Quirky, Quaint and Cosmopolitan: Charlottesville

(This article originally appeared in the September/October 2011 issue of Virginia Living. Here is the unedited version.)

When I moved to the Charlottesville area from New York City in 1993, I was looking for a kinder and gentler existence in a setting that was rural yet urbane. I had fallen under Charlottesville’s spell as a little girl accompanying my father—who earned his law degree at the University of Virginia in 1940—on his annual pilgrimage to Law Weekend. Held in early May—one of the loveliest times of the year here—the weekends were the perfect introduction. The lilac and boxwood-scented air, Jeffersonian architecture and, most of all, the beautiful landscape made an indelible impression on me. 

The Charlottesville of my youth was a delightfully exotic departure from all that was familiar to this New York City girl; it was then sleepy, genteel and very Southern. Native Boo Barnett, 55, a writer, describes the city as “so quiet, all the neighborhood dogs lay about in the street. You’d ride by on your bike, they’d open an eye, lethargically wag a tail and then go back to sleep.” I wasn’t exactly looking for that Charlottesville when I settled here—I knew it was long gone—but I hoped its vestiges remained.

Comprising just over 10 square miles, and boasting a population of nearly 45,000 (closer to 120,000 when combined with Albemarle County, which is considered part of the greater Charlottesville Metropolitan area) Charlottesville is a far cry from New York. And while I was willing to downsize from a big city, I didn’t want to end up in a dull backwater. I needn’t have worried. Charlottesville’s mix of artists and writers, students and scholars, natives and entrepreneurs who live and work here speaks to Jefferson’s enduring legacy of creativity as they come together to make Charlottesville a happening place with a rich and varied cultural life and a sophisticated, big town vibe. 

There’s a strongly international flavor. In addition to those individuals brought in by the University, Charlottesville is a resettlement site for the International Rescue Committee, which places a couple of hundred refugees here every year, many of whom end up making Charlottesville their permanent home. This mix of people makes for a lively human olio. And while some people stick within their particular group, others move easily between the different circles. And there is that hard to articulate sense of place that so appealed to me as a child and which still seems to hover in the air—a combination of history, landscape, tradition and way of behaving that evokes “Southerness.”

History is a constant presence. I remember soon after I moved here standing on the train platform and overhearing two men intently discussing some aspect of the Civil War talking as if it had happened just yesterday. Best known as the home of Thomas Jefferson, the University of Virginia and Monticello, Charlottesville was formed by charter in 1762 along the all-important Three Chopt Road, connecting Richmond to the Shenandoah Valley. Named for George III’s consort, Charlottesville was originally targeted for tobacco, but the crop didn’t do well and wheat and land speculation soon took over. That they were lucrative is clear by the abundance of great historical houses gracing the area. From the outset the Rivanna River occupied an important role. At Jefferson’s urging, a channel was created in the river to make it navigable for cargo bateaux. Such high hopes initially were had for the Rivanna that Charlottesville’s port near the site of the Woolen Mills was called "Pireus," (sic) after the port city of Athens. But as a reliable transportation route, the river proved to be problematic.

Between 1779 and 1781 the Convention Army composed of British and German soldiers was imprisoned in Charlottesville. (Today, you can see evidence of this in the names Barracks and Hessian roads.) The “Paul Revere of the South,” Jack Jouett made his famous ride from Louisa to Charlottesville to warn Jefferson and members of the Virginia Legislature of an intended raid by General Tarleton on June 4, 1781. During the Civil War, Charlottesville was spared the brunt of the conflict; its one claim to fame being the Skirmish of Rio Hill in which Custer was repulsed by local Confederate militia. More destruction was prevented when town and university officials preemptively surrendered to Union generals Sheridan and Custer on March 3, 1865.

Nowadays, Charlottesville has a decidedly Liberal bent though the same cannot be said for the surrounding counties. Many who move here from away have an idealized view of the area, glossing over the issue of slavery. But slavery was central to Charlottesville’s prosperity. The slave auction block was located in front of #0 Court Square and it’s rumored that when the late afternoon light is just right, one can still see the letters of the auction sign on the wall of the building.

Desegregation proved to be a challenge for Charlottesville, as it did for many places. The schools were shut for a time and white families scrambled to start private white only institutions to educate their progeny. The Robert E. Lee and Rock Hill Academies flourished in addition to private tutoring set-ups in basements across town. In 1960 in reaction to desegregation a particularly egregious urban renewal program was approved dooming the African-American neighborhood of Vinegar Hill, a 20-acre tract of land west of the Downtown Mall. It was eventually razed displacing 600 law-abiding, church-going, employed people. Uprooted, ostensibly to improve their living conditions (though the very fabric of their lives (homes, neighborhood, social networks and jobs) was effectively destroyed) they were shepherded into housing projects.

Charlottesville was a different place then; the Old South was still very much alive. One of my earliest Charlottesville recollections is breakfast at the Farmington Country Club during one of those mid-1960s Law Weekends. Back then, one dressed up and breakfast was an event, served in the formal dining room, then painted a soothing dove gray. My freshly scrubbed sister and I, in matching seersucker dresses, were served “turkey hash” and waffles with twin pitchers of heated maple syrup and melted butter by “yes sirring, no ma’aming” elderly black waiters moving soundlessly about the hushed space. I drank it all in, delighting in the gentility and ceremony, though even as a child I could sense that something about the hierarchy wasn’t quite right.

A lot has changed since then, for instance people still say “yes ma’am” and “no sir,” but now it’s just a courtesy exchanged among equals, but things aren’t as rosy as they might be. Charlottesville native, Eugene Williams, 83, a long-time civil rights activist (his two daughters were plaintiffs in the desegregation case against the Charlottesville school system) who grew up in segregated Charlottesville bemoans high unemployment and academic underachievement among African-Americans today and offers his perspective on the state of things: “We have come a long way, but at the same time we are moving backwards. In many ways, Charlottesville was more integrated during segregation than it is now.” He cites the dearth of black faces in businesses along the Mall, where once upon a time in restaurants at least, the staff (chefs and waiters) was all black. "I would like people to be more vigilant at seeing where discrimination exists in education, employment and housing" he says. "It's still present in every one of them.” These are sobering words to hear in 2011 when many of us believe that racism is behind us, but it is healthy to hear them for only then can they be addressed.

“For a small city, Charlottesville is doing a great job culturally,” says Deborah McLeod, director of Chroma Projects, a changing exhibition space and collective of artist studios located on the downtown mall, one of the longest outdoor pedestrian malls in the nation, which boasts a lively street scene and restaurants, theaters, art galleries and shops including the recently renovated 1930s movie palace Paramount Theater which offers a wide variety of entertainment from HD simulcasts of the Metropolitan Opera to Ravi Shankar, Chinese acrobats and Lucinda Williams. If you walk around to the side you’ll see a scaled down marquee over the segregated black entrance—a potent reminder of the past.

The Mall also hosts the Virginia Festival of the Book in March, the Charlottesville Festival of the Photograph in June, and the Virginia Film Festival in October. McLeod has observed Charlottesville’s art scene for 25 years. “Charlottesville has been facilitating its artists in a more comprehensive way,” she says, “and I find more interconnectivity now.” Second Street Gallery, established in 1973 and the oldest contemporary art space in central Virginia, is now located inside the City Center for Contemporary Arts building on East Water Street along with two other non-profit groups: Live Arts (a community theater) and Light House (a youth media organization). McLeod points to the new institutions that have popped up too, like The Bridge Progressive Arts Initiative in Belmont—a small arts organization that promotes young and emerging artists—and The Garage on 1st Street—a multi-purpose arts and events venue—who have what she describes as fresh young voices that speak outside the established arts organizations and galleries. This, she says, “is the kind of healthy growth a good city should enjoy and encourage.”

And it does, not just in its arts scene, but in its music scene as well. Even before the homegrown Dave Matthews Band found national fame, Charlottesville was a music mecca with Miller’s (where Dave used to tend bar) on the mall and Trax on West Main Street. Today there are five state-of-the-art venues including the Paramount, the Jefferson, the Southern, the Pavilion and the John Paul Jones Arena. I catch up with Andy Gems, owner of the Southern, as he’s setting up for the Friday night show. “For a town its size, Charlottesville has an amazing music scene—at times it’s a blessing,” he says, “other times it’s a curse. But the competition’s good because a rising tide raises all boats.” For top-shelf acts like the Rolling Stones, U2 and Lady Gaga, Scott Stadium and the John Paul Jones Arena at UVA are the most accommodating of large crowds. Charlottesville’s taste in music runs the gamut though, and the Tuesday Night Concert Series at UVA’s Cabell Hall throughout the academic year along with the Charlottesville Chamber Music Festival in September, feeds this community’s appetite for world-class musicians. Gems, who moved to Charlottesville from San Francisco in 2002, says he loves the urban yet small town feel of the place. “It’s about restaurants, food, music and art. What more do you need?”

And indeed, Charlottesville is a foodie’s paradise. My favorite place to eat in Charlottesville has to be the C&O Restaurant, which opened in 1976. Housed in a former railroad bunkhouse on Water Street, it is a Charlottesville institution. With appealing dining spaces, cozy downstairs bar area, imaginative seasonal menu, their veal liver in mustard sauce served with garlic mashed potatoes is my go to comfort food and definitely not your mother’s liver and onions, and pleasant staff, it’s no wonder C&O continues to be so popular. “I had a customer remark to me one evening in the restaurant that the C&O was one of the most honest places he’d ever been,” says owner Dave Simpson, “that made me feel great.” Simpson says that in the 32 years he has been at the restaurant the thing that has kept him interested is the relationships he has forged with his regular customers. He describes delivering food to families with newborns and catering those children’s graduation parties or wedding receptions years later. “It is astounding,” he says, “how one small corner of the world can attract such bright, funny, earnest and dedicated people year after year.” Other notable restaurants Downtown are Bang!, Fleurie, Petit Pois, Hamilton’s and Escafé. For a walk down memory lane there’s Timberlake’s Drugstore’s lunchroom, which has fountain service and, in colder months, a fire burning in the grate. For a quick bite there’s pizza from Christian’s, Chinese dumplings from Marco and Luca, or crêpes from The Flat on Water Street.

Once a modest, working class neighborhood, Belmont just over the Belmont Bridge from the Downtown Mall has attracted a young, hip crowd who’ve been gentrifying the area and luring top-notch restaurants. Chief among these is the superb MAS, which specializes in tapas. The Local, Tavola, Belmont Bar-B-Cue and La Taza are all within a stone’s throw of each other on Hinton Avenue and Monticello Road. Michael Keaveny opened Tavola in “Little Brooklyn,” as he likes to call Belmont, in 2009. “Being in Charlottesville has exceeded all my expectations,” says the chef and owner who has worked in restaurants in New York, San Francisco and Napa Valley. “I like to think of Virginia as a region of Italy, considering how the Italians would work with the raw materials we have here.”

With its eateries, butcher, baker and chocolatier, the Main Street Market is all things to all foodies. Locally-sourced raw materials are a mainstay for many of the vendors here. From the famous pimiento cheese at Feast! to the breads, cakes and pastries at Albemarle Baking Company and the delectables at Gerhardt’s Chocolates, the market offers a bounty of comestibles sure to impress the most discriminating epicurean. On Saturday mornings from April to October, a bustling farmers’ market is in full swing downtown. But Charlottesville residents also have Foods of All Nations located at the Ivy Square Shopping Center near the university, the go-to emporium for arcane and international ingredients like marmite or peanut soup mix. Foods (as it is familiarly known) is still going strong after more than 50 years in business. “Back when Foods opened, none of the big supermarkets carried the international selection we stocked,” says Butch Brown, the president of the company. To keep competitive, Foods maintains a friendly atmosphere that’s big on service. “We know most of our customers by name and offer charge accounts.” Newcomers to the scene are Whole Foods, which just opened a mega store to great acclaim and in 2012 Trader Joes will open a market.

Somewhere along the way Charlottesville became known as the “Hook” or “Hookville.” Some say the hook referred to a C grade; others say it arose because once you’ve spent any time in Charlottesville, it "hooks" you. Whatever the history, the “hook’s” residents are just as interested in spirits as they are in sustenance. Robert Harllee, 53, opened Market Street Wine Shop located one block off the mall, in 1986 and hosts Friday evening wine tastings that take on a party-like atmosphere. In addition to their vast selection of wine and beer, they also carry a wide assortment of bread, cheese and other comestibles. Tucked into a basement, it resembles an actual wine cave. It’s funky, fun and loaded with atmosphere. “Despite the growth, there’s still a small town feel to Charlottesville, especially in the downtown area, says Harllee. “There’s a real sense of community and local issues matter a lot. In the course of a day, I encounter poets, novelists, dancers, actors, visual artists—everybody seems to have something they do, some passion they pursue, beyond their job.” 

One of those passions could include the business of wine-making: There are some 25 vineyards in the Charlottesville area, most notably White Hall, Barboursville, Keswick, Blenheim and King Family.

“I think of Charlottesville as laid back and kind of quirky,” says Amy Gardner, 40, owner of shoe boutique Scarpa on Barracks Road since 1994. “It’s full of interesting and eclectic people who are bright and creative.” Gardner who looks like a fresh-faced college student embodies hip, young Charlottesville. She is just one of a number of shop owners who purvey goods to an affluent, plugged-in clientele. Yves Delorme on the mall sells luxurious bedding (a not so local secret is this shop’s blowout Thanksgiving sale) and Caspari’s flagship store on Main Street showcases, in addition to the cards and cocktail napkins they are known for, furniture accents with a European twist. The Warehouse District—a new area of shops in former industrial buildings bordering Garrett Street—includes stores like C&A Camp with stylish inventory from around the world that owner, Carlin Stargell Camp, refers to as “classic luxury.” I have my eye on one of the fabulous Cari Borja asymmetrical coat she carries.

You’d expect a place like Charlottesville with its rich history to be a center for antiquarians and there are several very good antiques shops. Your best bet is the Ivy Square Shopping Center where Kenny Ball, Joseph, Joseph and Joseph and Mirabelle all vie for attention. Further west on Ivy Road you’ll come to the Curious Orange Shop and ultra-chic And George. For more eclectic taste, there’s John Sarah John a hybrid of antiques shop, interior design studio, espresso bar and event space on West Main Street.

As might be expected in a university town, Charlottesville has plenty of used bookstores; three notable ones located in the Downtown Mall area are Daedalus Bookshop, Blue Whale Books and Read it Again Sam. You’ll find the latest addition, the funky Random Row in a former car mechanic’s up on West Main Street.

“If I had only one word to describe Charlottesville,” says Carol Troxell, 63, owner of New Dominion Bookshop located on East Main Street, the oldest independent bookseller in Virginia, “it would be ‘smart.’” Troxell moved to Charlottesville in 1971, and though the city has changed dramatically during that time, she says the its overall tenor has remained the same. “Charlottesville’s still full of an interesting mix of people who are engaged with the world.”

And that mix of people balloons by more than 20,000 when classes are in session at the University of Virginia. UVA, established by Thomas Jefferson in 1819, may be Charlottesville’s best-known institution, and for good reason. Ranked in 2011 as the number two best public university (tied with the University of California Los Angeles) by U.S. News & World Report, UVA has earned the top one or two spots since the publication began ranking public universities 14 years ago. Additionally, UVA ranks in the top 25 of America’s best universities, both public and private. And its history is deep. Located on the west side of town, Jefferson’s Academical Village is the campus’ centerpiece. Known as the Lawn for the terraced greensward it overlooks, the U-shaped design is crowned by the Rotunda (based on Rome’s Pantheon) and features a long colonnade fronting the original 54 student rooms and 10 larger structures known as pavilions. Housing for professors and their classrooms, the pavilions are of unique design intended to reflect the various branches of learning and to showcase different architectural orders. Nowadays, the rooms on the Lawn as well as the parallel Range (site of Edgar Allen Poe’s room) are highly prized. Says Sara Allen Harper, class of 2011, who lived on the Lawn during her senior year. “I felt so much pride living there, thinking about all the people who had lived there before me and wondering what their experiences had been. It was also a bizarre and unique experience on account of all the tourists and even other students who you ended up sharing it with!”

My fellow locals occasionally gripe about the constant construction and endless expansion of the campus. I must admit I enjoy the summer when parking spaces at the Corner are plentiful and the lines at Bodo’s bagel restaurant’s three locations shrink. But all in all, people recognize the boon the university affords the town. (UVA and its health system are the area's largest employers providing over 17,000 jobs according to the city’s 2010 Comprehensive Financial Report.) Says Ida Lee Wooten, director of community relations at the university: “City residents do express concern about traffic in the University area, but in the past two decades I’ve seen the university and city of Charlottesville increasingly working together to build a strong community.”

Surrounded by mountains and lovely countryside Charlottesville promotes an active lifestyle, with hiking, biking horseback riding and skiing topping the list. There are two active foxhunts: Farmington and Keswick. Since foxes aren’t pursued and killed once they’ve “gone to ground,” there isn’t the same controversy as in England. Non-riders can get a taste of the pomp and circumstance associated with the sport when at Thanksgiving, Grace Church in Keswick holds its Blessing of the Hounds. It’s a scene straight out of the 19^th century. The field turned out in full regalia with the “pinks” (actually scarlet coats) of staff and visiting hunt dignitaries very much in evidence, hounds and horses assembled in front of the church. If that’s not enough equine activity, the Foxfield Races are held in April and October. There’s also an annual horseshow in Keswick and a Farmington-Keswick point-to-point both held in the spring.

Charlottesville is “a progressive city that values education, the environment, social justice, the arts and our history and is a cultural, social and economic hub in Central Virginia,” says Mayor Dave Norris, 41 who has lived in Charlottesville since 1995. Norris points out that unemployment in the city is consistently lower than the national average. The small-town, big university atmosphere attracts a cosmopolitan and diverse crowd, many of whom have been lured by the bevy of top rankings the city has earned. It has been named one of the Top "Brainiest" Metropolitan Areas by The Atlantic, Number One City for Retirement by Kiplinger.com, the Healthiest Place to Live by Men's Journal magazine, and the 4th Best Place to Live in the Country by Kiplinger's Magazine. Indeed, the floodgates may have opened in earnest when Cities Ranked & Rated ranked Charlottesville as the #1 Best City to live in USA & Canada in 2004. 

Unfortunately, all this growth brings with it sprawl, traffic and homogenization. A lot of problems are blamed on the influx of people. But some of the worst offenders in the sprawl department are homegrown developers who seem oblivious to the perils of fouling the nest. As for “the Donald,” his recent acquisition of the Kluge estate and winery (and, if he gets his way, Albemarle House) has cast a pall over southern Albemarle. More sinister though is the fact that the killer of Morgan Harrington, the 20-year old Virginia Tech student who was murdered after she was stranded outside a Metallica concert) has not been caught and the word on the street is he’s a local.

But there is good and bad in all places and in balance, Charlottesville has much to offer. Suzannah Fischer, 45, owner of gift shop O’Suzannah’s on Fourth Street, says, “I take huge pride in being a C-Ville native. I am still reminded of so many of my childhood experiences, despite the growth the city and counties around us. Of course, most every landscape of C-ville has changed, but the vibe is still relaxed. I think the city feels progressive with an emphasis on families and community. Once you make your home here it's nearly impossible to leave. There seems to be something that draws us back, not just a feeling of missing home, but feeling you're missing out on something if you are not here.”