Planning commission approves daycare at Lexington Presbyterian, recommends parking changes to city council

The Lexington Planning Commission on Feb. 13 approved conditional use permit CUP202502 to allow a portion of Lexington Presbyterian Church at 120 South Main Street to operate a 34-child daycare, and unanimously recommended a parking-signage arrangement to City Council to address drop-off and pickup.

The permit covers the rear portion of Murray Hall (the Randolph Street side of the church). City planner Arnie told the commission the proposal was for a satellite facility of Yellow Brick Road Early Learning Center, to enroll approximately 34 children ages 6 weeks to 5 years with 11 adult staff on site, using the South Randolph Street entrance and operating Monday–Friday roughly 7:45 a.m. to 5:15 p.m.

The daycare will be self-contained inside a courtyard area once children are admitted, staff said; the principal external issue identified in the staff report was vehicle queuing for morning drop-off and afternoon pickup. The applicant asked that the four on-street parking spaces directly in front of the Murray Hall entrance be signed as 10-minute spaces for drop-off and pickup. Staff recommended limiting 10-minute signs to the two 1-hour windows (roughly 7:30–8:30 a.m. and 3:30–5:30 p.m.) and leaving the spaces as two-hour parking the rest of the day as a more efficient use of scarce spaces.

Arnie also read the four conditions staff recommended for issuance: occupancy limited to a maximum of 34 students at any one time (and not to exceed limits in state and local building codes); operating hours primarily between 7:45 a.m. and 5:15 p.m. with occasional activities outside those hours; full compliance with the adopted Virginia Uniform Statewide Building Code; and full compliance with the Virginia Statewide Fire Protection Code for any change in design or use. Arnie noted building-permit review would identify whether sprinkler installation was required and that the church is already aware and has plans prepared.

Applicant Misty Hamden, who identified herself as director of Yellow Brick Road Early Learning Center, said the project responds to a local need: “I have 97 on my wait list. However, today, I have a hundred and 5.” Pam Alteiser, the center’s curriculum specialist, said the center tracks where children come from: “About 30 of the students are from Lexington City. About that amount around are from Rockbridge and fewer from Buena Vista, but some come as far from Allegheny and Covington.”

An adjacent owner, Leon Johanning, spoke during public comment and urged the commission to weigh safety and traffic on Randolph Street, saying Randolph is “a very busy street” and that a concentrated morning and evening drop-off raises safety issues. Johanning asked whether a traffic study or an on-duty school safety officer would be required; staff and commissioners discussed options for staging, use of nearby parking, and possible coordination with adjacent property owners and the library.

A commissioner moved to approve CUP202502 with the staff-recommended conditions; the motion was seconded and carried unanimously. The commission then made a separate motion recommending to City Council that at least one of the four spaces be signed as 10-minute parking all day and that the remaining three be limited to 10-minute parking during the drop-off and pickup windows (and two-hour parking the rest of the day). That parking recommendation also passed unanimously.

Next steps: the commission approval allows the applicant to proceed to required building- and fire-code permitting; final parking signage is under the city manager’s and City Council’s purview and will be considered by council following the commission’s recommendation.