A church that has stood on Grove Avenue in Richmond's Near West End since about 1950 is a step closer to becoming a row of new townhomes.
On Tuesday, Oct. 6, the Richmond Planning Commission recommended approval of a special use permit for 33 townhomes at 4101 Grove Ave., the site of Seventh Street Christian Church, The Richmonder reported. Each townhome will have a two-car garage, and the plan includes a pocket park at the corner of Grove and Malvern avenues.
Commission Chair Rodney Poole called it "a perfect example of a developer, an architect, city staff, this neighborhood and a councilperson all working together to come to the best conclusion."
The final decision belongs to City Council. According to the city's online legislative records, council introduced the ordinance Sept. 14, then amended it and continued it at its Oct. 13 meeting to Monday, Nov. 9. The amended ordinance would allow up to 33 single-family attached homes, down from the 35 in its original wording.
How the plan changed
The project began last year, when the church's shrinking congregation decided the building and grounds had become too expensive to keep up. More than 30 groups answered the church's request for proposals. Besides the sanctuary, the site includes a large parking lot that the neighboring Sts. Constantine and Helen Greek Orthodox Cathedral has long used for its popular Greek Festival.
Pastor Hollie Woodruff told The Richmonder last year that Macfarlane's group had not made the highest bid, but that the church found its proposal "really, deeply thoughtful."
Developer Macfarlane Partners, led by Charles Macfarlane, first proposed 24 townhomes plus a four-story, 48-unit condominium building. Neighbors pushed back over density, traffic, access and scale. Over the past year the condo building was dropped in favor of more townhomes, and each home gained a two-car garage.
The changes won over many neighbors. Bill Atkinson, who lives in the nearby Kingcrest neighborhood, said he and his wife "reluctantly have come to the point where we are now supporting the proposal."
"The developer has done a great job responding to our concerns," he said. "It's a beautiful project, we trust they're going to do a good job with it, and it's in keeping with the neighborhood."
Commissioner Rebecca Rowe cast the only vote against the plan, citing historic preservation concerns about tearing down the church. Still, she called it "lovely" as a project and urged the developer to consider saving pieces of the sanctuary for the pocket park.
The driveway fight
The biggest debate was over where to put a second entrance. One uncontested access point would come through the existing alley off Antrim Avenue. Neighbors wanted the second entrance on Grove Avenue, at an existing parking lot entry, with right-in, right-out turns only.
The city's Department of Public Works objected. "Our primary concern is safety of users of the right of way," said Doug Mawby of DPW. "Our policy has always been … you have to access properties from alleys where you can."
Several commissioners didn't buy it. "I'm confused by the safety concern a bit because Grove would be right in, right out only," said Commissioner Brian White. The commission backed the Grove Avenue entrance.
Councilor Andrew Breton, whose 1st District includes the site, supports the plan with the Grove driveway. "Without that driveway, the project would no longer address the needs and concerns of the adjacent community," he wrote to the commission.
Why it matters for Contractors
This project shows what it can take to redevelop a church site in an established neighborhood. It took a year of revisions, a smaller building program and features neighbors asked for, like garages and a second entrance.
For builders, 33 attached homes with two-car garages on a single infill block is a solid residential job. Demolition of the church comes first, followed by site work, utilities and a new driveway on a busy road, then the townhome construction itself. Commissioner Rowe's call to salvage parts of the sanctuary could also mean careful deconstruction work for the right crew.
No builder has been named for the project. The next date to watch is Nov. 9, when City Council is scheduled to take up the special use permit again. If council approves it, Macfarlane Partners would move into final plans and permits.