CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA (CVILLE RIGHT NOW) – Still smarting from the federal government’s awarding to UVA of the Federal Executive Institute property after initially awarding it to Charlottesville City Schools, the University of Virginia’s Board of Visitors Friday considers turning over its Oak Lawn property in Fifeville to the city school system. The historic home at 501 9th Street SW was built in 1822 for merchant and Virginia House of Delegates member Nimrod Bramham, designed and constructed by James Dinsmore whose services Thomas Jefferson enlisted in building Monticello and the University of Virginia. After Bramham’s 1847 death, the property was sold to James Fife and became the cornerstone of the current Fifeville neighborhood.

The item is on the Board of Visitor’s full meeting action items agenda, and Charlottesville Schools Superintendent Dr. Royal Gurley sent out a Tuesday morning message “to report an exciting potential development thanks to the leadership and collaboration of our colleagues at the University of Virginia”. The UVA Board will vote on “a resolution to lease and eventually transfer Oak Lawn to the City of Charlottesville for the schools’ use at a nominal fee”, according to Dr. Gurley.

City and city schools’ leaders back in April held a jubilant press conference when the U.S. Department of Education announced initially it would award the FEI to Charlottesville City Schools at no cost. About a week later, city and city schools’ leaders were devastated when the USDOE reneged on that decision and awarded the Emmet Street property to the other applicant, UVA. However, Dr. Gurley told CvilleRightNow the University never hung the city out to dry.

“You know, I will tell you that immediately after we got that devastating news about FEI, UVA… specifically (School of Education and Human Development) Dean (Stephanie) Rowley… reached out and wanted to make sure how we continue to preserve our partnership and how do they continue to support Charlottesville City Schools,” Gurley said.

“We’ve just had so many robust discussions, and just what does our school system need and what does our community need.”

“Those conversations never stopped, and then I think about beginning-to-mid-summer this really started to become a reality, and here we are: today’s the fruits of its labor,” Gurley continued.

The 5.2-acre property in front of Charlottesville Middle School and Smith Aquatics and Fitness Center is not as large as the 14-acre FEI.

In the letter to the community, Dr. Gurley wrote, “Although we are in the initial stages of exploring possibilities for this site, I believe that this property would enable Cville Schools to achieve many of the benefits for students that we initially envisioned in our proposal to acquire the Federal Executive Institute this spring. That includes expansion of programs such as early childhood education, alternative learning, and career and technical education.”

Gurley told CvilleRightNow, “It’s a little smaller in scale, but it’s still more property than we currently own and we have no additional property this size we can do anything with. We will take some time and evaluate the property and see exactly what we can do with it.”

But the opportunities Dr. Gurley says include “early childhood education, and we’re thinking of the cascading opportunities here”.

“The cascading opportunities for early childhood education, and alternative learning, and career and technical, as well as how we support our students with disabilities.”

Dr. Gurley said in his community note, “I am thankful for the strong and steadfast leadership of the School Board, including Board Chair Emily Dooley, as well as the City’s leadership, particularly City Manager Sam Sanders. They have been invaluable thinking partners and visionary leaders as we have been making ambitious plans for the future of our schools.”

As for building out these opportunities in the historic cornerstone property, Dr. Gurley told CvilleRightNow, “Just like with the FEI property, there are a lot of historical things that needed to be preserved. So, we will take all of those things into consideration as we move forward while also showcasing and celebrating the history that is Fifeville.”

Dr. Gurley concluded his open letter, “This is an exciting possibility for our school system, and an example of how the University, the City, and the schools can collaborate to make our community better. When leaders work together to find solutions, it is our students who benefit. We will keep you posted as this process unfolds at the Board of Visitors meeting this week and beyond.”

UVA purchased the Oak Lawn property in 2023 for $3.5-million for the purpose of expanding UVA Health services to the Fifeville neighborhood. The parcel includes the home, land, and cemeteries and is listed on the Virginia Landmarks Register.

As for the FEI property at 1301 Emmet Street North, UVA’s Board of Visitors earlier on its consent agenda will likely approve changing that property name to Sycamore Hill. The agenda item notes “the new 14-acre district is a collection of significant buildings arrayed across a hill that features a collection of mature sycamores.

Click here to see the UVA Board of Visitors agenda items.