Planning commission backs rezoning for mixed-use community center, coffee shop and small soccer facility in Reiner Village

The Montgomery County Planning Commission voted unanimously on March 12 to recommend rezoning 1.571 acres at 1708 and 1714 Carriage Road from agricultural A-1 to Traditional Neighborhood Development Infill (TNDI) to allow a planned mixed-use development that would include a community center, a coffee shop and an accessory soccer training facility.

Planning staff described the site—inside the Reiner Village expansion area of the county comprehensive plan—as an underused former church property with an associated single-family dwelling and a cemetery in the rear yard. County planning staff said the proposal reuses existing structures and would provide new commercial and community services within the village expansion area of the 2025 Montgomery County comprehensive plan.

County planning staff said the proposed development would offer a coffee shop that “will typically operate from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m.” The primary use on the parcel would be a community center hosting after-school programs, workshops, art classes and civic events. The soccer element was described as an accessory training space, primarily indoors in the main building, with a possible small outdoor practice area in the rear that would require additional permits and review.

Applicant Adam Ricci told commissioners he operates five coffee shops and coaches locally; he said the project is meant to create a multiuse community hub and that indoor training would be modest—roughly 4-v-4 or 5-v-5 activity using the former church interior rather than large outdoor league play. Ricci said renovations would focus on interior changes and that substantial new grading would not be part of the proposal.

Nearby residents who spoke during the public hearing raised concerns about how the outdoor space was described in the application and about privacy, landscaping and the potential for noise. Judah Dean, an adjacent property owner, said the application depicted a larger outdoor field and listed hours “from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m.,” which differs from the applicant’s statement that outdoor activity would be limited and infrequent; Dean urged honoring the cemetery and suggested quieter uses such as a community garden. Calvin Dean, also adjacent, asked that the facility be more broadly oriented to the village rather than serving a narrow age range and noted the new Reiner Park and school fields nearby.

Commissioners asked about landscaping, buffer yards and whether the site would require a site plan. Planning staff said required buffers are defined in the county zoning ordinance and that a landscaping plan would be reviewed during the zoning permit or site plan process depending on the scale of any exterior work. Staff also noted the applicant intends to preserve and commemorate the cemetery with pathways, signage and plantings.

Staff noted that the property provides roughly 55 off-street parking spaces including ADA spaces, is served by public water and sewer, is not in a FEMA floodplain, and that the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) took no exception to the rezoning request. The staff recommendation was for approval to rezone the 1.571 acres from A-1 to TNDI to allow the proposed mixed-use development.

A motion to approve the rezoning recommendation passed on a roll call vote with all members present voting yes. The commission recorded the following votes: Mr. Kroll — yes; Mr. Miller — yes; Ms. Sharp Robinson — yes; Ms. Simpkins — yes; Mr. Waltz — yes; Mr. Wertman — yes; Mr. Lankus — yes; Vice Chair Foster — yes; Chair Rice — yes. Planning staff said the rezoning recommendation will be heard by the Board of Supervisors in a public hearing scheduled for April 14.

No proffered conditions were listed with the application; staff clarified that short-term tourist rentals would not be permitted by-right in TNDI. Any proposed exterior lighting would need to meet dark-sky–friendly standards and any new structures or grading would require the usual erosion, stormwater and permitting reviews during site plan or zoning permit review.