RICHMOND, Va. — Two years after opening its first location downtown, a local ice cream purveyor is serving up a second scoop on the Southside.
The owners of Charm School Social Club have signed on for a new shop in a mixed-use development planned at 4910, 4920, and 4930 Forest Hill Ave.
“Things that are opening there are doing really well and people are happy to have options on that side of the river,” said Meryl Hillerson, who opened the original Charm School at 311 W. Broad St. in 2016 with co-owner Alex Zavalata.
“You could look at Little Nickel, Laura Lee’s and Galley,” she said, referring to some of the newer restaurants around Forest Hill. “Those are owned by really successful Richmond people. If they believe in it, there’s no reason we shouldn’t be able to follow suit.”
Developers Birck Turnbull and Charles Bice are behind the project, which will feature two buildings with around 14,000 square feet of commercial space and about 16 apartments. The buildings will be connected by an outdoor plaza.
That’s a departure from the project’s original design, which envisioned a single three-story building with 38 apartments on the upper two levels above 12,000 square of retail space.
The developers also have signed The Veil Brewing Co., which is planning a taproom as a Southside complement to its brewery in Scott’s Addition.
