NORFOLK, VA – Norfolk City Council unanimously voted to adopt the new zoning ordinance on January 23, 2018. Over a three year period, the Planning Department staff collected input from Norfolk residents and business owners to create a zoning ordinance that encourages and supports a coastal community of the future.
“Writing and adopting Zoning Ordinances are generational projects so it is important to ensure that the new ordinance reflects not only today’s conditions, but, more importantly, our aspirations for what we want to be as a City at the mid-point of the 21st Century,” says George Homewood, Planning Director. “City Council asked us to be bold and craft the most resilience-focused zoning ordinance in America and, to our knowledge, that is what the newly adopted ordinance is.”
The new ordinance goes into effect March 1, 2018. The document contains a number of pioneering approaches in response to the long-term challenges posed by sea level rise, one of which requires all development within the City to meet a resilience quotient. The requirement is measured on a points system with three separate resilience requirements: risk reduction, stormwater management, and energy resilience. This innovative points system ensures that new development will more resilient and environmentally-friendly while providing flexibility to owners and developers.
The provisions in the new ordinance will strengthen the City’s commitment to vibrant neighborhoods, economic diversity, and coastal resilience. For more information go to
www.zonenorfolk.com