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Board and Planning Commission hear Special Use Permit requests for child day center and small RV park
Summary
At a joint public hearing, the Board and Planning Commission heard from Gena Stanley, who seeks to relocate Tender Tots Learning Academy to 620 Railroad Drive with a drive-through drop-off, and from Chris Saufley, who proposed an approximately six-space RV park tied to a distillery; no decisions were recorded.
The Smyth County Board of Supervisors and Planning Commission held a joint public hearing April 23 on two Special Use Permit applications.
Gena Stanley, owner of Tender Tots Learning Academy, asked to operate a child day center at 620 Railroad Drive (Tax Map No. 56C-6-86D). Stanley said she hopes to own rather than rent, is coordinating with VDOT on a commercial entrance and a drive-through drop-off to manage traffic, and expects to maintain 15 staff. Her hours would be Monday–Friday with drop-off between 6:30 a.m. and 9:30 a.m. and closing at 5:30 p.m. Stanley said the Virginia Department of Education requires fenced outdoor play areas; she stated the Department had not raised railroad-proximity concerns. Board and commission members asked about staff levels, parking, building modifications and whether VDOT would require an ingress/egress study.
The second applicant, Chris Saufley, described plans for an RV park behind 1200 Highway 16 (Tax Map No. 58F-1-3). Saufley said he envisions roughly six RV parking spots, that most stays would be short-term for distillery visitors through a harvest-host arrangement, and that he is working through Department of Health approvals and VDOT access coordination. He noted a wet-weather creek on the property that is typically dry and said camper sites would not be sited near that area. Saufley said he is working to provide electricity to the sites. Commissioners and supervisors asked about drainage, health-department requirements and bridge access.
No formal decision or vote on either Special Use Permit was recorded at the conclusion of the hearing; staff materials for both applications remain available for public review per the legal notice.
