EPR assisted several localities in Virginia as part of a team of consultants selected by the Virginia Office of Intermodal Planning & Investment and VDOT to assist Virginia localities incorporate new Urban Development Area (UDA) legislation into their comprehensive plans and zoning and subdivision ordinances. In 2010, the Virginia Legislature adopted legislation to require high-growth cities, counties and towns to adopt Urban Development Areas as the focus of high density growth for 10 to 20 years. Parallel to the new legislation, VDOT awarded a series of grants to qualifying localities to offer consultant assistance in planning for these high growth areas. Techniques and tools used in the project included a variety of innovative code provisions such as incentives for mixed use, traditional neighborhood design, affordable housing, transfer of development rights, multimodal transportation, access management and road connectivity.

Under this project, EPR worked with a variety of localities in urban, suburban and rural contexts, including: the counties of Albemarle, Amherst, Bedford, Caroline, Fauquier, Montgomery, and Rockingham, the cities of Norfolk and Harrisonburg and the towns of Warrenton, Vinton, and Blacksburg.