Issue 7

April 2009

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Methodist Church Seeks to Expand Building, Parking

The proposed expansion would be located behind the existing historic building on West Loudoun Street.

By KAREN YURISH
News aRound the Hill

Round Hill United Methodist Church, Round Hill’s second oldest church, is seeking to expand its building. The church has submitted a special exception application for expansion of the church and parking lot.
Built in 1889, the Methodist Church is a symbol of the shift of the center of commercial activity from Woodgrove to Round Hill after the arrival of the railroad. According to Maral Kalbian, who put together Round Hill’s historic district application, “After most of the commercial activity shifted from Woodgrove to Round Hill with the opening of the railroad in 1875, the Methodist congregation at Woodgrove agreed that it would be more convenient to move to Round Hill.”
“Local papers reported that the first services were conducted in the new sanctuary on May 12, 1889,” she added.
Additions to the church began in 1959, when a building permit was approved for the cinder block classroom addition to the original church. Following this, a temporary mobile classroom was added in 1996, and in 2006 the Town approved a special exception application allowing the church to use the old parsonage for worship uses.
It is the cinder block attachment that the church is looking to replace with its expansion. According to Jane Ford, Building Committee Chair for the church, this attachment, which contains the social hall, a small kitchen, and some classrooms, is “inadequate to support our modern congregation and a congregation of our size.”
Currently, there are about 400 congregants, and the social hall only holds 100 people. Furthermore, Ford says, the current space is not “friendly” to the elderly or disabled.
In March of 2007, the church applied for a special exception for the expansion of the church and parking lot. Plans for the expansion show an addition of more than 20,000 square feet that would be used for worship, Sunday school rooms, church offices and meeting rooms.
This addition, along with more than 80 parking spaces, would be located on the lots behind the current church that extend from Church Street to N. Locust Street. There would be entrances to the parking lot from both streets.
According to Town Planner & Zoning Administrator Rob Kinsley, the church has to apply for a special exception because the Church is located in the Town’s Residential – Single Family District (or R-2). Only single-family detached dwellings and public parks are allowed by right in that district.
“Places of worship plus several other uses are special exception uses, which are allowed if a special exception is approved through a public process that involves public hearings, a recommendation from the Town Planning Commission and action by the Town Council,” Kinsley said.
Since its submission, this application has gone through several revisions as the church worked with the Round Hill Planning Commission to resolve outstanding issues.
In February, 2009, a special work session of the Planning Commission was held with both the town attorney and the land use attorney of the church. Several issues were resolved, and now the church is working on modifying its application.
Several issues still need to be worked out, such as designing a high-quality landscape plan and discussing a possible extension of a sidewalk up Church Street in the area of the existing church and expansion. According to Ford, the church is working on these and other issues.
Once the Planning Commission is satisfied that all of its remaining issues with the application have been resolved, it will hold a public hearing before sending the application to the Town Council. The Council is also required to hold a public hearing before voting on the application.
To learn more about Round Hill United Methodist’s proposed expansion project, see www.newsaroundthehill.org.
For More Information on the Church's Expansion see:
Round Hill Restaurants: “Good Food and Good People”
By LISA ZIMMER-CHU
Editor, News aRound the Hill

Options for dining out around the Hill have recently increased significantly with the opening of Savoir Fare’s Restaurant and Wine Bar.
Owner, head chef, and nine-year Round Hill resident Joan Wolford decided to expand her operation in order to more fully utilize the space on Loudoun Street, which seats about 40 people. “I have a real passion for the restaurant,” Wolford said, “because I love the creativity it allows me on a daily basis.”
In addition to the Wine Bar menu, which features “American” sized tapas—small plates that can be “coursed” to make up a full meal, Wolford offers two or three dinner entree specials each night. Ordering this way provides the opportunity to pair each dish with a different wine.
“We’re all about featuring our local wines,” said manager Jenna Fauver. “It’s all about community.” Six different Loudoun County vineyards are represented on the menu, along with wines from around the globe.
The catering business begun in 1999 will continue, as well as lunches Tuesday through Saturday. The Wine Bar is open Thursday, Friday and Saturday until 9 p.m. On Mother’s Day, there will also be two dinner seatings, at 4:30 and 6:30 p.m.
Just around the corner stands Tammy’s Diner, formerly the Round Hill Diner, which has run continuously since 1957. Open from 6:30 a.m. to 2 p.m., the Diner serves traditional breakfasts and lunches.
Ron Blake, a lifetime Loudoun resident and Diner patron since the ‘60s, comes to Tammy's for the “good food and good people.” He sits at the large community table in the back that is unofficially reserved for the Diner’s many regulars.
Owner Tammy Hines waitressed and managed the restaurant for four years before she decided to buy it in 2007. According to Hines, the community feel generated at the diner is mutual. “My customers are dear people who want to be part of the place and have supported more than their share," she said. "I appreciate that.”
There is a picnic table for outdoor seating, with plans to add more in the future. Another change will come to the Diner next December when the law banning smoking in Virginia restaurants comes into effect.
Stoneleigh Tavern, housed in the 1750 stone building central to the neighborhood off of Route 7 west of Town, is open to the public for lunch and dinner Thursday through Saturday, and on Sundays from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m..
Across the street from Stoneleigh, Hill High Country Store is regionally famous for its selection of home-baked pies. Open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Mondays through Fridays and 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. on the weekends, Hill High offers a selection of breakfast items and sandwiches as well as hand-scooped ice cream. There is indoor seating as well as picnic tables at the pond on site.
Originally an orchard, the establishment grew to include retail space back in 1948 with the addition of a refrigeration plant that serviced a number of area orchards with a storage capacity of 36,000 bushels of fruit.
Although no longer an orchard, owner Debbie Heimburger has added a year-round indoor farmers market on Saturday afternoons, all sourced from local producers. The market also regularly carries a variety of seasonal produce and other specialty food items.
For folks preparing meals at home there are two stores in Town. The Round Hill Mini Mart was built in 1901 and began selling “general merchandise.” It later became a hardware and dry goods store. It was first granted a permit in 1932 to sell ice cream and soft drinks on Sunday evenings.
Mohammed Akhtar, owner for 10 years, views the convenience store as a service, providing the "basics" without having to drive out of town. For him, too, it’s all about supporting the community. Most of his customers are locals and regulars.
“They’re like a family,” Akhtar said. “I love it here.”
The Round Hill Grocery, which started as a pharmacy as early as 1899, has carried grocery items since 1941. Frances Milligan, who has owned and operated the grocery along with husband Robert since 1983, describes how the store came to carry such a huge variety of items, from paint and garden supplies to staples like bread and milk to beer and wine.
“The store was practically empty when we bought it,” said Milligan. “People would come in and ask for something, so we started carrying it.”
When asked what she enjoys most about running the business, Milligan echoed a common theme among Round Hill food purveyors: “Meeting the people.”
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