The Albemarle County Architectural Review Board voted to approve a certificate of appropriateness for ARB2025-00030, a proposed addition to the Micro Air building on Airport Road, after staff and the project team agreed to minor technical revisions.

In a staff presentation, Margaret (planning staff) said the addition would be visible from the entrance corridor and is situated roughly 400 feet from the street. She recommended approval subject to revisions to the landscape plan (to better integrate plantings around the stormwater facility) and to bring the lighting plan into conformance on spillover, maximum illumination, pole height and fixture color temperature. Margaret also noted the addition’s contemporary design “has no real connection to the historic architecture of the county,” but that layered landscaping between the building and the street would help soften the view.

Chuck Rapp of Collins Engineering, the applicant’s representative, described the renderings and said the team would work with staff on the requested plantings and lighting refinements. Architect Austin Williams told the panel the existing red center band on the building would be repainted a medium gray to better match the new addition and that the clerestory windows are intended to bring natural light into an open office layout.

Board members welcomed the design’s improved entrance, while flagging two technical concerns: visibility of rooftop mechanical equipment and whether plantings could reduce the engineered appearance of the stormwater facility. One member suggested modestly increasing parapet height to screen equipment; others asked the applicant to feather plantings from the stormwater facility into the frontage.

After discussion, a member moved to approve the certificate of appropriateness with conditions identified in the staff report and to remove one erroneous tree-size requirement from the staff list; the motion was seconded and passed by voice vote. The board directed staff and the applicant to coordinate the agreed changes at the staff-review stage.

The board’s action concludes ARB review for ARB2025-00030; the certificate will be implemented with the revisions the board approved.