Planning commission backs conditional use permit for landscaping business on Jesse DuPont parcel

The Northumberland County Planning Commission on an evening vote recommended that the Board of Supervisors approve a conditional use permit for a landscaping business to operate a light-industry storage and limited ancillary sales site on a parcel along Jesse DuPont Memorial Highway adjacent to Jesse DuPont Memorial Park.

The recommendation came after an applicant, Will Dare, described plans for a roughly 6,500-square-foot steel building to store equipment and materials for his company, Landscape Beyond, and said any customer visits or material pick-ups would be by appointment and limited. The commission modified a condition to make clear that “sales transactions shall be limited to those that are ancillary to the main purpose of the landscaping business.”

Why it matters: the change lets a contractor store equipment and limited materials on agricultural-zoned property while restricting the site from developing into a general retail operation that would bring higher traffic and larger lot improvements.

Dare told the commission he bought the parcel last year and wants a building to store vehicles and materials such as sand or crush-and-run used in jobs. He said the site would not be open to the public, would be gated with coded access, and any customer pickups would be by appointment. “This site would not be open to the public,” Dare said. “If a customer would like to come grab a load of mulch… myself or my other employee may come there, punch them with their code on there, load up that load, and then we’re leaving.”

Philip, the county zoning staff member who answered questions during the hearing, told commissioners that contractor storage yards are typically a by-right use in agricultural zoning but that the county incorporated a light-industry conditional use in the application because the proposal could generate modest increases in noise and traffic and because the applicant had mentioned a possible future retail element. Philip explained that the conditional-use approach also allows the county to set conditions limiting retail activity without requiring a rezoning.

Commissioners pressed on what “retail” would mean in practice. Charles Williams and others said they wanted to encourage small businesses but were concerned that a full retail operation would require different site improvements and VDOT review for a higher volume of traffic. One commissioner suggested changing the word “shall” to “may” in the condition and adding language to make retail ancillary; staff drafted the final wording during the meeting. John Kost (commissioner) moved to recommend approval including the modified condition; the motion was seconded and carried by voice vote. The planning commission closed the public hearing and voted to send the recommendation to the Board of Supervisors.

Clarifying details discussed during the hearing included that Dare plans a gated entrance with no roadside doors opening to the highway, a building roughly 6,500 square feet and 16 feet tall, and a driveway setback of about 50 feet from the road right-of-way as discussed in the hearing. Dare stated he will install a septic system for sanitary facilities.

Next steps: the commission’s recommendation will be considered by the Board of Supervisors at a future meeting; staff told the applicant the Board meeting is scheduled for November 13 at 7 p.m. The planning commission noted that the Board typically follows the commission’s recommendation but that final approval is the supervisors’ decision.

Votes at a glance: the planning commission voted to recommend approval of the conditional use permit, including the modified condition limiting sales to ancillary transactions; the motion was seconded and passed by voice vote.