As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
A place where livestock is slaughtered and prepared for distribution
to butcher shops and food markets.
A subordinate structure customarily incidental to and located
upon the same lot occupied by the main structure.
[Amended 5-16-2001]
A subordinate use or structure customarily incidental to
and located upon the same lot occupied by the main use or building.
[Amended 5-16-2001]
The manufacturing and/or processing of caustic substances
or materials such as acid.
A parcel of land, regardless of area, described by metes
and bounds which is not a numbered lot on any recorded subdivision
plat.
Any construction which increases the area or cubic content
of a building or structure.
Nearby, but not necessarily touching or contiguous.
Touching; abutting; contiguous.
The official charged with the enforcement of this chapter.
An animal that is of mature breeding age according to species
and gender.
[Amended 4-20-2022 by Ord. No. 22-007]
A facility where four or more individuals are cared for by
another individual.
The tilling of the soil, the raising of crops, horticulture,
forestry and livestock, not including packaging plants, processing
plants, mills, wholesale or retail sales of goods produced off-site,
or intensive agriculture. The raising of livestock shall be permitted
only on a farm.
[Amended 3-19-1997; 4-20-2022 by Ord. No. 22-007]
Those agricultural operations where concentrated numbers
of agricultural animals are confined to a relatively small space including
such operations as swine, veal, sheep and poultry houses or pens,
feedlots for beef, sheep and other animals, dairy farming operations,
and livestock markets. For the purpose of this chapter, any enclosed
field, range, pen or building where more than 300 animal units are
confined or housed for more than 45 days in any twelve-month period
shall constitute intensive agriculture.
Agricultural activities in which there is no more than one
animal unit per acre excluding swine and poultry, and no more than
one animal unit per five acres for swine and poultry.
A waste reformation facility in which agricultural and/or
other organic waste is collected, processed, and converted into sources
of energy and agriculturally beneficial materials, such as liquid
fertilizer, soil amendment, and/or animal bedding using the process
of anaerobic codigestion.
[Added 3-15-2023 by Ord. No. 23-01]
See "agriculture, intensive."
[Amended 4-20-2022 by Ord. No. 22-007]
Any place where aircraft may takeoff or land and discharge
or receive cargoes and/or passengers; may include repair, fueling
or storage of aircraft.
A public way which affords only a secondary means of access
to property abutting thereon.
Any change in the total floor area, use, adaptability or
external appearance of an existing structure.
An outdoor commercial recreational area of a permanent nature
offering amusements, diversions and entertainments, whether operated
seasonally or continually.
A person or corporation which possesses or controls animal
manure/waste that is not generated on an animal feeding operation
under its control and which transfers or hauls the animal manure/waste
to other persons for lawful uses such as land application for the
fertilization of crops or other lawful disposition. Such brokers are
required to comply with applicable state regulations and have a business
license to locate such business within the County.
[Amended 10-20-2010]
A place in which older furniture and artifacts are sold on-site;
may include furniture refinishing for on-site sales.
A part of a building containing cooking and housekeeping
facilities consisting of a room or suite of rooms intended, designed
or used for residence by an individual or a single-family.
A building used or intended to be used as the residence of
three or more families living independently of each other.
The raising of bees, and their by-products, for commercial
purposes.
A building or portion of a building in which facilities are
provided for civic, educational, political, religious, or social purposes.
[Added 5-19-2021 by Ord.
No. 2021-007]
See "livestock market."
An establishment, not including community centers and publicly
owned buildings, within which objects of art, furniture and other
goods, not including livestock, are offered for sale to persons who
bid on the object in competition with each other.
See "junkyard."
Any lot or place which is exposed to the weather upon which
more than five motor vehicles of any kind, without current state inspection
stickers, County stickers or state vehicle tags, are placed, located
or found.
Establishments primarily engaged in furnishing automotive
repair of an intensive nature such as general repairs, paint, or body
shops, machine shops, vulcanizing shops, radiator repair shops, and
engine and transmission repair shops.
Any place of business with pumps and underground storage
tanks having as its purpose the dispensing of motor vehicle fuels
and lubricants and/or the servicing of motor vehicles, including minor
repairs and inspections incidental thereto but not including a general
repair shop, paint or body shop, machine shop, vulcanizing shop, or
any operation requiring the removal or installation of radiators,
engines, cylinder heads, crankcases, transmissions, differentials,
fenders, doors, bumpers, grills, glass or other body parts or any
body repairing or painting. The term shall not include truck stops.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency designated 100-year
water surface elevation.
A flood that, on the average, is likely to occur once every
100 years (i.e., that has a 1% chance of occurring each year, although
the flood may occur in any year).
A story having more than 1/2 of its height below grade.
(Also see "country inn.") A dwelling unit occupied by its
owners where no more than seven rooms are rented out to travelers
for compensation without a provision for cooking in the rooms and
where meals may be served to those guests who are renting rooms.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
The Board appointed to review appeals made by individuals
with regard to decisions of the Zoning Administrator in the interpretation
of this chapter.
A building where, for compensation, lodging and meals are
provided for at least five persons and up to 14 persons.
A closed vessel in which water is heated, steam is generated,
steam is superheated, or any combination thereof, under pressure or
vacuum for use externally to itself by the direct application of heat
from the combustion of fuels or from electricity. The term "boiler"
shall include fired units for heating or vaporizing liquids other
than water where these units are separate from processing systems
and are complete within themselves.
A strip of land with existing vegetation retained and supplemented
as required with trees/shrubs and maintained as undeveloped space
along a stream bank, shoreline, or other environmental feature for
protection purposes or along the perimeter of a parcel to provide
transition and separation, to reduce noise and glare and to partially
obstruct the view between adjacent land uses or properties. Buffers
may be included within required yards.
[Amended 9-15-2004]
Any structure having a roof supported by columns or walls,
built for the support, shelter or enclosure of persons, animals, chattels
or property of any kind, except a tent, travel trailer, or motor home.
The vertical distance measured from the level of the curb
or the established curb grade opposite the middle of the front of
the structure to the highest point of the roof if a flat roof; to
the deckline of a mansard roof; or to the mean height level between
the eaves and ridges of a gable, hip or gambrel roof. For buildings
set back from the street line, the height shall be measured from the
average elevation of the ground surface along the front of the building.
A building in which is conducted the principal use of the
lot on which it is located.
When a parcel of land is used for the storage of bulk animal manure/waste prior to land application or other lawful disposition of such waste on another property (i.e., a site used by an animal manure/waste broker for off-site storage of animal manure/waste generated from an intensive animal confinement facility or other agricultural production). Land used as an intensive animal confinement facility is not an animal manure/waste storage site for the purposes of this chapter, and shall be governed by Article XXIII, or other applicable provisions contained herein. Such sites shall be compliant with all applicable local, state and federal laws and regulations. "Bulk animal manure/waste storage" shall only include sites where 10 or more tons of transferred (generated off-site) waste is stored in any consecutive 365-day period.
[Amended 10-20-2010]
See "tourist court."
Any individual who occupies a campsite or otherwise assumes
charge of or is placed in charge of a campsite.
A plot of land on which two or more campsites are located,
established or maintained for occupancy by camping units of the general
public as temporary living quarters for recreation, education or vacation
purposes.
Any tent, travel trailer, cabin, lean-to, or similar structure
established or maintained and operated in a campground as temporary
living quarters for recreation, education or vacation purposes.
Any plot of ground in a campground intended for the exclusive
occupancy by a camping unit or units under the control of a camper.
A story having more than 1/2 of its height below grade and
which may not be occupied for dwelling purposes.
The processing and/or refinement of materials to produce
such products as cement, gypsum, plaster, plaster of Paris, fertilizer
and lime.
Land used for the burial of the dead, and dedicated for cemetery
purposes, including columbariums and mausoleums when operated in conjunction
with and within the boundary of such cemetery.
Official notification that a structure conforms to the provisions
of this chapter and the Building Code and may be occupied or used
for the purpose(s) permitted by the applicable provisions of this
chapter.
Any use which substantially differs from the previous use
of building or land.
A structure either wholly or partially used for the temporary
care and lodging, for compensation, of young children. Three types
of child-care centers are:
HOME CAREUse of the residential structure or part thereof for the temporary lodging and care of not more than four children for compensation.
DAY-CARE CENTERA structure utilized for the temporary care of children or senior adults for compensation. This use must meet state licensing requirements.
NURSERYA structure utilized for the reception, board and care for compensation of children. This use must meet state licensing requirements.
A building, together with its accessory buildings and uses,
where persons regularly assemble for religious worship, and which
building, together with its accessory buildings and uses, is maintained
and controlled by a religious body organized to conduct public worship.
A plot of land on which two or more camping units are located,
established or maintained for occupancy as temporary living quarters
for recreation, education, or vacation purposes. May include a building
with one or more accessory structures or uses where persons may assemble
for religious worship. Such land, buildings and/or accessory structures
shall be owned, maintained and controlled by a recognized nonprofit
religious body organized to conduct public worship.
An office building or a group of offices for one or more
physicians, dentists, or similar medical practitioners engaged in
treating the sick or injured, but not including rooms for abiding
patients.
A group of people organized for a common purpose to pursue
common goals, interests or activities and usually characterized by
certain membership qualifications, payment of fees and dues, regular
meetings, and a constitution and bylaws.
A building or portion thereof used by a club.
Buildings and facilities owned or operated by a charitable
chartered nonprofit corporation, fraternal organization or civic services
associations primarily for social, educational or recreational purposes
and which may not be operated primarily for a profit.
A development pattern in which residential uses are grouped
together, leaving portions of the land undeveloped. Except as specifically
noted, the density provisions remain the same while the area regulations
may be reduced to permit residential land to be used as common open
and undeveloped land.
See "amusement park."
The Planning Commission of Amelia County, Virginia.
All land within a subdivision or townhouse development excluding
public streets and rights-of-way and private lots held either by the
owner/developer or an individual nonprofit corporate owner whose members
shall be all property owners within the subdivision or townhouse development.
A general plan for the development of a tract, submitted
as part of a Zoning Map amendment application ("rezoning"), and binding
for the general future development of the property upon approval of
the zoning amendment application.
See "special exception."
A rezoning procedure authorized by § 15.2-2296
et seq,, Code of Virginia 1950, as amended, which allows the applicant
to voluntarily propose (proffer) conditions that limit or qualify
how their property may be used.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
A building or part thereof that contains sleeping units where
residents (12 maximum) share bathroom and/or kitchen facilities.
The recorded grant of property rights establishing limitations
that run with the land that prohibit subdivision or non-farm development
on the tract other than one single-family dwelling. Such easements
shall be held jointly by at least two of the following entities: the
County, a homeowners' association, by the Commonwealth of Virginia,
or by a designated conservation organization approved by the County
and authorized to hold easements by state law, Title 10.1, Virginia
Conservation Easement Act, Code of Virginia.
[Amended 9-15-2004]
Touching, abutting, adjoining.
A single store, the ground floor area of which is 4,000 square
feet or less and which offers for sale, primarily, most of the following
articles: bread, milk, cheese, canned and bottled foods and drinks,
tobacco products, candy, paper and magazines, and general hardware
articles. Gasoline may also be offered for sale and living quarters
for owner or manager may be allowed but only as a secondary activity
of the country general store.
(Also see "bed-and-breakfast" and "hotel.") A building designed
or occupied as the temporary abiding place for not more than 14 individuals
who are lodged for compensation, with or without meals, and in which
provision is not made for cooking in individual rooms or suites.
A dead-end street with an appropriate turnaround that affords
safe and convenient movement of traffic.
A service provided to area residents where game and livestock
meat is killed, cut, dressed and packaged. The meat is not sold commercially
from the custom meat cutting facility and the animals staged to be
cut, dressed and packaged cannot be held for more than three days
prior to slaughter.
[Amended 9-28-2000]
A commercial establishment for the manufacture and sale of
dairy products.
See "child-care center."
The number of families, individuals, dwelling units or housing
units per unit of land.
Any man-made change to improved or unimproved real estate
including but not limited to buildings or other structures, the placement
of mobile or manufactured homes, streets and other paving, utilities,
filling, grading, excavation, mining, dredging or drilling operations.
Regulations which limit the size, bulk or siting conditions
of particular types of buildings or uses located within any designated
district or permitted as conditional uses.
Districts as referred to in the § 15.2-2280, Code
of Virginia 1950, as amended.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
A place of business being operated for the sale and purchase,
as retail, of food and other goods, services or entertainment, which
is laid out and equipped so as to allow its patrons to be served or
accommodated while remaining in their motor vehicles, or which allows
the consumption of any food or beverages in motor vehicles on the
premises or elsewhere on the premises outside of any completely enclosed
structure. If, in addition to the consumption of food and beverages
in motor vehicles or elsewhere on the premises outside of any completely
enclosed structure, an establishment also allows for the consumption
of such products within a completely enclosed structure, it shall
be considered a drive-in establishment. The term "drive-in establishment"
shall include, but is not limited to, drive-in restaurants, diners,
grills, luncheonettes, sandwich stands, short-order cafes, theaters,
service stations and motor vehicle laundries.
A private roadway providing access for vehicles to a parking
space, garage, dwelling or other structure.
A disposal site or other repository for solid waste for more
than 30 days that is greater than 100 square feet in area, which is
unregulated and unlicensed by the Commonwealth of Virginia and/or
operated without daily compaction or cover of the solid waste. "Dump
heap" shall not apply to a junkyard.
Any building, or portion thereof, providing complete independent
permanent facilities for living, sleeping, eating and sanitation,
designated for or used exclusively as living quarters by one family,
but not including a tent, cabin, travel trailer, motor home or a room
in a hotel or motel.
A building containing three or more dwelling units (an apartment
house) with the number of families in residence not exceeding the
number of dwelling units provided.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
A permanent structure arranged or designed to be occupied
by one family, the structure having only one dwelling unit.
One of a series of three or more attached dwelling units
separated from one another by continuous vertical walls without openings
from basement floor to roof.
A structure arranged or designed to be occupied by two families,
the structure having only two dwelling units.
When a parcel of land is used for the storage of animal manure/waste,
not for the purposes of brokerage of such waste, but for the purposes
of land application or other lawful disposition of such waste on property
owned, operated or leased by the person temporarily storing such waste.
Such storage shall not be considered "end user" if it occurs more
than 120 days in any consecutive twelve-month period on any single
parcel, and in such instance shall be subject to the regulations applicable
to bulk animal manure/waste storage. Such sites shall be compliant
with all applicable local, state and federal laws and regulations.
[Amended 10-20-2010]
The use of a lot or structure at the time of enactment of
the applicable provisions of this chapter.
Any construction or land disturbance which either increases
the area or cubic content of a building or structure or which increases
the land area which is disturbed, cleared, graded, paved or otherwise
improved for broader or more intensive use.
One or more individuals occupying a premises and living in
a single dwelling unit, as distinguished from an unrelated group occupying
a boardinghouse, lodging house, tourist home or hotel. The term shall
include unrelated persons occupying a single dwelling unit if the
number of such unrelated persons does not exceed four.
A parcel, or contiguous parcels, of land containing 10 acres
or more, used for agriculture.
[Amended 3-19-1997]
Any building or structure used for agricultural purposes.
A relatively small confined land area for fattening cattle
or holding temporarily for shipment.
Any building used primarily by state-regulated businesses
such as banks, savings-and-loans, credit unions, loan companies and
investment companies.
A temporary market made up of individual sellers of crafts,
produce, used merchandise, antiques and/or other collectable items.
A general and temporary condition of partial or complete inundation
of normally dry land areas from:
The overflow of inland or tidal waters;
The unusual and rapid accumulation or runoff of surface water
from any source;
Mud slides (i.e., mud flows) which are proximately caused by
flooding as defined in Subsection A(2) of this definition and are
akin to a river of liquid and flowing mud on the surfaces of normally
dry land areas, as when earth is carried by a current of water and
deposited along the path of the current.
The collapse or subsidence of land along the shore of a lake
or other body of water as a result of erosion or undermining caused
by waves or currents of water exceeding anticipated cyclical levels
or suddenly caused by an unusually high water level in a natural body
of water, accompanied by a severe storm, or by an unanticipated force
of nature, such as a flash flood or by some similarly unusual and
unforeseeable event which results in flooding as defined in Subsection
A(1) of this definition.
Any land area susceptible to being inundated by water from
any source.
The designated area of the floodplain required to carry and
discharge floodwaters of a given magnitude. For the purpose of this
chapter, the floodway shall be capable of accommodating a flood of
the 100-year magnitude.
The operation of timber tracts, tree farms, forest nurseries,
or the gathering of forest products.
The minimum width of a lot measured from one side lot line
to the other along a straight line on which no point shall be farther
away from the street upon which the lot fronts than the building setback
line as defined and required herein.
An establishment that provides human funeral services, including
embalming and memorial services. Crematories are accessory uses to
a funeral home.
[Added 1-19-2022 by Ord.
No. 21-010]
Accessory building designed or used for the storage of not
more than three automobiles owned or used by the occupants of the
building to which it is an accessory. On a lot occupied by a multiple-unit
dwelling, the private garage may be designed and used for storage
of 1 1/2 times as many automobiles as there are dwelling units.
A building or portion thereof, other than a private garage,
designed or used for servicing, repairing, equipping, renting, selling,
or storing motor vehicles.
Any tract of land, publicly or privately owned, on which
the game of golf is played, including accessory uses and buildings
customary thereto, but excluding golf driving ranges as defined herein.
A limited area on which golf players do not walk, but onto
which they drive golf balls from a central driving tee.
The Board of Supervisors of Amelia County, Virginia.
Grade or grade elevation shall be determined by averaging
the elevations of the finished ground adjacent to all the corners
and/or other principal parts in the perimeter wall of the building.
A strip of land planted with evergreen trees, established
to protect one type of land use from another with which it may be
incompatible.
Any building or structure that is used to grow plants, flowers
or shrubs on a year-round basis for retail, commercial production
or sale.
A special care human services facility that provides for
the special care/residential needs of the physically challenged and
individuals with mental illness, intellectual disability, or developmental
disabilities not related by blood or marriage. A group home for up
to eight individuals with mental illness, intellectual disability,
or developmental disabilities, with staff, shall be considered as
a single-family dwelling.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
Any structure that is:
Listed individually on the National Register of Historic Places
(a listing maintained by the Department of the Interior) or preliminarily
determined by the Secretary of the Interior as meeting the requirements
for individual listing on the National Register;
Certified or preliminarily determined by the Secretary of the
Interior as contributing to the historic significance of a registered
historic district or a district preliminarily determined by the Secretary
of the Interior to qualify as a registered historic district; or
Individually listed on the Virginia Register of Historic Places
(a listing maintained by the Virginia Department of Historic Resources).
See "child-care center."
An occupation conducted in a dwelling unit, provided that:
[Amended 4-20-2005]
In the R-1, R-2, MHP, MHS, and ER-1 Districts, no person other
than members of the family residing on the premises shall be engaged
in such occupation at the site. In A-5, RP-5 and RR-3 Districts, one
outside employee may be engaged in the occupation at the site.
In the R-1, R-2, MHP, MHS and ER-1 Districts, the use of the
dwelling unit or accessory building, or both, for the home occupation
shall be clearly incidental and subordinate to its use for residential
purposes by its occupants, and not more than 25% of the floor area
of the dwelling unit, or of the accessory building, or of the dwelling
unit and accessory building combined, shall be used in the conduct
of the home occupation, provided that, when the combined floor area
of the dwelling unit and accessory building is used as the basis of
computation, no more than 25% of the dwelling unit floor area may
be used for the home occupation, but up to 100% of the accessory floor
area may be so used. In the A-5, RP-5 and RR-3 Districts, the home
occupation may be conducted in an accessory building that is up to
1,500 square feet in size.
There shall be no change to the outside appearance of the dwelling
unit or premises, or other visible evidence of the conduct of such
home occupation other than one sign, not exceeding four square feet
in area, nonilluminated and mounted flat against the wall of the dwelling
unit.
No traffic shall be generated by such home occupation in greater
volume than would normally be expected in a residential neighborhood.
Any needed parking generated by a home occupation shall be met
by off-street parking and other than in the required front yard.
No equipment or process shall be used in a home occupation which
creates noise, vibration, glare, fumes, odors or electrical interference
detectable by the normal senses off the lot. In the case of electrical
interference, no equipment or process shall be used which creates
visual or audible interference in any radio or television receivers
off the premises or causes fluctuation in line voltage off the premises.
Auto, motorcycle, truck, etc., repair shops are prohibited.
Roadside vegetable or fruit stands for sale of vegetables or
fruits produced by the roadside stand operator will be allowed in
agricultural district zones, provided off-street parking is provided.
Roadside parking is prohibited.
A nonprofit organization operating under recorded land agreements
through which:
[Amended 9-15-2004]
Each lot and/or homeowner in a development is automatically
a member;
Each lot is automatically subject to a charge for a proportionate
share of the expenses for the organization activities, such as maintaining
a common property; and
The charge if unpaid becomes a lien against the property.
An institution rendering medical, surgical, obstetrical,
or convalescent care, including nursing homes, homes for the aged
and sanitariums, but in all cases excluding rehabilitation facilities,
halfway houses, institutions for mentally ill individuals, or other
similar facilities. (Certain nursing homes and homes for the aged
may be home occupations if they comply with the definitions herein.)
[Amended 5-19-2021 by Ord. No. 2021-007]
An institution rendering care primarily for individuals with
mental illness, intellectual disability, or developmental disabilities,
alcoholics or drug-addicted patients.
[Amended 4-20-2022 by Ord. No. 22-007]
A building designed or occupied as the temporary abiding
place for 14 or more individuals who are lodged for compensation,
with or without meals, and in which provision is not generally made
for cooking in individual rooms or suites.
Those residential and other auxiliary services provided to
the physically challenged and individuals with mental illness, intellectual
disability or developmental disabilities which enable them to live
in the community.
[Amended 4-20-2022 by Ord. No. 22-007]
The science of growing plants without soil, also called "soil-less
agriculture," "nutriculture" or "chemical-culture." Operations of
this type can range in size from small pots for individual plants
to huge tanks for large scale growing. While small hydroponic gardening
operations would not pose a problem in residential areas, large ones
would require sizeable electrical generator capacity, hence the possibility
of a noise factor. Additionally, larger operations would require a
lagoon or sewage discharge facility for disposal of refuse/waste materials
and other types of pollutants.
The use of more than 200 square feet of the open area of
any lot or parcel of land for the depositing, keeping or storage of
junk, including, but not limited to, scrap metals or other scrap material,
discarded household appliances, furnishings and fixtures, dismantled
or demolished motor vehicles or other machinery or parts thereof,
or one or more motor vehicles that are inoperable and without a current
state inspection sticker, County sticker or state vehicle tags. The
term "junkyard" shall not include any of the items recited herein
which are incidental and necessary to any agricultural or industrial
use.
A place designed to house, board, breed, handle or otherwise
keep or care for dogs, four months old or older, for sale or in return
for compensation and which requires a business license to be obtained
from the Commissioner of the Revenue. Individuals that have three
or fewer litters per year may operate under the home occupation use.
[Amended 3-19-1997; 4-19-2023 by Ord. No. 23-02]
The drying of wood products in a kiln by use of fans.
One or more individuals who provide services on a farm as
an employee or hired out as a member of a crew.
A sanitary landfill, an industrial waste landfill, a construction/demolition/debris
landfill, or combination of the same, having all federal and state
permits necessary for operation in compliance with law, and which
is located, designed, constructed and operated to contain and isolate
the solid waste so that it does not pose a substantial present or
potential hazard to human health or the environment and which is operated
by means of compacting and covering solid waste at least once each
operating day.
SANITARY LANDFILLAn engineered land burial facility for the disposal of solid waste.
INDUSTRIAL WASTE LANDFILLA solid waste landfill engineered, constructed and operated primarily for the disposal of a specific industrial waste or wastes which are by-products of a production facility.
CONSTRUCTION/DEMOLITION/DEBRIS LANDFILLA land burial facility engineered, constructed and operated to contain and isolate construction waste, demolition waste, debris waste, inert waste or combinations of such solid wastes.
All divisions of land resulting in one or more lots of 40
acres or more shall be considered a large lot development.
[Amended 12-17-2003]
An establishment providing washing, drying or dry-cleaning
machines on the premises for rent to or use by the general public
for family laundering or dry-cleaning purposes.
A place where books, manuscripts, magazines, musical scores,
and other literary and artistic materials are kept for use and borrowing
and only incidentally for sale.
Domesticated animals kept for use on a farm or raised for
sale or profit. Livestock shall include, but not be limited to, pigs,
sheep, cattle, veal calves, goats, chickens and horses.
A commercial establishment wherein livestock is collected
for sale or auction.
A small shelter, or habitation, used as a temporary abode,
as in the hunting season.
A designated parcel, tract, or area of land established by
plat, subdivision, or as otherwise permitted by law, to be used, developed
or built upon.
The total area within the lot lines of a lot, excluding any
street right-of-way. In the R-1 and R-2 Districts, the total area
within the lot lines of the lot also excludes any area located within
the FEMA 100-year floodplain.
A lot which has been recorded in the Clerk's office of the
Circuit Court of Amelia County.
A lot abutting on two or more streets at their intersection.
Of the two sides of a corner lot, the front shall be deemed to be
the shortest of the two sides fronting on a street.
The average horizontal distance between the front and rear
lot lines.
Any lot other than a corner lot.
An otherwise legally platted lot that does not conform to
the minimum area or width requirements of this chapter for the district
in which it is located either on the effective date of this chapter
or as a result of subsequent amendments to this chapter.
The average horizontal distance between side lot lines.
See "principal use."
The processing and/or converting of raw, unfinished materials,
or products, or either of them, into articles or substances of different
character, or for use for different purpose.
A structure subject to federal regulations, which is transportable
in one or more sections; is eight body feet or more in width and 40
body feet or more in length in traveling mode, or 320 or more square
feet when erected on site; is built on a permanent chassis; is designed
to be used as a single-family dwelling, with or without a permanent
foundation when connected to the required facilities; and includes
the plumbing, heating, air conditioning, and electrical systems contained
in the structure. Manufactured homes shall be permitted only when
used as dwelling units.
The processing, assembling or converting of raw, unfinished
materials or products into articles or substances of different character,
or for use for a different purpose, without intensive or large-scale
use of toxic chemicals, blast furnaces or other facilities that create
large amounts of noise, odor, effluent or other substances or potential
impacts.
A grouping or cluster of individual storage units, of less
than 360 square feet in area per unit, on a single lot.
See "manufactured home."
Any parcel designed to accommodate two or more mobile homes
intended for residential use where residence is in mobile homes exclusively.
The area within a mobile home park on which an individual
mobile home may be located.
Any division of land, as defined by Chapter 314, Subdivision of Land, of the Code of Amelia County, for the intended purpose of occupation of the resultant lots by mobile homes. Each lot shall be separately owned and shall not be occupied by more than one mobile home at any one time.
An industrial building assembly consisting of two or more
standardized subassemblies including the necessary electrical, plumbing,
heating, ventilating and other service systems which are built to
the Virginia Uniform Building Code standards, manufactured off-site
and transported to the point of use for installation or erection,
to a permanent foundation, as a finished building and not designed
for removal to or installation, erection, or assembly on another site.
Modular or prefabricated housing units are allowed in any zoning district
that permits conventional dwellings.
See "tourist court."
See "tourist court."
For the purposes of determining insurance rates, structures
for which the start of construction commenced on or after the effective
date of an initial Flood Insurance Rate Map or after December 31,
1974, whichever is later, and includes any subsequent improvements
to such structures. For floodplain management purposes, "new construction"
means structures for which the start of construction commenced on
or after the effective date of a floodplain management regulation
adopted by Amelia County and includes any subsequent improvements
to such structures.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
An otherwise legal use of a building, structure or of a tract
of land that does not conform to the use regulations of this chapter
for the district in which it is located, either on the effective date
of this chapter or as a result of subsequent amendments to this chapter.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
An otherwise legal building or structure that does not conform
to the area, yard, height, coverage, or other lot regulations of this
chapter for the district in which it is located, either on the effective
date of this chapter or as a result of subsequent amendments to this
chapter.
See "child-care center."
An establishment used as a dwelling place by the aged, infirm,
chronically ill or incurable afflicted persons, in which three or
more persons live or are kept or provided for on the premises for
compensation, excluding clinics and hospitals, and similar institutions
devoted to the diagnosis, treatment and care of the sick or injured.
This use shall meet state licensing requirements.
Space provided for vehicular parking outside of the dedicated
street or road right-of-way.
Any parcel or area of land or water set aside, dedicated,
designated or reserved for public or private use or enjoyment or for
the use and enjoyment of owners and occupants of land adjoining or
neighboring such open space.
An area for the parking of a single motor vehicle.
An open space designed for the use of residents of a neighborhood
or community for passive or active recreation or for conservation
purposes which is not designed or used for commercial or business
purposes.
A small enclosure used for the concentrated confinement and/or
housing of livestock including dogs and/or fowl wherein more than
10 animals or 100 fowl are confined or housed. Enclosed pasture or
range with an excess of 150 square feet for each animal shall not
be regulated as a livestock pen.
Written governmental permission issued by an authorized official
empowering the holder thereof to do some act not forbidden by law
but not allowed without such authorization.
Any use allowed in a zoning district and subject to the restrictions
applicable to that zoning district.
Products that are derivatives of petroleum such as gasoline,
fuel oil, heating oil, kerosene, natural gas, diesel fuel and propane
(LP) gas.
A form of development which permits a variety of housing
types, density, common open space and, in specific situations, land
uses based on a development plan. The PUD permits the planning of
a project and the calculations of densities for the entire development
rather than on an individual lot-by-lot basis.
Any use allowed in a zoning district and subject to the restrictions
applicable to that zoning district.
A condition voluntarily offered by a developer that limits
or qualifies how the property in question will be used or developed.
Proffers are made under the terms of conditional zoning to lessen
the possible negative effects of an unrestricted rezoning. The conditions
proffered shall relate to the rezoning itself and shall be in accordance
with the Comprehensive Plan of Amelia County. Terms of any proffer
must be submitted, in writing, by the developer prior to a public
hearing before the governing body.
One that is owned and operated by a municipality or County
or owned and operated by a private individual or a corporation approved
by the governing body and properly licensed by the State Corporation
Commission and other applicable state agencies, and subject to special
regulations as herein set forth.
A facility for the receiving, storing and shipping of pulpwood.
A vehicle which is:
Built on a single chassis;
Four hundred square feet or less when measured at the largest
horizontal projection;
Designed to be self-propelled or permanently towable by a light-duty
truck; and
Designed primarily not for use as a permanent dwelling but as
temporary living quarters for recreational camping, travel, or seasonal
use.
Any space required in any front, side or rear yard that shall
remain without buildings.
A facility for the preparation for reuse of any recyclable
material including the sorting, processing, assembling, packaging,
baling, and storage of materials made from previously prepared basic
materials such as paper, plastic, metals and aluminum, cloth, rubber,
oils and grease, glass, wood and similar materials.
[Amended 5-16-2012]
Any building in which, for compensation, food or beverages
are dispensed for consumption on the premises, including, among other
establishments, cafes, tea rooms, confectionery shops or refreshment
stands.
A building for display and sale of merchandise at retail
or for the rendering of personal services (but specifically exclusive
of coal, wood and lumber yards), such as the following, which will
serve as illustrations: drugstores, newsstands, food stores, candy
shops, milk dispensaries, household appliance stores, furniture stores,
florists, opticians, music and radio stores, tailor shops, farm supplies,
beauty shops, barbershops and department stores.
See "street."
See "junkyard."
A portable sawmill, including chippers and debarkers, located
on private property for the processing of timber cut only from that
property or from property immediately contiguous and adjacent thereto.
A vertical barrier located so that it separates and protects
one type of land use from another. Natural or man-made materials may
be used. Examples include, but are not limited to, masonry walls,
six-foot evergreen hedge, and uniformly solid-board fence.
[Amended 9-15-2004]
A facility that is privately owned but utilized by the public,
such as a church, cemetery, etc.
The minimum distance by which any building or structure must
be separated from the front lot line.
A group of stores, shops and other commercial establishments
within a single architectural unit sharing access, parking and other
common areas.
Any display of any letters, words, numerals, figures, devices,
emblems, pictures, or any parts or combinations thereof by any means
whereby the same are made visible for the purpose of making anything
known, whether such display be made on, attached to, or as a part
of a structure, surface or any other thing, including but not limited
to the ground, any rock, tree, or other natural object, which display
is visible beyond the boundaries of the parcel of land on which the
same is made. A display of less than one square foot in area is excluded
from this definition.
The surface area of a sign which shall be computed to including
the entire area within a circle, semicircle, triangle, rectangle,
parallelogram, or trapezoid enclosing all elements of the matter displayed,
excluding frames and columns or uprights on which the sign is placed.
Only one side of a double-faced sign, whose sign faces are parallel
and are at no point more than two feet from one another, shall be
included in the computation of total sign area; for all other signs
with more than one face, each side shall be included in the computation
of total sign area.
The vertical distance from the street grade or from the average
lot grade at the required minimum front setback line for signs, whichever
allows for the greater height, to the highest point of the sign.
Includes the supports, uprights, bracing and framework of
any structure, be it single-faced, double-faced, V-type or otherwise,
exhibiting a sign.
Any sign which no longer identifies or advertises a bona
fide business, lessor, service, owner, product, or activity located,
conducted, or sold on the premises upon which such sign is located.[1]
Any sign intended to be hung either with or without frames,
possessing characters, letters, illustrations, or ornamentations applied
to paper, plastic, or fabric of any kind. National flags, flags of
political subdivisions and symbolic flags or any institution or business
flags shall not be considered banners for the purpose of this chapter.
A sign which directs attention to a product, commodity or
service available on the premises.
Any sign giving the name or names of principal contractors,
architects, engineers and landscape architects and lending institutions
responsible for construction on the site where the sign is placed.
A directional sign is one (one end of which may be pointed,
or on which an arrow may be pointed) indicating the direction to which
attention is called, is nine square feet or less in area, and gives
the name only of the farm or business responsible for the erection
of same.[2]
Any sign which is supported by structures or supports in
or upon the ground and independent of support from any building.
A sign which directs attention to a product, commodity, or
service, not necessarily available on the premises.
A sign, not exceeding four square feet in area, nonilluminated
and mounted flat against the wall of the dwelling unit directing attention
to a product, commodity or service available on the premises, but
which product, commodity or service is clearly a secondary use of
the dwelling.
A sign identifying only the name and address of the dwelling,
farm, subdivision, or planned development and/or dwelling owner or
manager.[3]
A sign which directs attention to the approximate location
of an establishment from which the product may be obtained.
[Added at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions,
Art. I)]
A sign located on a separate parcel of land from the entity
it addresses. These signs are regulated under Virginia State law through
the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT).
[Added at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions,
Art. I)]
A sign that is located on the same parcel of land as the
entity it addresses.
[Added at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions,
Art. I)]
A structure, including billboards and painted walls, used
as an outdoor display for the purpose of making anything known, with
the matter advertised or displayed not exclusively related to the
premises where such structure is located.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
Any sign used to advertise or promote the candidacy of an
individual for public office or express a personal belief or statement
of the property owner(s).
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
Any sign not permanently attached to the ground, a structure
or any other sign. Such signs are allowed for a temporary period (not
to exceed 30 days) and a separation of at least 200 feet must be maintained
between portable signs.
Any sign which extends in excess of 18 inches beyond any
vertical surface of the building which supports it.
Any sign which is used to offer for sale, lease or rent the
property upon which the sign is placed. Such signs shall be removed
within 10 days after the property is sold.
Any sign erected or constructed wholly upon and over the
roof of any building and supported solely on the roof structure. A
roof sign is further defined to be above the ridgeline of the roof
of the building.
A sign applying to a seasonal or other brief activity such
as, but not limited to, summer camps, horse shows, auctions or sale
of land.
Any sign attached to and supported by the exterior surface
of the wall of a building or structure in a place substantially parallel
to that of the supporting wall. No such business sign shall extend
or be mounted above or beyond the wall of the building.
Any sign advertising a special sale by the property owner(s).
Such signs shall not exceed six square feet in sign area and must
be removed within one week after the yard sale has been conducted.
The development plan for one or more lots on which is shown
the existing and proposed conditions of the lot, including topography,
vegetation, drainage, floodplains, marshes and waterways, open spaces,
walkways, means of ingress and egress, utility services, landscaping,
building structures and signs, lighting and screening devices, and
any other information required by the terms of this chapter.
Garbage, refuse, litter, junk and other discarded solid materials,
including, but not limited to, solid waste materials resulting from
household, industrial, commercial or agricultural operations and community
activities; yard wastes such as leaves, grass and shrubbery clippings,
tree limbs and stumps; discarded organic materials; all "garbage"
as defined in the Solid Waste Management Regulations of the Virginia
Waste Management Board; and any other materials defined or treated
as solid waste under any federal, state or local law, rule, regulation
or ordinance; provided, however, that solid waste shall not include
solid or dissolved material in domestic sewage or other significant
pollutants in water resources, such as silt, dissolved or suspended
solids in industrial wastewater effluent, dissolved materials in irrigation
return flows, or other common water pollutants.
[Amended 12-18-1996;
at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I)]
Sometimes called a conditional use permit or special use
permit. A use category wherein the governing body, on a case-by-case
basis and subject to certain conditions, allows land uses that may
have some characteristics which are incompatible with adjacent land
uses.
The date the building permit was issued, provided the actual
start of construction, repair, reconstruction, rehabilitation, addition,
placement, or other improvement was within 180 days of the permit
date. The actual start means either the first placement of permanent
construction of a structure on a site, such as the pouring of slab
or footings, the installation of piles, the construction of columns,
or any work beyond the stage of excavation, or the placement of a
manufactured home on a foundation. Permanent construction does not
include land preparation, such as clearing, grading and filling; nor
does it include the installation of streets and/or walkways; nor does
it include excavation for a basement, footings, piers, or foundations
or the erection of temporary forms; nor does it include the installation
on the property of accessory buildings, such as garages or sheds not
occupied as dwelling units or not part of the main structure. For
a substantial improvement, the actual start of construction means
the first alteration on any wall, ceiling, floor, or other structural
part of a building, whether or not the alteration affects the external
dimensions of the building.
See "retail stores and shops."
That portion of a building, other than the basement, included
between the surface of any floor and the surface of the floor next
above it. If there be no floor above it, the space between the floor
and the ceiling next above it.
A space under a sloping roof, which has the line of intersection
of roof decking and wall face not more than three feet above the top
floor level, and in which space not more than 2/3 of the floor is
finished off for use.
The center line of a street shall mean the center line thereof
as shown in any of the official records of the County, or as established
by the Virginia Department of Transportation. If no such center line
has been established, the center line of a street shall be a line
lying midway between the side lines of the right-of-way thereof.
The line between a lot, tract, or parcel of land and a contiguous
street.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
A public thoroughfare which affords principal means of access
to abutting property.
A street or road which is not dedicated to public use or
maintenance and is not a component of the state primary or secondary
road system, and which affords principal means of access to property,
but not including a driveway, farm lane or logging trail located on
property under single ownership and not used or intended for access
to existing or future development.
Any change in the supporting members of a building, including,
but not limited to, bearing walls or partitions, columns, beams, or
girders, or any substantial change in the roof or in the exterior
walls.
Anything, other than a fence, constructed or erected, the
use of which requires permanent location on the ground, or attachment
to something having a permanent location on the ground. This includes,
among other things, dwellings, buildings, signs, etc.
Any structure that is part of an industrial business or operation,
which is not designed, constructed, or intended for human habitation
or occupation.
[Amended 3-16-2011]
The partition or division of land into two or more lots,
tracts, parcels, plots, sites, areas, units, interest or other divisions
of land for the purpose, whether immediate or future, of offer, sale,
lease, transfer of ownership, building construction, development,
or any land use. Subdivision applies to all forms of development including
residential, commercial and industrial, and includes the division
of land whether by deed, contract of sale, metes and bounds description,
devise, intestacy, lease, map, plat or other instrument, or by act
of construction or land use. Subdivision includes resubdivision and,
when appropriate to the context, shall relate to the land subdivided.
[Amended 12-17-2003]
All subdivisions shall be classified as either a minor subdivision
or a major subdivision.
The term "to subdivide" shall not include:
The sale or gift of a lot or parcel of land to a member of the
immediate family of the owner(s) for the purpose of providing a residential
building site for such family member. A member of the immediate family
is limited to grandparents, parents, spouse, siblings, children and
grandchildren, natural or legal, of the owner.
The formation of individual lots, provided the deed to such
lots states that the property is to be merged with adjoining land
for the exclusive purpose of increasing land area and adjusting shape.
Properties so merged may not be considered as separate parcels and
may not be used or sold individually, unless in agreement with prevailing
County land development laws.
The formation of cemetery lots.
Partitions of land by tenants in common, joint tenants, executors
with the power to sell, and coparceners, whether by suit or by act
of the owners. However, partitions of land must comply with the minimum
lot size required by the parcel's zoning classification.
Any and all divisions of a parent tract which result in all
lots being equal to or in excess of 40 acres.
The division of a parent tract into parcels which do not
qualify for subdivision exemptions. This designation shall also apply
to all subdivisions of property not considered to be minor subdivisions.
[Amended 12-17-2003]
Any and all divisions of a parent tract which result in all
lots equal to or in excess of 15 acres are considered minor subdivisions,
regardless of the number of divisions.
[Amended 12-17-2003]
Damage of any origin sustained by a structure whereby the
cost of restoring the structure to its before damaged condition would
equal or exceed 50% of the market value of the structure before the
damage occurred.
Any reconstruction, rehabilitation, addition, or other improvement
of a structure, the cost of which equals or exceeds 50% of the market
value of the structure before the start of construction of the improvement.
The term includes structures which have incurred substantial damage,
regardless of the actual repair work performed. The term does not,
however, include either:
Any project for improvement of a structure to correct existing
violations of state or local health, sanitary, or safety code specifications
which have been identified by the local code enforcement official
and which are the minimum necessary to assure safe living conditions;
or
Any alteration of an historic structure, provided that the alteration
will not preclude the structure's continued designation as an historic
structure.
A water-filled enclosure, permanently constructed or portable,
having a depth of more than 18 inches below the level of the surrounding
land or an above-surface pool having a depth of more than 30 inches,
designed, used and maintained for swimming.
A transportable residential structure, providing an environment
facilitating a caregiver's provision of care for a mentally or physically
impaired person, that is primarily assembled at a location other than
its site of installation; is limited to one occupant who shall be
the mentally or physically impaired person or, in the case of a married
couple, two occupants, one of whom is a mentally or physically impaired
person, and the other requires assistance with one or more activities
of daily living as defined in § 63.2-2200, Code of Virginia,
as certified in writing by a physician licensed in the commonwealth;
has no more than 300 gross square feet; and complies with applicable
provisions of the Industrialized Building Safety Law (§ 36-70
et seq., Code of Virginia) and the Uniform Statewide Building Code
(§ 36-97 et seq., Code of Virginia). Placing the temporary
family health care structure on a permanent foundation shall not be
required or permitted.
One or more buildings containing individual sleeping rooms,
designed for or used temporarily by tourists or transients, with garage
or parking space conveniently located to each unit. Cooking facilities
may be provided for each unit.
A dwelling unit where only lodging is provided for accommodation
for up to 14 persons (in contrast to hotels and boardinghouses) and
open to transients.
A vehicular unit mounted on wheels for use on roads propelled
or drawn by its own or other motor power and designed and constructed
to provide for temporary living and/or sleeping quarters for one or
more persons.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
Any building, premises, or land in which or upon which a
business, service or industry involving the maintenance, servicing,
storage or repair of commercial vehicles is conducted or rendered
including the dispensing of motor fuel or other petroleum products
directly into motor vehicles, and the sale of accessories or equipment
for trucks or similar commercial vehicles. A truck stop also may include
overnight accommodations and restaurant facilities primarily for the
use of truck crews.
A shooting match or similar activity conducted by a nonprofit
organization involving the discharge of firearms at a target or targets
with the object of such activity being to determine a winner of a
prize such as a turkey or pork ham or other food stuff or other prize.[4]
A relaxation of the terms of this chapter where such variance
will not be contrary to the public interest and where, due to conditions
peculiar to the property and not the result of the action of the applicant,
a literal enforcement of this chapter would result in unnecessary
and undue hardship. As used in this chapter, a variance is authorized
only for height, area and size of a structure or size of yards and
open spaces. Establishment or expansion of a use otherwise prohibited
shall not be allowed by variance, nor shall a variance be granted
because of the presence of nonconformities in the zoning division
or district or adjoining zoning divisions or districts.
A building used primarily for the storage of goods and materials.
Any structure or land used for sale of agricultural or horticultural
produce, livestock, or merchandise produced by the owner or his/her
family on their farm.
A freestanding structure, such as a monopole, tower, either
guyed or self-supporting, or suitable existing structure or alternative
structure designed to support or capable of supporting wireless facilities.
"Wireless support structure" does not include any telephone or electrical
utility pole or any tower used for the distribution or transmission
of electrical service. Permits shall be required for all structures
and building setbacks shall be 120% of the structure height from the
property line or the minimum setbacks established for that zoning
district, whichever is greater.
[Amended 2-21-2018]
An open space on a lot, other than a court, unoccupied and
unobstructed from the ground upward, except as otherwise provided
herein.
An open, unoccupied space on the same lot as a building,
between the front line of the building (excluding steps) and the front
lot or street line and extending across the full width of the lot.
An open, unoccupied space on the same lot as a building,
between the rear line of the lot and the rear line of the building
and extending the full width of the lot.
An open, unoccupied space on the same lot as a building,
between the side line of the lot and the side line of the building
and extending from the front yard line to the rear yard line.
The following general rules of construction shall apply to the
regulations of this chapter:
A.
The singular number includes the plural, and the plural the singular,
unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.
B.
Words used in the present tense include the past and future tenses,
and the future tense includes the present.
C.
The word "shall" is always mandatory. The word "may" is permissive.
D.
The word "building" or "structure" includes any part thereof and
the word "building" includes the word "structure."
E.
Words and terms not defined herein shall be interpreted in accordance
with their normal dictionary meaning and customary usage.
F.
The terms "main" and "principal" as used herein are synonymous.
