The townhomes would have risen on what’s currently a grassy area. (BizSense file photo)
The striking down of a proposed residential development in Randolph headlined a busy Richmond City Council meeting this week.
On Tuesday, the council voted to reject a special-use permit that would have allowed 21 for-sale townhomes to be built on a vacant lot at 901-923 S. Meadow St.
The proposal was from Audeo Partners, a D.C.-based developer that entered the Richmond market in recent years through converting a former Dominion Energy warehouse in the Fan into apartments.
Audeo is planning a similar conversion of The Virginia Home’s Byrd Park facility, and along with that, it was also looking to build townhomes on the nearby South Meadow plot.
Last fall it filed plans for 31 three-story townhomes on the 0.8-acre lot. After meetings with the neighborhood, Audeo whittled the unit count down to 21, along with 50 parking spots provided, about 30 of which would have been on-site. The units would have been priced at around $500,000 and would range in size from 1,400-2,000 square feet.
“We modified our plans based on neighborhood feedback,” Audeo partner Madi Ford told council on Tuesday. “I think we really made an effort to address key components of the residents’ concerns.”
Heading into the council meeting, Audeo had already received a thumbs-up for its SUP for the conversion of the Virginia Home project on Sept. 14. In the spring the Richmond Planning Commission recommended approving the project. The development was also not opposed by the Randolph Neighborhood Association.
But the proposal drew a lengthy public comment period at this week’s meeting with plenty of support and opposition. Many spoke in person in front of council, and a few people tuned in online to speak against the project virtually. However, it’s unclear how many would have spoken in favor virtually; in what seemed to be a procedural mistake, council president Cynthia Newbille closed the public comment period before those speaking in favor of the project online had a chance to comment.
A site plan of the now-rejected development. (City documents)
Councilwoman Stephanie Lynch, whose 5th District includes the project site, said that the proposal was “the least-favorite SUP” she’s ever worked on and that it put her between “a rock and a hard place.”
“There are some very legitimate concerns about the project, and concerns in the neighborhood that don’t have anything to do with the project at all but are real concerns to our neighbors,” Lynch said, noting things like traffic safety infrastructure, parking and gentrification.
Other council members including Reva Trammell, Andrew “Gumby” Breton and Kenya Gibson also acknowledged the project’s opposition as a reason for them to vote against the proposal.
After over an hour of public comment and deliberation, council voted 8-1 to reject the SUP. Only Councilwoman Ellen Robertson voted to approve it.
Other potential uses for the property were also discussed. It was noted during public comment that the property is subject to the state’s Faith in Housing legislation passed this year. The new law allows religious and nonprofit organizations to build affordable housing developments on land they own without having to abide by local zoning.
The Meadow Street property is eligible for development under that legislation, as The Virginia Home, a nonprofit, has owned the property since 2008 and has yet to sell it to Audeo. Before the vote, Lynch noted that The Virginia Home could very well partner with a developer for an affordable development through the Faith in Housing legislation.
“Which may be (something) folks want. But that would be a much higher impact to the neighborhood as far as cars and all the infrastructure issues we’re talking about,” Lynch said.
The townhomes were planned to reach three stories and be listed for sale around $500,000.
It’s unclear what’s next for the property following the thumbs-down from council. Virginia Home president and CEO Doug Vaughan didn’t respond to a request for comment by press time. Audeo, which declined to comment, remains busy in the Fan, where it’s building a pair of new-construction apartment buildings on Grayland Avenue near its aforementioned converted Dominion warehouse.
While Audeo’s proposal was rejected, council approved two other SUP requests Tuesday night, including the North Lombardy Flats and South Lombardy Flats at 2412-2423 N. Lombardy St., a development first proposed three years ago. It’s planned to bring a total of 249 apartments and over 11,000 square feet of retail space across two five-story buildings in the Northside.
Also approved was The Shops at Fairfield, a mixed-use redevelopment planned for 1534-1538 and 1540 Mechanicsville Turnpike. For that project, an aging building at the corner of Mechanicsville Turnpike and Fairfield Way would be replaced by a new one with seven apartments and 17,000 square feet of commercial space.
Additionally, council also approved a rezoning request from Genesis Properties for the Jefferson Townhomes at 1951 Venable St. The rezoning is a step toward Genesis’ plan to replace the 1960s-era townhomes with a new, mixed-income development.
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