An Argentine tango dance studio soon will begin operating in a light-industrial building in northeast Vienna, following unanimous approval July 17 of a conditional-use permit by the Vienna Board of Zoning Appeals (BZA).
“This is a great addition to the town – something new, something different,” said BZA member Michael Gadell, who moved for the application’s approval. “As we are all aware, it does not present some of the previous problems with other businesses we’ve had in that location. I think it will be a welcome addition to our town, as well as stimulating the economy in our town.”
A portrait-photography studio operates on weekdays between 9 a.m. and 9 p.m. at the site, located at 303-C Mill St., N.E. Melody Yazdani, owner of Melody Yazdani Studios LLC, now will run Abrazo Dance Hall in the same space five or six times per month.
Operations will be from 7 p.m. to midnight one night per week for four weeks, one Saturday per month during the same hours, and one Sunday from 3 to 8 p.m. per month in the future.
Those weekday operating hours are one hour earlier and later than what was discussed at the Vienna Planning Commission’s June 26 public hearing, and the BZA also agreed to let the studio open for the additional Sunday.
The hall’s first floor will have a 432-square-foot dance floor and 600-square-foot seating area. Its mezzanine level will be used mostly for office work.
The dance hall will have a 49-customer capacity, will not serve or sell alcohol, and will be staffed by a maximum of six people, about half of whom will be dancers volunteering their time in exchange for free admission.
The BZA also approved a condition that the dance hall’s operators prohibit loitering outside the facility after hours. Vienna officials have bad memories of Bey Lounge, a nightclub that operated out of a different suite of the same building several years ago and racked up plenty of noise complaints from neighbors before the town revoked its conditional-use permit in 2019.
To reduce possible conflicts with neighboring residents, Yazdani covered the facility’s loading door with 3-inch-thick industrial sound panels and has planned other mitigation work.
“Spaces where people connect and build community are shrinking,” Yazdani said. “Loneliness is on the rise. Abrazo Dance Hall will be a sanctuary for social interaction, personal growth and cultural engagement.”
Some revenues from the dance hall will be donated to the Vienna Public Art Foundation, Yazdani told the BZA.
Vienna resident Susan White told the BZA she and her husband had organized tango dance at Colvin Run Dance Hall in Great Falls, none of which resulted in noise complaints or police intervention.
The Colvin Run site’s tango dances are quite popular and highlight the need for another such facility, said White, who also owns the Tango Boutique, which sells shoes for ballroom, tango and salsa dancing.
“A centrally located venue next to the Beltway and accessible by two Metro lines, with a little help from Uber, would greatly benefit the tango community and contribute to the local economy in Vienna,” White said.
