Couples hearing wedding bells now have another venue option for their big day.
The Jefferson County Council gave final approval for Romaine Valley Weddings & Events to build an event hall, guest cottages and parking to be used for weddings, corporate functions and other special events.
The event hall and chapel are to be built at 1676 Romaine Creek Road in the Fenton area in Council District 2, which Councilman Billy Crow of Arnold represents. Kevin Lashley owns the business with his wife, Elle, and their church friends, Robert and Michelle McManus, who own McManus Construction.
Kevin Lashley said they plan to break ground in mid-March, with the hall opening for events in the fall.
“We are super excited to have finally been granted rezoning and are excited for the next steps in the development of Romaine Valley,” he said. “We are grateful for the amazing County Council members who supported us through this process and ensure we are set up for success as a small business in Jefferson County.”
The council voted 4-1 on Feb. 10 to approve the rezoning petition and development plan for the event hall. Councilman Charles Groeteke (District 4, Barnhart) cast the lone dissenting vote, and Councilmen Brian Haskins (District 1, High Ridge) and Scott Seek (District 5, Festus) were absent from the meeting.
As part of that vote, the council rezoned 5 acres of a 44-acre property where the event hall will sit from single-family residential to a planned mixed zone district. The bill also included an amendment Councilwoman Lori Arons (District 3, Imperial) brought forward that expands the business’ hours of operation. The Jefferson County Planning and Zoning Commission previously recommended to the council that the event hall have shorter hours during the weekdays.
The amendment allows the event venue to operate from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sundays through Thursdays, rather than the commission’s recommendation that the hall close at 6 p.m. The hall will be open from 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. on Friday and Saturday.
The approved bill also included a commission recommendation to prohibit the hall from playing music outdoors.
Groeteke said he voted to deny the wedding and event hall due to Aron’s amendment on the hours of operation.
“I didn’t agree with the amendment about extending the hours of operation, Sunday through Thursday, three to four hours each evening,” Groeteke said. “My first concern with these things is always the residents because that area is fairly rural, and the residents living in the area, I’m sure they’re not aware of the increase in hours. My first consideration of these things is the people who live there.”
Crow thanked the owners of the venue for bringing the event and wedding hall to the county.
“I really appreciate small businesses like this being in our community,” he said. “I want to thank Mrs. Arons for her amendment to be able to open the hours of operation up a little more generally, and hopefully, we can encourage more small businesses like this in our community.”
Hall details
The event hall can accommodate 300 people in banquet-style seating and 600 in cocktail-style seating, according to the Romaine Valley website. In addition to the 6,400 square-foot grand hall for wedding receptions and large gatherings, the venue will have a separate chapel and two suites for wedding parties to prepare for the ceremony.
Six short-term stay cottages for wedding parties, which range from 500-750 square feet and allow a five-day maximum stay are included in the business plan.
Lashley said the cottages will be built at a later stage of the development process.
“(The cottages) are not something we’re looking to rent out outside of the hours of the wedding; it will not turn into an Airbnb,” he said. “We feel it’s very important to be able to offer a place for out-of-town family members to come and stay and be a part of their family member’s wedding.”
Lashley said he has received many inquiries from couples looking to hold their weddings at Romaine Valley in 2026 but has not taken an official booking.
“We’re hopeful that once we break ground, the project will become more of a reality to the public and people will begin booking and planning their dream wedding at Romaine Valley,” he said.
For more information, visit romainevalley.com.