Architect Gaber Nichols pitches mixed‑use renovation for Nichols Hardware at 131 N. 21st St.

Architect Gaber Nichols presented concept plans to the Purcellville Board of Architectural Review for a mixed‑use redevelopment of Nichols Hardware at 131 North 21st Street, saying the project would pair preserved exterior character with new loft apartments and public‑facing amenities. "My name is Gaber Nichols," Nichols said in opening remarks, and described himself as the project architect and an experienced adaptive‑reuse developer.

Nichols said the design would preserve historic materials where feasible, expose heavy timber in the mill building, and add residential lofts above street‑level retail to generate income for small businesses. He estimated roughly 11 residential units across the buildings and a maximum occupancy of about 22 people if all lofts are occupied. "I see this as a Similar walk in here," Nichols said about activating the street with terraces and retail windows.

The plan would be phased: Phase 1 would focus on the street, the cafe and the existing hardware store to bring immediate activity, with the mill/livery building addressed later. Nichols said permanent construction drawings could be completed by the end of the year and—if permits fall into place—building could start in spring 2026. He identified a preliminary parking supply of approximately 14 spaces and proposed daytime business parking with negotiated nighttime accommodations for tenants.

Nichols also described design features intended to draw people downtown: a terrace and small water feature at the cafe, planters and a possible repurposed windmill as a visual element behind the barn building. He said the music space would be modest in scale—"40, 50 people"—and that interior work would require building permitting and possibly other administrative approvals. Nichols stressed a preservation‑minded approach: "I want people to walk down the street and go, what the heck? What's in there?"