Planning Commission - Regular Meeting

All right, I'll call the June 10th, 2026 planning commission meeting to order the code of Virginia requires local governments to have a planning commission. The purpose of which is to advise the board of supervisors on land use and planning issues affecting the county. This responsibility is exercised through recommendations conveyed by resolutions or other official means and are all matters of public record. The commission is comprised of seven citizen volunteers appointed by the board with one representative from each voting district and two at-large members. Roll call, please.

Mr. Chamberlain.

Here.

Mr. Titus. Here. Mr. Burwitz.

Here.

Mr. King. Here. Mr. Kleiner. Mr. Smith. Mr. Rossman.

Here.

Mr. Chair, you have a quorum.

All right. Please stand for the Pledge of Allegiance. All right, next on the agenda is the approval of the minutes from last meeting. You all have those, any comments?

Motion? I move approval of the minutes.

All right, roll call please.

The motion by Mr. Brooks is to adopt the minutes of the regular meeting on May 13, 2026. Mr. Titus?

Yes.

Mr. Brooks?

Yes.

Mr. King?

Yes.

Mr. Wassman?

Abstain. I wasn't here.

Mr. Chamberlain?

Yes.

Motion passes.

All right. Next on the agenda is citizens' comment period for anybody who wants to speak to something not on the agenda. Seeing none, I have no cards. We'll move into public hearings.

okay good evening this application is a request for a special use permit to authorize the establishment of a tourist home in an existing accessory dwelling unit located at 693 winthrop road the approximately three tenths of an acre property is located at the corner of winthrop road and catesby lane the subject parcel and the surrounding parcels are zoned r13 for high density single family residential The site is located in the Middletown Farms residential subdivision and is surrounded by single family homes on all sides. The subject structure is a three bedroom, 1,560 square foot single family detached dwelling. The site consists of one parcel containing a single family home with a driveway that connects to Winthrop Road and a detached accessory dwelling unit, or ADU, with its own driveway that connects to Catesby Lane. Section 24.1-104 of the zoning ordinance defines transient occupancy as occupancy of an accommodation for less than 30 consecutive days by a visitor. The applicants have proposed lengths of stay ranging from a minimum of two nights to a maximum of 14 nights, which has been included as a condition of approval in the proposed resolution. zoning ordinance performance standards for tourist homes permit signage on the property to advertise the use. However, the applicant stated in their narrative that they do not plan to put any exterior signage related to the tourist home on the property. For this reason, a condition of approval has been proposed that would prohibit exterior signs on the property that advertise the tourist home. The zoning ordinance performance standards for tourist homes state that the board shall specify the maximum number of people who may be accommodated in the tourist home based on the density and character of the area, as well as the size and characteristics of the home. The subject property is located in a high density residential zoning district. The ADU is laid out as an efficiency apartment in which the living, dining, bedroom, and kitchenette are combined into a single room. The floor plan submitted by the applicant shows one queen size bed and one queen size pullout sofa. The applicant wishes to make the ADU available to up to four guests. The four person guest limit has been included as a condition of approval in the proposed resolution. The zoning ordinance requires two parking spaces or one space if the owner or proprietor does not reside in the home, plus one space per each sleeping room to be provided on the subject property. Staff proposes that two parking spaces be required since the applicants will reside on the subject property. plus two more spaces because there are two sleeping areas in the ADU for a total of four parking spaces required. So according to the zoning ordinance, parking spaces must be 18 feet by 9 feet in size. The driveway that serves the principal structure is 70 feet by 11 feet in size, while the driveway that serves the ADU is 47 feet by 11 feet in size. Both driveways can accommodate at least two vehicles. The applicant's proposal meets the parking requirement. The performance standards for tourist homes require the owner or proprietor of a tourist home to reside either in the home or in an adjacent premises or designate a responsible party, who may be the applicant, who would be available to promptly respond to and resolve problems or complaints that arise while rentals are taking place. Board Policy 24-30 further states that the owner of a tourist home should reside either in the home or in an adjacent premises. If residing in adjacent premises, the owner of the tourist home should reside within 3,000 feet of the tourist home. So the applicants proposed to offer the ADU for rent on the same three-tenths of an acre property as the principal structure in which they reside. The applicants stated in their narrative that they plan to provide onsite property oversight. A condition of approval has been proposed that would require the applicants to reside onsite while rentals are taking place. The zoning ordinance requires tourist homes to have emergency action plans posted conspicuously At least one fire extinguisher with a minimum rating of to a 10 BC and smoke detectors to be interconnected and must have fire and life safety. i'm sorry must have fire inspections conducted by the Department of fire and life safety prior to the commencement of the tourist home and annually thereafter. According to the applicants narrative they plan to implement all of these safety procedures and comply with the code prior to the establishment of the home. Board Policy 24-30 states that new short-term rental homes located in the high density single family or R13 zoning district should not be located within 750 feet of another short-term rental home. The nearest short-term rental home is located approximately 2,458 feet from the subject property in the Nelson Circle residential subdivision. The applicant's proposal meets this requirement. Letters were sent to adjacent property owners, a sign was posted on the property, and two advertisements were published in the Daily Press. No comments from the public have been received to date. By providing an opportunity for tourist homes in the R-13 zoning district, the zoning ordinance anticipates that such a use may be appropriate in a residential neighborhood subject to the evaluation and issuance of a special use permit. In this case, the applicants are proposing to offer the ADU on their property for short-term rental. According to their narrative, they would provide on-site property oversight from their home on the three-tenths of an acre subject property. They propose to allow up to four people to stay in the ADU at any one time for lengths of stay ranging from two to 14 nights. Given the conditions of approval as noted above, the establishment would not create activity or impacts that would be incompatible with the surrounding residential area. Therefore, staff recommends approval of this application, subject to the conditions set forth in proposed resolution number PC26-13. Thank you. So I'm happy to answer any questions, and the applicants are here to answer your questions as well. Any questions?

I'll start them this way. I do have one. I just want to make sure. If somebody was to build an ADU now, would they be allowed to rent that short-term?

No, because. Now, if you build an ADU, you have to put, the code requires you to put a deed restriction on that property so that you can only rent it out to, I'm sorry, you can't even rent it. So the only people that live there can be family members or home health care or something of that nature. So this ADU was built long before our zoning ordinance, and it doesn't have that deed restriction on it.

Okay, yeah, I got a lot of questions about that, so I just want to clarify that on the record. All right, thank you. All right, with that, I'll open the public hearing. The applicant, Timothy McKenzie Ritchie, if you would, please state your names for the record. And you have 10 minutes, but you don't have to take 10 minutes.

Good evening. Thank you for the opportunity to speak today. We are Timothy and Mackenzie Ritchie, owners of 693 Winthrop Road in Williamsburg, Virginia. We are requesting approval for the operation of a short-term rental in what we call our cottage. It's located on the same parcel as our primary residence. And I wanted to start with saying that I am a licensed real estate agent and property manager. So it's not just what I do. It's something that I genuinely love. Today, I actively manage over 75 properties and have managed my family short term rental through Airbnb. Holding an active Virginia real estate license means I don't just understand the property management side of it, but I also do understand Virginia real estate law. I stay current on any regulatory changes, fair housing requirements, and any local ordinances. This directly informs how I operate every single property that I manage, and it's part of why I take compliance and accountability very seriously. Being proactive, I don't wait for a problem to become a headache. I get ahead of it. We also live on site, so that's not a small detail. It means there's always a responsible, invested party present. I have a direct personal stake in making sure this property is an asset to the neighborhood, not a disruption. So the cottage is a studio-style space, including a kitchenette equipped with a mini fridge, sink, microwave, tea and coffee station. It also includes the queen-size bed and queen-sized pull-out sofa, two nightstands, dresser, dining table, TV. There's an en suite bathroom with a shower, sink and a toilet. So the layout is appropriate for a maximum of 14 occupants. That includes adults and children. So we would like the cottage to be rented a minimum of two nights and maximum of 14 nights. No parties, no events or large gatherings will be permitted. Quiet hours will be strictly enforced and guests will be provided with clear house rules to ensure respectful behavior, which is included in our welcome book. So the cottage will be facilitated through a reputable online hosting platform, which is Airbnb. This provides guest screening, identity verification, and host control over reservations. We will actively manage all bookings, guest communications, and onsite property oversight. There will be no exterior signage on the property advertising the short-term rental use. Adequate off-street parking is available via its own existing private driveway and our own personal driveway. So if approved, we will obtain New York County business license, establish the county transient occupancy tax account, and file with the Virginia Department of Taxation for Virginia state sales tax account. We do not own or operate any other short-term rentals in New York County. This is our sole short-term rental. Based on the above, the proposed short term rental use will not adversely affect the health, safety or welfare of the public, nor will it negatively impact neighboring properties. Instead, it represents a low impact, well managed use of an existing structure that is compatible with the surrounding area. In fact, the revenue generated from the cottage will be reinvested in the property to improve real estate value. I'll be honest with you, I love to host, and this is something that is genuinely fulfilling about creating a space where someone walks in and immediately feels comfortable and welcome. Whether it's making memories on a vacation, celebrating an anniversary, or in town for a special event. I want everyone to leave having had an experience that they talk about for years, and that's not just a business strategy, that's who we are. And yes, we'd be leaving something out if I didn't mention that this is also a sound financial decision for our family. But I'll tell you this, the best way to protect that investment is to run it the right way, treat neighbors with respect, operate within every applicable rule and regulation, and make sure that this property makes everyone around it glad it's there. And that's exactly what we intend to do. So thank you for the opportunity, and we're prayerfully hopeful for your approval.

Thank you. Any questions for the applicant?

I don't have any.

Alright, thank you very much. Thank you. What's the?

Board discussions you want to call make sure there's nobody else.

Oh yeah, I'm sorry I'm jumping ahead first case of the night. You're anybody else wish to speak on this? With that I'll close the public hearing and then I'll ask the pleasure of the board.

I'll move 2613 if there's no discussion.

All right, roll call, please.

The motion by Mr. Wasmer is to adopt PC 26-13 to authorize a tourist home at 693 Wentworth Road. Mr. Brooks?

Yes.

Mr. King?

Yes.

Mr. Wasmer? Yes. Mr. Titus? Yes. Mr. Chamberlain? Yes. Motion passes.

Thank you. You want me to go back to citizen comments?

We can do that real quick if you want.

Okay, so we're going to change the order of the meeting for just a moment. We're going to go to reopen citizen comment period. I knew that's why you were here.

Thank you. Good evening, Mr. Chairman, members of the Commission. My name is Tim Cross. I reside at 109 Holloway Drive in Queens Lake. As you all know, in March 2024, I retired as Deputy Director of Planning and Development Services for York County. When I saw that this was Mr. King's last meeting, I knew I couldn't let this auspicious occasion go by without coming up down to say a few words, especially since I've probably known Michael longer and better than just about anybody around here who isn't related to him. Michael and I go back more than 30 years to when he served an internship with us in the planning division while he was working toward his master's degree in planning at VCU. When a Planner 1 vacancy arose in 1995, we hired him without hesitation. And a few years later, he was promoted to Planner 2, or what we call Senior Planner. But then in 2002, those dirty, rotten scoundrels in Newport News snatched him away from us. But it was a good career move for him since Newport News offered a lot more opportunities for growth and advancement than the county did at the time. But our working relationship didn't end there. For the next 20 plus years, Michael and I represented our respective localities on the Hampton Roads Transportation Technical Advisory Committee. And then when he went to work for the Navy, he continued to serve on that committee as the region's military representative. And then, of course, the Board of Supervisors wisely appointed him to the Planning Commission, where he has served now for 10 years with integrity, leadership, and a sincere belief in the idea that all voices need to be heard in the planning process. In my opinion, his crowning achievement on the Planning Commission was his service as chairman of the Comprehensive Plan Review Steering Committee, where his steadfast leadership led the process to a successful conclusion and a comp plan of which we can all be proud. I'd like to close with an anecdote. One day, I guess was probably 25 years ago or so, Michael and I were in his office commiserating over a particularly thorny planning project that he was working on, he was handling, and it had encountered all kinds of roadblocks. And he kind of leaned back in his chair and looked up at the ceiling and said, why do I bother? But then he sat up in his chair and said, darn it, because I care. And I know that sounds like a scene from corny Frank Camper movie, but it actually happened just that way. And that was quintessential Michael. He cares. He cares about the county, the region, cares about the planning profession, and most of all, cares about the citizens. For Michael, the citizens have always come first. So my friend, congratulations, not just on the successful completion of 10 years on the Planning Commission, but also on a 30-year planning career that you can look back on with great pride. Thank you for your service to the county and its citizens. And as our old friend and former planning commissioner, Rich Meyer would say, bravo Zulu. Thank you.

I have to say real quick, Mr. Chairman, uh, the same goes for me working with Tim. Um, I could have said this exact same thing about him. Working with him was a pleasure. He doesn't really know it, but I've learned so much from him. Anything I ever achieved partly came from watching Tim operate. Probably one of the best riders in the county, always. I'd give him my staff report. The whole thing looked like nothing but red marks everywhere. But what Tim taught me is that the importance that words matter and what you're doing matters. And I took that to heart and I learned a lot. And I can't say enough, my friend, thank you. And it's been a long journey and I appreciate the kind words and appreciate the commission. So we'll go ahead. Okay, thanks.

We got a presentation for you as well. Yeah, yeah. So if you and Mr. Chamberlain will walk to the dais. I mean, Mr. Cross has done a great job of sharing many of my same thoughts, but we have put together a plaque and a resolution for you. And I'm just going to read some of the highlights from the resolution. So Michael King has served district four here in the county as his representative on the planning commission. He was appointed on June 12th or 21st, 2016, two years earlier than his eighth term. I'm sorry. Oh, by Mr. Wassmer.

Oh, oh, okay.

Didn't know that. I didn't write that here. And he'll serve through the end of this month, 2026. So a full decade where usually a planning commissioner is only here two terms. For eight years, he spent an extra two years with us. Also, Mr. King was elected by his fellow commissioners to be chair of the Planning Commission for two terms in his time here. And that basically goes and shows how much leadership he brings to wherever he's at, in addition to how he, as Mr. Cross said, listens to all the voices. Mr. King consistently demonstrated wisdom, fairness, and respect to both the property rights of individuals and the broader interests of the community, which is a hard thing to do, especially here on when a political body like this. His longstanding commitment to public service extended beyond his role as just a planning commissioner to include serving as the chair of our very extensive and very long 2040 comprehensive plan steering committee. which he led that committee through that time period, and that comprehensive plan is going to go on to lead us for the next several years. So we resolved on this today to hereby honor, commend, and express our sincere appreciation to you, Mr. King, for your distinguished and dedicated service, and we extend our best wishes to you in the future. And we have a, and Mr. Chamberlain will give you his little plaque, and Jeannie's gonna get a picture. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. WE'LL GIVE A ROUND OF APPROVAL. ALL RIGHT. AND I'D ASK IF YOU WANTED TO SAY A FEW WORDS, BUT YOU ALREADY HAVE.

As you know, I've never been a loss for words. So, uh, I promise to be brief no matter how long it takes. Um, but seriously, I want to thank my fellow commissioners. I think the citizens that watch us here don't realize we don't always agree on everything, but our deliberations, and our thoughtfulness and our discussions. I think we always arrived at the conclusion what was best for the county, whether we agreed with one another or not. And I think we advanced that effort. And I'm proud to be a member of the greatest group ever. I'm going to miss you guys. I also want to thank the citizens out there, the importance of coming to a meeting. I can't tell you the number of times where I listened to someone and I thought, you know, they changed my mind. just because they came out, had some really poignant things to say, and I think that made the biggest difference. So I encourage you, if you're listening out there, come out. If something affects you, come and talk to us because we can't do this alone. Lastly, I want to thank my family. As Tim mentioned, over the last 35 years, my daughter used to say, Dad, I never see you at night. You're at a council meeting, board meeting, town hall meeting, planning commission meeting. Business Association breakfast, Lions Club, you name it, Kiwanis, giving a presentation on something. I was always gone. I described to my commissioners here earlier, in my trunk of my car, I had like a traveling circus. I had a projector, map boards, handouts. I had everything for meetings ready to go. So it's been a long ride. I thank you, and I appreciate everything. And it's been great serving with you. Thanks again, Tim, for the kind words. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

All righty. Thank you all for indulging us in a deviation on the agenda. And next we'll have Stanley Parker Auto and Mike's Towing LLC.

All right, so application tonight is for a towing service auto storage impound yard at 1570 Penniman Road. That's the hatched area here. It's kind of a strange looking parcel. Most of the uses are up on the frontage that's on Penniman Road. It's surrounded by mostly industrial, limited industrial property. That's that little gray area. There is the EO across Penniman Road and the railroad tracks parcel there. And then it does back up to the military base that's there, which is the zoning for the RC that you see. Lots of different uses on this property. There's some tractor trailer parking and some other multi-tenant buildings out here. This is the main building where this application will be located. And you'll see from the sketch plan that the applicant gave, this area right here is gonna be the main storage area that we're using a portion of the building. and the rear will be used for its current use. There's been some trees planted along here with the last application that have grown in nicely to kind of protect their use from the road. You really won't be able to see it from Penniman Road at all. This is, as I said, a towing service, an impound yard, about a 14,000 square foot storage yard, office space. They'll be open mainly Monday through Friday 9 to 4. But they will have information on their gate if someone needs to pick up their car at a different time, they'll be able to. So they'll have that opportunity. So they will be available 24-7 basically if someone needs to get their vehicle after it's been towed. Access will be here off Penniman Road. You'll come in here along their main driveway into the property and then as I said this is the area where main towing storage will be. They'll be putting up a fence here to protect the storage yard and the things that are going in there. This is the sketch plan. As I said, here's the building. You can see it here. There's an existing use back here in the back portion for U.S. lawns, and then the storage yard would be there in the front. There's already existing trees there, and as I said, you really can't see it from Penniman Road at all because of that. So it's a very low impact use, towing and storage of cars, as long as they're not keeping cars over the zoning ordinance limits. So you can't keep a car over a certain amount of time period if it's considered, starting to be considered a auto salvage yard at that point. We don't allow those and it's very specific in your conditions of approval and as well in the ordinance. And the applicant's been made aware of those stipulations that cars can't stay there inoperable for a long time. This use is very compatible with all the adjacent uses and the uses that are on the property right now. It'll go along well. And we put a certain amount of conditions in there, nothing that's unusual. And the zoning ordinance has several things in there also that kind of lock it into place. So we feel like whatever they're going to do on the property should be perfectly fine and protected. And the county's interest will be protected in that way. So staff is recommending approval of this. You have PC resolution 2614. And I'm happy to answer any questions. The applicant is here also and will be coming up to speak.

All right, questions start this way.

Skip. Just one question. I saw the attachment for a fence, Earl. Right now they don't have a fence? Correct. So they're going to put a fence in once this gets approved? Yes.

Questions?

I don't have any questions.

I don't either. I drove to the property yesterday or the day before. Good fit to me.

All right.

All right, I've opened a public hearing. I have one person signed up to speak. Aaron Brinkley, if I said that correctly. You're the applicant and you have 10 minutes. And again, you don't have to take 10 minutes.

I will try not to. I really don't like public speaking, so I'm going to try my best to be quick and out the door. Good evening. Congratulations. um i'm aaron i'm the owner of stanley park auto and mike's towing um trying to do a impound storage lot at 1570 penman road with y'all's approval about a year ago i was a one-man show i had one truck i got lucky enough to get a contract with the state on uh New Kent and the widening section that y'all know what's going on and I've grown massively I've got now I have five drivers seven trucks I'm looking towards the future and I need to try to keep my employees they're really good employees so I am trying to get a onto all the Virginia state and local police departments rotations to keep steady work for my drivers. I know y'all hear about towing companies and they're dirty. I do not want that appearance at all. I wanna be professional. I have plans in place for all the leaking, for pig mats, for any oil spills, stay dry, have a tractor to, Regrade all the gravel if it needs be. As for the aesthetics, the fence is actually going to make this property look more professional than it does now. It's going to hide some of the, you know, the backside of the building to make it look a little bit cleaner than it is now. Day-to-day operations, they'll be there 9 to 5, 9 to 4. just so vehicles can be picked up. After hours, they're gonna have to call, give us an hour ETA to go and help them get their vehicles. We definitely wanna keep all our employees. I've found very good employees, so I'm hoping that y'all approve this so I can continue to grow in York County and

keep all my employees if y'all have any questions ask me please all right questions again we'll start this way all right all right no questions gentlemen congratulations again anybody else wish to speak on this with that i'll close the public hearing and pleasure of the board

I have no comments, really. Chairman, I'd like to make my last motion here in that we at the Commission move PC26-14 to the Board of Supervisors with a recommendation of approval.

Roll call, please.

The motion by Mr. King is to adopt resolution PC26-14 to establish a towing service, auto storage, and impound yard at 1570 Peniman Road. Mr. King?

Yes.

Mr. Wasserman? Yes. Mr. Titus?

Yes. Mr. Brooks? Yes.

Mr. Chamberlain? Yes. Motion passes.

All righty. Next one is Bendel Auto Service.

Good evening, so this application is a request for a special use permit to authorize the establishment of an automotive repair garage at 106 industry drive. The subject site is located in a i'm sorry the approximately one and two tenths of an acre property is located on industry drive, which is off Hampton highway near its intersection with victory boulevard. The subject parcel and the surrounding parcels are zone general business. The subject site is located in a cluster of parcels for commercial and light industrial users. Section 24.1-477 sets out the performance standards for auto repair garages, which state that automobile service and minor repairs shall be deemed to include engine tune-ups, oil changes and lubrication, and the repair and installation of mufflers, tailpipes, exhaust pipes, catalytic converters, brakes, shock absorbers, tires, batteries, and similar automotive components. Repairs specifically shall not include bodywork and painting. The applicant will comply with this standard per his narrative. He states the proposed use consists of routine maintenance and minor repair services for passenger vehicles and light duty trucks, including but not limited to oil changes, brake service, tire service, state inspections, and similar low impact automotive work. The operation will not include major engine rebuilds, bodywork, painting, or other heavy automotive repair activities. The zoning ordinance requires all repair or installation work to be conducted indoors. Used or damaged equipment removed from vehicles during the repair process shall be stored indoors or shall be deposited in an approved covered outdoor collection receptacle for appropriate offsite disposal. The applicant addressed this in his narrative by stating, all service and repair activities will occur entirely within an enclosed building. All automotive parts, equipment, and related items will be stored in a closed container on the property and disposed of in accordance with state and local laws to ensure compliance. No used automotive parts will be stored in any way that is visible to the public at any time during the operation of the business. The performance standards for auto repair garages state that temporary overnight outdoor storage and parking of vehicles waiting for repair or pickup shall be permitted. Appropriate and adequate parking areas shall be provided and set aside on site for such vehicles. No long-term, 90 days or more, storage and parking of vehicles which require major repair work shall be permitted. The applicant stated in his narrative that no long-term storage of vehicles will be permitted on the property. Vehicles will be present on site only for the duration necessary to complete service and will be returned to customers promptly upon completion. The code requires vehicular storage areas to be fully screened from view and service bay doors to be partially screened from view of adjacent properties and rights of way using landscaping supplemented by fencing if necessary. The service bay doors and vehicular storage areas are both located on the southern side of the property. This area is screened from view of adjacent properties and rights of way with existing thick vegetation and landscaping. The parking standards for auto repair garages require such facilities to have one space per 500 square feet of enclosed office, sales, or service floor area, plus two spaces per service bay. According to the floor plan submitted by the applicant, the subject building has 9,000 square feet of service floor area, which means 18 parking spaces are required. The building has three service bays, which means an additional six parking spaces are required for a total of 24 parking spaces. The parking lot has 26 spaces. Therefore, the proposal meets this requirement. According to VDOT's 2024 average daily traffic count estimates, Industry Drive carries approximately 430 vehicles per day. While the proposed auto repair garage could produce more traffic than the custom cabinet shop currently operating at 106 Industry Drive, the increase is unlikely to be substantial enough to adversely impact traffic on Industry Drive, considering the roadway's existing daily traffic volume. Furthermore, VDOT reviewed this application and indicated that they have no concerns regarding the proposed use. The performance standards for all motor vehicle-related uses require a hazardous materials management and stormwater runoff control plan detailing the methods to be employed to ensure that no hazardous or petroleum-based products are permitted to infiltrate into groundwater or surface water resources shall be prepared, submitted to, and approved by the Health Department, the Department of Public Works, and the Department of Fire and Life Safety prior to receiving site plan approval for such uses. But in this case, a site plan will not be required. So a condition of approval has been proposed that would require the applicant to adhere to this requirement. So additionally, the Department of Fire and Life Safety requested that the prevention and community and community division inspect the site prior to the permit being issued, and that a Knox box be installed on the building to allow responders access to the building in the event of an emergency. These have all been added as conditions of approval. So letters were sent to adjacent property owners, a sign was posted on the property, two advertisements were published in the Daily Press, but no comments from the public have been received to date. So if this application is approved, the applicant plans to move his auto repair garage business to an existing warehouse at 106 Industry Drive. The applicant is not proposing to make any physical changes to the property. The site has adequate parking, which will be screened from view of adjacent properties with thick existing vegetation. And it meets the requirements of the zoning ordinance. Therefore, staff recommends approval of this application subject to the conditions set forth in proposed resolution number PC26-15. Thank you. And again, the applicant is here and I'd be happy to answer any questions as well.

Thank you. I'll start this way. Questions? I don't have any either. All right. With that, I'll open the public hearing. We have one person. Brandon Bendel, and if you would just state your name and address for the record, please.

Brandon Bendel, 9000 Block, Barnes Road, Williamsburg. All right, and you have 10 minutes, but you don't have to take it. Thank you. Good evening, Mr. Chairman, members of the Planning Commission, county staff. I appreciate the time being here this evening. Again, my name is Brandon Bendel. I'm here this evening regarding my special use permit application for the relocation of my existing automotive repair facility to 106 Industry Drive. I'd like to share a little bit about myself and my background, my connection to this community. I'm a 15-year veteran of the York Coast Sheriff's Office, and I've been a 14-year business owner in York County with this particular business. I've had the privilege of serving and protecting the citizens of York County. In addition to that, I've been able to build this company and establish a very good reputation in the county and provide a good service to its citizens. The purpose of this application is simply just to relocate the existing automotive repair facility to the location at 106 Industry Drive. It's not creation of a new business, but rather just the continuation of an established business that has a successful track record. The proposed location provides an opportunity for us to continue to service the existing customers while allowing stable and suitable growth for the company. The new location is also just a couple of minutes from the current building, which will provide an easy transition for the current customer base and new customers alike. I have been working with the Department of Fire and Life Safety to comply with their requirements as far as the Hazardous Material Response Plan, the Knox Box. I was out there today with them, speaking to them about those things. I am clear on what's required. I'm just waiting on a couple of key points for them. And I believe they had to speak to a couple other people within the agency to iron out a couple of details with that. But I mean, that is being finished up and should be hopefully ironed out here pretty soon. Throughout my years of business, I've worked hard to maintain a professional operation that respects neighboring properties, complies with applicable regulations, contributes positively to the local economy. I understand the importance of being a good neighbor, committed to ensuring that that continues in the new location with your approval. My ultimate goal is, again, to continue to provide quality automotive services to the people of York County and neighboring jurisdictions as well. We have many customers that come as far as New Kent to our facility to see us because they like the service they get and everything else. This location is well-suited for us. It's larger. It does allow growth for us. It's a standalone property, whereas the property I'm in now SHARES PARKING WITH ANOTHER BUSINESS. IT'S TWO BUILDINGS ON ONE PROPERTY ON PRODUCTION DRIVE. I REALLY APPRECIATE THE TIME AND CONSIDERATION THIS EVENING. I REALLY WANT TO CONTINUE SERVING THE COMMUNITY IN YORK COUNTY. IT'S WHERE I'VE BEEN PROFESSIONALLY WITH THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE AND WITH MY BUSINESS FOR MY WHOLE CAREER. I RESPECTFULLY ASK FOR YOUR SUPPORT AND APPROVAL OF SPECIAL USE PERMIT APPLICATION. I'LL BE HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS THAT YOU HAVE. AND AGAIN, THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME. Didn't you pull me over for speeding 10 years ago? Yes, sir. That wasn't me. Okay. So I was with York County about 15 years in uniform patrol, and some of that time I was auxiliary. I left York County full-time at 13, but I stayed auxiliary through 22 or 23. I was kidding. We'd never met. Yeah, I know. I know.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

But it wasn't me still.

Anybody else?

All right. Thank you very much. Yes, sir. Thank you.

Anybody else wish to speak on this one? Hearing none, I'll close the public hearing. And I'll speak first. This is a good one to me, I think. So what's the pleasure of the board?

I have no comment. I thought it was good. Right in my neighborhood.

I'll move, Mike. I'll move 26-15. All right. Roll call, please.

The motion by Mr. Wessmer is to adopt PC26-15 to authorize an automotive repair garage at 106 Industry Drive. Mr. Wessmer?

Yes.

Mr. Titus? Yes. Mr. Brooks?

Yes.

Mr. King? Yes. Mr. Chamberlain?

Yes.

Motion passes.

Thank you.

all right next is uh i guess earl's gonna speak on this one not used to seeing me up here right now it's kind of crazy um yes so i'm up here tonight to talk to you about a recent or a proposed amendment to the zoning ordinance staff had been asked to look into allowing containerized cargo units to be placed as accessory sheds in residential areas. Right now it's prohibited in accessories to be used as an accessory use. So we have looked at those regulations. We came up with kind of an extensive definition. We looked at several localities and how other localities have allowed these and we Also looked at the building code, the Virginia building code to kind of see how they addressed it. So we've kind of crafted our ordinance definition to kind of capture some of those big things. It has to be a reusable metal vessel. Had that previously used for packing, shipping, movement, transportation of freight goods. articles goods or commodities by commercial truck trains or ships so that kind of captures that you know what it is then also it has to be modified according to the requirements of the building of a building permit to be considered a building so accessory structures can be considered a building in the Virginia Code building code does go into QUITE EXTENSIVELY HOW THESE NEED TO BE CONVERTED TO AN ACTUAL USABLE STORAGE UNIT. SO WE ADDED THAT DEFINITION. WE ALSO REMOVED THE PROHIBITION FROM THE SECTION 24.1-271. WE ADDED IT. WE ALSO PUT IN THE LANGUAGE THAT A CONTAINERIZED CARGO SHED WOULD BE AN ALLOWABLE ACCESSORY STRUCTURE. But we've also added some more requirements, standards, if you like, of how someone could get one of these if they'd like. We've limited it to one per property. It has to meet the Virginia Building Code, so they would have to get a building permit. It has to be placed on a concrete or not a PR, it should be an ore paved area. It can only be for storage of principal use goods. So like if it's a home, it should be what you would normally see in a storage shed. We're really not looking for a business to be using this kind of thing. We've also said that you can't stack them. You know, because sometimes you could stack them and connect them, those kinds of things, but we don't want any kind of stacking, so just one unit. And then lastly, the bigger standard we put in there, and I've kind of summarized it here, if it's visible, so if you can see it from the road, if you can see it from the adjacent property owners, you have to screen it. You can screen it either by landscaping or a fence so it's not visible. If it is visible and you can't screen it, then it has to have a roof and siding on the side of it. That siding has to match that of the existing principal structure. It just blends in like a normal stick-built structure would look. That was our hope, that was what we were going for. So we've added that definition. We've removed the prohibition, allowed it, and then we've set up some standards for it. Unfortunately, Mr. Hill and I were discussing this during the previous hearing. We've put the wrong PC resolution number on there because PC 26-13 was Ms. Jeannie's first application here, the Ritchie application. So we're going to change that to PC26-16. It doesn't have to be an R. It's just going to be 2616 rather than 13. So apologies there. But that is it. I'm happy to answer any questions you have on this application, on this request. Any questions this way?

Yeah, I have a couple. You said you were asked to look at this. The staff was. Who asked?

The Board of Supervisors.

Okay. Have there been many requests for this, for containers put in?

We had a zoning violation where we found one. A neighbor had complained that their neighbor had put in one of these cargo units. And we went out, saw that it was there. We told them it was prohibited. A resident talked with their board member, and the board member brought it to the other board members, and they asked us to investigate it and to bring something forward that would find a way to allow it.

But it's not that we've had a lot of requests to put more in, right?

That's correct. I mean, usually we tell people that have them that they're prohibited, and that's what we've normally had. This doesn't include like pods or anything like that where you have a temporary thing. We have special regulations in there for the pods, which, you know, it should be in your resolution there. You can see that language. This is more for a permanent structure kind of piece.

Having chaired the Virginia Port Authority, I like containers, but I'm not sure I like them next to me in the backyard. And also, you know, the containers are two different sizes, TEUs, 20-foot equivalent units. So are you saying They can have the shorter ones or the long ones as well that you see on the back of trucks going up and down 64.

They could have either. Yeah, we haven't limited the size because accessory structures don't have limits, so we've allowed them to, you know, be their normal. You know, what, you know, yes.

Thank you.

Yes. I know it's a separate issue. But I can see HOAs right now having issues with this pretty much, because HOAs have certain standards for outside buildings, and that to me could complicate some things. I know it's a separate issue, but you create an ordinance to allow these, then you put the HOAs in a bad situation by saying you can't have these. Is that being considered or has nothing to do with it?

No, I'm sorry. When it comes to homeowners association and private covenants and deeds that people have, those are private agreements between private property owners. I understand that. No, we usually don't take those things into consideration when we're adopting the ordinance. I know it can seem harsh, but the county doesn't really have a role in how those are enforced or anything that's there. I mean, HOAs tell you you have to cut your grass, and we do too.

I mean, like I said, I understand it's a separate issue. I just can see some folks being upset about it.

I could understand. I do hear you.

Yeah, because, I mean, some HOAs, they have special stipulations of what you are going to build as an attached shed. I mean, and now you're going to allow a – I mean, I agree with Jeff. I hope there's not many of them coming, but if they do, that's going to be a concern, I think, for that. So I'm kind of speaking for HOAs that this would be an issue with them. Some of them. I'm not saying all of them.

Mr. Chair, could I just one more time? But my understanding is that just because the county allows it doesn't mean the HOA. The HOA takes precedence over it. So citizens have often come and said, but the county allows it. And because it's an HOA, it's not allowed. So even though we allow it, the HOA can take action in HOA neighborhoods not to. Right? Yes, sir.

OK. Yeah. Earl, I just got a question. All the conditions that require you to put siding, roof has to match, a slab, all these kind of things. You know, maybe I'm wrong or I'm just dumb. What's the motivation? It seems like you have to put more money into it to make it look like a regular accessory shed of some sort than if you did it from scratch. You're taking a piece of metal and having to do all these other things to it to match what you're proposing, you might as well just start from scratch or buy one outright. I don't understand. So what's the motivation here?

For the standards?

No, not the motivation for the standards. What would be the motivation if you want to have one of these when you have to complete all those changes and everything to the container? You might as well just start from scratch.

I don't know how to answer that question. I mean, I do understand what you're saying. Is there a reasoning to spend the money on having a cargo container versus just building a stick-built shed structure if the cost is, I don't know. I mean, if you could put a graveled area, paved area of some kind, and then drop one of these on it on a five-acre parcel, then it's probably not problematic but if you're going to try to put this on a 20 000 square foot lot or 10 000 square foot lot then a lot of money into it does it make it does make it more constraining because you know your your neighbors are going to see it so you're going to have to do the things to do it but we put those things in there to try to protect the adjacent property owners give them some protection from it since we're prohibiting it right now um with any ordinance change if it's approved and we get down the road and people are just not happy with it that's something the board and planning could address later down the road to say you know these we haven't seen too many of these and you know maybe the restrictions are too much and and we can but we can remove the restrictions also this is this is a living ordinance until the board gives their motion to approve it so if there's things you want to remove or change we We'd be happy to accommodate that. We just tried to bring forward the best language we thought that could consider the neighbors as well as, I mean, it doesn't always consider the actual person building the shed, but we're trying to protect the neighbors in most cases.

Okay, thank you. You're welcome. A couple comments. Earl, when you say they have to be screened from the neighbors or from the street, okay, and you could use shrubs, so if you did enough screening, you wouldn't have to, finish it up with siding and that kind of stuff. Is that correct? Correct. That was our first option.

It was fencing or screening with landscape.

Okay. It almost never works over time that you can't see these things from the street or from your neighbor, especially if you have a second story and a neighbor. You'd always be able to see these things and they always rust out. The question is more the property owner that currently has one or other people that currently has one and this ordinance passes, Will they be in some way grandfathered?

No, because the gentleman that had the complaint against him, he didn't have permission to put it there.

Yeah, so they will not be grandfathered, so we'll have to go through the whole process.

Building permit process, yes. Get that.

And there's no way to make it a deviation or anything else, a one-time deal for one property owner.

If we could find a way to limit the zoning ordinance language to just allow it in that one location without actually putting his address in there. Yeah, I would say yes, but I wouldn't know how to do that exactly.

Yeah. Oh, don't either. I just you're an expert.

Yeah, but there would be no grandfathering or nonconforming in this situation because counties prohibit them in the past.

If someone had one, it's to me, it stinks from high heaven that one individual runs to his board of supervisors and they get together and they send it down to the planning commission to have something done. And then we're supposed to jump through hoops and get it done, get a change done for probably one individual. And that just seems rotten. When I brought this up to the YMCA, which I go there quite a bit and talk to folks from all over the county and Newport News for that matter, the first things out of their mouth was, well, I won't repeat that, but they just basically thought, this is crazy. You want to put a container ship in a backyard and in the neighborhood, in a residential neighborhood, that is just crazy. What are you thinking? That's all my comments.

I got similar feedback, but I want to clarify something that Michael had said. As this is written, I don't have to do anything to that container. I can set it on my property and build a fence around it and do nothing to the container whatsoever, right?

If you can't see it from an adjacent property or the road, yes.

I don't have to put a roof on it, I don't have to put siding on it.

You do have to get a building permit.

Okay. I don't like this at all. But if we could add maybe a special use permit requirement. With this, then I would consider that. But without a special use permit, I don't see this at all.

I mean, it could be something you add. If that's what you wanted to do, we could tweak the language to require a special use permit for it.

Can you open or close the public hearing so we can discuss it? I don't want to talk without.

We haven't had the public hearing yet. We're just asking questions. Yeah, you want to do that first. I don't have any questions. Okay, no more questions. All right.

I will note one thing I forgot to say in my presentation is we did receive one email that was forwarded to you from a citizen who was against the application or the amendment.

OK, with that, I'll open the public hearing. I have no individual signed up to speak. Anybody wishing to speak? I'll close the public hearing. And now we can comment.

All right, Mr. Chairman, if I may, Mr. Wasserman said something that resonated with me. You know, how many how many people have come forward to want a shipping container in their backyard? I think we're doing this backwards. I don't think we have enough people out here and we're putting a big burden on the code enforcement folks to have to go out and check these things, which is already difficult for them to do for all use permits and all this. And now we've got another added thing to make sure that it's not visible and make sure that they if it's in a residential area and it can be seen, you can make all these changes and all this stuff. all for one person. I'm not in favor of this at all. I don't think there's any need necessarily, and I think we're just trying to accommodate one homeowner to allow them to have their shipping container, and I think this is just backwards, and I'm against it.

All right. Any other comments, or I'll entertain a motion.

I'm ready to vote. Okay.

All right. Somebody may make, you want to do your final? I did my last one.

Okay. Mr. Chairman, I recommend we move PC 26-16 to the Board of Supervisors for approval.

All right, roll call, please.

The motion by Mr. Titus is to adopt PC 26-16 to authorize and define and allow the use of shipping containerized cargo units as accessory sheds in residential areas. Mr. Wasserman?

No.

Mr. Titus?

Resounding no.

Mr. Brooks?

No.

Mr. King?

No.

Mr. Chamberlain?

No.

Motion failed.

All righty, with that, that's our public hearings. No old business, any new business? And staff reports.

I'll turn my mic on. You have your development activity report, so I'll just note that the tractor supply was approved in May, along with the application for the changes to the data center ordinance. We had a speaker at the board meeting that talked about some additional things that he would like to see in the ordinance, and we have gotten that information from a couple of the board members. We may be looking at bringing some of those items back in the future, but right now they have approved the ordinance that you sent to them. Additionally, I'll note the old rips on Denby Boulevard. I can't think of any stop and go. I think it's the name of it now. The pre OSHA application that the board did extend their mini storage convenience store drive-through Applications at the last meeting for another two years But they did tell them that they were not would not do in another two years after that. So I don't think they've done anything They haven't yeah, they were at the meeting and they spoke they said that they do have plans prepared They just have are in the process of finalizing them to get them submitted Um, also, um, Mr. Bendel's application will move forward a little bit quicker than most applications. So he'll be on the agenda for next Tuesday as well. Ms. Dr. Gould, who had the short term rental before you in April. Um, that was pushed back, um, uh, to that, to this June meeting next Tuesday. Um, as well as the, um, inpatient substance abuse treatment center, um, ordinance changes we had out there to, um, your next meeting in July, we only have one application as for a plan development, uh, marquee crossing across from marquee shopping center. Um, they are proposing some town homes and some commercial properties. This is where we. has the application a couple of years ago almost 2024 maybe it was apartments before yeah a sheets gas station um so they're coming back uh it's a smaller development but with town homes rather than apartments there and uh we have the application and we'll go ahead i think we're going to go ahead and try to send that out to you so that you can start looking at the materials that go with that Well, it's a planned development, so it's a one kind of grouping thing, so it comes together with the commercial and the residential. Also, a note of interest, if you haven't been to the Chick-fil-A on 17 yet, that is open. They opened last Thursday, I think it was. I think it was last Thursday. It's been about a week. They seem to be doing pretty good. Keep going by there. There's always a lot of cars, so that's a good thing. Paws Pet Resort has also submitted their site plans. You had approved them a couple months ago, so they're moving forward with getting their site stuff ready. We're also working on the Waffle House up there by the Bojangles. I think we're in our second review of that, so that should be finalized here soon. Right next to it. So between there and the General's Way, I think, which is the road next to it, they'll be in there. There is, yeah. It's a small site, but it's a Waffle House, which usually isn't too large. But yeah, they've got everything fit on the site there. Other things of note that I hadn't talked about in the past, Land disturbance, you probably saw the First Advantage Bank site going in in front of the food line at Fort Eustis Boulevard. First Advantage is going to be building a brand new bank there and moving out of their location down near Amory. Yep, nice new bank there for them. And then also you probably saw the trees coming down there by the chipper. that's where the dutch brothers coffee or dutch bros i don't know if it's brothers or bros but we're gonna go with either one um but it's a coffee drive-through coffee shop kind of similar to the seven brews that's planned down there by the wawa across from the walmart so similar type business model but um those uh both that um just got land servings and you said we've got all the trees and all that said the stump setting up there and everything right now. But yeah, yeah, that's what, that's, what's going to go there. Um, I did some research on changing the time for your meetings. Um, the only place I saw where it was delineated, um, in an, uh, maybe an official way is in the bylaws. So I, I had a little bit of a discussion with, um, Mr Hill about it here today and he said he may or, We're going to have more conversation. But I would think that the bylaws haven't been looked at since 2012. So my recommendation is when the new planning commissioners come on, maybe the planning commission forms a committee to just kind of review the bylaws, see if they need to be updated. And at that time, we could adjust the time. Or after Mr. Hill and I talk some more about it, it might just be a vote on your part. We'll find out. But we'll bring something to you soon to talk about that. Other than that, Mr. King, thank you so much for your service to the community. I hope I can speak for the other staff members. We very much appreciated your input on applications and your guidance as the chair, not only of the planning commission, but also as the steering committee chair for the comp plan and guiding that to fruition. We greatly have appreciated your service to us and the community, and we are going to miss you, but I don't think we'll be not hearing from you. So you know how to get us if you have something like a sidewalk that needs to be put in or something like that.

Thank you to my fellow commissioners and wish you the best of luck as you move forward. I want to pre-strike here and give my vote while I'm still here. It won't count, but I hope you guys have an earlier time for the meeting.

all right thank you and i'll add uh my comments mr king i've worked with you when you were on the comp plan and and uh before that with the planning commission and you pushed all that through during covid when we were in virtual meetings and masks and all kinds of stuff so it was um an 18-month project got moved out to what four years or something like that so um long long time so um with that we are adjourned