Wintergreen, Stoney Creek & Nelson County
Nelson County is perhaps best know as the childhood home of Earl Hammer, Jr., whose writings later became the The Waltons TV series. Nelson is not a large county with only 471 square miles, but it is bordered on the east by the James River and the west by the Blue Ridge Mountains. Nelson County is blessed by a mild climate and is almost the geographic center of the state of Virginia.
With a population of approximately 15,000, one can see how Nelson County has become a huge draw for tourists and new residents, looking for the sanctuary of the mountains or the planned community of Wintergreen. There is a strong agribusiness influence in Nelson , but Wintergreen remains the areas largest employer with at times several hundred employees.
Nelson has a wonderful health care system due to outreach from the University of VA and Martha Jefferson Hospitals, and an excellent and well run fire and rescue system in cooperation with that of Wintergreen and Stoney Creek.
Nelson has a low unemployment rate of 2.4 % for 2007, and the largest employment group is managerial and professional. The county’s per capita median household income for 2002 was $37,513.
Nelson school system has made wonderful progress for a rural community and was one of the few school systems in central VA to pass the federal Government Standards of Quality. In addition, due to its excellent road system it is but a short drive to the many private schools in the Charlottesville area. Nelson had over 60% of its students planning to attend higher education in 2005-2006.
Nelson operates under the Board of Supervisors system of government and has a relatively low tax rate of 72 cents per $100 and a personal property rate of $2.95 per $100. Assessments are conducted on a 4 to 6 year cycle. Nelson has recently completed a comprehensive zoning ordinance trying to protect and preserve the land and those essential elements that make Nelson such an attractive place to visit and to live.
My firm, Wintergreen Real Estate, has given back to the community in funding a home for Habitat for Humanity, helping to fund the Food Bank, providing land for the Farmer’s Market, and generously providing donations to many other county charities, and funding scholarships at a local school.
