JAMES CITY — In May, county and state officials met with over 50 residents of the Grove neighborhood to discuss projects that could bring long-awaited and much-needed improvements to their corner of James City County.
Now, a small group of activists is organizing to rally the community to speed up these undertakings.
“This is what I would like to see happen,” said Ryan Bonnie, a 13-year Grove resident. “You heard your friend just moved to Williamsburg, and they moved to Grove, and their first reaction is, ‘Wow, that’s a cool little community,’ not ‘Where is that?’ or ‘Oh, that’s a food desert.’”
John McGlennon, who represents the Roberts District on the James City County Board of Supervisors, organized the May 18 meeting to give people an opportunity to voice their concerns about road improvements as well as other issues such as trash dumping and standing water on certain roads. Projects such as the widening of Route 60 and a new park and recreational center have been in the works for years.
McGlennon invited state Sen. Monty Mason, D-Williamsburg, and Williamsburg Regional Library Director Betsy Fowler to provide additional context to county and state plans that could affect Grove.
“Anytime you have town halls and listen to citizens in the area, it’s great,” Mason said. “They are rightfully frustrated because we’ve talked about the widening of (Route) 60 for a long time.”
Some Grove residents jokingly refer to their neighborhood as the “armpit” of James City County, considered a food desert because of the lack of fresh and healthy foods generally found in large grocery stores, a type of business Grove lacks. But it is an area with a rich history, former home to Log Cabin Beach, a stop on the Chitlin’ Circuit during the 1960s and ‘70s. Locals also used to enjoy access to a stretch of the James River.
Since then, much of the development in Grove has been industrial. The old site of BASF Corp., a chemical producer, has sat vacant for decades, despite efforts by the county to redevelop the property. The Ball Manufacturing plant, the Anheuser-Busch Williamsburg Brewery and the Walmart distribution center in the area have all led to an increase in truck traffic, raising safety concerns among residents.
Last year, the Virginia Department of Transportation completed the Skiffes Creek Connector, which links routes 60 and 143. However, the widening of Route 60, which twists its way through the community, has not made as much progress.
“The plan originally was to build four lanes, to put an additional lane on each side,” McGlennon said. “But now, because of cost estimates and because the amount of traffic is not as heavy, the plan is to run a dedicated turn lane down the middle all the way from the fire station to the elementary school.”
Back in 2018 when studies for the route improvement started, the estimated cost of expanding the 2-mile stretch was approximately $30 million. Today, the project is now priced at around $73 million.
Timothy Kelley, a senior communications specialist with VDOT, said the segment of Route 60 between the James City County Fire Station 2 and Magruder Avenue is projected to resume as early as 2025, with construction possibly starting in 2028, depending on funding. The rest of the project, he said in an email, could take longer.
“The remaining Route 60 segment from Magruder Avenue to James River Elementary School has more significant engineering challenges related to environmental restrictions associated with the Carter Grove property that is a historic preservation, conservation and open-space easement,” Kelley said.
For some residents, the postponement of the Route 60 project is an example of why they believe Grove is not considered a high priority. Longtime resident Laura Gucwa fondly recalls participating in the county’s Neighborhood Connections program back in the ’90s, when she felt like JCC was more actively engaging with Grove residents.
“We’ve mentioned to John McGlennon and said, ‘Hey, this really worked back then. We need to get it started again, especially in Grove, because we are kind of isolated,’” Gucwa said.
Recent population growth in Grove, including relative newcomer Sherrie Beauford, has brought more diversity and more Spanish-speaking residents. Beauford said she would like to see government officials make more of an effort to include these neighbors in discussions about the future of the area.
Fowler, who spoke at the May meeting about how WRL intends to expand its programming in Grove, said that the library has hosted Spanish storytimes at the Grove Christian Outreach Center once a month, called “Cena con Cuentos.” WRL has also operated out of the Abram Frink Jr. Community Center on Saturdays, giving digital instruction for adults as well as facilitating maker and craft activities.
“We’re very interested in making sure that populations that have been historically marginalized have access to the same resources,” Fowler said.
Gucwa would like to see a separate recreational center (Frink is attached to James River Elementary School) where older children can have a safe space to exercise and play, and other residents have expressed the desire for a park with a pool and other amenities.
“The real challenge there is that there’s not much vacant land in Grove that would accommodate the size of footprint the park would have, somewhere between 7 and 10 acres,” McGlennon said.
Despite the obstacles, Bonnie, Gucwa, Beauford and others are meeting to find ways to bring their community together to advance their goals. Many people outside of Grove associate it with problems it used to have in its past, Beauford said, but they shouldn’t see it that way anymore.
“I don’t live in an armpit of nowhere,” Beauford said. “We are worthy, and we should be treated as well as any other district in James City County.”
J.W. Caterine, [email protected]
