Planning commission recommends rezoning of 56 Long Island Road for family entertainment site

The Campbell County Planning Commission voted to recommend approval of PL‑25‑096, a request by James Lippitt to rezone a 0.872‑acre portion of 56 Long Island Road from residential single‑family to business general commercial so the entire parcel can operate as a family entertainment site.

The rezoning would allow a conceptual plan the applicant provided — showing a 1,500‑square‑foot community center, vendor spaces for food trucks and mobile vendors, an outdoor stage, fenced children’s play area, parking, and on‑site restroom facilities — to move forward to the site‑plan review and Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) entrance review. Planning staff said the property is in an area that the county comprehensive plan designates for mixed medium‑to‑high density use, and that converting the small residential portion to business general commercial would conform to that designation.

“The proposal is to construct a new VDOT‑approved entrance,” engineer Thomas Brooks Sr. said during the public hearing, describing an intent to consolidate multiple informal driveways into one regulated commercial entrance. Brooks said utilities are private well and on‑site septic and that existing dilapidated buildings on the parcel have had asbestos abatement and will be removed before development.

Resident Tina Sharp Contreras, who lives at 130 Long Island Road across from the site, urged caution and asked the commission to prioritize safety. “I’m also very concerned about the traffic,” she said, and later added, “I am really concerned about the safety,” citing existing heavy and varied roadway users near a blind curve and a double railroad crossing adjacent to the parcel.

Commissioners and staff noted that VDOT will evaluate sight distance, the proposed single entrance and whether a turn lane or other traffic improvements are required, and that the conceptual site plan presented to the commission is not binding. Planning staff and the applicant said that if rezoned, development would still require site‑plan approval and VDOT sign‑off. The applicant said there would be no alcohol on site and that most regular operations would run roughly 9 a.m. to 7 p.m., with occasional special events that might run later.

At the end of the hearing the commission moved to recommend approval. The motion passed on a voice vote with no recorded opposition; the matter is scheduled for the Board of Supervisors on July 15 for final action.

The recommendation does not authorize construction; any future development will be subject to the site‑plan process, VDOT entrance approval and applicable county zoning and health code requirements.