A Master Plan for Courthouse Village - College of Humanities and ...

The Comprehensive Plan also sets out to maintain a well-defined village
character that will ensure preservation of the Courthouse Village area over time.
One important element of the County’s Village concept is the establishment of a
parkway system to provide safe pedestrian access throughout the Village. The
Comprehensive Plan states that “at least 30 percent of the villages should be
devoted to a parkway system consisting of continuous open space linking
clusters of a variety of residential types within a community center encompassing
a shopping center, schools, churches, a fire and/or police station, library, post
office and other necessary support facilities.” A high volume of pedestrian activity
has always been a strong component of the Village, and it is important that this is
preserved. The Courthouse Village has these necessary land use elements. The
Plan has designated a significant amount of land in the Courthouse Village land
use plan to this parkway system. The Plan has also established future land uses
for the Courthouse Village that will maintain and encourage greater pedestrian
demand that will successfully support a parkway system. This Master Plan
refines and further expands upon this notion.
Figure 5 provides an aerial view of the central portion of the Village and has
places of interest denoted on it. The Courthouse Village primarily consists of
public uses including the Goochland Courthouse, Library, Administrative
Building, Elementary School, High School and Post Office with commercial and
residential uses interspersed throughout. Current commercial development exists
along State Route 6 and US 522 and includes service and retail uses including
service stations, restaurants, convenience stores and offices. There is also a
retail center, Courthouse Commons, at the intersection of US 522 and
Fairground Road that includes a grocery store, pharmacy, and several
restaurants. Map 3 illustrates how land uses are delineated within the Village,
according to parcels.
Unique destinations within the Village include Grace Episcopal Church, J.
Sargeant Reynolds Community College Western Campus and the Goochland
Family YMCA as well as several community athletic facilities adjacent to the
Goochland Administrative building and Elementary School. The County’s
adopted Comprehensive Plan recognizes that the Goochland Courthouse Village
is to be the center of government and major services for the County and recent
trends indicate that this growth is taking place.
A Master Plan for Courthouse Village Page 20 of 96
Spring, 2006
Goochland County