Colonial Williamsburg's new leadership must involve residents in future development plans (OPINION)
Lack of community input early in process undermines Foundation's development plans
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The sudden retirement of Cliff Fleet as Colonial Williamsburg Foundation President and CEO, with Board Chair Carly Fiorina assuming the role effective immediately, presents a fresh opportunity for the institution to embrace open dialogue with city residents about its long-term development plans. In fact, city officials are already fielding mounting public questions about high-density development and zoning approvals as part of a $600,000 Comprehensive Plan update that will guide decisions for decades to come. Land owned by the CW will be a prominent part of that debate.
Multiple reports over the past year by the Williamsburg Independent regarding potential development of CW property has drawn thousands of readers and significant engagement on social media. I believe this reflects deep, personal interest in how one of the area’s largest landowners manages its property and how involved residents will be in those decisions. The Foundation’s active involvement in the city’s planning process, including having had a representative on the panel that selected the Comprehensive Plan consultants, as well as its receipt of direct city funding and benefit from tax dollars spent on regional marketing, makes the question of public transparency all the more pressing.
Overall, Colonial Williamsburg Foundation owns a substantial portfolio of property in the city, much of which has been identified or discussed for potential redevelopment. These include the 3.9-acre P6 parking lot near Merchant’s Square, the 291-acre Green Course golf course, a 42.3-acre parcel near the Visitors Center area targeted for rezoning, the Franklin Street and Lafayette Street corridor where several older buildings remain following demolition of the Foundation’s administrative offices, and nearly 3.76 acres of vacant parcels at Peacock Hill. Combined, these properties represent hundreds of acres of Foundation-owned land at various stages of development consideration. But no one really knows. And that’s the problem.
Keep reading for more detail about the particular pieces of land and development projects that have been discussed by the Foundation and local officials.