The biggest hurdle we face in developing the Ivy land is the zoning restrictions in Albemarle County Rural Areas:
Albemarle County Code Ch18 Zoning10 Rural Areas.pdf
Section 10.2.1 details the uses that we're allowed by right, such as: one and two family dwellings, farm stands, agriculture, temporary construction, tourist lodging, farmworker housing (up to ten occupants), etc.
Section 10.2.2 details the uses for which we would need a special use permit, among them: community center, civic clubs, private schools, farm sales, etc.
See the definitions in section five at:
Albemarle County Zoning Regs.
At issue here is that 'community organizing and popular education retreat center' is, of course, not on either of these lists. So where do we fit in? Or, more helpfully, how do we avoid the need to get a special use permit, which would be a time-consuming, energy-draining and arduous public ordeal?
One possible loophole is that a project which receives public funding is exempt from special permit. So, for example, if we got a grant from the USDA, or made some sort of agreement with UVA, then we would be exempt.
Another would be to define our project within the criteria for use by right: say a "tourist and farmworker solidarity farm," or something.
Secondary in importance to the zoning issue is the land's tax status:
Right now all 158 acres are under "land use" tax status, which means that it is taxed only $190/year based on the fact that it is used for agriculture. Were some portion of the land to be built about, that portion would fall out of land use status and be taxed at the market rate for developable land. Furthermore, back taxes for the past five years would have to be paid on that portion of the land. This isn't too big a deal, because if we put a building on say 1 acre (that's a pretty big building, even with some non-agricultural landscaping), then only 1 acre falls out of land use. We're talking (I don't have the numbers in front of me), probably something like $5,000 in taxes. However, the property taxes on the building likely will be more than that each year...
Unless, of course, it's owned by a non-profit, it which case the taxes are like zero. Otherwise, it's something like 0.74%, which isn't bad, but we would simply need to have a revenue stream dedicated to pay those taxes every year. And the more structures we build, the more we'll have to pay.
Just to clarify again: the zoning and tax status are two completely separate issues. We cannot change the zoning—that is set by the county. We can change our tax status, based on what we do with the land, and we can decide how much we pay, based on our ownership structure.
Eric
Monday, October 29, 2007
Monday, October 22, 2007
Two ways to post and view
There are two ways to post to the Ivy Project bloglist, which incorporates the functionality of a blog and a listserv together in one:
On the web:
http://projectivy.blogspot.com/
Or via email
projectivy-owner@googlegroups.com
You will receive another email shortly inviting you to sign up for the blog. The advantage to using email, however, is that one must log in to post directly on the blog. For posting by email, please remember...
Two important rules:
1) Most email programs, when you hit "reply" include in full the message to which you are replying. Please delete that text. Otherwise it will be posted on the blog, which will quickly become unreadable, and resent to everyone in the group.
2) Also, please remove the "Re: [Project Ivy] from the subject line of your email, as that will become the title of your blog post. If it's easier, we can drop the [Project Ivy], but I figured it would be helpful to identify group emails.
You can send images. Just attach them to your email, and they will be posted on the blog and emailed to the group over the list.
If you use a free email service which places texts ads at the bottom of your messages, those ads will be posted to the blog, and emailed to the group. This is presently unavoidable.
If you want to post comments directly on the blog, that's great. Just keep in mind that, unlike the posts themselves, comments will not be emailed to the list—you will need to check in periodically at the blog to read comments.
Peace,
Eric
On the web:
http://projectivy.blogspot.com/
Or via email
projectivy-owner@googlegroups.com
You will receive another email shortly inviting you to sign up for the blog. The advantage to using email, however, is that one must log in to post directly on the blog. For posting by email, please remember...
Two important rules:
1) Most email programs, when you hit "reply" include in full the message to which you are replying. Please delete that text. Otherwise it will be posted on the blog, which will quickly become unreadable, and resent to everyone in the group.
2) Also, please remove the "Re: [Project Ivy] from the subject line of your email, as that will become the title of your blog post. If it's easier, we can drop the [Project Ivy], but I figured it would be helpful to identify group emails.
You can send images. Just attach them to your email, and they will be posted on the blog and emailed to the group over the list.
If you use a free email service which places texts ads at the bottom of your messages, those ads will be posted to the blog, and emailed to the group. This is presently unavoidable.
If you want to post comments directly on the blog, that's great. Just keep in mind that, unlike the posts themselves, comments will not be emailed to the list—you will need to check in periodically at the blog to read comments.
Peace,
Eric
Charlottesville/Ivy Project: Companion Farm
What:
Companion Farm in Ivy, Virginia will become a vibrant center, institute and working farm. The project will support, network, and train people and communities working together to solve problems affecting themselves and others. People will come to learn and strategize around big picture goals. Because the farm is so beautiful, it will also provide a space for relaxation and recuperation from burnout. It will be a place for celebration of victories and culture.
Ideally, this project will prove to have long-term relevance, thus requiring its organizers to think in terms of decades as often as they do in days. It must also maintain an appropriate role in the communities and movements with which the project’s staff and supporters works. The components of this vision are subject to drastic altering or elimination depending on assessment of relevance and need for the project in parts or whole.
This vision has five basic parts:
1. Movement retreat center and educational program
2. Working farm and model of sustainability
3. Site to support local and regional organizing and community activism
4. Site for green technology and experimentation
5. Center for celebration and cultural production
Programs and structures that would fulfill the five-part vision draft might include the following:
• Dorms and meeting space for organizational retreats, meetings, and trainings.
• Staff that could provide translation, facilitation, and workshops on a range of skills
• Resource center and library
• Working organic farm to supply meals for visiting organizations, and provide food for local and regional consumers and organizations
• Educational programs on organizing, movement building in the south, sustainable farming, etc. These could be weekend, summer-long, or 6 month/year long educational internships. Programs could target children, youth, or adults.
• A guiding plan for large-scale social and political change.
Major guiding questions:
• Most appropriate first steps in project (based on local/regional need and available resources)
• Best structure, process, and group of people to begin project and move it towards final vision
• Legal limitations of current zoning on land
• Need, cost, and processes of rezoning minimum acreage (2 acres)
• Ownership of land (private or incorporated into a nonprofit)
Possible timeline:
October 2007-February 2008 : Build interest and ownership locally, gauge local and regional interest and need, network nationally (visit similar centers, gauge national need and interest, and develop list of interested folks and possible advisory board), and research legal processes surrounded zoning of land and process of building on farm.
February 2008- Weekend meeting of interested people (local and national). First steps are decided upon.
March/April 2008- Break ground for organic food production (done together with Charlottesville and other Virginia organizations interested in local food and food education. Quality Community Council in Charlottesville, etc.) Build small structure to house two to five people (core group) living part or full time on farm, or live in town and commute to maintain farm. Tools purchased.
March-November 2008 – Core group farms and does fundraising and networking for development of retreat center/institute. Folks not living in Charlottesville assess how they can best contribute (fundraising, traveling, advising, etc.) Trips are made to similar projects and regional organizations of interest. Plumbing, electricity installed on farm.
Winter/Spring 2008-2009 – Project, local/regional/national needs are assessed, funds raised, and additional structures are designed and center/institute programming developed. Organizations begin to use farm for retreats.
Companion Farm in Ivy, Virginia will become a vibrant center, institute and working farm. The project will support, network, and train people and communities working together to solve problems affecting themselves and others. People will come to learn and strategize around big picture goals. Because the farm is so beautiful, it will also provide a space for relaxation and recuperation from burnout. It will be a place for celebration of victories and culture.
Ideally, this project will prove to have long-term relevance, thus requiring its organizers to think in terms of decades as often as they do in days. It must also maintain an appropriate role in the communities and movements with which the project’s staff and supporters works. The components of this vision are subject to drastic altering or elimination depending on assessment of relevance and need for the project in parts or whole.
This vision has five basic parts:
1. Movement retreat center and educational program
2. Working farm and model of sustainability
3. Site to support local and regional organizing and community activism
4. Site for green technology and experimentation
5. Center for celebration and cultural production
Programs and structures that would fulfill the five-part vision draft might include the following:
• Dorms and meeting space for organizational retreats, meetings, and trainings.
• Staff that could provide translation, facilitation, and workshops on a range of skills
• Resource center and library
• Working organic farm to supply meals for visiting organizations, and provide food for local and regional consumers and organizations
• Educational programs on organizing, movement building in the south, sustainable farming, etc. These could be weekend, summer-long, or 6 month/year long educational internships. Programs could target children, youth, or adults.
• A guiding plan for large-scale social and political change.
Major guiding questions:
• Most appropriate first steps in project (based on local/regional need and available resources)
• Best structure, process, and group of people to begin project and move it towards final vision
• Legal limitations of current zoning on land
• Need, cost, and processes of rezoning minimum acreage (2 acres)
• Ownership of land (private or incorporated into a nonprofit)
Possible timeline:
October 2007-February 2008 : Build interest and ownership locally, gauge local and regional interest and need, network nationally (visit similar centers, gauge national need and interest, and develop list of interested folks and possible advisory board), and research legal processes surrounded zoning of land and process of building on farm.
February 2008- Weekend meeting of interested people (local and national). First steps are decided upon.
March/April 2008- Break ground for organic food production (done together with Charlottesville and other Virginia organizations interested in local food and food education. Quality Community Council in Charlottesville, etc.) Build small structure to house two to five people (core group) living part or full time on farm, or live in town and commute to maintain farm. Tools purchased.
March-November 2008 – Core group farms and does fundraising and networking for development of retreat center/institute. Folks not living in Charlottesville assess how they can best contribute (fundraising, traveling, advising, etc.) Trips are made to similar projects and regional organizations of interest. Plumbing, electricity installed on farm.
Winter/Spring 2008-2009 – Project, local/regional/national needs are assessed, funds raised, and additional structures are designed and center/institute programming developed. Organizations begin to use farm for retreats.
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