Residents of the Fry’s Spring area of Charlottesville are up in arms about the Virginia Department of Transportation’s plan to temporarily close Jefferson Park Avenue Extended near Fontaine Avenue, beginning in 2008, to repair and widen the bridge that crosses the railway tracks. City officials say the plans have been on the books for several years, but many residents argue they’ve been caught by surprise. And they’re not quite sure why the plans call for the conversion of Todd Avenue from a thru-way to a cul-de-sac.
On October 26, about three dozen people attended a meeting of the Fry’s Spring Neighborhood Association to ask questions of Jim Tolbert, Charlottesville’s director of neighborhood services development. The meeting was moderated by Mike Farrugio, former president of the group. CPN is pleased to bring the meeting in its entirety, and will be following up with a feature on this topic in the near future.