Jetersville

Amelia County, a rural Piedmont county southwest of Richmond, regulates accessory dwelling units through its County Code zoning ordinance, administered by the Amelia County Department of Community Development under the authority of the Amelia County Board of Supervisors. Virginia is a Dillon Rule state and the General Assembly has not enacted any statewide ADU preemption; Amelia County's authority to regulate or prohibit ADUs derives solely from the general zoning enabling statute at Va. Code § 15.2-2280 and the ordinance-content provisions of § 15.2-2286. The county zoning ordinance establishes use districts (Agricultural A-1 / A-2, Residential R-1 / R-2, Commercial B-1, Industrial M-1, and overlay districts) — Amelia is overwhelmingly zoned agricultural, reflecting its rural character. A second dwelling on a single residential parcel is not a permitted-by-right use in the standard residential districts; ADU-style second dwellings are typically pursued through (a) family/kinship-dwelling provisions where the second dwelling is occupied by a family member, (b) a discretionary Special Use Permit approved by the Board of Supervisors following Planning Commission recommendation, or (c) minor subdivision creating a separate buildable lot. The agricultural districts may permit limited accessory residential uses such as farm-labor housing tied to active agricultural operations. The county does not have a standalone ministerial ADU ordinance. The Town of Amelia Court House is the county seat; despite the name, it is not currently incorporated as a town under Virginia law — the county seat designation refers to the courthouse community within the unincorporated county. The 'Amelia Courthouse' Census Designated Place is purely statistical.

• Amelia County Code — Zoning Ordinance
• Amelia County Department of Community Development — Planning, Zoning, and Building Inspections
• Amelia County Board of Supervisors — adopting body for zoning ordinance amendments and Special Use Permits
• Amelia County Planning Commission

State-floor overlay: Virginia has not enacted any statewide ADU preemption statute. Virginia is a Dillon Rule state (see Commonwealth v. County Bd. of Arlington County, 217 Va. 558 (1977)); localities have only those powers expressly granted by the General Assembly. The general zoning enabling statute at Va. Code § 15.2-2280 grants counties, cities, and towns broad authority to regulate land use, and § 15.2-2286 enumerates the specific ordinance provisions that may be included. Neither statute, nor any section of Title 15.2 Chapter 22 Article 7, mandates that a locality permit ADUs, requires ministerial review of ADU applications, caps parking requirements, caps fees, or voids owner-occupancy requirements. Amelia County is therefore free to permit, restrict, or prohibit second dwellings under its zoning ordinance within the ordinary constitutional limits on land-use regulation. ADU preemption bills have been introduced in the Virginia General Assembly in multiple recent sessions (2022-2025) without enactment.

Amelia County administers or is subject to several overlay regimes that materially affect ADU siting on parcels: (1) FEMA Special Flood Hazard Areas along the Appomattox River (the northern boundary), Flat Creek, Deep Creek, and other tributaries, with NFIP floodplain regulations administered through the county's floodplain ordinance; (2) Chesapeake Bay Preservation Act applicability — Amelia County is NOT in the Tidewater area covered by the Chesapeake Bay Preservation Act (Va. Code § 62.1-44.15:67 et seq.), so Resource Protection Areas (RPAs) and Resource Management Areas (RMAs) do not apply; however, the entire county is upstream in the Chesapeake Bay watershed, so state DEQ stormwater and erosion-and-sediment-control regulations apply to land-disturbing activities; (3) Agricultural and Forestal Districts under Va. Code § 15.2-4300 et seq. — given Amelia's overwhelmingly agricultural character, AFDs are common and provide use-value taxation to enrolled landowners; (4) Land use taxation (use-value assessment) under Va. Code § 58.1-3230 et seq. is widely used for agricultural and forestal land in Amelia County; addition of a non-agricultural ADU may trigger partial reclassification of the affected acreage and a five-year roll-back tax under § 58.1-3237; (5) wildfire risk — Amelia County has wildfire risk tracked by the Virginia Department of Forestry, but Virginia does not have a California-style Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone regulatory overlay; (6) the county does not have a separate historic district overlay covering large portions of the unincorporated area, though the Amelia Court House Historic District and individual properties may be listed on the Virginia Landmarks Register or National Register.

• FEMA National Flood Insurance Program — Special Flood Hazard Areas — Amelia County participates in the National Flood Insurance Program and administers a county floodplain ordinance satisfying the NFIP minimum standards. Principal Special Flood Hazard Area (SFHA) extents in the county are along the Appomattox River, Flat Creek, Deep Creek, and various smaller tributaries. An ADU in an SFHA must comply with NFIP elevation requirements (lowest finished floor at or above Base Flood Elevation plus any county freeboard), flood vent requirements on enclosed areas below BFE, and post-construction Elevation Certificate filing. Owners should confirm current-effective FIRM panel at the FEMA Map Service Center before design.
• Land use taxation (use-value assessment) and roll-back tax — Amelia County participates in Virginia's land-use taxation program, which permits qualifying agricultural, horticultural, forestal, and open-space land to be assessed at use value (typically far below fair market value) rather than fair market value. When all or part of an enrolled parcel is converted to a non-qualifying use — for example, by constructing a non-agricultural rental ADU on previously agricultural land — the converted acreage is reassessed at fair market value and a roll-back tax is owed for the current year and the five preceding years (the difference between fair-market-value tax and use-value tax for each year), plus interest. ADU planning on land-use parcels must include a calculation of the potential roll-back exposure, which can be substantial in Amelia given its rural land-use base.
• Virginia Agricultural and Forestal Districts (local option under state law) — Amelia County has established multiple Agricultural and Forestal Districts under the state AFD Act. Enrollment is voluntary; participating landowners commit to keeping land in agricultural or forestal use for a period (typically 4-10 years) in exchange for use-value assessment and limited protection from certain governmental actions. An ADU on an AFD-enrolled parcel is generally permitted if it is an accessory use to continued agricultural or forestal operation (e.g., a farm-labor dwelling or family-kinship dwelling), but non-agricultural commercial-rental ADUs may conflict with AFD purposes and trigger AFD committee review.
• Virginia Stormwater Management Program (VSMP) and Erosion & Sediment Control — Land-disturbing activity exceeding state-defined thresholds (currently 10,000 square feet of disturbance under the unified statewide regulations) requires a Virginia Stormwater Management Program permit and an Erosion and Sediment Control plan. A typical detached ADU site disturbs less than 10,000 square feet and falls below the threshold, but cumulative disturbance on the parcel (driveway, septic excavation, foundation, etc.) should be tracked. Single-family residential exemptions apply in some cases. Owners should consult the county for the local administering authority and any thresholds.
• Virginia Department of Forestry wildfire risk — Amelia County has wildfire risk tracked by the Virginia Department of Forestry, particularly in the more heavily forested rural areas. Unlike California, Virginia does not have a statewide Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone overlay that mandates WUI-rated construction materials on a per-parcel basis. The Virginia Department of Forestry promotes defensible-space practices, but enforcement is advisory rather than regulatory.

The Amelia County Department of Community Development is the sole permitting authority for building permits, zoning permits, and Special Use Permits on parcels throughout Amelia County. Amelia County comprises approximately 357 square miles of rural Piedmont terrain in central Virginia, drained by the Appomattox River (north) and Flat Creek and other tributaries. The county has no incorporated cities and no incorporated towns currently in active town status — Amelia Court House, the county seat, functions as the courthouse community within the unincorporated county. All populated places in the county (Amelia Court House, Jetersville, Mannboro, Chula, Paineville, etc.) are unincorporated communities permitted by the county. The 2020 Census population was approximately 13,300, making Amelia one of Virginia's smaller counties by population. For an ADU-style project, the typical sequence is: (a) zoning determination from the Department of Community Development; (b) if a Special Use Permit is required, application to Planning Commission and Board of Supervisors; (c) building permit application to the county building official under the Virginia Uniform Statewide Building Code; (d) inspections through construction; (e) certificate of occupancy. Most parcels are not served by public utilities and require well and septic approval through the Virginia Department of Health (Piedmont Health District).