Crozet, Virginia

Crozet
—  Census-designated place  —
Crozet Location in the Commonwealth of Virginia
Coordinates: 38°4′12″N 78°42′6″W / 38.07°N 78.70167°W / 38.07; -78.70167Coordinates: 38°4′12″N 78°42′6″W / 38.07°N 78.70167°W / 38.07; -78.70167
Country	United States
State	Virginia
County	Albemarle County
Area
– Total	3.7 sq mi (9.7 km2)
– Land	3.7 sq mi (9.7 km2)
Population (2000)
– Total	2,820
– Density	753/sq mi (290.7/km2)
Time zone	EST (UTC-5)
– Summer (DST)	EDT (UTC-4)

Crozet^{[pronunciation?]} is a census-designated place (CDP) in Albemarle County in the U.S. state of Virginia. It is situated along the I-64 corridor approximately 12 miles (19 km) west of Charlottesville and 21 miles (34 km) east of Staunton. Originally called "Wayland's Crossing", it was renamed in 1870 in honor of Colonel Claudius Crozet, the French-born civil engineer who directed the construction of the Blue Ridge Tunnel. The population was 2,820 at the 2000 census.

Crozet is part of the Charlottesville Metropolitan Statistical Area.

Geography

Crozet is located at 38°4′12″N 78°42′6″W / 38.07°N 78.70167°W / 38.07; -78.70167 (38.069922, -78.701576)^[1].

According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 9.7 km² (3.7 mi²), all land.

Demographics

As of the census^[2] of 2000, there were 2,820 people, 995 households, and 757 families residing in the CDP. The population density was 755.7 people per square mile (291.9/km²). There were 1,041 housing units at an average density of 279.0/sq mi (107.8/km²). The racial makeup of the CDP was 91.91% White, 5.89% African American, 0.07% Native American, 0.60% Asian, 0.35% from other races, and 1.17% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.60% of the population.

There were 995 households out of which 38.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.3% were married couples living together, 11.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 23.9% were non-families. 20.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.68 and the average family size was 3.07.

In the CDP the population was spread out with 27.0% under the age of 18, 4.6% from 18 to 24, 28.9% from 25 to 44, 25.3% from 45 to 64, and 14.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 86.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 82.9 males.

The median income for a household in the CDP was $46,275, and the median income for a family was $53,125. Males had a median income of $30,805 versus $25,407 for females. The per capita income for the CDP was $18,647. About 1.8% of families and 3.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.4% of those under age 18 and none of those age 65 or over.

Education

Schools

Western Albemarle High School

J. T. Henley Middle School

Crozet is served by Western Albemarle High School, J. T. Henley Middle School, Brownsville Elementary School, Meriwether Lewis Elementary School, Murray Elementary School and Crozet Elementary School. All schools in Crozet are part of Albemarle County Public Schools. They are situated along Highway 250 and nearby to Interstate 64.

Western Albemarle High School is a public high school serving the central area of Albemarle County. The school was opened in September 1977. It is situated at the foot of the Blue Ridge Mountains on a 75-acre (300,000 m²) site and has an approximate enrollment of 1,100 students. The school's athletic mascot is the Warrior.

J. T. Henley Middle School is a middle school, located on approximately 30 acres (120,000 m²) of land, that feeds into Western Albemarle High School. It was first opened in 1966. The school was built using the same blueprints as Jack Jouett Middle School. However after a renovation/addition in 1999, the two schools differ slightly in design. Henley has a capacity of 690 students, although as of 2006 only 597 students were enrolled with 72 faculty members. The school's athletics mascot is the Hornets.

Crozet Elementary School (the newer building) is located in rural Crozet on Crozet Avenue, across the street from the original Crozet Elementary building. Named after Claudius Crozet, the school feeds into J. T. Henley Middle School. Crozet Elementary teaches kindergarten-5th grade. It has about 402 students.

Other schools that feed into Henley are Meriwether Lewis Elementary, Murray Elementary and Brownsville Elementary.

Library

Crozet is also home to a branch of the Jefferson Madison Regional Library System. The Crozet Library is housed in a railway depot which was built in 1923, originally for the Virginia Central Railroad.^[3] Plans for the construction of a new library have been announced due to the expansion of Crozet and the lack of space in the older facility.

Recreation

Mint Springs Valley Park in Autumn

Because of Crozet's location in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, its natural scenery is one of its distinguishing features. Outdoor activity is popular among residents and visitors.

• Crozet Park is a 22-acre (89,000 m²) recreational facility where various sports organizations local to Albemarle County come to play and practice throughout the year. It has fields for baseball, T-ball and soccer, as well as a swimming pool and several playgrounds.
• Mint Springs Valley Park contains three lakes and 502 acres (2.03 km²) of land, and boasts an extensive network of hiking trails which offer beautiful views of the surrounding area. Between Memorial Day and Labor Day, the park's artificial beach is opened to the public and staffed with lifeguards.
• Beaver Creek Lake consists of 115 acres (0.47 km²) land and 104 acres (0.42 km²) water. Though no swimming is allowed, electric powered boats and crafts are welcomed. Beaver Creek Lake is stocked with sunfish, channel catfish, and largemouth bass.

Culture

Crozet is home to a number of independent and family-owned restaurants and businesses. One such establishment is Crozet Pizza, whose interior walls are lined with photographs of the owners' forebears, as well as with business cards stapled on as mementos by travelers from as near as the University of Virginia or as far away as other countries. Crozet did not see its first fast food chain until the late 1990s, when a Subway outlet was built, followed by a Dairy Queen. Also, located on US 250, is the Blue Ridge Shopping Center,^[4] it has a Harris Teeter, Hair Cuttery, Subway, and BB&T. Across US 250 is another smaller shopping center, that has numerous restaurants and shops.

Each year, Crozet holds an Independence Day celebration, which consists of a parade through the downtown area, a carnival in Crozet Park lasting for several days, and a sizeable fireworks show to bring the festivities to a close.

Crozet Park also hosts the semiannual Crozet Arts and Crafts Festival on Mother's Day weekend and the second weekend of October. This event typically features live entertainment and an outdoor barbecue.

The 2007 comedy film Evan Almighty (the sequel to Bruce Almighty) was partially filmed in Crozet. The ark seen in the movie, as well as the set for Evan's neighborhood, was constructed there.^[5] The film set was situated on a plot of land across from Western Albemarle High School which later became a housing subdivision.

2007 marked the start of the Crozet Music Festival an all day festival with local artists such as Terri Alard, Sons of Bill, Trees on Fire, etc. coming out to support SAm Park Crozet is also the setting for author Rita Mae Brown's Mrs. Murphy series.

Crozet is home to the Starr Hill Brewery since 2005, having relocated from nearby Charlottesville.

In 2009, the Charlottesville, Virginia-based coffee chain Mudhouse opened a location in Crozet.

Author Rita Mae Brown along with her cat, Sneaky Pie Brown, have written a mystery series commonly called the 'Mrs. Murphy series' that takes place in Crozet.

The future of Crozet

Crozet has long been known for its seclusion and slow pace of life.^{[citation needed]} Recently, however, it has seen an increasing rate of housing development, likely because of nearby Charlottesville's reputation as a desirable location,^[6] but also because there is a significant amount of undeveloped land near downtown Crozet.

In 2001, the Albemarle County Board of Supervisors approved a framework dubbed the "Crozet Master Plan",^[7] developed by a local architect and regional planning firm,^[1][2] in order to regulate development patterns and provide a public forum for discussing the topic. The Master Plan allows the population of Crozet to grow to over 12,000 people by the 2020s—more than four times its current population. These numbers have alarmed some long-time residents who are accustomed to the rural tranquility of Crozet, and over a thousand people have petitioned the county to cut down on the number of planned households. Crozet is also in the early stages of creating a mall from an old lumber yard just behind the Crozet Library. ^[8]

Notable residents or former residents

• Billy Wagner, former Major League Baseball relief pitcher.
• Muhammad Ali, boxing great, owned a farm outside Crozet.

References

1. ^ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. 2011-02-12. http://www.census.gov/geo/www/gazetteer/gazette.html. Retrieved 2011-04-23. 
2. ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
3. ^ Jefferson-Madison Regional Library - Crozet. Accessed on June 26, 2006.
4. ^ "Blue Ridge Shopping Center". http://www.cvilleshop.com/shopping-center.php?t=blue-ridge. Retrieved 2011-02-06. 
5. ^ "Evan Almighty wraps up in Crozet". The Hook. June 15, 2006.
6. ^ "'Mr. Jefferson would be proud': Charlottesville is No. 1". USA Today. March 29, 2004.
7. ^ Master Plan Narrative, County of Albemarle. Accessed on June 25, 2006.
8. ^ "Residents Upset About Crozet Development" Charlottesville Newsplex. March 1, 2006.

External links

• Albemarle County website
• Crozet Gazette, monthly newspaper
• Crozet Community blog, RealCrozetVA, updated daily with news, current events, announcements & occasional real estate updates