Board OKs tower amendment, nixes scenic protection language

Nelson County:

“After months of deliberation and a lengthy discussion March 11, the Nelson County Board of Supervisors narrowly approved an amendment to the county’s communication tower ordinance. The board approved a repeal of almost all sections of the previous ordinance, Article 20 in the zoning code, and replaced them with new language that will reduce the requirements for a tower’s minimum setback from Virginia Scenic Byways and the Blue Ridge Parkway and serve as a comprehensive overhaul of previous tower classifications.

But the ordinance does not include proposed requirements that Nelson County Planning & Zoning Director Tim Padalino argued would help protect undeveloped mountain scenery in the county.”

~Writes Katherine Lacaze of Nelson County Times

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Hearing set on massive zoning overhaul for Northampton

Northampton County:

“Northampton County’s Board of Supervisors and Planning Commission will hear what the public thinks about its proposed massive overhaul of the zoning ordinance at a joint hearing scheduled for March 11 at 7 p.m. at Northampton High School. Economic Development Director Charles McSwain received marching orders from the Board of Supervisors shortly after being hired just over a year ago to streamline zoning requirements as a way to promote business development. ‘The Board (of Supervisors) wanted a new code that is more enabling,’ McSwain said last October.

One provision garnering significant public interest is a modification that would effectively cut in half the area regulated under the Chesapeake Bay/Atlantic Preservation district, which applies Chesapeake Bay Act requirements to the entire county. McSwain, who also oversees the county’s planning department, noted the shoreline would still be protected on the sea side by 100-foot-wide ribbon of conservation zoning along the shore, except ‘where there are existing, developed, water-dependent communities,’ such as Willis Wharf and Oyster.

The proposal would no longer regulate properties east of U.S. Route 13, unless they drain into the Chesapeake Bay. The proposal would also delete the district as an zoning overlay district, and place it in a separate section of the land use code with a different name: Chesapeake Bay Preservation Area.”

~Writes Connie Morrison of Delmarva Now

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Planning commission eyes changes to duplex zoning

Nelson County:

“The Nelson County Planning Commission is considering proposed amendments to the zoning ordinance that would allow a higher density of duplexes in agricultural zones. At its meeting Feb. 26, commissioners discussed proposed amendments that would alter the density requirement for specific duplexes, or two-family detached dwellings, in agricultural zones so they could be constructed on 2-acre parcels of land, as opposed to the current requirement of 4-acre parcels.

George Krieger, director of the Nelson County Community Development Foundation, proposed the amendments. Duplexes with four or fewer bedrooms and two or fewer baths are an “important tool in providing affordable housing” for low- to moderate-income residents in the agricultural zones of the county, Krieger told the commission.”

~Writes Katherine Lacaze of Nelson County Times

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Berryville Nixes Chickens In Town

Town of Berryville:

“Following a rare tie vote Tuesday night, the Town Council will not continue work on an ordinance that would have allowed Berryville residents to keep from four to eight chickens in backyard coops. After a report by council member Mary Daniel on the wording of a proposed ordinance to regulate egg-laying hens, Mayor Wilson Kirby asked for a vote on whether to continue ‘moving forward’ with the ordinance.

Kirby said he had talked to many residents, and all were uniformly against allowing their neighbors to keep chickens. Under the ordinance, the number of chickens would have been regulated by the size of residential lots. Town Manager Keith Dalton said it appeared that only a few lots could have more than the minimum of four hens and the largest flock could only be eight. Roosters would have been forbidden to limit noise.

Kirby said he was concerned about the expected $1,000 expense to advertise the new ordinance and have it vetted by town attorney Robert Mitchell. ‘I haven’t met one person who is in favor of chickens in Berryville,’ Kirby said. ‘Everybody is against it.’ Several of the newer subdivisions in town, governed by homeowners associations, bar chickens by covenants.”

~ Writes Val Van Meter of The Winchester Star

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Strasburg seeks input on new zoning guide

Town of Strasburg:

“Strasburg residents and business owners get a chance Monday to learn about new zoning and development rules under consideration. Town officials plan to hold a public meeting on the draft of the Unified Development Ordinance at 7 p.m. in the municipal building, 174 E. King St. Economic Development and Planning Manager Kimberly Murray said Thursday that town officials and the consulting firm will hold the meeting as part of the public rollout of the large document…

Town Council would not vote to adopt the regulations until March 11 at the earliest. As Murray explained, the ordinance is an attempt to streamline the process through which developers obtain permits needed for projects. The ordinance sets up a clearer timeline for the approval process, giving developers an idea of what they needed to provide to the town staff and when. The ordinance also calls for the town and developer to discuss the proposal before the application process begins. The ordinance also formalizes the technical review committee's involvement in the process, Murray said.

The new ordinance also would include regulations designed to prevent situations like the failed housing project on U.S. 11 once called Cedar Valley. Murray said the ordinance contains language that requires a developer clean up a site if a project falls through.”

~ Writes Alex Bridges of the NV Daily

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Hearing on tower changes revealing

Nelson County

“A proposed amendment to the Nelson County Zoning Ordinance pertaining to wireless communication towers was determined to be severely lacking at a recent Nelson County Board of Supervisors meeting. Last Thursday, the board held a public hearing on a proposed amendment to the Nelson County Zoning Ordinance that deals with the repeal and replacement of sections of Article 20, regarding communication towers.

Tim Padalino, the Nelson County Planning & Zoning Director, highlighted some of the important changes for the supervisors, including adjustments to tower classifications; application procedures; required minimum setbacks from the Blue Ridge Parkway, Skyline Drive and other Virginia Scenic Byways; removal and reporting of facilities; and the application fee schedule. Under the proposed replacement section, the new category for personal wireless service, or Class C facilities, would be similar to what currently is the Class IV category for personal wireless service facilities, with a few significant changes. Several speakers at the public hearing said there were problems with the proposed replacement sections.”

~Writes Katherine Lacaze of the Nelson County Times

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Albemarle panel makes tweaks to steep-slopes ordinance

Albemarle County

“Thanks to a simplified review process, it soon may be easier and cheaper for some residents in growth areas of Albemarle County to develop on steep slopes. At the same time, other, more-sensitive slopes will get additional protections.

‘There are probably individuals who are re-grading their yards, putting in sheds and terracing their lawns without appropriate building permits because it is a hassle to get,’ said Bill Fritz, the county’s chief of special projects. ‘Hopefully, by making the ordinance easier to comply with, people will comply with it.’

Earlier this week, the Planning Commission recommended approval of ordinance changes reclassifying critical slopes in the growth areas as either managed or preserved. In addition to simplifying the permit process, the ordinance will cut costs to both the county and residents.”

~Writes Effie Nicholaou of Charlottesville Tomorrow

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