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Planning commission recommends conditional use permit for mulch and aggregate yard on Northumberland Highway
Summary
The Northumberland County Planning Commission unanimously recommended that the Board of Supervisors approve a conditional use permit allowing a one-acre mulch/aggregate yard and on-site sales office on Northumberland Highway. Staff read site conditions including required permits, non-reflective lighting and site maintenance; the Board will hold a public hearing next month.
Garfield Parker, newly elected chair of the Northumberland County Planning Commission, on Thursday led the commission in recommending that the Board of Supervisors approve a conditional use permit for a mulch and aggregate yard on Northumberland Highway.
At a public hearing, applicant Michael Bryant and owner Ben Hayden described the proposed one-acre operation as a roadside sales and materials yard that would process and sell mulch, topsoil, crushed concrete and asphalt millings. “It’s just gonna be a mulch yard,” Ben Hayden said, adding the site will include concrete bins, a sales office located on the parcel and a chain‑link fence around the property.
Stewart, the planning staff member who presented the case, read a set of suggested conditions the commission would attach to its recommendation: obtain all necessary regulatory permits (including any required by the Virginia Department of Transportation), locate a sales office on the same parcel as the materials yard, keep the operation neat and organized, store only vehicles or equipment associated with the business on site, comply with zoning signage rules, use downward-directed, non-reflective lighting to avoid glare on Route 360 and adjoining properties, prohibit storage of dry goods in cargo containers, and return to the Board of Supervisors for possible revocation in the event of noncompliance.
Staff reported no written public correspondence and said seven adjoining property owners had been notified of the application. Commissioners asked about engineered drainage and lighting; the applicant said engineered drainage with an infiltration trench would prevent runoff to neighbors and that site plans include the engineered details.
A motion that the commission recommend approval, made ‘‘in due consideration of the administrative record’’ and public hearing input, was seconded and approved by voice vote. Stewart said the Planning Commission is a recommending body; the Board of Supervisors will hold its own public hearing and make the final decision, likely next month.
What happens next: The commission’s recommendation will be forwarded to the Board of Supervisors for a public hearing and final action.
