Former dairy farm could become Troy’s newest event center, wedding venue

A rendering of what an old dairy farm off of Formosa Road could look like when reimagined as an event center and wedding venue. (image courtesy of the Huffman Family)

By Charles Bolinger

Editor • An old dairy farm on Formosa Road may become an event center and wedding venue if the city approves. 

Brian Huffman returned to the city’s planning commission on March 12 for an architectural review of the plan. He and his wife live in Maryville and they are pursuing this as a personal project. It’s called Formosa Ridge.

The 12.3-acre site at 2101 Formosa, just north of the Holiday Inn Express Hotel and was originally built in 1966. The company proposes to renovate two of the buildings on-site now and add a third structure, a covered pavilion with a stamped concrete base. The remnants of the milking shed remain on the property.

A rectangular area near the front would be the parking lot and the owners intended to use crushed rock, which means a variance will need to go in front of the city’s zoning hearing officer as a next stop.

Huffman said the maximum capacity would be 200 people. The site would have no kitchen facilities, he added. 

He said there is a big demand for such things and the city’s four hotels are nearby, as are a few restaurants. 

Huffman said the site should be ready by Aug 1. In the meantime, they hope to add trees and other screening to enhance the site’s rustic, country appearance. 

The planning commission unanimously approved the preliminary design concept.

City Engineer Tom Cissell told Huffman that the next steps are to obtain a site plan to show the rock parking lot and its size, then a hearing with the zoning hearing officer needs to be set up. After that, it would go to the full city council in April.

The next Troy Planning Commission meeting is scheduled for April 9 at 6:30 p.m. in city hall, located at 116 E. Market St.