Scottsville expansion: Paulett Town

Contributed by Evelyn Edson, president, Scottsville Museum

At the March meeting of Scottsville’s Town Council, its members voted to approve a new housing development on 20 acres of the land of the former tire cord plant west of town.  The property, now owned by Charles Hurt, is zoned Village Residential and will be built on by the Southern Development Homes company.  Scottsville has been looking for a new industrial use of the old plant, but found, according to Town Administrator Matt Lawless, that the building is now obsolete, its 15-foot ceiling being considered too low for modern equipment.

Over the years, Scottsville has expanded its boundaries:  first in the 1830s with the Harrison and Fluvanna Additions, but more recently in 1944 when the town authorized a small community of eight houses to accommodate families of “middle management” at the new factory.

The houses, built by Forrest E. Paulett, were located on Pine Street just off Rt. 795, Blenheim Road.  Irene Dorrier, who grew up there, has fond memories of the other families with children who played together in the adjoining woods.  They were gravely disappointed when “their” woods were cleared for more houses, and Pine Street was extended to circle back to 795 as Holly Street.  There are now 25 houses in Paulett Town.

The Town Council was divided on the current issue of expansion, and the tie-vote was broken by Mayor Ron Smith who said, “This is the change we need.”  Others worried about issues such as traffic, school crowding, the library, and keeping the small-town atmosphere.  Scottsville’s population in 2020 was 524, a slight decline from 2010.  The proposed development is planned to include 36 houses, some of them duplexes, in order to create some affordable housing units.

The project still has hurdles to jump over.  The site plans must be reviewed by the Planning Commission, a process that could take as long as one year.  Another development proposed for a site on Blenheim Road is currently on hold.