HomeMy WebLinkAboutSP198900110 Action Letter
.
.
..
COUNTY OF ALBEMARLE
Dept. of Planning & Community Development
401 Mcintire Road
Charlottesville, Virginia 22901-4596
(804) 296-5823
March 1, 1990
Falls River Wilderness Center
Rt. 1, Box 138
Afton, VA 22920
RE: SP-89-110 Falls River Wilderness Center
Dear Sir:
The Albemarle County Board of Supervisors, at its meeting on
February 21, 1990, unanimously approved the above-noted
request for a day camp on 79.5 acres zoned RA, Rural Areas.
Property described as Tax Map 85, Parcel 3A, is located on
the south side of Rt. 636 approximately one mile west of its
intersection with Rt. 635 near Batesville. Please note that
this approval is subject to the following conditions:
1. Approval by the Virginia Department of Health;
2. Outdoor fires shall be approved by the Albemarle County
Fire Official;
3. No subdivision or additional residential development
shall occur without amendment of this special use
permit;
4. Use shall be limited to 30 sessions per year, ten
persons per session;
5. No additional grading or clearing of property;
6. Sketch plan showing location and description of
activities to be submitted within 60 days of the
issuance of this special use permit;
7. No additional activities shall be installed without
amendment of this special use permit;
8. Use must be in accordance in Attachment A (Description
.
.
Falls River wilderness ctr
Page 2
March 1, 1990
of Request and Justification of Request) (copy
attached) .
If you should have any questions or comments regarding the
above noted action, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Sincerely,
/
/ " . ,
/.'/(/ ) /1J/··W·/
I I, , '
i./ ; vL/Î~~W .'?z
V. Wayne / .qíimberg//------~
Directo~f Planni'ng & c mmunity
r- /
~
Development
VWC/jcw
cc: Kathy Dodson
Richard Moring
Jack Collins
Jesse Hurt
~
..
, ,
flTACHMENT A
:F~alls' River Wilderness Center----
DESCRIPTION OF REQUEST
Falls River Center will offer one or two day programs that encourage
personal growth through safe, challenging activities. The Center
consists of a Ropes Course which is located in a remote outdoor set-tinq~
away from roads or built structures. The Ropes Course is a carefully
planned and precisely built experiential learning center, designed
to create situations that promote a heightened understanding of human
resource and ·potential. A team of 8 - 10 people visits a series of
"events" built of wood, rope, steel cable, and the natural forest
environment. For example, at the "Zip Line", a participant is asked
to walk up a cable bridge to a platform in a tree, where an instructor
attaches his safety harness to a pulley which runs along another
long cable. When the participant leaves the platform, he is transported
three hundred feet down and out over a meadow to a point where his
teammates await to take h~ off the pulley.
Most Center activities will take place from 11ay to October.
The anticipated participation is expected to be 300 people per year
(30 sessions of 10 people each). There is a parking area located
out of site of all roadways. There is no grading or clearing of
trees involved with this project.
.
JUSTIFICATION OF REQUEST
The Ropes Course is an opportunity for people who work together
to share an adventure and learn about teamwork, communication skills,
and group cohesiveness. It is also an experience that brings parents
and children, clubs, and groups of friends closer together and more
in toucn with the natural world. It is a low intensity use and
entirely appropriate for a woodland part of a rural area and will
have no impact on adjacent properties. It helps satisfy. the Albemarle
County Comprehensive Plan goals for "conserving natural resources"
and "meeting human serv~ce needs through a combination of public
and private effort". The. .Center has provided programming for
,
teachers, administrators, and students of Albemarle COillLty Schools.