Leesburg planning commission forwards Greenway Manor rezoning to town council, 5–1–1

The Leesburg Planning Commission voted to forward rezoning application TLZM 20180045, known as Greenway Manor, to the Town Council with a recommendation of approval following a work session on March 20, 2025. The motion to forward the application passed on a recorded outcome the commission summarized as five in favor, one opposed and one abstention; the motion was made by Commissioner Brooke Spears.

Staff said the applicant revised the concept plan, proffers and transportation impact analysis to reduce anticipated traffic and clarify phasing and mitigation measures. "I leave you with staff's recommendation of approval," Senior Planner and project manager Chris Murphy told the commission after reviewing the revised materials and proffers.

Why it matters: The application would replace or expand existing buildings on the Greenway Manor property with multiple uses including a 40-room boutique hotel, performing-arts space, a school, a child-care facility and commercial space (restaurant, office, retail and a bank drive-through were listed as potential uses). Commissioners and residents raised concerns about traffic circulation, parking spillover, noise and visibility of new construction from adjacent homes; staff and the applicant offered phasing, landscaping, fence and parking-management commitments meant to address those concerns.

Staff presentation and technical findings Mr. Murphy summarized changes to the 2012 approved concept and the revised transportation analysis dated March 4 (with a March 5 supplement). He said the revised TIA shows intersections operating at acceptable levels of service and that the current proposal reduces the share of commercial gross floor area from the previously approved 65% to roughly 39% of the project. The staff fiscal-impact comparison included in the packet shows greater long-term fiscal benefit under the previously approved zoning, but staff concluded the application meets the zoning approval criteria with the offered proffers.

On noise and lighting, staff pointed to the town zoning ordinance noise and lighting standards that will apply to the development, including use of full-cutoff fixtures and a maximum of 0.5 foot-candles at property lines for building-mounted lighting. The proffers also limit trash collection to daytime hours (proffer text provided in the staff report dated 03/14/2025) and require a parking-management plan intended to reduce spillover into adjacent neighborhoods.

Project layout, phasing and temporary trailers The applicant drew a three-phase build-out on the concept plan. Staff and the applicant described a sequence in which children currently accommodated in the manor house would move into Building C (the renovated barn), then later into Building D (the new school) as construction proceeds. The applicant proffered authority for two temporary trailers to handle enrollment during construction; the applicant said they expect to remove trailers "within 90 days of getting into our new building," and the proffer caps temporary trailer use (the proffer language in the staff report sets an overall maximum period). The applicant described a target schedule of roughly three years to complete Building C and additional time for later phases, but did not guarantee fixed construction dates.

Traffic, access and the Mead bridge A recurring topic in the discussion was ingress/egress and queuing for school drop-off. The concept plan proposes a right-in/right-out access on Route 15 in a location staff and the applicant described as constrained by state roadway spacing standards. Staff said stop signs, stop bars and "do not block intersection" signs are shown in the concept notes and that final design will be determined during site plan review. The plan includes a potential connection (bridge) to Mead Drive, but staff and the applicant clarified the Mead access is not included until later phases (phase 2 or 3 as shown in the concept plan). Several commissioners voiced safety concerns about the Mead bridge and asked that the commission and council scrutinize that element further during site-plan and engineering review.

Buffers, fence and visual mitigation The applicant proffered an eight-foot fence along the property boundary where the development adjoins HOA open space and neighboring townhomes and committed to enhanced understory and evergreen plantings to increase opacity between the development and rear yards. The fence and planting were described as intended to reduce trespass and vandalism reported by the applicant; commissioners asked staff to confirm floodplain and drainage constraints where the fence would turn a corner.

Historic resources and BAR review Staff noted the project must obtain certificates of appropriateness from the Board of Architectural Review (BAR) as required; BAR staff had reviewed concept materials and provided input that staff said shaped the project massing so the manor house remains visible from the public right-of-way.

Commission discussion and vote Commissioners commended staff for collating revised materials and acknowledged remaining concerns about traffic and the Mead connection. Commissioner Brooke Spears moved to forward the rezoning application TLZM 20180045 (Greenway Manor), the concept plan dated 04/28/2023 revised through 03/14/2025, and the proffers dated 03/14/2025 to Town Council with a recommendation of approval on the basis of compliance with applicable approval criteria; the motion was second not specified in the record. The commission recorded the outcome as five in favor, one opposed and one abstention.

What happens next The Commission forwarded the rezoning application and supporting materials to Town Council for its review and public hearing. Staff noted outstanding tasks during site-plan review, BAR review for certificates of appropriateness and final engineering on the right-in/right-out access and any later-phase connections.

Ending note The record of the work session and the proffers dated 03/14/2025 are the reference materials staff used in its recommendation; council review will determine the final disposition of the rezoning application.