[Added 1-8-2019 by Ord.
No. 18-26]
A. General standards:
(1)
All waste discharge shall be disposed of in a sewage system
that the Environmental Health Division of the Virginia Department
of Health has approved.
(2)
The mobile food unit operator shall provide trash receptacles
and shall ensure that trash is properly removed from the site.
(3)
The operator shall comply with the provisions of Article
IV ("Noise") of Chapter
218 of this Code and all other legal requirements.
(4)
All mobile food units shall be parked a minimum of 100 feet
from any residence.
(5)
As part of the application for the permit discussed in Subsection
A(6) below, a real property owner or tenant desiring to allow at least one mobile food unit on a parcel shall pay a fee of $100 regardless of the number of mobile food units which will operate.
[Amended 5-18-2021 by Ord. No. 21-11]
(6)
Whenever a real property owner or tenant desires to allow at
least one mobile food unit on a parcel, the property owner or tenant
shall apply for and obtain a permit from the Department of Planning
and Community Development. Application for a permit shall be made
on a form the Department prepares, and the applicant shall provide
all information the form requests. The Director of the Department,
or his designee, has total discretion to determine the number of mobile
food units to be allowed on a parcel and whether to approve the permit;
and there shall be no appeal from such a decision.
[Amended 5-18-2021 by Ord. No. 21-11]
(7) The Director of the Department of Planning and Community Development,
or his designee, shall specify, on an approved permit, the permit's
duration, which shall not exceed three months. Once a permit expires,
the real property owner or tenant may apply for a new permit; and
the Director of the Department shall have total discretion to determine
the number of mobile food units to be allowed on a parcel and whether
to approve the permit.
[Added 5-18-2021 by Ord. No. 21-11]
(8)
If a mobile food unit operator fails to obey a requirement in
a permit, the Director or his designee is authorized to revoke the
permit or deny any future application for a permit made by a real
property owner or tenant that includes the same mobile food unit operator.
[Amended 5-18-2021 by Ord. No. 21-11]
(9)
No mobile food unit shall operate between the hours of 10:00
p.m. and 6:00 a.m. of any day.
[Added 5-18-2021 by Ord. No. 21-11]
(10)
Each mobile food unit shall be allowed to have signs that are
attached to the unit and one detached temporary freestanding sign.
The freestanding sign shall not exceed 10 square feet in area and
may be on the site only when the mobile food unit is open for business.
[Added 5-18-2021 by Ord. No. 21-11]
(11)
Each mobile food unit shall be on site only when the unit is
open for business.
[Added 5-18-2021 by Ord. No. 21-11]
B. Where allowed:
(1)
Subject to compliance with the provisions of this section, mobile food units shall be allowed for all use types specified in Article
II of this chapter, except for residential use types.
[Amended 5-18-2021 by Ord. No. 21-11]
(2)
Exception for homeowners. The owner of a home in a residential
zoning district is authorized to have one or more mobile food units
at his home for noncommercial uses. Such a homeowner shall be exempt
from this section's requirements, except that he shall not violate
any federal, state, or local law.
(3)
City-owned property. The Director of the Department of Recreation
and Parks is authorized to allow mobile food units on City-owned real
property for specific events, and the Director shall impose those
requirements on mobile food units that he deems reasonable and necessary.
[Added 12-13-2016 by Ord.
No. 16-24]
A. General standards.
(1)
One private farmers' market is allowed on a lot or parcel.
(2)
A private farmers' market must be at least 1/2 mile from any
other private farmers' market, regardless of days of operation.
(3)
A private farmers' market must have a minimum of five vendors
present as averaged over the season the market is in operation.
(4)
Market size is limited to no more than 30 vendors on-site at
any one time.
(5)
All vendors at the market must display the name(s) of the producer(s)
and the location(s) where goods were grown, raised or produced.
(6) There may be no more than three mobile food units, which shall not be included in the calculations specified in Subsection
A(3) and
(4).
[Added 11-14-2017 by Ord.
No. 17-25]
(7)
The market may be advertised by a temporary banner sign of no
greater than 32 square feet in area that may be displayed on market
days and the day before market days. The location of the banner and
how the banner will be displayed shall be shown in the market plan.
The banner shall be on the parcel where the market is conducted and
cannot be in the City right-of-way. The banner for the private farmers'
market shall not be considered as temporary signage allowed by the
commercial uses on the same parcel.
(8)
Market facilities shall be temporary in nature and use the existing
parking and infrastructure of the site.
(9)
All market materials shall be removed at the conclusion of the
market day.
(10)
A market plan shall be submitted to the Administrator for review
and approval prior to the market's opening. The plan shall be updated
in March of each calendar year and at any time during the year when
a change in the vendor list occurs. The market plan shall include
the following:
(a) Written permission from the property owner(s),
executed on a form the Administrator prepares, which shall include
provisions holding the City harmless and indemnifying the City from
any damages or losses.
(b) The name and contact information for the private
farmers' market contact person.
(c) The proposed layout of the private farmers' market,
including, booth locations, mobile food unit locations, signage, vendor
parking, access for vendors and patrons, trash collection locations,
and adequate safety measures to separate market patrons from vehicular
traffic. Any parking intended to specifically serve the private farmers'
market on market days must be shown on the market plan.
[Amended 11-14-2017 by Ord. No. 17-25]
(d) A list of all vendors which includes vendor name,
products sold, and contact information.
(e) An assessment of the existing and required parking
for the on-site commercial uses and the number of parking spaces unavailable
during market operations. Private farmers' markets may occupy required
parking but shall not have such an impact as to create traffic safety
or circulation problems or negatively impact the parking for existing
commercial uses on the property.
(f) A schedule of operation to include number of weeks,
day, and hours. These may be modified as needed with a two-week written
notice to the Administrator.
[Added 12-12-2023 by Ord. No. 23-21]
A. Intent. These regulations are adopted to preserve the residential
character of the City's neighborhoods; to prevent any potential
negative impact by short-term rentals; and to preserve the quality
and quantity of other residences for year-round residential use. No
more than 5% of the total number of units within a neighborhood are
allowed to operate as a short-term rental dwelling during a calendar
year. For the purposes of these regulations, "neighborhood" shall
mean each of the neighborhoods identified in the City's most
recently approved Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Consolidated
Plan; and the Department of Planning and Community Development (the
"Department") shall maintain a map of such neighborhoods.
B. Permits. Any operator desiring to offer a dwelling as a short-term
rental shall obtain an annual permit by submitting the prerequisite
form (the "Application") to the Department. The application fee for
the annual permit shall be $500. The applicant shall state on the
application whether the short-term rental shall be hosted or non-hosted
and shall provide the responsible party's contact information,
including name, address, telephone number, and email address. The
Department shall review the completed application within 30 days of
the Department's receipt of a complete application. Application
approval shall be based on the dwelling meeting certain criteria described
in this section to operate as a short-term rental. If denied, the
Department shall provide the applicant, in writing, with the reason
or reasons for the denial. Any operator who offers his property as
a short-term rental without an approved permit shall be assessed a
$500 civil penalty per violation until the operator has an approved
annual permit or ceases operation of the use. The $500 per violation
penalty shall be assessed for every seven days the short-term rental
operates without a valid permit and the penalty shall be paid at the
time of application for a short-term rental dwelling annual permit
before the application is processed.
C. Inspection of the property. After the Department receives a completed
application, and as part of the application review process, the dwelling
shall be inspected by the Administrator, the Building Official, and
the Fire Marshal, or their designees, for compliance with the applicable
regulations of the Uniform Statewide Building Code, Fire Prevention
Code, and this Chapter. The following criteria must be met for a dwelling
to be approved as a short-term rental:
i.
Smoke and carbon monoxide detectors must be installed and functioning
in areas specified in applicable law.
ii.
All windows or doors must operate as designed.
iii.
No basement space shall be used as a sleeping area unless there
are properly-functioning windows or doors that conform to applicable
law.
iv.
A functional fire extinguisher shall be installed and visible
in any kitchen area.
v.
There shall be no building code or property maintenance violations.
vi.
There must be at least one off-street parking space for tenants
to use per short-term rental dwelling.
D. Permit renewals. Each permit issued shall be valid for one calendar
year upon approval, from January 1 to December 31, and must be renewed
annually along with the payment of the $500 permit fee. An application
may be only for the current or upcoming calendar year and may not
be submitted more than six months in advance of the upcoming calendar
year. Approval of a short-term rental dwelling is owner-specific;
and any change of ownership shall require a new application, permit
fee, and inspection. It is the owner's responsibility to submit
the application to the City at least 30 days in advance of the expiration
date to receive approval to renew the permit to continue operating
the short-term rental. Operation of a short-term rental without a
valid permit is considered a violation of this ordinance.
E. Prohibition of rental activity. Any operator shall be prohibited
from offering a property for short-term rental upon violations on
more than three occasions of applicable State or local law. Also,
the Administrator shall revoke the permit of any operator who has
committed multiple violations on more than three occasions of such
law. Once revoked, the operator is not eligible for a new permit for
a period of one year from the date of permit revocation.
F.
Conditions for operating a short-term
rental dwelling. The following conditions apply for all short-term
rental dwellings operating in the City:
(1)
Transient lodging tax. All short-term rentals are required to comply with the charging, collection, and reporting of the transient lodging tax as set forth in Article
VIII of Chapter
258 of this Code.
(2)
Hosted or non-hosted. All short-term rentals must meet the definition of either hosted or non-hosted defined in §
286-202.10.
(3)
Maximum and minimum days to rent. A short-term rental dwelling
shall not be rented for more than 180 days per calendar year, and
the minimum rental period shall be one full-day per rental contract.
The operator must keep complete records of the number of days the
short-term rental dwelling is rented as such for the preceding year
and submit such records to the Administrator upon request and upon
application to renew an existing short-term rental permit. Exceeding
the allowed number of days the short-term rental is rented as such
and inaccurate and/or falsified reporting of the number of days a
short-term rental is rented is cause for denial of any request for
permit renewal for the upcoming calendar year.
(4)
Responding to emergencies. Either the homeowner or his designated
agent must be available to respond to emergencies or complaints promptly.
(5)
No renting to minors. At least one member of every rental party
must be an adult. No operators shall enter into a contract for a short-term
rental dwelling with any person younger than 18 years of age.
(6)
Prohibition against multiple tenancy. An operator is prohibited
from having in effect at the same time more than one short-term rental
contract per parcel for the same rental period, regardless of the
number of structures on the parcel.
(7)
Maximum number of guests. Occupancy of any short-term rental
dwelling shall not exceed a number equal to twice the number of bedrooms
in the dwelling up to a maximum of six guests.
(8)
Unauthorized uses. No short-term rental shall offer, provide,
or allow any commercial use or event, including but not limited to,
parties, banquets, weddings, receptions, meetings, or film productions.
The short-term rental dwelling shall not be used for a family day
home, group home, or assisted living home.
(9)
No on-site signs. No signs shall be posted on the site advertising
the property as a short-term rental.
(10)
Posting of information inside the short-term rental dwelling.
The property owner must conspicuously post the following information
inside any short-term rental dwelling prior to operating as a short-term
rental:
(b) The name, physical address, telephone number(s),
and email address of the property owner or his/her agent responsible
for responding to emergencies and complaints;
(c) Instructions for emergency shut-off of gas, electricity,
and water, including the locations of gas and water valves and circuit
breakers;
(d) The identification and location of emergency exits;
(e) Recycling and solid waste collection schedules;
(f) Section
218-4 of the Colonial Heights City Code, "Loud noise prohibited"; and
(g) Instructions to dial 9-1-1 in case of an emergency.
(11)
Pets. The property owner shall decide whether renters are allowed to bring pets; however, the number and type of pets must comply with Chapter
98 of the City Code and the total shall include the number of pets on the premises, including any owned by the operator.