1 house in 9 is nobody’s home.

AN ORDINANCE OF THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS OF RAPPAHANNOCK COUNTY, VIRGINIA, AMENDING CHAPTER 170, ZONING, OF THE RAPPAHANNOCK COUNTY CODE TO PROVIDE FOR AGRITOURISM ACTIVITIES AND FARM STAYS ON BONA FIDE AGRICULTURAL OPERATIONS IN ACCORDANCE WITH § 15.2-2288.6 OF THE CODE OF VIRGINIA, TO PROVIDE FOR RESIDENT HOMESTAYS IN ACCORDANCE WITH § 15.2-983 OF THE CODE OF VIRGINIA, TO DISCONTINUE THE TOURIST HOME USE PROSPECTIVELY, AND TO ADOPT DARK-SKY LIGHTING AND RESOURCE-PROTECTION STANDARDS FOR VISITOR USES WHEREAS the Board of Supervisors desires to support the continued economic viability of the County’s working farms and forests, to preserve the rural character, housing stock, and agricultural nature of the County, and to conform Chapter 170, Zoning, of the Rappahannock County Code (RCC) to the requirements of § 15.2-2288.6 and § 15.2-983 of the Code of Virginia; and, WHEREAS § 15.2-2288.6(B) of the Code of Virginia provides that “[n]o locality shall require a special exception, administrative permit not required by state law, or special use permit” for agritourism activities, the sale of agricultural or silvicultural products, or other activities or events that are usual and customary at Virginia agricultural operations, “on property that is zoned as an agricultural district or classification unless there is a substantial impact on the health, safety, or general welfare of the public,” and § 15.2-2288.6(A) further provides that any local restriction placed on such activities “shall be reasonable and shall take into account the economic impact of the restriction on the agricultural operation and the agricultural nature of the activity”; and, WHEREAS § 3.2-6400 of the Code of Virginia defines “agritourism activity” as “any activity carried out on a farm or ranch that allows members of the general public, for recreational, entertainment, or educational purposes, to view or enjoy rural activities, including farming, wineries, ranching, horseback riding, historical, cultural, harvest-your-own activities, or natural activities and attractions,” whether or not the participant paid to participate in the activity; and, WHEREAS the Attorney General of Virginia, in Official Opinion No. 22-036 (January 12, 2023), concluded that short-term rental lodging offered on an operating farm in conjunction with the opportunity for guests to view or participate in rural activities may constitute an agritourism activity within the meaning of § 3.2-6400; and, WHEREAS according to the United States Department of Agriculture’s 2022 Census of Agriculture, Rappahannock County had 399 farms (a decline of 9% in five years) on 66,894 acres (a decline of 5%), with average market value of products sold of $30,814 per farm and countywide net cash farm income of negative $3,799,000 — an average loss of $9,521 per farm — such that supplemental on-farm income opportunities are material to keeping working farms in operation and land in agricultural and silvicultural use; and, WHEREAS the Rappahannock County Comprehensive Plan (amended 2020) directs the County to “[e]ncourage agricultural operations and ensure the preservation of the productivity, availability, and use of agricultural lands”; and, WHEREAS Rappahannock County enjoys some of the darkest night skies remaining in the eastern United States — recognized by the designation of Rappahannock County Park as an International Dark Sky Park on March 7, 2019 — and the protection of dark skies is embodied in the outdoor lighting standards of RCC § 170-119 and is integral to the County’s rural character and its appeal to visitors; and, WHEREAS conserving the natural resources and rural character of Rappahannock County — the mission long advanced by community conservation organizations including the Rappahannock League for Environmental Protection — is served by keeping working lands in agricultural and silvicultural use and by ensuring that visitor accommodations and events on farms remain small in scale, dark-sky compliant, and protective of streams, wildlife habitat, and viewsheds; and, WHEREAS neighboring and nearby Virginia localities — including Frederick, Shenandoah, Clarke, Culpeper, Loudoun, and Fairfax Counties — recognize farm stays, farm-based lodging, or agritourism activities in their agricultural zoning districts or administer such activities in accordance with § 15.2-2288.6; and, WHEREAS the Board of Supervisors desires (i) to enable owner-operated, bona fide working farms to diversify farm income through small-scale farm stays and agritourism with certainty and a minimum of process; (ii) to preserve the County’s limited housing stock and rural character by discontinuing, prospectively and with express protection for lawfully established operations, the unhosted “tourist home” form of transient lodging — a use conducted, under the County’s own definition, with no resident manager, and increasingly favored by absentee and investor operators; and (iii) to conform the County’s regulation of resident-hosted short-term lodging to subsection D of § 15.2-983 of the Code of Virginia, which provides that no local ordinance enacted after December 31, 2023, “shall require that a special exception, special use, or conditional use permit be obtained for the use of a residential dwelling as a short-term rental where the dwelling unit is also legally occupied by the property owner as his primary residence”; and, WHEREAS, on ____________ by a vote of ( - ) the Board of Supervisors authorized the County Administrator and Zoning Administrator to advertise a joint Public Hearing with the Planning Commission to be held at next reasonable opportunity in accordance with § 15.2-2204(A) of the Code of Virginia to receive community input on the proposed amendments; and, WHEREAS, after having been properly advertised, the Planning Commission and Board of Supervisors held a joint public hearing on ____________, and following the public hearing, the Planning Commission voted ( - ) to recommend approval to the Board of Supervisors of the proposed ordinance amendments to RCC §§ 170-8, 170-36, 170-66 and the addition of RCC § 170-68.1; and, WHEREAS, following the joint public hearing and recommendation of approval by the Planning Commission, the Board of Supervisors having considered the recommendation of the Planning Commission, and finding that the public necessity, convenience, general welfare, and good zoning practice require the proposed amendments, desires to adopt an ordinance amending Chapter 170, Zoning, of the Rappahannock County Ordinance. NOW THEREFORE BE IT ORDAINED AND ENACTED, by roll-call vote of the Rappahannock County Board of Supervisors this _____ day of ____________, that Chapter 170, Zoning, of the Rappahannock County Code is by this ordinance amended to read as follows with changes identified as such: italicized and underlined language is language to be added. Language that is stricken through is to be deleted. For clarity, sections not shown have no changes.

AGRITOURISM ACTIVITY — Any activity carried out on a farm or ranch that allows members of the general public, for recreational, entertainment, or educational purposes, to view or enjoy rural activities, including farming, wineries, ranching, horseback riding, historical, cultural, harvest-your-own activities, or natural activities and attractions, whether or not the participant paid to participate in the activity, as defined in § 3.2-6400 of the Code of Virginia. BONA FIDE AGRICULTURAL OPERATION — An agricultural operation, as defined in § 3.2-300 of the Code of Virginia, actively conducted on a parcel, or on contiguous parcels under common ownership or management, comprising not less than five acres devoted to agriculture and/or forestry, and evidenced by at least one of the following: (a) qualification of the parcel, in whole or in part, for use-value assessment and taxation of real estate devoted to agricultural, horticultural, forest, or open-space use pursuant to § 58.1-3230 et seq. of the Code of Virginia; (b) the active production for sale of crops, livestock, poultry, dairy, horticultural, or other agricultural products in the ordinary course; or (c) silviculture activity conducted pursuant to a written forest management plan. The term does not include any parcel on which the only activities are the maintenance of a residence and of a lawn or garden for personal use. FARM STAY — Transient lodging offered to the public on a bona fide agricultural operation by the owner or operator of that operation, in conjunction with the opportunity for overnight guests to view or participate in the rural activities of the farm, and incidental and subordinate to the parcel’s principal agricultural and/or silvicultural use. Farm stay lodging may be provided in existing structures or in seasonal or temporary accommodations, as provided in § 170-68.1D(5). A farm stay conducted in accordance with § 170-68.1 of this chapter is an agritourism activity and is not a tourist home, bed-and-breakfast, boarding house, hotel or motel, or country inn, retreat or lodge for purposes of this chapter. HOMESTAY — The short-term rental, each rental being for fewer than 30 consecutive nights, of not more than five rooms or lodging units within, or of the whole of, a residential dwelling that is legally occupied as the primary residence of the operator, where the operator is the owner of the dwelling or a lessee offering the rental with the written permission of the owner, accommodating not more than 10 transient occupants at any one time. A homestay conducted in accordance with § 170-66.K(12) is not a tourist home, bed-and-breakfast, or boarding house for purposes of this chapter.

E. Commercial, Retail and Business Uses. The existing combined “Tourist home/bed and breakfast” row of the use chart is deleted, and the following rows are added in its place. The “Tourist home” use is not reestablished in any district; see § 170-66.K(13).

A. Purpose. The purpose of this section is to implement § 15.2-2288.6 of the Code of Virginia; to enable owner-operated, bona fide agricultural operations to diversify farm income through agritourism — including small-scale farm stays, seasonal accommodations such as farm or vineyard camping, and customary farm events such as weddings and farm dinners — with certainty and a minimum of regulatory process; to preserve the rural character, scenic quality, dark night skies, streams and wildlife habitat, and agricultural nature of the County; and to ensure that transient lodging not conducted on a bona fide agricultural operation remains subject to § 170-66.K and all other applicable provisions of this chapter. B. Applicability. This section applies to agritourism activities and farm stays conducted on a bona fide agricultural operation. This section confers no rights with respect to any parcel that is not a bona fide agricultural operation. C. Agritourism activities permitted by right. On a bona fide agricultural operation in the Agriculture (A) or Conservation (C) District, agritourism activities are permitted by right. No special exception, special permit, or administrative permit not required by state law shall be required for any such activity unless and until a substantial impact determination has been rendered pursuant to Subsection F of this section. Any restriction placed on an agritourism activity under this chapter shall be reasonable and shall take into account the economic impact of the restriction on the agricultural operation and the agricultural nature of the activity. D. Farm stay standards (safe harbor). A farm stay that meets all of the following standards is deemed to create no substantial impact on the health, safety, or general welfare of the public and is permitted by right in the Agriculture (A) and Conservation (C) Districts: (1) The lodging is offered on a bona fide agricultural operation, and agriculture and/or forestry remains the principal use of the parcel; (2) The owner of the parcel, or the operator of the agricultural operation, resides on the parcel or on a contiguous parcel of the same operation. Lodging offered on a parcel on which neither the owner nor the operator so resides is not a farm stay; (3) The lodging comprises not more than five lodging units, whether guest rooms or seasonal or temporary accommodations, and accommodates not more than 10 overnight guests at any one time; (4) No guest occupies the lodging for more than 29 consecutive nights; (5) The lodging is provided within (i) a lawfully existing dwelling or other lawfully existing habitable structure on the operation, and/or (ii) seasonal or temporary guest accommodations without permanent foundations — such as tents, yurts, or similar movable shelters — sited on the operation in compliance with applicable setback requirements, including within or beside areas in active agricultural use such as a vineyard, orchard, pasture, or managed woodland. The construction of a new permanent structure principally for guest lodging removes the use from this subsection and subjects it to review under Subsection F. Guest accommodations conforming to this paragraph are not a tent campground or recreational vehicle park for purposes of this chapter; (6) Overnight guests are offered the opportunity to view or participate in the rural activities of the farm, such as observing or assisting with livestock husbandry, gardening or harvesting, walking managed forest land, or comparable rural activities; (7) Off-street parking for guests is provided on the operation, is not located in any required front yard, and is effectively screened from any public road and adjoining residential property; (8) Each lodging unit is equipped with functioning smoke and fire detection systems and carbon monoxide alarms as required by applicable law; a clearly visible list of emergency information and the location of fire extinguishers is posted or provided within each lodging unit; and the owner or operator, or a designated responsible person, is reachable by guests at all times during any stay; (9) Events, including weddings. Weddings and wedding receptions, farm-to-table dinners, harvest and seasonal celebrations, and similar gatherings hosted by the owner or operator are recognized as activities and events of the kind that are usual and customary at Virginia agricultural operations, and may be conducted on the operation as part of or alongside a farm stay, provided that: (a) attendance does not exceed 150 persons at any one time; (b) events with more than 100 attendees are held on not more than 12 days in any calendar year; (c) all event activity complies with the noise standards of § 170-117, and outdoor amplified music concludes by 10:00 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and by 11:00 p.m. Friday and Saturday; (d) event parking is accommodated on the operation, not within any required front yard, and no event parking occurs on any public road; and (e) temporary event structures, such as tents, are permitted in accordance with Paragraph (5) of this subsection. An event or event schedule exceeding these limits is not prohibited; it is subject to review under Subsection F; (10) The use complies with all applicable requirements of the Virginia Department of Health and the Uniform Statewide Building Code to the extent required by state law; (11) Not more than one farm stay is conducted per bona fide agricultural operation; (12) Outdoor lighting (dark skies). All outdoor lighting associated with the farm stay or with events under Paragraph (9) complies with § 170-119 and the following: fixtures are fully shielded and downward-directed; correlated color temperature does not exceed 3000 Kelvin; illumination is limited to the minimum intensity and duration reasonably necessary; no uplighting, searchlight, laser, or sky-directed illumination is used; outdoor event lighting is extinguished within one hour after the conclusion of an event; and outdoor lighting at seasonal or temporary accommodations is extinguished, or reduced to the minimum necessary for safety and wayfinding, by 11:00 p.m.; and (13) Streams, habitat, and viewsheds. Seasonal or temporary accommodations and outdoor event areas are not located within any Floodplain Overlay District or any stream buffer established by the Stream Protection Overlay District (§ 170-45.2); no clearing of mature forest and no grading beyond de minimis site preparation is performed to site them; and all refuse and wastewater associated with the use is stored and disposed of in accordance with applicable law. A farm stay that does not meet every standard of this subsection is not thereby prohibited; it shall instead be reviewed under Subsection F of this section, and shall be permitted by right unless a substantial impact determination is rendered. E. Declaration; ministerial zoning permit. The zoning permit required by § 170-36 for a farm stay shall be issued ministerially and without public hearing, site plan, or fee other than the standard zoning permit fee, upon the owner’s or operator’s filing with the Zoning Administrator of a written declaration that: (1) identifies the parcel or parcels by tax map number; (2) describes the agricultural operation and the evidence qualifying it as a bona fide agricultural operation; (3) describes the lodging offered, including the structures or accommodations used, the number of lodging units, and the maximum number of overnight guests; and (4) certifies compliance with the standards of Subsection D. The Zoning Administrator shall act on a complete declaration within 30 days of filing. If the Zoning Administrator determines that one or more standards of Subsection D are not met, he or she shall so state in writing within the same 30 days, identifying each standard not met and the facts supporting that determination, and the owner may cure and refile without additional fee or proceed under Subsection F. This subsection shall be administered consistently with § 15.2-2288.6 of the Code of Virginia; if and to the extent that statute precludes requiring a permit for a particular activity, the filing shall be treated as a voluntary declaration entitling the owner to written confirmation of by-right status within the same 30 days. F. Substantial impact determination. The Zoning Administrator may determine that a proposed or existing agritourism activity or farm stay creates a substantial impact on the health, safety, or general welfare of the public only by a written determination that: (1) identifies the specific activity and parcel; (2) states the specific facts found to constitute the substantial impact, which shall not rest on speculation or on impacts common to agricultural operations generally; and (3) is delivered to the owner by certified mail. Every such determination shall state on its face: the right of any aggrieved person to appeal the determination to the Board of Zoning Appeals within 30 days in accordance with § 15.2-2311 of the Code of Virginia; the date on which the 30-day appeal period begins to run; the fee for such an appeal; and the office at which, and the officers with whom, a notice of appeal must be filed. Upon a substantial impact determination that has become final, the activity may be authorized by special exception as provided in § 170-36, and any conditions imposed shall be reasonable and shall take into account the economic impact of the condition on the agricultural operation and the agricultural nature of the activity. G. Relationship to other transient lodging. Transient lodging that does not meet the requirements of this section — including short-term rental of a dwelling on a parcel that is not a bona fide agricultural operation, and lodging on a parcel on which neither the owner nor the operator of the agricultural operation resides as provided in Subsection D(2) — is not a farm stay and is not an agritourism activity, derives no rights from this section, and remains subject to § 170-66.K and to every other applicable provision of this chapter. Nothing in this section exempts any use from applicable transient occupancy taxation or from the Uniform Statewide Building Code. H. Construction. This section shall be construed in accordance with § 15.2-2288.6 of the Code of Virginia, and in the event of any conflict the Code of Virginia shall control. Nothing in this section limits any right conferred by § 15.2-2288.6 of the Code of Virginia with respect to the sale of agricultural or silvicultural products, the preparation, processing, or sale of food products, or other activities or events that are usual and customary at Virginia agricultural operations.

§ 170-66. Category 5: Commercial, Retail and Business Uses. K. Additional standards for tourist homes and bed-and-breakfasts and homestays. (11) This Subsection K shall not apply to a farm stay conducted in accordance with § 170-68.1. Transient lodging that does not meet the requirements of § 170-68.1 is not a farm stay and remains subject to this subsection and all other applicable provisions of this chapter. (12) Homestays. (a) A homestay, as defined in § 170-8, is permitted in every district in which a dwelling is lawfully occupied, upon issuance of the zoning permit required by § 170-36. The permit shall be issued ministerially, without public hearing, site plan, or fee other than the standard zoning permit fee, within 30 days of the operator’s filing of a complete written declaration that identifies the dwelling, certifies that the dwelling is legally occupied as the operator’s primary residence, includes the written permission of the owner where the operator is a lessee, and certifies compliance with subparagraph (c) of this paragraph. (b) In accordance with subsection D of § 15.2-983 of the Code of Virginia, no special exception, special use, or conditional use permit shall be required for a homestay. (c) A homestay shall comply with the parking standards of Paragraph (2) of this subsection, the notification, safety, and insurance standards of Paragraphs (10)(b) through (10)(e) of this subsection, the outdoor lighting standards of § 170-119, and applicable transient occupancy taxation. The remaining paragraphs of this subsection do not apply to homestays. (d) Short-term rental of a dwelling that is not legally occupied as the operator’s primary residence is not a homestay, derives no rights from this paragraph, and — unless conducted as a farm stay in accordance with § 170-68.1 or as a bed-and-breakfast or other lawfully authorized lodging use — is prohibited as provided in Paragraph (13) of this subsection. (13) Tourist homes discontinued; existing operations preserved. The tourist home use is discontinued as a permitted use and as a special exception use in every district, and no new application for a tourist home shall be accepted. A tourist home lawfully established pursuant to a special exception granted before the effective date of this paragraph may continue in accordance with Article VIII (Nonconforming Uses) of this chapter, § 15.2-2307 of the Code of Virginia, and the conditions of its special exception, but shall not be enlarged or extended. Paragraphs (1) through (10) of this subsection continue to apply to such continuing tourist homes. This paragraph does not affect a bed-and-breakfast, a homestay under Paragraph (12), or a farm stay under § 170-68.1.

BE IT FURTHER ORDAINED that if any provision of this ordinance or its application to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the invalidity shall not affect other provisions or applications of this ordinance which can be given effect without the invalid provision or application, and to this end the provisions of this ordinance are severable. BE IT FURTHER ORDAINED that this ordinance shall be effective upon adoption.