Frequently Asked Questions

Question: What is Many Plans, One Community?

Many Plans, One Community is a portal for information exchange and public input meant to inform the Comprehensive Plan updates of the City of Charlottesville and Albemarle County, the Charlottesville Albemarle Metropolitan Planning Organization Long Range Transportation Plan, as well as the development of a Charlottesville Area Livability Implementation Plan. This process will extend limited resources and encourage collaboration, facilitate extensive public input, and increase transparency across municipal boundaries.

Question: What is the Charlottesville Area Livability Implementation Plan?

The Charlottesville Area Livability Implementation Plan will build upon the region's 1998 Sustainability Accords and other planning documents to create innovative strategies for land use, transportation, housing, economic development, air and water quality, and energy use. The Plan will move livability in the region from an already identified goal toward implementation in the form of policy and programmatic recommendations to the City, County and MPO. The outcome of the three-year project will be a regional plan for the MPO area, consisting of the City of Charlottesville and the urbanized area of Albemarle County.

Question: What is the difference between Many Plans, One Community and the Charlottesville Area Livability Implementation Plan?

Many Plans, One Community is a process for facilitating public input, ensuring process transparency, and learning about the four plans - the Charlottesville Comprehensive Plan Update, Albemarle County Comprehensive Plan Update, the MPO Long Range Transportation Plan Update and the Charlottesville Area Livability Implementation Plan. The Charlottesville Area Livability Implementation Plan is one of the four plans being developed during the project. The Implementation Plan will focus on innovative suggestions for improving the quality of life in the region, and will include recommendations for other plans.

Question: Aren't the City of Charlottesville and Albemarle County already planning long term? What makes the Charlottesville Area Livability Implementation Plan effort different?

The City of Charlottesville and Albemarle County have existing plans and programs that incorporate livability principles. Many Plans, One Community will help to identify commonalities between these plans and make recommendations incorporating principles in focus areas - transportation, housing, social, economic, and environmental, etc. These recommendations will result from the public input process, as well as review of previously developed plans and will inform the City of Charlottesville and Albemarle County comprehensive plan updates in a consistent, but locality-specific manner. Although the City of Charlottesville and Albemarle County have previously collaborated on smaller planning projects, this is the first time that the two localities have jointly partnered in reviewing their comprehensive plans.

Question: How does Many Plans, One Community relate to the Comprehensive Plan that already exists in my locality?

As part of the Comprehensive Plan update processes, the two localities will review current policies in existing plans. Many Plans, One Community will give the public a better opportunity to provide input on the current plans, and remain informed on the status of the processes. Many Plans, One Community will also provide direction for future municipal plans such as those addressing transportation, waste management, social, and economic development issues.

Question: Why are Charlottesville and Albemarle County updating their Comprehensive Plans at this point?

The Virginia State Code requires localities update their Comprehensive Plans every five years. Both the City of Charlottesville and Albemarle County Comprehensive Plans are due for the required update.

Question: Are my tax dollars paying for this?

Many Plans, One Community and the Charlottesville Area Livability Implementation Plan are not receiving any funding from either Charlottesville or Albemarle County. The Thomas Jefferson Planning District Commission (TJPDC) was one of 45 awardees across the country selected for a U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Sustainable Communities Regional Planning Grant. These funds will allow TJPDC staff to work closely with City and County staff throughout the project to provide added support to the City and County comprehensive planning efforts.

Question: Does this mean the federal government will dictate local planning?

No! The federal government is simply providing resources to facilitate the creation of a Plan for the Charlottesville Area community, developed by the Charlottesville area residents. All outcomes of Many Plans, One Community and the Charlottesville Area Livability Plan are recommendations for consideration by the City of Charlottesville, the County of Albemarle and the MPO, not mandates.

Question: Will the City & County still have separate comprehensive plans?

Yes! The City and County Comprehensive Plans may include livability recommendations from the Charlottesville Area Livability Implementation Plan if the locality chooses.

Question: I have heard that some group called "PACC" will be approving the products from this planning process. Who is that and why are they approving the plans?

"PACC" is a short name for the City of Charlottesville-Albemarle County-University of Virginia Planning and Coordinating Council. It has a nine member board that includes members of the City Council, the Board of Supervisors and the University President. This group was formed by agreement among the city, county and university in 1986 to coordinate planning. PACC will receive all the public input on the project. After receiving such input, PACC will review and approve the project products as part of its coordinated planning activities.

Question: What geographic area will the project focus on?

Many Plans, One Community will focus primarily on the Metropolitan Planning Organization area, consisting of the City of Charlottesville and the urbanized area of Albemarle County in Central Virginia.

Question: How will the public be involved during the development of the Plan?

The development of the Charlottesville Livability Implementation Plan starts with the community. All members of the Charlottesville Area have a stake in the future and will be afforded an opportunity to be part of defining what that future should look like. The Many Plans, One Community outreach opportunities involve as many community members as possible through open houses, presentations and discussions. In addition, a variety of social media platforms such as the project website (www.1-community.org), Facebook and YouTube will be employed as a means of further expanding the data sharing opportunities, while providing yet another avenue for community input into the plan.