BLYTHEWOOD – A bakery/café business may be coming soon to downtown Blythewood in the Bookhart-Blume House at the corner of Langford and Sandfield Roads in the Town Center District.
The Bookhart-Blume house may soon become a bakery-café. | Barbara Ball
The Board of Architectural Review (BAR) held a preliminary discussion Monday evening at the request of Keefer and White Enterprises, LLC, whose members are Blythewood residents Jay and Christine Keefer, Charles White and Chanin White. They have a sales agreement with the sellers which is contingent in part on obtaining a Certificate of Appropriateness from the BAR. The building, owned by former longtime resident Dorothy Blume is a designated historical site located in the commercial district, the Town’s Planning Consultant Michael Criss said.
Jay Keefer presented the plans for the property, noting that the potential buyers want to make few changes to the structure other than adding an ADA ramp to the side of the front porch and other necessary maintenance and repairs.
“We want to preserve as much of the current building as possible,” Keefer said. “We will repaint and clean but won’t change any colors. The roof is the original tin roof and it’s in good shape. It had been painted and we plan to go back over it with a silverfish color.”
BAR Chairman Pam Dukes said the town architectural consultant, Ralph Walden, would work with the purchasers, “from the perspective of the building being something we can approve.”
Keefer said the maximum occupancy of the bakery/café would be about 15-30 people.
“We plan to be open from 6 a.m. – 4 p.m., Tuesdays through Sundays, or maybe all week. We’ll have to see,” Keefer said. He told the BAR members that he expects the bakery-café to be open by late June or earlier if possible, and gave them a sneak peak at a possible name for the business – You Bake Me Happy.
The Keefers and Whites say they expect to work out the details with Walden and be back before the BAR soon to request a Certificate of Appearance.