County Code Section 24.1

ARTICLE I. IN GENERAL

Whenever the public necessity, convenience, general welfare, or good zoning practice require, the board may by ordinance, amend, supplement, or change the regulations, district boundaries, or classifications of property established by this chapter.

(a) Initiation.

(1) Amendments to the zoning map including district boundaries or classifications may be initiated by:

a. The board by resolution; or

b. The commission; or

c. A petition properly signed and filed by the owner or, with the owner's specific written consent, a contract purchaser or owner's agent.

(2) Amendments to the zoning ordinance text may be initiated by:

a. The board by resolution; or

b. The commission.

(3) Whenever the board or commission shall initiate an amendment, either to the map or text, the public purposes for such an amendment shall be clearly stated.

(b) Contents of petitions. Any petition for amending the zoning map shall include the following:

(1) A properly completed and signed application form.

(2) A narrative description of the property which shall include the parcel identification number and, if only a portion of the parcel is to be reclassified, a description, by courses and distances, of the land to be reclassified.

(3) A plat of the property indicating the location of the tract and the requested change. Such plat shall be accurate and suitable to identify the property in relation to street intersections or other physical features.

(4) A statement of the reasons for seeking such amendment.

(5) Such supplemental material (i.e., traffic studies, environmental assessments, etc.) as may be necessitated by the proposal itself or the district in which located or proposed to be located.

(c) Procedures for amendment.

(1) Applications for amendment of the zoning ordinance shall be submitted to the zoning administrator and upon completion of all filing requirements, including payment of required fees, shall be deemed received by the board and referred to the commission for its review and recommendation as provided by section 15.2-2285, Code of Virginia.

(2) The commission, after public notice in accordance with section 15.2-2204, Code of Virginia shall hold at least one public hearing on such petition and as a result thereof shall transmit a recommendation to the board. Failure of the commission to report within one hundred (100) days after the first meeting of the commission after the proposed amendment or reenactment has been referred to the commission, or such shorter period as may be prescribed by the board of supervisors, shall be deemed approval, unless such proposed amendment or reenactment has been withdrawn by the applicant prior to the expiration of such time period. In the event of such withdrawal, processing of the proposed amendment or reenactment shall cease without further action as otherwise would be required by this subsection.

(3) In the case of a proposed amendment to the zoning map, such public notice shall state the general usage and density range, if any, set forth in the applicable part of the comprehensive plan. However, no land may be zoned to a more intensive use classification than was contained in the public notice without an additional public hearing after notice required by section 15.2-2204, Code of Virginia. Such ordinances shall be enacted in the same manner as all other ordinances.

(4) Upon receipt of the recommendation of the commission, the board, after public notice in accordance with section 15.2-2204, Code of Virginia shall hold at least one public hearing on such petition for amendment, and as a result thereof shall make such changes to the chapter as it deems appropriate, provided further that the board shall act upon and make a decision upon each petition within one (1) year of the date such petition was filed.

(d) Matters to be considered in reviewing proposed amendments. Proposed amendments shall be drawn and applied with reasonable consideration for the existing use and character of property, the comprehensive plan, the suitability of property for various uses, the trends of growth or change, the current and future requirements of the community as to land for various purposes as determined by population and economic studies and other studies, the transportation requirements of the community, and the requirements for airports, affordable housing, schools, parks, playgrounds, recreation areas, and other public services; for the conservation of natural resources; for preservation of flood plains; for the preservation of agricultural and forestal land; and for the conservation of properties and their values and the encouragement of the most appropriate use of land throughout the county.

(e) Procedures for recording zoning map amendments. When the amendment involves changes to the existing zoning district boundaries, the form of the amending ordinance shall contain a narrative description of the land to be reclassified or reference to an accompanying plat of such land showing the new zoning classifications and indicating their boundaries. The zoning administrator shall refer to said attested ordinance as a record of the current zoning status until such time as the zoning map can be changed accordingly.

(f) Reconsideration. When the board has officially acted on a petition for amendment, no other petition for substantially the same change shall again be considered until after one (1) year from the date of official action.