Indoor Softball Facility Permit Denied in Fairfax County

[Anonymous]

There's supposed to be a franchise of SixFour3, a softball-only training facility, opening in Fairfax County. They've leased space and have a plan. But according to the franchise owners, the county denied their permit.

...a few short months ago, Fairfax County Staff ruled that we are not allowed to use industrial space for a softball training facility, which came as a shock to us all.

During the last decade, countless baseball facilities and other sports training facilities have been approved by the County in industrial space. Some examples include Perfect Performance in August 2023, Pioneer Baseball in April 2022, Metro Baseball Academy in July 2021, Capstone Soccer in 2020, and Diamond Heroes Baseball in 2017…the list goes on and on. We feel singled out!!

(https://sign.moveon.org/petitions/please-act-now-call-to-action-needed-help-bring-sixfour3-to-fairfax)

Does anyone have any more information? If it's really what's written, it seems like an insane choice given the various sports and kids gyms in industrial parks.

[Anonymous]

A Move On petition seems like a bad and ineffective way to lobby for this.

[Anonymous]

Where? Fairfax is large.

[Anonymous]

Wow, they finally found something they won't let them build in Fairfax. Who would've thought it'd be a sports facility.

They probably wouldn't have added too much traffic, so the planners weren't interested.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:A Move On petition seems like a bad and ineffective way to lobby for this.

What is a better way?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Wow, they finally found something they won't let them build in Fairfax. Who would've thought it'd be a sports facility.

They probably wouldn't have added too much traffic, so the planners weren't interested.

It sounds like it’s an existing industrial space. Why not let a youth sports facility move in?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Where? Fairfax is large.

According to what they put on social media and Google Maps, right by SYC's indoor facility in Springfield (map). So you can theoretically have SYC softball hosting a clinic in that industrial park, but you can't have members going to hit/pitch/meet a trainer one building over.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:A Move On petition seems like a bad and ineffective way to lobby for this.

They're also asking people to send an email to the Board of Zoning Appeals and the appropriate district supervisor (James Walkinshaw, who happens to have championed getting the funding for the turfing of the softball fields at Wakefield Park, something he loves to remind the community of).

But if you have further ideas please, as someone whose family would greatly benefit from this facility share. Nothing else quite has the 24-hour-keypad-access convenience of a SixFour3 when the weather is terrible and your kids want to practice.

[Anonymous]

This is so crazy. There is industrial space being used for sports facilities all over the county. Several for baseball--which would have almost identical use but my boys instead of girls.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is so crazy. There is industrial space being used for sports facilities all over the county. Several for baseball--which would have almost identical use but my boys instead of girls.

Unless there's something the SF3 Fairfax people aren't saying about why the permit was denied (and why wouldn't they share if there was a real issue with, say, their floor plans or parking or something), it makes ZERO sense. The SYC performance facility is literally the next building over from the proposed location. SYC has softball. So their softball teams can come use their gym, but SF3 can't run a softball gym right in the same industrial area?

[Anonymous]

Sounds like SYC didn't want competition right next door.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Sounds like SYC didn't want competition right next door.

Except SF3 isn't the same thing at all. It's a training gym specifically for softball. SYC's indoor facility is more performance for all their rec and travel sports and the offerings are (obviously) heavy on their soccer program. Having SF3 near SYC would only benefit their softball program and all the area softball programs - of which there are quite a few.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Sounds like SYC didn't want competition right next door.

Lol, if you think SYC has the bandwidth to have the county permit people deny their permits, pass me some of what you are on...because you're high.

[Anonymous]

Haven't seen the result of today's hearing about the zoning, but found a very interesting staff report - the way this is written is very different than what the SF3 franchisees wrote up in their publicity!

https://plus.fairfaxcounty.gov/CitizenAccess/urlrouting.ashx?type=1001&ID1=REC25&ID2=00000&ID3=004CA&agency=FFX&SeqNo=5617689

According to that the facilities they listed were grandfathered in under an old zoning code to an "easier" zoning category. It has nothing to do with SF3 being in industrial space and everything to do with them not wanting to have to do more work/have more cost.

It appears the franchisees have a new permit application in process with the "correct" (according to the county) designation.

[Anonymous]

SF3's new hearing is July 9 according to the BZA minutes. It's listed as "8600 Clara M. Morrissette Tr LLC, SP-2025-BR-00025" on the agenda (https://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/planning-development/sites/planning-development/files/Assets/documents/bza/agendas/current-year/07-09-2025-Agenda.pdf) and on the zoning search (https://plus.fairfaxcounty.gov/CitizenAccess/Cap/CapDetail.aspx?Module=Zoning&TabName=Zoning&capID1=REC24&capID2=00000&capID3=02R5G&agencyCode=FFX&IsToShowInspection=).

Let's hope this one makes it through so they can begin the build-out.