Surry County Zoning Ordinance Page Article 1. Legal Provisions 2 Section 1. Enactment and Authority 2 Section 2. Title 2 Section 3. Zoning Map 2 Section 4. Jurisdiction 2 Section 5. Bona Fide Farms Exempt 2 Section 6. Interpretation and Conflict 2 Section 7. Separability 3 Section 8. Consistency with Land Use Plans 3 Section 9. Repeal of Previous Ordinance 3 Section 10. Effective Date 3 Section 11. Ordinance Amendments and Revisions 4 Article 2. Administration 5 Section 1. Zoning Enforcement Officer 5 Section 2. Zoning Permits 5 Section 3. Certificates of Occupancy 6 Section 4. Other Permits 7 Section 5. Administrative Procedures 7 Section 6. Vested Rights 8 Article 3. Enforcement and Penalties 10 Section 1. Enforcement Authority 10 Section 2. Violations; Violators 10 Section 2.1. Violation 10 Section 2.2 Violator 10 Section 2.3 Complaints Regarding Violations 11 Section 2.4 Appeal to Board of Adjustment 11 Section 2.5 Failure to Comply with Notice or Board of Adjustment Decision 11 Section 3. Criminal Penalties 11 Section 4. Civil Remedies 11 Section 5. Equitable Relief 12 Section 6. Combination of Remedies 12 Section 7. State Enforcement Authority 12 Article 4. Changes and Amendments 13 Section 1. Initiation of Amendments 13 Section 2. Action By the Applicant 13 Section 3. Action By the Planning Board 14 Section 4. Action By the Board of County Commissioners 15 Section 5. Withdrawal of the Application 15 i
Article 5. Board of Adjustment 16 Section 1. Establishment 16 Section 2. Proceedings of the Board of Adjustment 16 Section 3. Powers and Duties of the Board of Adjustment 18 Section 4. Additional Variance Requirements 19 Article 6. General Provisions 20 Section 1. Zoning Affects All Land and Every Building and Use 20 Section 2. Applicability to Extraterritorial Areas 20 Section 3. Bona Fide Farms Exempt 20 Section 4. Subdivisions in Rural Agricultural (RA, RA-C) District 20 Section 5. Street Access 20 Section 6. Required Yards Not to be Used by Building 20 Section 7. Relationship of Building to Lot 20 Section 8. Reduction of Lot and Yard Areas Prohibited 21 Section 9. Business Uses of Mobile Homes and Trailers 21 Section 10. Zero Lot Lines 21 Section 11. Recreational Vehicles Prohibited as a Dwelling Type 21 Article 7. Establishment and Intent of Districts and Boundaries 22 Section 1. Zoning Districts Established 22 Section 2. District Boundaries Shown on Zoning Map 22 Section 3. Rules Governing Interpretation of District Boundaries 23 Section 4. Intent of Zoning Districts 23 Article 8. Conditional Zoning Districts 28 Section 1. Purpose 28 Section 2. General Requirements 28 Section 3. Compliance with General Use District Provisions 29 Section 4. Conditions on Development Activities 29 Section 5. Review of the Petition 29 Section 5.1 Planning Board Action 29 Section 5.2 Board of Commissioners Action 30 Section 6 Site Specific Development Plan Required 30 Section 7 Conditional Zoning Districts Supplement for Zoning Permits 32 Section 8 Effect of Approval 32 Section 9 Planned Residential Conditional Districts 32 Article 9. Overlay Districts 38 Section 1. Thoroughfare Overlay District 38 Section 2. Watershed Overlay District 38 Section 3. Elkin Municipal Airport Overlay District 39 Section 3.1 Definitions 39 Section 3.2 Airport Zones 40 Section 3.3 Airport Zone Height Limitations 41 Section 3.4 Use Restriction 41 Section 3.5 Nonconforming Uses 41 Section 3.6 Permits 42 Section 4. Mount Airy/Surry County Airport Overlay District 43 ii
Section 4.1 Definitions 44 Section 4.2 Airport Zones 45 Section 4.3 Use Restrictions 46 Section 4.4 Nonconforming Uses 46 Section 4.5 Issuance of a Building Permit 47 Article 10. Special Zoning Districts 48 Section 1. Village of Rockford (VR) Zoning District 48 Section 1.1 Table of Uses 48 Section 1.2 Site Plan Review for Permitted Uses 48 Section 1.3 Conditional Use Permit Application and Review 49 Section 1.4 Dimensional Requirements 51 Section 1.5 Nonconforming Uses 52 Section 1.6 Design and Development Guidelines 52 Section 1.7 Additional Zoning Amendment Petition Criteria 54 Section 1.8 Applicability and Conflict 54 Article 11. Table of Uses 55 Section 1. Purpose 55 Section 2. Table of Uses 55 Section 3. Site Standards for Permitted Uses 72 Article 12. Dimensional Requirements Table 73 Article 13. Temporary and Accessory Uses 76 Section 1. Temporary Uses 76 Section 2. Accessory Uses 77 Article 14. Exceptions and Modifications 78 Section 1. Front Yard Modifications In Residential Districts 78 Section 2. Other Yard Modifications 78 Section 3. Height Limit Exceptions 78 Section 4. Zero Lot Lines 78 Article 15. Nonconforming Uses 79 Section 1. Definition and Purpose 79 Section 2. Continuation, Maintenance, and Repair of Nonconformity Allowed Without Permit 79 Section 3. Bringing a Nonconformity Into Compliance 79 Section 4. Conditional Use Permit Required For Any Proposed Alteration, Expansion, Change, Rebuilding, or Resumption of a Nonconformity 80 Section 4.1 Conditional Use Permit Required for Upgrading a Nonconforming Manufactured Home 80 Section 5. Standards for Granting a Permit For Any Proposed Alteration, Expansion, Change, Rebuilding, or Resumption of a Nonconformity 81 iii
Section 6. Grandfathered Automobile Salvage Yards and Junkyards 82 Section 7. Reservation of Authority to Deal With Nonconformities Under Other Powers 84 Section 8. Exceptions and Modifications 84 Article 16. Conditional Uses 85 Section 1. Objectives and Purpose 85 Section 2. Procedures 85 Section 3. Planning Board Action 85 Section 4. Denial and Appeal 86 Section 5. Compliance with District Regulations 86 Section 6. Failure To Comply With Plans 87 Section 7. Modification of Plans 87 Section 8. Supplemental Requirements for Specified Conditional Uses 87 Article 17. Parking and Loading 118 Section 1. Off-Street Parking Required 118 Section 2. Certification of Minimum Parking Requirements 118 Section 3. Combination of Required Parking Space 118 Section 4. Remote Parking Space 118 Section 5. Requirement for Parking Lots 118 Section 6. Vehicle Storage 119 Section 7. Minimum Parking Requirements 119 Section 8. Design Standards for Off-Street Parking 122 Section 9. Off-Street Loading Purpose and General Requirements 123 Section 10. Design Standards for Off-Street Loading Space 123 Section 11. Minimum Off-Street Loading Requirements 124 Article 18. Buffers and Screening 126 Section 1. Purpose of Buffers 126 Section 2. Buffers Required 126 Section 3. Buffer Specifications 126 Section 4. Location of Buffer 127 Section 5. Construction and Maintenance 127 Section 6. Deferring Requirements 127 Section 7. Enclosure Requirements 128 Article 19. Signs 129 Section 1. Statement of Purpose 129 Section 2. All Signs Must Comply and May Be Removed 129 Section 3. More Than One Principal Use Per Lot 129 Section 4. Plan Approval Required 129 Section 5. Exemptions 129 Section 6. Prohibited Signs 130 Section 7. Temporary Signs 131 Section 8. Portable Signs 131 Section 9. Shopping Center Signs 131 Section 10. Billboards 132 Section 11. Locations of Signs 132 iv
Section 12. Nonconforming Signs 133 Section 13. Maintenance and Demolition of Signs 133 Section 14. Signs Permitted in Residential and Rural Agricultural Districts 134 Section 15. Signs Permitted in Village of Rockford (VR) District 134 Section 16. Signs Permitted in Rural Business (RB) District 135 Section 17. Signs Permitted in Community Business (CB) District 136 Section 18. Signs Permitted in Highway Business (HB) District and the Manufacturing Industrial (MI) District 137 Section 19. Computation of Sign Area 137 Article 20. Flood Hazard Areas 138 Section 1. Findings of Fact 138 Section 2. Statement of Purpose 138 Section 3. Objectives 138 Section 4. General Provisions 139 Section 4.1 Land to Which This Article Applies 139 Section 4.2 Basis for Establishing the Special Flood Hazard Areas 139 Section 4.3 Issuance of Zoning Permits 139 Section 4.4 Compliance 139 Section 4.5 Abrogation and Greater Restrictions 139 Section 4.6 Interpretation 139 Section 4.7 Warning and Disclaimer of Responsibility 140 Section 5. Administration 140 Section 5.1 Application Requirements 140 Section 5.2 Floodplain Development Application, Zoning Permit and Certification Requirements 142 Section 5.3 Certificate Requirements 142 Section 5.4 Duties and Responsibilities of the Zoning Administrator 144 Section 5.5 Corrective Procedures 146 Section 5.6 Variance Procedures 147 Section 6. Provisions for Flood Hazard Reduction 149 Section 6.1 General Standards 149 Section 6.2 Specific Standards 150 Section 6.3 Reserved 154 Section 6.4 Section 6.5 Standards for Floodplains Without Established Base Flood Elevations 154 Standards for Riverine Floodplains with BFE but Without Established Floodways or Non-Encroachment Areas 155 Section 6.6 Floodways and Non-Encroachment Areas 155 Section 6.7 Standards for Areas of Shallow Flooding (Zone AO) 155 Section 7. Repeal of Previous Flood Damage Prevention Ordinance 156 Article 21. Group Developments 157 Section 1. Purpose 157 Section 2. Development Plan 157 Section 3. Plan Review 158 Section 4. Manufactured Home Parks 158 Section 5. Multi-Family Development 158 v
Section 6. Shopping Centers 159 Section 7. Mini-warehousing 159 Article 22. Wireless Communication Towers 160 Section 1. Purpose 160 Section 2. Development Application 160 Section 2.1 Area Map 160 Section 2.2 Detailed Development Plan 160 Section 2.3 Additional Requirements 161 Section 3. Planning Board Action 161 Section 4. Denial and Appeal 162 Section 5. Compliance with District Regulations 162 Section 6. Failure to Comply with Plans/Notification of Adjacent Property Owners 162 Section 7. Development Standards 162 Section 8. Dimensional Requirements 164 Section 9. Buffers 164 Section 10. Road Requirements 165 Section 11. Co-location 165 Section 12. Removal of Towers 165 Section 13. Modification of Plans 165 Section 14. Low Coverage Stealth Wireless Systems 165 Article 23 Manufactured Home and Manufactured Home Park 167 Section 1. Purpose 167 Section 2. General Manufactured Home Development Standards 167 Section 2.1 Skirting 167 Section 2.2 Manufactured Home Age Requirements 167 Section 2.3 Abandoned Manufactured Home Removal Requirements 167 Section 2.4 Manufactured Homes Utilized as Accessory Structures Prohibited 168 Section 3. Manufactured Home Parks 168 Section 3.1 Manufactured Home Park Development Application 168 Section 3.2 Filing of Documents 171 Section 3.3 Section 3.4 Manufactured Home Park Dimensional Requirements (Standard) 171 Cluster Manufactured Home Park Dimensional Requirements 172 Section 3.5 Streets and Parking 173 Section 3.6 Buffers and Screening Requirements 174 Section 3.7 Refuse Disposal Plan 174 Section 3.8 Accessory Buildings and Structures 174 Section 3.9 Grounds Maintenance 174 Section 3.10 Infrastructure Requirements for Parks 175 Section 3.11 Maintenance of Parks 175 Section 3.12 Revocation of Park Permits 175 Section 3.13 Existing Manufactured Home Parks 176 Section 3.14 Modification of Plans 176 Section 3.15 Required Signature Blocks and Statements for Boundary vi
Survey and Detailed Development Plan 176 Section 4. Vested Rights 178 Section 5. Repeal of Previous Manufactured Home and Manufactured Home Park Ordinance 179 Article 24 Water Supply Watershed Protection 180 Section 1. Authority and Enactment 180 Section 2. Jurisdiction 180 Section 3. Exceptions to Applicability 180 Section 4. Repeal of Previous Watershed Protection Ordinance 181 Section 5. Remedies 181 Section 6. Severability 181 Section 7. Additional Subdivision Regulations in Watershed Areas 181 Section 7.1 General Provisions 181 Section 7.2 Subdivision Application and Review Procedures 182 Section 7.3 Subdivision Standards and Required Improvements 183 Section 7.4 Construction Procedures 183 Section 7.5 Penalties for Transferring Lots in Unapproved Subdivisions In a Public Water Supply Watershed 183 Section 8. Development Regulations 184 Section 8.1 Establishment of Watershed Areas 184 Section 8.2 Watershed Areas Described 184 Section 8.3 Cluster Development 192 Section 8.4 Buffer Area Requirements in Watershed Areas 193 Section 8.5 Rules Governing the Interpretation of Watershed Area Boundaries 193 Section 8.6 Application of Regulations 193 Section 8.7 Existing Development 193 Section 8.8 Watershed Protection Permit 194 Section 8.9 Building Permit Required 194 Section 8.10 Watershed Protection Occupancy Permit 194 Section 9. Public Health Regulations 195 Section 9.1 Public Health, in general 195 Section 9.2 Abatement 195 Section 10. Administration, Enforcement, and Appeals 195 Section 10.1 Zoning Administrator Duties for Watershed Protection 195 Section 10.2 Appeal from the Zoning Administrator 196 Section 10.3 Changes and Amendments to this Article 196 Section 10.4 Environmental Management Commission Review of Variances 196 Articles 25-29 Reserved for Future Codification Purposes 198 Article 30. Definitions 198 vii