Coffee trailer proposed for Rockfish fire department property

Ian Hudlow and Eli Moore, applicants for the proposed coffee operation, are seeking a special use permit from Nelson County for the use on property zoned A-1, agriculture. The Nelson County Planning Commission held a public hearing on the request on Feb. 26 and voted to table the matter.

The fire department has entered into a lease agreement with Hudlow and Moore for the business, Turk Mountain Coffee Company, to serve residents and travelers. The applicants also intend to implement a round-up program where proceeds would support the fire department.

A 450-square-foot pad is proposed to house the trailer near the highway, according to the application. Dylan Bishop, director of planning and zoning, said conditions include not allowing a drive-through component associated with the use and a setback of at least 140 feet from the edge of Virginia 151.

The applicants wrote in a letter to the county’s planning and zoning department that Turk Mountain Coffee Company’s goal is to serve as a long-term family business rooted in Nelson County.

“Our desire is to create something enduring — an everyday gathering point that becomes part of the daily rhythm of the community while giving back in meaningful ways,” the applicants wrote. “We hope to introduce customers to great coffee while also giving them the opportunity to do something good for the community through their purchase.”

Hudlow and Moore wrote they envision Turk Mountain Coffee as a positive presence that supports the fire department, rescue squad and the broader Nelson County community for years to come.

The business’s mission is twofold, Hudlow told the commission: to provide some of the best coffee around for area residents and support a vital community service that provides funds to the fire department through the lease agreement and round-up program.

“We hope to have long relationships with the residents of Nelson County and the first responders,” Hudlow said.

Commissioner William Smith said he has a concern with a private business sharing an entrance to the highway with the local fire department.

Hudlow said he thinks the location is amazing.

“The location is key,” he said. “We would love to have that visibility.”

Hudlow said if the drive-through component isn’t permitted they could work to provide a system where the coffee is brought to vehicles.

A neighboring resident expressed concern during the public hearing with the potential business increasing traffic in the area and being close to her property. The commission agreed that more work is needed on the site plan to work out some concerns about proximity to the highway.

In a separate matter, the commission also tabled a request from Nelson Storge, LLC – Jeremy and Elisabeth Hale, to rezone property zoned R-1, residential, and M-1, light industrial, to M-2, industrial, to align the zoning designation with the current use at 2742 Arrington Road.

The subject properties are currently used for indoor and outdoor storage. The R-1 parcel has been used for storage of shipping containers available for rent, which Bishop said is a violation of the zoning ordinance.

A corrective notice was sent to the Hales, who reached out to the county to develop a compliance plan, Bishop said. If the rezoning is approved, the zoning ordinance allows storage yards as a by-right use, she said.

The Hales own an old cold storage building, the old Ford Motor Company building and a white house on the corner of Arrington Road and Cold Storage Lane. The couple wrote they plan to keep investing in that commercial area of Arrington for the foreseeable future.

Jeremy Hale said the couple came to Arrington in 2002, looked at commercial property and went forward with renovating and fixing up a cold storage building and acquiring neighboring properties.

Commissioner Philippa Proulx said she preferred postponing a vote to give more time to work out proffers, or voluntary conditions the applicant agrees to in the rezoning process.