A request to use the Hornsby House Inn as a venue for large-scale weddings is being sent to the York County Board of Supervisors with a recommendation of approval from the Planning Commission.
The commissioners voted 6-0 at a Wednesday meeting to recommend approval after citizens, county staff and commission members presented no objections to the proposal. Commissioner Glenn Brazelton was absent from the meeting.
The Hornsby House Inn is the second bed and breakfast in York County to go through the process of requesting a special-use permit to host large-scale weddings. After the policy changed in 2013 to allow bed and breakfasts to apply for special-use permits to host large-scale weddings and other events, the Bay Tree Manor Bed and Breakfast in Seaford applied was granted permission in November to host weddings for up to 160 guests.
The application reviewed by commissioners Wednesday states the Hornsby House Inn can host a maximum of one wedding per day and two weddings per seven-day period. The event must take place between 10 a.m. and 10 p.m. and can have a maximum of 130 guests.
Noise restrictions listed in the zoning ordinance for the area require noise such as loud music to cease at 9 p.m. Attorney Doug Hornsby, who spoke on behalf of the applicants, said the inn owners will guarantee music and any excessive noise will stop at 9 p.m. despite being allowed to continue the event until 10 p.m.
County staff estimated 75 parking spaces would be required based on a ratio of one parking space per every two guests and one space for every employee.
Currently, there are nine parking spaces off Smith Street connected to the bed and breakfast and a small gravel area on the opposite side of the street with enough spaces for six vehicles.
The owners and innkeepers — brothers David and Philip Bowditch — plan to use three of their own spaces of land for parking: the backyard, the adjacent parcel to the south of the inn, and land across Smith Street, all grass areas.
Yorktown Baptist Church, located on the corner of Smith and Ballard streets, has agreed to allow guests to use the church parking lot, which can hold about 45 vehicles, if inclement weather prevented vehicles from parking in the grass.
The inn’s parking areas are required to have a 25-foot setback of foliage from adjacent properties.
The Bowditch brothers are requiring one room in the bed and breakfast be rented by the host or a guest of the wedding, and those guests must stay for two nights if it is a weekend wedding. Before the policy was changed, only guests staying in bed and breakfasts could participate in wedding ceremonies.
The Bowditchs said in a memo to the planning division they would prefer not to use tents at weddings, and would restrict tent use to the backyard if necessary. If their application is approved, they must acquire a temporary building permit and zoning approval for the tent, and the tent must not be used for 21 consecutive days.
The Bowditch brothers began operating the Hornsby House Inn — passed down from their mother — in 2011. The house was built in 1934 by the brothers’ grandfather and sits on half an acre near the York River.
The inn was awarded the Trip Advisor Certificate of Excellence in 2013 and 2014, according to the memo. The inn features five bedroom suites, several lounging areas and a patio that overlooks the Yorktown Victory Monument.
The recommendation will be reviewed by the Board of Supervisors on Sept. 16.
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