Thacker’s View, a proposed 260-unit residential development, would rise on land outlined in blue on the Swift Creek Reservoir. The Planning Commission recently voted to recommend the project’s approval. (BizSense file)
A proposal to bring a new subdivision to a 139-acre property on Swift Creek Reservoir is working its way through Chesterfield’s zoning approval process.
The Chesterfield Planning Commission this week voted to recommend approval of a 260-unit residential project that would rise on largely undeveloped land off Woolridge Road that borders the reservoir and the Woodlake subdivision.
The project, dubbed Thacker’s View, is planned to feature 165 single-family homes and 95 townhouses, as well as a restaurant and amenities.
Thacker’s View would be built on land formerly home to wedding and events venue Celebrations at the Reservoir, which operated there for about 20 years until it closed in January 2022. The project site consists of three parcels, including 4901 Woolridge Road.
A conceptual plan of the Thacker’s View project, which would feature a mixture of 260 single-family and townhomes on a 139-acre site. (County documents)
Behind the project is Powhatan-based Cross Creek Development Corp., which intends to develop the project in a joint venture with the Thacker family that owns the land, Cross Creek President Don Balzer has previously told BizSense.
The single-family detached homes in the development would be built in two styles – some on lots of at least 12,000 square feet and others on “cluster” home lots that would range between 8,400 and 11,999 square feet, a staff report states. The townhomes would have a minimum lot area of 1,520 to 2,720 square feet.
The development’s restaurant would be built on a 3.3-acre pad near Woolridge Road. Thacker’s View would have two vehicle entrances on Woolridge, according to a site plan.
The project would feature a covered pavilion, a dog park and walkways. Existing pathways, gazebos and a dock along the water would be retained. Thacker’s View would feature 100-foot buffers along Woolridge Road and a minimum 65-foot buffer on its border with the Woodlake subdivision.
Cross Creek is seeking to rezone the land to Residential (R-12) from the current Agricultural (A) designation. In addition to zoning approval for the Thacker’s View project, the developer also wants to retain zoning permission to allow the continued operation of a vacation rental on the site, which has been in place since 2002 and utilizes the former Celebrations property, until the first phase of the subdivision is recorded, the staff report states.
Balzer didn’t respond to requests for comment this week.
Elevations of single-family homes planned for the Thacker’s View project. (County documents)
The project now heads to the Board of Supervisors, which would provide a final decision on the zoning application at a future meeting.
About a dozen people spoke in opposition to the project during a public hearing that preceded the Planning Commission’s 4-1 vote Tuesday. Commissioner Tommy Owens cast the lone nay vote.
Speakers objected to the presence of townhomes in the development and also voiced concerns about possible environmental impacts of the project. A Friends of Swift Creek Reservoir representative said the group had, by the time of the meeting, gathered almost 200 signatures on a petition calling for tighter development conditions and the monitoring of tree clearing at the site.
The county’s comprehensive plan has earmarked the property for residential development.
Plans for Thacker’s View were originally filed with the county in 2022, and the project’s layout has evolved over time. The current conceptual plan differs from a submission earlier this year in that a section of townhomes planned to be built along the reservoir is no longer on the table. Now, all townhomes would be consolidated in the center of the development.
That tweak and others were made in response to feedback gathered at public meetings this year, Anne Miller of engineering firm Balzer and Associates told the Planning Commission this week. She said the project’s phasing plan and hours of construction also were informed by community input.