Weldon Cooper Center to host dialogue on development rights

The Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service at the University of Virginia is scheduled to host a “stakeholders’ dialogue” to discuss a plan outlined two years ago by an Albemarle County supervisor.

Supervisor David L. Slutzky pitched a “transfer of development rights” plan that he has said would help preserve the county’s rural areas. Slutzky hopes his plan — or some version of it — can gain support across the political spectrum. The crux of his proposal is the ability to transfer development rights from one parcel to another so the county’s rural areas are preserved while directing growth into areas the county deems appropriate.

“We’ve got to do something,” said Slutzky, who said that, in the last decade, thousands of homes have been built in the county’s pristine rural areas, which the county seeks to protect from development. Weldon Cooper will provide some staff assistance for the dialogue. Minor costs for renting rooms or outside work will be split among the stakeholders.

While Slutzky pitched the plan on the steps of the County Office Building in October 2006, it has gained little traction since. Slutzky said that is mostly because board members initially said they wanted to see a plan that had support in the community.

“The board basically said they shouldn’t waste time pursuing an idea that is going to be dead in the end anyway,” Slutzky said. The stakeholders dialogue would seek to demonstrate widespread support, he said. Groups such as the Piedmont Environmental Council, Southern Environ-mental Law Center and builders and Realtors’ associations will participate, Slutzky said.

Jon Cannon, a UVa professor who serves as Slutzky’s appointee on the county Planning Commission, will moderate the discussions. Slutzky expects the discussions to take three to six months and then a report will be delivered to the Board of Supervisors for its consideration.