Zoning, building permits and septic rules in Town of Washington, Virginia

Town of Washington’s own rules

• Building permitRequired

  Structures over 150 sq ft inside Town of Washington (town ordinance permit issued by the zoning administrator)

  • Where individual water or sewage systems are used, soil suitability must be certified by the county health official or a registered engineer before approval.
  • Exterior changes in the historic district also need an ARB certificate of appropriateness.
  • Town documents indicate building (construction code) permits may be issued by the Rappahannock County Building Department; not verified from an official page in this job.

  threshold: >= 150 square feet

  “no structure that exceeds 150 square feet or more shall be located, constructed, reconstructed, altered, or enlarged without first having obtained a building permit from the administrator.”

• Certificate of occupancyRequired

  Buildings structurally altered or erected inside Town of Washington

  • No certificate for a dwelling until an approved sewage disposal system is supplied (section 5-7-2).

  “5-7 certificate of occupancy 5-7-1 buildings structurally altered or erected may be used or changed in use only after the building inspector has issued a certificate of occupancy.”

• Local zoningPresent

  Land inside the Town of Washington, Rappahannock County, VA

  • Official copy on town site is dated May 14, 2008 with amendments through 2013; the town planning commission in 2024 was reconciling the map and recently adopted amendments.

  “zoning ordinance may 14, 2008 zoning ordinance town of washington, virginia table of contents preamble article 1 - creation of zoning districts”

• Zoning districtsPublished

  Zoning districts inside the Town of Washington (VR, VMU, VS, RR, GS per ordinance Article 5 table)

  • Zoning map reconciliation with recent amendments was pending in 2024.

  “minimum lot area: vr vmu vs rr gs 0.5 0.5 0.5 5.0* 4.0 (in acres):”

• Minimum lot sizeDistrict specific (with conditions)

  Rural Residential (RR) district inside Town of Washington

  • Lot area in RR may be clustered and reduced to 0.5 acres upon provision of public water and sewer and compliance with sections 1-4-5(j) and 5-9.
  • Not more than one lot per three acres in the RR district under the cluster provisions.

  minimum lot area RR: >= 5 acres (cluster reduction to 0.5 acres with public water and sewer)

  “*the lot area for parcels in areas zoned rr may be clustered and reduced to 0.5 acres upon the provision of public water and sewer services, and provided that such lots meet the requirements of section 1-4-5 (j) and section 5-9.”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • District specific (with conditions) — Village Residential (VR), Village Mixed Use (VMU) and Village Service (VS) districts inside Town of Washington (columns vr vmu vs of table)

    “minimum lot area: vr vmu vs rr gs 0.5 0.5 0.5 5.0* 4.0 (in acres):”

• SetbacksSpecified

  VR, VMU, VS and RR districts inside Town of Washington (GS district: 45' side yard, 75' front from centerline)

  • Front setbacks measured from road centerline; may be reduced by special use permit.
  • Accessory buildings of more than one story no closer than 30' to any property line.
  • Structures and sewage disposal systems at least 50' from any river, stream, or flood plain.

  minimum side yard: >= 15 feet (GS district 45 ft) · minimum rear yard: >= 30 feet · front setback on routes 622, 626, 628, 522, 211: >= 35 feet from road centerline (reduction by special use permit)

  “front yard: the setbacks shall be 35' from the centerline of the road on route 622, route 626, route 628, route 522, and route 211 unless reduced by special use permit.”

• Building heightSpecified

  All districts (VR, VMU, VS, RR, GS) inside Town of Washington

  • Antennas and towers exceeding 35 feet above grade need a special use permit (section 1-4-6).

  maximum building height: <= 35 feet

  “vr vmu vs rr gs minimum side yard: 15' 15' 15' 15' 45'** minimum rear yard: 30' 30' 30' 30' 30' maximum building height: 35' 35' 35' 35' 35'”

• Living in an RVProhibited

  Use of travel trailers and recreational vehicles as dwellings inside Town of Washington

  • RVs not used as dwellings may be stored, no more than one per lot (section 4-2), unless kept in a wholly enclosed structure.

  “4.3 it shall be unlawful for mobile homes, travel trailers, recreational vehicles, or temporary structures to be used as a dwelling, living quarters, storage facility, or place of business in the town of washington.”

• Manufactured homesProhibited

  Mobile homes inside Town of Washington (ordinance Article 4 'mobile homes'; its definition and treatment of HUD-code or modular homes not checked)

  “4-1 it shall be unlawful for a mobile home to be stored, placed, or parked, on any property in the town of washington.”

• Subdividing landRegulated (with conditions)

  Subdivision of land inside Town of Washington

  • Town subdivision regulations are contained in chapter 147 of the Rappahannock County code per the ordinance.

  “the town of washington subdivision regulations contained in chapter 147 of the rappahannock county code”

• Building in a floodplainRequired

  Development in floodplain districts inside Town of Washington

  • Structures and sewage disposal systems must be at least 50' from any river, stream, or flood plain (section 5-2-2).
  • Elevation and flood-proofing information required.

  “all applications for development within any floodplain district and all building permits issued for the floodplain shall incorporate the following information:”

• Permit processPublished (with conditions)

  Town zoning permit applications inside Town of Washington

  • Application is due two weeks before the monthly planning commission or town council meeting; fee is set by a schedule on the town website.

  “complete applications must be submitted two (2) weeks prior to the regular monthly meeting of the planning commission or town council.”

Still unanswered

We looked and could not find an official answer yet. Silence is not permission; ask Town of Washington or Rappahannock County directly.

• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder exemption inside Town of Washington
• Building code adopted — Building code inside Town of Washington
• Inspections — Building inspections inside Town of Washington
• Minimum dwelling size — Minimum dwelling size inside Town of Washington
• Lot coverage — Lot coverage inside Town of Washington

Each answer was extracted from an official source and independently re-checked against that source by a second reviewer. That is an evidence check, not legal advice. Rules change; confirm with the authority before you buy or build.