Renderings of similar facilities that Crescent Communities has developed through its Axial brand. (Images courtesy Crescent Communities)
Plans for a pair of industrial buildings near the “Project Rocky” site in Goochland are moving forward after a split vote by the county Planning Commission.
Commissioners last week voted 3-2 in support of the proposal from Axial Industrial to develop two spec buildings totaling 350,000 square feet of space at 2212 Ashland Road, just east of the Lanier Industrial Park and Rockville Commerce Center.
Axial, a division of North Carolina-based Crescent Communities, would develop the structures on 30 acres of the 44-acre parcel that’s opposite the industrial park from the Project Rocky site, where California-based Panattoni Development Co. is planning a massive e-commerce fulfillment or distribution center.
As was the case with that project’s review, Crescent’s proposal was met with concerns from several speakers in a public hearing about the project’s impacts, particularly on traffic. Opponents to Project Rocky similarly voiced concerns about traffic impacts along Ashland Road when the Board of Supervisors approved that plan last summer.
Axial representatives noted that the project requires a traffic impact analysis that was approved by the state and was based on similar data used with Project Rocky. They also noted that Panattoni had committed to improvements to Ashland Road that are expected to help alleviate traffic congestion until a new I-64 interchange is constructed just south of the Project Rocky site.
Comparing the traffic impact projections to the already approved Project Rocky, consultant Omar Kanaan of Kimley-Horn told the commission, “The scale of the traffic between the two is not even comparable. The site is approximately a tenth of the traffic that Project Rocky would generate.”
Officials recently announced that Goochland had won the remaining funding it needed for the new interchange, which is planned to be a four-lane diverging diamond design, with related widenings and improvements to Ashland Road.
But with construction for the interchange currently scheduled to start in 2029, speakers and some commissioners questioned if the development would outpace the improvements.
“It strikes me that there is a lot of speculation with the traffic and the (road improvements) on Ashland Road, and that’s a primary concern to anybody that uses Ashland Road,” said Linda Price, a resident of Parkside Village, a nearby 55-and-up community.
“I’m glad that the county is looking into getting millions of dollars for improvements of Ashland Road, but I’d like to see that be a little more certain before we start adding more impact to that traffic,” Price said.
Added Paul Nuckols, who resides next door to the project site: “This is too soon before the roads can handle this much traffic, along with Project Rocky and I’m sure other businesses that are coming through at this time.”
A conceptual site plan shows the buildings’ configuration in relation to Ashland Road.
Nuckols said the land for the Axial project makes up part of his family’s farm and that other members of the family are against selling the land. Goochland property records show the site was previously owned by Lawrence and Anne Nuckols, who transferred ownership in 2009 to an LLC that is managed by Michael Montgomery with TCV Trust & Wealth Management.
Crescent has the property under contract to purchase, contingent on rezoning approval. The largely undeveloped parcel is assessed by the county at $1.83 million.
County planning staff noted that Crescent is dedicating right-of-way for left and right turn lanes on Ashland Road, and preparing a retiming study for a traffic signal at Ashland and Pouncey Tract Road that’s anticipated to alleviate some congestion. Staff also stressed that the proposed use is supported in the county’s Comprehensive Plan, and located in a quadrant of the county designated for economic development.
Commissioner Matt Brewer and Chairman Tom Rockecharlie voted against the project, contending that more certainty was needed in the coordination and timing of the road improvements.
“It’s obvious that this is a prime economic development corridor for the county for this type of use. My hesitation is understanding a more accurate timeline on improvements to the corridor and what money has been allotted,” Brewer said. “I think the use fits, but the timeline is what I’m struggling with.”
Added Rockecharlie: “I think we’re really jumping the gun on economic development before we really have our ducks in a row. I just think this is a little too premature until we know exactly what the status of the road improvements are going to be.”
Commissioners Carter Duke, John Myers and Curt Pituck voted in favor of the project, which now goes to the Board of Supervisors for a deciding vote. The board is scheduled to hear the case at its Aug. 1 meeting.
Projected to cost between $35 million and $40 million, the development would be the first of two industrial projects that Crescent is pursuing in the region.
The company also is under contract for a site in Chesterfield County for a planned 500,000-square-foot development, and Crescent also is developing, with Thalhimer Realty Partners, the Novel Scott’s Addition apartment building in Richmond that’s taking shape across Arthur Ashe Boulevard from The Diamond.
The company has said it is aiming to break ground on the Ashland Road project by next spring and expects construction to take 12 months. Preston Lloyd with Williams Mullen represented Crescent in its rezoning request.
As for Project Rocky, that project remains under county site plan review. The massive facility, to be built off a 650,000-square-foot footprint, would be comparable to the 2.6-million-square-foot Amazon fulfillment center near Richmond Raceway. The user for the Project Rocky facility has yet to be announced.
Renderings of similar facilities that Crescent Communities has developed through its Axial brand. (Images courtesy Crescent Communities)
Plans for a pair of industrial buildings near the “Project Rocky” site in Goochland are moving forward after a split vote by the county Planning Commission.
Commissioners last week voted 3-2 in support of the proposal from Axial Industrial to develop two spec buildings totaling 350,000 square feet of space at 2212 Ashland Road, just east of the Lanier Industrial Park and Rockville Commerce Center.
Axial, a division of North Carolina-based Crescent Communities, would develop the structures on 30 acres of the 44-acre parcel that’s opposite the industrial park from the Project Rocky site, where California-based Panattoni Development Co. is planning a massive e-commerce fulfillment or distribution center.
As was the case with that project’s review, Crescent’s proposal was met with concerns from several speakers in a public hearing about the project’s impacts, particularly on traffic. Opponents to Project Rocky similarly voiced concerns about traffic impacts along Ashland Road when the Board of Supervisors approved that plan last summer.
Axial representatives noted that the project requires a traffic impact analysis that was approved by the state and was based on similar data used with Project Rocky. They also noted that Panattoni had committed to improvements to Ashland Road that are expected to help alleviate traffic congestion until a new I-64 interchange is constructed just south of the Project Rocky site.
Comparing the traffic impact projections to the already approved Project Rocky, consultant Omar Kanaan of Kimley-Horn told the commission, “The scale of the traffic between the two is not even comparable. The site is approximately a tenth of the traffic that Project Rocky would generate.”
Officials recently announced that Goochland had won the remaining funding it needed for the new interchange, which is planned to be a four-lane diverging diamond design, with related widenings and improvements to Ashland Road.
But with construction for the interchange currently scheduled to start in 2029, speakers and some commissioners questioned if the development would outpace the improvements.
“It strikes me that there is a lot of speculation with the traffic and the (road improvements) on Ashland Road, and that’s a primary concern to anybody that uses Ashland Road,” said Linda Price, a resident of Parkside Village, a nearby 55-and-up community.
“I’m glad that the county is looking into getting millions of dollars for improvements of Ashland Road, but I’d like to see that be a little more certain before we start adding more impact to that traffic,” Price said.
Added Paul Nuckols, who resides next door to the project site: “This is too soon before the roads can handle this much traffic, along with Project Rocky and I’m sure other businesses that are coming through at this time.”
A conceptual site plan shows the buildings’ configuration in relation to Ashland Road.
Nuckols said the land for the Axial project makes up part of his family’s farm and that other members of the family are against selling the land. Goochland property records show the site was previously owned by Lawrence and Anne Nuckols, who transferred ownership in 2009 to an LLC that is managed by Michael Montgomery with TCV Trust & Wealth Management.
Crescent has the property under contract to purchase, contingent on rezoning approval. The largely undeveloped parcel is assessed by the county at $1.83 million.
County planning staff noted that Crescent is dedicating right-of-way for left and right turn lanes on Ashland Road, and preparing a retiming study for a traffic signal at Ashland and Pouncey Tract Road that’s anticipated to alleviate some congestion. Staff also stressed that the proposed use is supported in the county’s Comprehensive Plan, and located in a quadrant of the county designated for economic development.
Commissioner Matt Brewer and Chairman Tom Rockecharlie voted against the project, contending that more certainty was needed in the coordination and timing of the road improvements.
“It’s obvious that this is a prime economic development corridor for the county for this type of use. My hesitation is understanding a more accurate timeline on improvements to the corridor and what money has been allotted,” Brewer said. “I think the use fits, but the timeline is what I’m struggling with.”
Added Rockecharlie: “I think we’re really jumping the gun on economic development before we really have our ducks in a row. I just think this is a little too premature until we know exactly what the status of the road improvements are going to be.”
Commissioners Carter Duke, John Myers and Curt Pituck voted in favor of the project, which now goes to the Board of Supervisors for a deciding vote. The board is scheduled to hear the case at its Aug. 1 meeting.
Projected to cost between $35 million and $40 million, the development would be the first of two industrial projects that Crescent is pursuing in the region.
The company also is under contract for a site in Chesterfield County for a planned 500,000-square-foot development, and Crescent also is developing, with Thalhimer Realty Partners, the Novel Scott’s Addition apartment building in Richmond that’s taking shape across Arthur Ashe Boulevard from The Diamond.
The company has said it is aiming to break ground on the Ashland Road project by next spring and expects construction to take 12 months. Preston Lloyd with Williams Mullen represented Crescent in its rezoning request.
As for Project Rocky, that project remains under county site plan review. The massive facility, to be built off a 650,000-square-foot footprint, would be comparable to the 2.6-million-square-foot Amazon fulfillment center near Richmond Raceway. The user for the Project Rocky facility has yet to be announced.