When family or friends who don't live in Brandermill visit this fall, where can you take them that doesn't require a member walking in beside them? For years that was a hard question on the reservoir side of Midlothian. Most of the neighborhood's fall calendar runs through the Brandermill Community Association, and that calendar is built for members.
Since Aug. 17 there has been a second answer on Chartermark Drive, just off Charter Colony Parkway. The block around it has already started acting like a neighborhood gathering spot of its own.
The association calendar runs on membership
The Brandermill Community Association runs a full late-fall lineup. Here are the access rules, since they decide who can come along.
The association's FAQ says many lifestyle events are for members only. Guests are welcome when a member accompanies them. The Fall Festival page is more direct, describing that event as open only to Brandermill residents and their guests. The association's parks are set up the same way. Its parks and playgrounds page describes the playgrounds, Sunday Park's included, as intended for residents and their guests.
Parking follows the same rule, which matters for anyone planning to meet out-of-town guests at Sunday Park. The Lower Loop at Sunday Park is resident-only parking that requires a resident hangtag, and the association says resident hangtags are not valid for guests. Brandermill isn't gated and its streets are public. Still, public streets don't give anyone access to association amenities.
This post is general information about published community rules, not legal advice. Your membership details and the association's current policies are what actually apply, so check with the BCA office if you're unsure.
Chartermark Drive has no guest list
Waters Edge Winery Midlothian sits at 2201 Chartermark Drive in Centerpointe Commons, near where Charter Colony and Brandermill parkways meet. Richmond BizSense reported that the doors officially opened Aug. 17. Husband and wife Paul and Rebecca Williams are the local franchisees.
The building is big enough to work as a neighborhood venue. The Williamses leased the 7,400-square-foot building after Titan Construction Group finished the shell for owner Riverstone Group. They then spent more than a year adding winemaking equipment, a bar, an event space, a patio and a kitchen. BizSense put total capacity at roughly 250 people, event space included. That's room for a crowd most clubhouse gatherings never reach.
The concept is an "urban winery." Waters Edge imports its grapes and juice and makes the wine on site with guests watching. When BizSense reported in September, on-site production hadn't started yet. The production room at the back of the building was built, and the winery was pouring from about 5,000 bottles shipped in ahead of time. The menu had more than 50 wines. Glasses ran about $8 to $21, and most bottles started at $30 to $40, with some going to $60 to $80. Williams singled out a Monterey County pinot noir called Brook Creek as an early favorite.
The Midlothian location is one of 14 Waters Edge sites open or coming soon in the U.S. The only other one in Virginia is in Norfolk, which is where the Williamses first found the brand.
The winery's posted hours have changed since opening, and the current Sunday listing on its website looks garbled. Check the winery's page before you drive over.
The block is already acting like one
On the night of Oct. 23, The Learning Experience, Waters Edge and Commonwealth Dentistry, the center's three open tenants, set up the whole block for a joint Trunk or Treat. A preschool, a dental office and a winery are an unlikely trio. They put on an event together anyway, two months after the newest of them opened.
The next tenant is already lined up. BizSense reported on Sept. 2 that Foxtail Coffee Co. plans to open a cafe at 2101 Chartermark Drive next year. It will be a 1,500-square-foot space with seating for about 44 people indoors, in a retail building planned for Centerpointe Commons. Franchisees Maggie Martin and Gardner Lloyd already run Foxtail's Short Pump cafe, opened in late 2024, and its Midlothian cafe, opened in 2025. Chartermark Drive will be their third local shop. The menu covers espresso, cold brew, teas, baked goods, and breakfast and lunch sandwiches.
Once Foxtail opens, the corner will have a morning stop and an evening stop next to each other.
Where the two calendars overlap, Oct. 30 through Dec. 12
Here is the late-fall schedule with both tracks combined. Association events are marked BCA and assume a member is attending or bringing guests. Winery events are run by the business, so no association membership is involved, though some sell tickets through the winery's website. The winery's online calendar currently runs only through Nov. 8.
- Friday, Oct. 30. The Movie in Sunday Park shows Casper from 6:30 to 9 p.m. Bring chairs or blankets, and popcorn is provided. RSVP is requested. BCA. The same night, Waters Edge hosts wine trivia with Jared Jones.
- Sunday, Nov. 1. Live music with Pat at Waters Edge in the afternoon and early evening. The winery recommends reservations, with a note on how close to the music you want to sit.
- Tuesday, Nov. 3. Karaoke with Chuck Carter at Waters Edge, part of its every-other-Tuesday series.
- Thursday, Nov. 5. A DIY wood sign workshop at Waters Edge, led by Lindsey of Sweet September Lane.
- Friday, Nov. 6. Trivia with Al Morgan at North Beach Clubhouse, 7 to 9 p.m. It's free with sign-up. BCA.
- Sunday, Nov. 8. Live music with Pat returns to Waters Edge. Reservations are recommended.
- Through Friday, Nov. 20. The Thanksgiving food drive, run with Brandermill Church, takes donations at the BCA office. It began Oct. 26.
- Thursday, Dec. 3. The Jingle Bell Celebration at Harbour Pointe Clubhouse, 5 to 8 p.m., costs $4 per family. Families attend during assigned time slots, and the association says it can't accommodate early or late arrivals. Expect Santa, hot cocoa, ornament crafts and letters to Santa. BCA.
- Saturday, Dec. 12. The Tacky Sweater 5K at Sunday Park starts at 8:30 a.m. with a $3 entry fee. BCA.
Look at Oct. 30 and the stretch from Nov. 5 to Nov. 6. On Halloween eve, the outdoor movie and the winery's trivia evening fall on the same Friday, so a household with mixed plans can split up between them. The following week has evening events two nights in a row, Thursday's workshop at the winery and Friday's clubhouse trivia. If your guests are coming without a member on one of those nights, the Nov. 5 workshop at the winery is the one that doesn't require association membership.
Dinner on the Hull Street side
On nights when the plan is food first, Charred Swift Creek at 13451 Hull Street Road is a locally owned restaurant a short drive from the reservoir. Its website takes reservations and online orders. The Waters Edge kitchen was still running a small menu during its soft launch. That makes Charred an easy dinner before the Nov. 1 or Nov. 8 music afternoons, or before a Friday evening at Sunday Park.
Ronda and the team at Bradley Real Estate keep an eye on what opens and changes along Charter Colony Parkway, from new storefronts at Centerpointe Commons to how that kind of growth affects the homes around it. If you live near the reservoir and want to know what this corner's growth means for your home's value, schedule a consultation and we'll go over it together.
