Up, Up and Away!

Given the relatively modest size of the Charlottesville area—the combined City and Albemarle County populations totaled just over 150,000 in 2015—it might be surprising to learn that the area has supported a commercial airport since 1954. Known locally as CHO, the current iteration spans 710 acres, has a 60,000 square-foot terminal, and a runway measuring 6,801 feet in length. CHO reports that so far in 2017 they have welcomed over 630,000 passengers. CHO offers direct flights to Washington D.C. (Dulles), New York City (LaGuardia), Chicago (O’Hare), Philadelphia, Charlotte, and Atlanta, which makes getting a connecting flight to an international destination quite simple. The airlines available to choose from at CHO are: American Airlines, Delta, and United.

Just 10 miles from downtown Charlottesville, CHO is a straight shot up 29 North. Or, if you prefer the more scenic route, take Earlysville road and enjoy the mountain views as you watch the planes come and go.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

While you await your departure or the arrival of a loved one, have a taste of the food and drink on offer. Sample the American fare at Turbo Grill or the local craft beer at the Radar Bar. Jet-lagged after a return flight home? Get your dose of caffeine at Copilot Coffee and you’ll be ready to go.

Start Planning Your Dream Vineyard

Virginia Wine aptly describes on their website the great potential of land in central Virginia for farming wine grapes: “The eastern slopes of the Blue Ridge and the rolling countryside to the east offer excellent topography, fertile granite-based clay soil and a growing season of over 200 days.” Their site includes a compiled list of 72 vineyards and wineries in the central Virginia area alone. Yet there is still ample open land for sale in central Virginia ripe with possibilities for the next great vineyard. Compared with Napa Valley’s 500+ wineries in 748 square miles, central Virginia still has room to grow (Albemarle County alone is 726 square miles). Luckily for you, the discerning buyer or investor, the Virginia Cooperative Extension (VCE) has just released a Vineyard Financial Calculator, an invaluable tool when considering such a land purchase and business venture. As the VCE writes, “This tool’s intended user is an individual or organization exploring the financial requirements of vineyard establishment and operation in Virginia.” This financial calculator was created by Tremain Hatch, Peter Callan, and Tony Wolf.

The Calculator tab contained within the Excel spreadsheet prompts the user to input information specific to their proposed operation, such as the number of acres that will support the vines, the width of the rows of vines, the crop produced per foot, the hours of labor per acre, and the cost of capital. The formulas already figured into the spreadsheet will then calculate your cash flow. The “Trellis” tab allows you to figure in the cost of installing a trellis, as well as a fence to protect your vines from hungry wildlife, such as the deer population. The “Equipment” tab includes a very informative table complete with the name, type, and price of equipment typically needed to operate a vineyard. Simply consider the kind of equipment you’ll need for the size and type of vineyard you want to have, then enter the relevant numbers in the prepared calculator. You will also need to consult the “hours of use” graph at the bottom of the page, which helps calculate the life of your equipment based on your desired acreage. The embedded formulas will then calculate both your capital expenditures for equipment and your annual fixed cost for equipment based on industry standards.

Finally, once you’ve entered all of the information specific to your dream vineyard, your diligent and attentive work pays off in the Budget, Net Present Value, and Sensitivity Analysis tabs. The Budget includes fields already linked to figures you have entered in other tabs and calculates your revenue and cash flow. The Net Present Value tab looks into the future and calculates when you would begin to see a profit. And the Sensitivity Analysis tab illustrates how your profit might vary based on fluctuations in crop yield and price.

If you’ve long dreamed of owning a vineyard in central Virginia, now you have the means to begin seriously thinking about logistics. And when you’re ready to see land in which to plant those first few seeds of your dream, contact Gayle Harvey Real Estate and we’ll be happy to help.

To learn more about what is entailed in establishing a winery in central Virginia, read our blog post here. For information on business license requirements in central Virginia, click here.

Applying for a Business License in Central Virginia

The entrepreneurial spirit is alive and well in central Virginia. The City of Charlottesville—ranked #4 on ValuePenguin’s Best Cities for Small Business and on Livability.com’s 50 Best Cities for Entrepreneurs—is home to both the annual Tom Tom Founders Festival, which celebrates and rewards innovation, and the Community Investment Collaborative, which supports small businesses.

If you are a business owner and are perusing real estate in central Virginia, you may be interested to know the business license requirements and fees according to the different counties. Whether you already live in central Virginia and are interested in relocating or expanding your business in another county, or whether you are exploring business opportunities in central Virginia for the first time, we have pulled together some information to help you compare and contrast the requirements among the counties. (Please note that most central Virginia counties that require businesses to have a license set a March 1 deadline for application or renewal.)

Albemarle

Before acquiring a business license in Albemarle County, you will first need to register the business name with the Clerk of the Circuit Court, find out whether your type of business (partnership, LLC, etc.) is required to register with the Virginia State Corporation Commission, and acquire zoning clearance from the Community Development Department. Albemarle County requires that businesses renew their license every year by March 1. For businesses with gross receipts between $5,000 and $100,000, the license fee is $50. For businesses with gross receipts of $100,000 or more, business owners will need to calculate the fee based on figures detailed on the business license application.

Augusta

In order to obtain an Augusta County business license, you first need to apply for a zoning certificate and register the name of your company with the Community Development office. All businesses must renew their license each year by March 1.

Greene

In Greene County, you must apply for a business license from the Commissioner of Revenue. The license fee is based on both gross receipts and your type of business (retail, contracting, etc.), and you must renew your license every year by March 1.

Louisa

Louisa County does not require a business license for any business to operate within the county unless you are a contractor. In order to obtain a Contractor’s License in Louisa, the contractor must first be licensed in the state of Virginia. The fee for the Louisa County Contractor’s License is based on gross receipts of the previous year.

Nelson

Nelson County requires businesses to apply for and annually renew their business license with the Commissioner of the Revenue’s office by March 1.

The following central Virginia counties do not have a business license requirement:

Fluvanna

Orange

Madison