflect recent county-wide strategic initiatives including climate action planning, economic development, and multi-modal transportation planning.
Ensure that equity is integrated into the engagement process and the updated plan content, consistent with the County’s recently added “Community” organizational value.
Improve Plan usability by articulating clearly prioritized goals, incorporating metrics for tracking progress, and applying a modern, streamlined document design.

The Comprehensive Plan will be updated in a four-phased approach, with the adoption of the final Comprehensive Plan expected in late 2024. We are currently in Phase 1: Plan for Growth, which will be focused on the County’s Growth Management P olicy.

Why the name 'Albemarle County 2044 (AC44)’?

The process to update the Comp Plan kicked off in early 2022 and is anticipated to be completed by the fall of 2024. When adopted, the Comp Plan will be in effect from 2024 to 2044 with periodic updates, in response to changing conditions and trends in the county. 'AC44' is an abbreviation of the full project name.

Meet Our Team

We have a talented, multidisciplinary team working on AC44. Contact us by phone or email: AC44@albemarle.org -or- (434) 296-5832 ext. 3270

Tori Kanellopoulos

Senior Planner II

Mariah Gleason

Urban Designer

Ben Holt

Senior Planner II

Serena Gruia

Public Engagement Coordinator

Have You Visited Our Online Engagement Center?

We are looking forward to providing you with a variety of robust tools designed to enable you to share your expertise, ideas, and feedback with us on a regular basis.

Please visit the site and register to access current and future projects.

We have a new podcast! The Let’s Talk Albemarle podcast seeks to foster community participation through the exploration of important topics in Albemarle County. Listen free on Apple Podcast, iHeart, Spotify, Amazon Music, Google Podcasts, or our website.

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