Commission approves buffer-modification request for Ferndale Road self-storage site

On Sept. 10 the Dinwiddie County Planning Commission approved a special-exception request to modify landscaping requirements for a proposed self-storage facility off Ferndale Road.

Staff recalled that the property had earlier received rezoning and a conditional-use permit for a self-storage facility and said the current request seeks a modification to the landscaping required within the 25-foot buffer along the western property line. Bassett told commissioners the rear of the property has a steep 3:1 slope and existing vegetation and that Building 1 will feature a brick facade visible from Route 1. "They're requesting a modification of the actual landscaping, not the width of the buffer," Bassett said, adding staff thought a waiver of the landscaping requirement was warranted with appropriate conditions.

Applicant Arthur Bostic said much of the rear slope is not visible from the road, includes wetlands and a pond and is difficult to maintain. He said the preference is to preserve natural vegetation rather than import plantings that would struggle on the slope. "All we're looking to do is just trying to cut some of that landscaping out on the backside that just doesn't make a whole lot of sense from a cost standpoint, but also a maintenance standpoint for us, over long term," Bostic said. He confirmed the project will include fencing and windscreen screening along the side facing the adjacent property.

A commissioner moved to grant the exception with conditions allowing windscreen fencing and use of existing vegetation in place of the ordinance's plantings; the motion carried unanimously. Staff clarified the action pertains to the planning/site-plan process and said the modification may not require Board of Supervisors approval.