Zoning
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Smart(er) Growth For Harrisonburg and Rockingham County? |
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Wow! Today's Smart Growth Symposium, orchestrated by the Shenandoah Valley Builders Association was a fantastic primer on growth issues and how to plan for them in the central Shenandoah Valley. Stewart Schwartz, the Executive Director of the Coalition for Smarter Growth, provided a great overview of smart growth principles and policies that provided a helpful framework for thinking about and planning for the future of our area. One key point that he made, that stuck with me, was a need to focus on developing in the right place. Those present included conservationists, builders, farmers, real estate agents, bankers, local planning staff, elected officials, engaged citizens, and more. There seemed to be a great desire for and capacity to consider working together for the best future for our valley, despite the varying perspectives each of us bring to the table. | |
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Builders Association To Hold Smart Growth Symposium |
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The Shenandoah Valley Builders Association will hold a Smart Growth Symposium on Friday, February 22, with registration at 9:30 AM and finishing around 3:30 PM. This event will be an opportunity for members of the community to come together to learn about issues related to growth from a variety of perspectives, and to participate in a public conversation on the future of the Shenandoah Valley. The schedule of speakers and topics is as follows: 10:00 AM - Stewart Schwartz, Coalition for Smarter Growth Addressing the topic, "The Smart Growth Option" 11:45 AM - Lunch served 12:30 PM - Question & Answer session for panel of guests:
Addressing the topic "What is a Comprehensive Plan?" This should be an informative day with a variety of opinions and perspectives. The cost is $10 per person and includes lunch, and the deadline to RSVP is by Wednesday, February 20. Reservations and payment can be made online. | |
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New Housing on Stone Spring Road - Changes in Zoning |
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Per the January 18th Daily News Record, the Harrisonburg Planning Commission recommended that City Council approve a rezoning request of 72.6 acres on Stone Spring Road. Here are a few tidbits that might shed some light on the intricacies of this story:
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A Brief History of Harrisonburg's Annexations |
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Annexation is the process whereby land is incorporated into an existing town or city. There have been several annexations in Harrisonburg's history, bringing the current size of the city to 11,132 acres. The largest annexation (7,450 acres) took place in 1983 --- shown in pink on the map below. (Map courtesy of the City of Harrisonburg). ![]() Title 15.2 (Counties, Cities and Towns) of the Code of Virginia outlines how annexations are to take place. Here are some recent annexation related news items: Mount Crawford seeks to annex 243 acres to expand to 467 acres. Dayton discusses annexing along Route 257. Could Harrisonburg and Rockingham County see another annexation anytime soon? According to Brian, Harrisonburg's Director of Economic Development says the city has no plans to annex any portion of Rockingham County (source: Daily News Record). On a related note, according to Keith Markel, one of Harrisonburg's previous city planners, most of the zoning frustrations stem from the 1983 annexation. Much of that land was zoned R-3, which allows anything from single family homes to apartment complexes. However, this past year, the right to build apartment complexes in R-3 zoned land was removed. | |
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Eastern Rockingham County Lot Sales - The Ups and Downs |
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![]() 2003: $47,546 (81 sales) 2004: $55,354 (112 sales) 2005: $89,112 (98 sales) 2006: $118,075 (51 sales) 2007: $110,875 (35 sales) As you can above, during this same time, demand for lots decreased rather significantly. This was compounded by the fact that the inventory of available lots increased during the same time --- there are currently 109 lots available in the Peak View school district, as follows:
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Short-Term Rentals in Massanutten |
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![]() The latest --- instead of just suing two families for their rental transgressions, the plaintiffs are now suing 28 property owners! The entire debate on this issue seems to be over interpretation of the Massanutten Village covenants and restrictions. Those being sued point out that these covenants don't explicitly prohibit short term rentals. Those doing the suing characterize short term rentals as a business use, which is prohibited per the covenants. The blow by blow:
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Scott Rogers
Funkhouser Real
Estate Group
540-578-0102
scott@funkhousergroup.com
Licensed in the
Commonwealth of Virginia
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