HomeMy WebLinkAboutCLE201500231 Correspondence 2015-12-31 (2)Rebecca Ragsdale
From: Peter Drenan <peter_drenan@yahoo.com>
Sent: Thursday, December 17,2015 11:19AM
To: Peter Drenan; Rebecca Ragsdale
Subject: RE: CLE # 2015-231 Charlottesville Beautiful Minds (Family Day Home)
Ms. Ragsdale,
Thank you for your response. Clearly I am interested in knowing when this will be on the agenda for the Board.
Also, I failed to include one item of significant importance for the Board's consideration. The property for the Family
Day Home is 3 -bedroom home that is on a septic system. When they added 5 extra children (to the Owner's use of the
property) the house's septic system was likely at or exceeding its design capacity. Before the Board allows the Family
Day Home to expand to include as many as 12 children and additional staff members, they should consider carefully
whether the septic system is in accordance with applicable rules and regulations of the appropriate health and
regulatory agencies.
The size of the building lot and the location of the house likely prevent expansion of either the septic tank or the septic
fields, which would likely be required based on the increased use of the system caused by housing an additional 12-14
people on the property every day.
I hope you can add this to the list of potential issues that should be considered in the zoning review process.
Thanks you,
Peter Drenan
On Tue,12/15/15, Rebecca Ragsdale <rragsdale@albemarle.org> wrote:
Subject: RE: CLE # 2015-231 Charlottesville Beautiful Minds (Family Day Home)
To: "Peter Drenan" <peter drenan@yahoo.com>
Date: Tuesday, December 15, 2015, 2:46 PM
I have received several
other objections to this proposal and will need to schedule it for a Board of Supervisors meeting to be heard.
The county will take your comments into consideration below when reviewing the proposal.
-----Original Message -----
From: Peter Drenan [mailto:peter drenan@yahoo.com]
Sent: Tuesday, December 15,2015 1*58 PM
To: Rebecca Ragsdale <rragsdale@albemarle.org>; Peter Drenan <peter drenan@yahoo.com>
Subject: CLF # 2015-231 Charlottesville Beautiful Minds (Family Day Home)
Ms. Ragsdale,
This letter is written in response to the County's letter dated November 16, 2015, pertaining to a zoning request
(CLE#2015-231) for the Charlottesville Beautiful Minds (Family Day Home) located in the Peacock Hill subdivision, a
PUD community. The current zoning ordinance allows for a Family Day Home for less than five children in a single-
family residence without a zoning permit request, but requires additional consideration if the Family Day Home intends
to provide care for more than five children. This Zoning Ordinance was not in place when Peacock Hill was created and
zoned as a PUD, as the Zoning Ordinance was only implemented in 2013.
The current use of the property as a Family Day Home with 5 or fewer children (exclusive of the provider's own
children) has been operational this year. We are not opposed to the continued use of the adjacent property under the
zoning ordinance allowing five or fewer children into be cared for in this facility.
We are landowners whose property abuts the property identified in the zoning request.
Upon notification by the County, we have engaged in discussions with lawyers, realtors, real estate managers and
other neighbors in Peacock Hill about the proposed increased use of this property. We are formally objecting to this
zoning request based on the following
concerns:
Daily
Round -Trip Traffic
The zoning request as we
understand it, would be to allow consideration of the Family Day Home to expand to allow for the care for more than
five but not more than twelve children. Each family day home providing care for more than five (5) but not more than
twelve (12) children under the age of thirteen (13). As we understand it, the staffing of the facility would need to
increase to provide appropriate coverage for the operation of the facility and appropriate care of the increased number
of children. Further, as we understand the regulations for Family Day Homes, the number of children refers to the
maximum number of children at the facility at any given time, rather than referring to the total enrollment of
children. This means that if the facility is fully enrolled and a child is retrieved by the parents at lunchtime, another
child can be scheduled to fill the available opening for that afternoon. Together, the increased staffing and child census
at the facility would likely cause the additional traffic generated by a family day home (excluding trips associated with
the dwelling unit), to exceed twenty-four (24) vehicle round trips per day. This is in excess of what the County zoning
ordinance allows.
Further, this
level of daily traffic transforms the nature of this cul-de-sac from a bucolic, wooded rural neighborhood to a traffic -
density similar to a commercial neighborhood.
Further, since the proposed
facility is at the very back of the Peacock Hill subdivision, all of the additional vehicular traffic will be traveling the full
length of Turkey Ridge Road affecting virtually all of the residences in the neighborhood with the increased traffic and
safety concerns.
Property Value
We have had
discussions with our realtor, other area realtors and our property manager about the impacts of having a Family Day
Home directly next door to our property. Every person associated with real estate valuations, real estate comparable,
and the impacts on selling or leasing a property next to this type of facility stated that we could expect to see a
decrease in our property values. The sale of our property would be inhibited by the noise, traffic, and the nuisance of
having an active child care facility next-door to our house, and that it will be detrimental to all adjoining properties and
it will change the character of the residential community.This is predicted to have the impacts of reducing the
marketability of our home, while also reducing the potential sale price of our house. Since our house is now of our
largest investments as we face retirement in the near-term future, having any reduction of its potential value is a very
concerning consideration for us.
Acorn Lane Roadway
Performance Standard
2
Acorn Lane is not rated
as a primary road within Albemarle County - it is not maintained, repaired managed by Albemarle County. The road
was built to provide adequate roadbed integrity for a limited number of daily vehicles, including the roadbed,
subsurface soils, drainage and surface materials. Any additional vehicle traffic on this road should not exceed the
design rating of the road as was originally installed. Further, if the zoning request is approved, any repairs, maintenance
and servicing of the roadway should be pro -rated to its usage - an agreement should be required by the County Zoning
Ordinance that addresses the physical consideration of the roadway and its subsequent repairs in a manner
commensurate with its use.
On -Street Parking
The children
that will be cared for in this potential facility will need to be dropped off and picked up daily, requiring as many as a
dozen vehicles at any one time that will be parking on the shoulders of the roadway. It is not clear by the County's
zoning and permitting ordinances and codes whether parking is allowed on the roadway of Acorn Lane, or along its
shoulders. I ask the County to provide clarification of this point. In addition to the direct concerns of the permitted use
of that level of parking, that level of parking raises some additional concerns. The staff parking plus the parent's
parking for pick-ups and drop-offs might require as many as 12-14 cars to be parked on or along the road of Acorn Lane
on a daily basis. The entire length of Acorn Lane is only about 275 feet long and as narrow as 16 -feet, it is difficult to
understand how this small road will be safely used when each standard parking space requires an area that is
approximately 9 -feet by 20 -feet. The zoning clearance application for this request should require clear answers to
issues regarding parking, including perhaps having County staff conduct an inspection to confirm adequacy of parking.
Further, beyond the physical limitations of parking, the twice -per -day high -demand parking will likely lead to parking
on the roadway shoulders and/or private property. During wet conditions, the impacts of this vehicular traffic on
unsupported landscaped areas would be to produce ruts and damaged areas adjacent to the roadway.
Further still, during
cool/cold condition the motors of vehicles might a left running while the children are being retrieved from the
facility. This can result in significant concentrations of noxious and dangerous fumes that might contaminate the air
quality and the existing vegetation in the vicinity of Acorn Lane.
Ingress/Egress
When considering the physical limitations of accessing the proposed facility on Acorn Lane, and further considering the
real-life considerations of further reduced access through the impacts of the drop-off and pick-up activities, the public
health, safety and welfare are likely to be impacted by a significantly curtailed ingress and egress to the facility. The
Zoning Administrator should request review/approval of an entrance/access by the County Engineer or VDOT, if they
deem it necessary, to ensure that the minimum standards necessary to protect the public health, safety and welfare by
providing safe ingress and egress will be met. Compliance with and identified entrance and access improvements
should be a condition of approval of a zoning clearance, in this circumstance.
Based on all of the above
considerations, we (peter Drenan and Sarah Drenan), as abutting neighbors to the identified property, object to the
zoning request for the use of the facility as a Family Day Home for more than five children.
Thank you for your consideration.
Respectfully,
Peter Drenan
Sarah Drenan
Rebecca Ra Wale
From: Julie Martin <jhm3c@virginia.edu>
Sent: Thursday, December 17, 20151:13 PM
To: Rebecca Ragsdale
Subject: CLE # 2015-231 Charlottesville Beautiful Minds (Family Day Home)
Dear Ms. Ragsdale:
As a resident and property owner in Peacock Hill, I am writing to express my opposition to the licensing the
Charlottesville Beautiful Minds day care facility at Peacock Hill.
I support in full the concerns that other residents have submitted and will not repeat them here. However, I
would like to submit an additional one. Specifically, this neighborhood not only has children who play out of
doors and sometimes, in the way of children, get onto the roads, but it also supports a substantial amount of
pedestrian traffic, including runners, people with strollers, and dog walkers. The ability to engage in these
outdoor activities is one of the most significant attractions of Peacock Hill.
In keeping with the character of the Peacock Hill neighborhood, there are no sidewalks in this subdivision, but
there is already a significant amount of vehicular traffic, not all of which obeys the speed limit and some of
which constitutes a real danger to pedestrians. As a twice daily dog walker, I can attest to this. The additional
traffic generated by a licensed family day care center would most certainly increase the hazards already faced
by pedestrians of all sorts.
I am requesting, therefore, that in light of the many concerns of the residents of Peacock Hill, including the
hazards presented by increased vehicular traffic, you deny the licensing of the Charlottesville Beautiful Minds
day care center.
Sincerely yours,
Julia H Martin
216 Turkey Ridge Rd
Charlottesville, Virginia 22903
Rebecca Ragsdale
From: Natasha Copeland <copelandnatashal@gmail.com>
Sent: Thursday, December 17, 2015 8:55 PM
To: Rebecca Ragsdale .
Subject: Peacock Hill/Beautiful Minds
Dear Ms. Ragsdale,
Dale and I are very troubled by the idea of the Beautiful Minds Family Day Home expansion, and wanted to voice our
opposition to it.
About six years ago our first cat was killed by a neighbor in her car coming from the far end of Turkey Ridge Road too
fast past our house. Since our son Liam was only two we realized that with our then only child, and our neighbor Matt's
boys also playing in their front yard (they visit on holidays), that we needed to do something about the speed. People
whip around that last curve with the end of the road in sight and it's very troubling to all of us. Three summers ago
someone came around that same curve before our house and slammed into our electrical box, destroying it, almost
starting an electrical fire, and putting our power out for four days.
Matt and Julie (across the street) walk often together at a very slow pace with Matt's cane and with Julie's dog, Minha's,
own bad hips. Bob Cook is at the end of the road, also taking it very slow on his hips and feet. Every morning a group of
children gather at the corner of TRR for the school bus, and at least one comes from Maria's house across the street
from us. People rushing from Peacock Drive, turning right into TRR at that time also fly around that corner and kids
waiting for the bus may be crossing with poor visibility just then. We do not have sidewalks. Our road does not have a
line painted down the middle as it is more of a country lane. This activity described all occurs in the space of a row of
seven houses.
At the time we investigated the speed bump question and ultimately determined that the best possible solution
available to us was to have "25 MPH Slow Children" signs (or something to that effect) installed, which VDOT did just
before the curve and at the end by the stop sign (too close to the intersection to notice, in my opinion) at our request.
That was about 5 years ago, and to be perfectly honest, there has been little to no reduction in speed.
Now we have Katya (age 5) who is much more precocious about being out and about, and this is a big fear. We have an
orange cone we put out sometimes when we're out in the front yard.
I myself am a harried mother who is trying not to rush through life like many... But I believe that parents rushing their
kids to daycare in order to get to work on time may not always be as vigilant as they should about the lives going on
around them in their commutes... even more so when it is not their own neighborhood. Our neighborhood is intended
to be a peaceful one, and many of our residents chose it because they like to be tucked away in their houses, enjoying
nature at their own leisure, away from the rush of commutes.
Under no circumstances do Dale and I want a business which draws a larger group of people along our almost seemingly
single lane road. There is additional wear and tear on the road, it makes daytime walks far less pleasant for
professionals or retirees who work at home, and most importantly of all, we fear for the lives of our children and our
pets. This is not a zoned commercial area.
1 am asking that you take a stand against such an expanded commercial venture in our residential neighborhood. if
there is a county meeting at which this will be discussed, I would love to have an opportunity to attend.
Thank you so much in advance for your consideration of our profound concerns.
Rebecca Ragsdale
From: Nicholee Elder <nickie.elder@gmail.com>
Sent: Thursday, December 10, 2015 8.04 I'M
To: Rebecca Ragsdale
Subject: Family Day Home at 707 Acorn Lane
Ms. Ragsdale,
My daughter, Katherine West, and I, as owners of 720 Acorn Lane, would like to make a written
objection to the increase in participants and time extension to full days at the Charlottesville Beautiful
Minds Day Care.
Our court is more of a shared driveway than a road, with barely enough room for cars to pass each
other. We have a couple of residents who regularly park on the street limiting the passage to one
vehicle at a time. The roadway is not maintained by the county and the cost falls on the property
owners. Parking would involve ruts being created along the street as the drive sideways are not
paved. I have observed some drop offs and it takes from 10 to 20 minutes to get the children
dropped off. i can see that having 10 vehicles at one time could cause delays for the property owners
trying to get to their homes after work or for getting out of the court. I have also noticed that the
current participants park facing both directions in front of the home, some drivers side toward the
pavement and some drivers side toward the house.
Our area does not have fire hydrants and uses tank trucks if there is a fire. I feel like access to our
home would be cutoff completely if there was a problem during pickup or drop off times. I recently
had a heart attack and know seconds count when you are in need of emergency help.
One additional concern is for the children and pets living on the court. Middle school and high school
students would be walking home from the bus stop around the Spm pick up time. Younger children
frequently ride their scooters and bikes around the circle and play in the court.
Thank you for your consideration of our concerns.
Nicholee Elder
Rebecca Ragsdale
From: Martha Orton <mrorton@hotmail.com>
Sent: Thursday, December 10, 201510:24 PM
To: Rebecca Ragsdale
Cc: dcbrawley@gmail.com; nmagee@gmail.com
Subject: RE: CLE * 2015-231 Charlottesville Beautiful Minds (Family Day Home)
County of Albemarle
Department of Community Development
401 Mcintire Road, North Wing
Charlottesville, Virginia 22902
December 10, 2015
RE: CLE# 2015-231 Charlottesville Beautiful Minds (Family Day Home)
707 Acorn Lane, Tax Map Parcel 073B0010007400
We the undersigned would like to make our objections known with regard to the request
for the expansion of the preschool at 707 Acorn Lane. We believe that the increased
traffic, parking and noise would be detrimental to our residential neighborhood and are
not consistent with the guidelines for home businesses in Albemarle County, particularly
due to the level of traffic involved. Already with five students attending only part-time a
few days a week the preschool has had a negative impact on the quality of life for
residents on Acorn Lane and Big Oak Road. Lots on Big Oak abut the property except for
a narrow area of common land which goes between the lots on both roads. They are
directly affected by noise from Acorn Lane as well the traffic. The cars picking up
children concurrently when three different County school buses would also be in the
general area from 3:00 PM to 4:45 PM would increase the traffic
congestion. Consequently we believe that an increase from five to twelve students and
also extending the hours from 9:00 AM -12 noon to 9:00 AM -5:00 PM, as well as offering
a five -day -a week schedule, would have an even greater negative impact on our
community.
Thank you for taking our views into consideration.
Sincerely,
Diana Brawley and Neal Magee
626 Big Oak Road
Charlottesville, VA 22903
Robert and Martha Orton
634 Big Oak Road
I
Rebecca Ragsdale
From: Peter Drenan <peter drenan@yahoo.com>
Sent: Tuesday, December 15, 2015 1:58 PM
To: Rebecca Ragsdale, Peter Drenan
Subject: CLE # 2015-231 Charlottesville Beautiful Minds (Family Day Home)
Ms. Ragsdale,
This letter is written in response to the County's letter dated November 16, 2015, pertaining to a zoning request
(CLE#2015-231) for the Charlottesville Beautiful Minds (Family Day Home) located in the Peacock Hill subdivision, a PUD
community. The current zoning ordinance allows for a Family Day Home for less than five children in a single-family
residence without a zoning permit request, but requires additional consideration if the Family Day Home intends to
provide care for more than five children. This Zoning Ordinance was not in place when Peacock Hill was created and
zoned as a PUD, as the Zoning Ordinance was only implemented in 2013.
The current use of the property as a Family Day Home with 5 or fewer children (exclusive of the provider's own children)
has been operational this year. We are not opposed to the continued use of the adjacent property under the zoning
ordinance allowing five or fewer children into be cared for in this facility.
We are landowners whose property abuts the property identified in the zoning request.
Upon notification by the County, we have engaged in discussions with lawyers, realtors, real estate managers and other
neighbors in Peacock Hill about the proposed increased use of this property. We are formally objecting to this zoning
request based on the following concerns:
Daily Round -Trip Traffic
The zoning request as we understand it, would be to allow consideration of the Family Day Home to expand to allow for
the care for more than five but not more than twelve children. Each family day home providing care for more than five
(5) but not more than twelve (12) children under the age of thirteen (13). As we understand it, the staffing of the facility
would need to increase to provide appropriate coverage for the operation of the facility and appropriate care of the
increased number of children. Further, as we understand the regulations for Family Day Homes, the number of children
refers to the maximum number of children at the facility at any given time, rather than referring to the total enrollment
of children. This means that if the facility is fully enrolled and a child is retrieved by the parents at lunchtime, another
child can be scheduled to fill the available opening for that afternoon. Together, the increased staffing and child census
at the facility would likely cause the additional traffic generated by a family day home (excluding trips associated with
the dwelling unit), to exceed twenty-four (24) vehicle round trips per day. This is in excess of what the County zoning
ordinance allows.
Further, this level of daily traffic transforms the nature of this cul-de-sac from a bucolic, wooded rural neighborhood to
traffic -density similar to a commercial neighborhood.
Further, since the proposed facility is at the very back of the Peacock Hill subdivision, all of the additional vehicular
traffic will be traveling the full length of Turkey Ridge Road affecting virtually all of the residences in the neighborhood
with the increased traffic and safety concerns.
Property Value
We have had discussions with our realtor, other area realtors and our property manager about the impacts of having a
Family Day Home directly next door to our property. Every person associated with real estate valuations, real estate
comparable, and the impacts on selling or leasing a property next to this type of facility stated that we could expect to
see a decrease in our property values. The sale of our property would be inhibited by the noise, traffic, and the nuisance
Rebecca Ragsdale
From: ewrae60@aol.com
Sent: Wednesday, December 16, 2015 12:52 PM
To: Rebecca Ragsdale
Subject: CLE # 2015-231 Charlottesville Beautiful Minds (Family Day Home)
Ms. Ragsdale:
I am writing as a resident and property owner in Peacock Hill to object strongly to the licensing of a family day care
center in our development. Peter Drenan's letter to you of December 15 clearly outlines the damage that would be
done to our neighborhood.
I will not be redundant yet will add an additional objection: Section
7.02 of the Peacock Bill Community Association Covenant clearly states that property is to be used for "residential
purposes only". Section
7.04 addresses noise and nusiance. While Albemarle County may have redefined "residential use only" to include a
business which cares for up to 12 children on a daily basis and the traffic and noise this includes, those of us who
accepted the Covenant as a condition of ownership did not.
I request that you deny this application to ensure that the peaceful residential nature of our community is protected.
Respectfully,
Eleanor Cartwright
218 Turkey Ridge Road
Charlottesville VA 22903
Rebecca Ra sdale
From: Martha Orton <mrorton a@hotmail.com>
Sent Thursday, December 10, 201510:24 PM
To: Rebecca Ragsdale
Cc: dcbrawley@gmail.com; nmagee@gmail.com
Subject: RE: CLE # 2015-231 Charlottesville Beautiful Minds (Family Day Home)
County of Albemarle
Department of Community Development
401 Mcintire Road, North Wing
Charlottesville, Virginia 22902
December 10, 2015
RE: CLE# 2015-231 Charlottesville Beautiful Minds (Family Day Home)
707 Acorn Lane, Tax Map Parcel 073B0010007400
We the undersigned would like to make our objections known with regard to the request
for the expansion of the preschool at 707 Acorn Lane. We believe that the increased
traffic, parking and noise would be detrimental to our residential neighborhood and are
not consistent with the guidelines for home businesses in Albemarle County, particularly
due to the level of traffic involved. Already with five students attending only part-time a
few days a week the preschool has had a negative impact on the quality of life for
residents on Acorn Lane and Big Oak Road. Lots on Big Oak abut the property except for
a narrow area of common land which goes between the lots on both roads. They are
directly affected by noise from Acorn Lane as well the traffic. The cars picking up
children concurrently when three different County school buses would also be in the
general area from 3:00 PM to 4:45 PM would increase the traffic
congestion. Consequently we believe that an increase from five to twelve students and
also extending the hours from 9:00 AM -12 noon to 9:00 AM -5:00 PM, as well as offering
a five -day -a week schedule, would have an even greater negative impact on our
community.
Thank you for taking our views into consideration.
Sincerely,
Diana Brawley and Neal Magee
626 Big Oak Road
Charlottesville, VA 22903
Robert and Martha Orton
634 Big Oak Road
1
Charlottesville, VA 22903
Martha & Robert Orton