Heritage Hill Bed & Breakfast is close to getting a green light from Waynesboro City Council and city planners to hold small-scale events at its Sherwood Avenue location.
At Monday night’s City Council meeting, City Planner Alisande Tombarge made a presentation for a conditional use permit – with some requirements for the property owners.
The bed and breakfast is located on an almost eight-acre parcel of land, located at the corner of Sherwood Avenue and Hopeman Parkway, and is zoned general residential.
However, she said, most of the land around the venue is undeveloped.
Tombarge said the venue is looking for a way to broaden their business model to hold fundraisers, weddings, bridal and baby showers, team-building events and workshops.
“Like many businesses during COVID, they were forced to shut down,” Tombarge said in her presentation to Council. “And then during the reopening process, they began receiving a lot of requests to be able to hold these types of events outdoors.”
City Council introduced an ordinance to approve the permit with some conditions and will take up the matter again at the July 24 meeting.
The planning commission voted in favor of the conditional use permit with no limits on the number of guests due to the large lot and mature vegetation around the property providing a buffer for noise, Tombarge said.
City Council member Terry Short, however, suggested that Council put a 100-person cap on the number of guests at any event held at the facility.
As the organizer of the Chili, Blues and Brews event in downtown Waynesboro for more than a decade, he said that the venue may need to think through lighting and other issues as they grow and accommodate more people. After a successful track record at the 100 people, he said, Council could increase the capacity at the request of the venue some time in the future.
“I would have a reservation about opening up 300 people attending an event on a fairly narrow road with not great sight distance at 11 o’clock at night with limited parking with no prescribed lighting,” Short said. “I would be concerned about general public safety and their ability to manage an event like that if it were to grow and be successful.
“I would rather them come back, demonstrate what a wonderful job they’ve done with 100 and come back and ask for 200 rather than opening up at the beginning.”
The 100-person limit would only apply to guests, not any kind of support personnel like catering staff, parking attendants or musicians, based on Council’s discussion.
Another condition, Short said, should be that the permit is issued to the applicant and not the property itself. He said Council had taken that action with similar businesses, and it worked out well. If the business closed or was sold, the next owner or tenant would have to reapply for the conditional use permit.
The proposed site plans from Heritage Hill included bathroom trailers including one ADA accessible bathroom and a temporary 30×40 tent. There would be handicapped parking, two entrances to the venue and directional signage.
According to Tombarge, the fire department and emergency management department reviewed the application and “didn’t identify any concerns.”
Additional conditions recommended by staff include:
- Portable restroom trailers be provided for events with more than 25 attendees; at least one ADA accessible restroom be provided at all events
- Drinking water be provided as necessary for any events that may require it
- Events be set up in general conformance to the submitted concept plans
- Existing vegetative buffer along boundaries would remain in place, and if it were removed for any reason, it would be replaced with similar vegetation
- Abide by the City’s noise ordinance
- No events start prior to 9 a.m.; events end by 11 p.m.
“There is a demonstrated interest in event venues in the region,” said Tombarge. “And this particular property is unique in Waynesboro given its size and relatively private setting. It’s between seven and eight acres. It’s not surrounded by a lot of developed land. So it’s a good setting for this type of event.”
The owner of Heritage Hill was out of town and unable to attend the July 10 meeting. Tombarge said the owner would be available at the July 24 meeting of City Council.
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Crystal Graham
