By Brian Trompeter
A baseball-training-and-coaching facility now will be able to extend its operations to an adjacent suite of the same building in Vienna’s Mill Street light-industrial area.
Pitchers Edge LLC, located at 516 Mill St., N.E., on July 17 received unanimous approval from the Vienna Board of Zoning Appeals (BZA) for a conditional-use permit to expand into the space next door at 514 Mill St., N.E.
“From everything we’ve heard and read, this is a successful business making a useful contribution to the community,” said BZA member Robert Petersen, who moved for the application’s approval. “I think we should be very pleased to see this expansion, which will enhance the safety of the participants in the business.”
The business operates from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily and by appointment only, so clients must schedule their visits in advance.
The facility at any given time will have up to two students and two coaches, plus another employee working in the office.
The business desired the expansion to provide a safer environment for its clients, said Deputy Planning and Zoning Director Kelly O’Brien.
“Right now, two lanes are together in one tenant space, and this would allow them to have a little more space in each of these spaces,” O’Brien said. “They’re not adding lanes. They’re just making it more spacious and safer.”
The operation has not been the subject of any complaints, violations or parking issues, O’Brien said.
The applicant has not applied for a permit to remove the wall between the suites, town staff said during a June 12 Vienna Planning Commission hearing on the application. Renee Pippin, the company’s owner, told the commission her landlord had informed her that the wall could be taken out, but she did not know what would be involved with that.
BZA member George Creed encouraged the applicant to work with the landlord regarding a profusion of reserved-parking signs in the vicinity of that building, many of which do not appear to be needed exclusively for the businesses listed.
“Do they really need all of them and can they relinquish some of them?” Creed asked.
BZA member Daniel Nash noted both of his sibs played in Vienna Little League and has received training from the company, which he said was well-run.
