Cheriton

Northampton County does NOT maintain a standalone accessory-dwelling-unit ordinance with dedicated definitional and dimensional standards. ADUs in Northampton County are regulated indirectly through the Zoning Ordinance's treatment of 'accessory use,' 'accessory structure,' 'guest cottage,' and 'family dwelling' (terms used in the ordinance for limited second-dwelling allowances) in combination with the per-district use schedules. In the A (Agriculture) and RR (Rural Residential) districts, which cover the great majority of county acreage outside the village centers, a 'family-member dwelling' or farm-labor tenant dwelling is typically permitted subject to minimum lot area (commonly 5 to 10 acres depending on the district), agricultural-use demonstration, and Zoning Administrator approval; a fully independent second dwelling for non-family occupancy typically requires a Special Use Permit from the Board of Supervisors after Planning Commission recommendation. In the V (Village) and VC (Village Commercial) districts that cover the historic village centers (Eastville, Nassawadox, Franktown, Cheriton, Machipongo, etc.), a 'guest cottage' or detached accessory structure without independent kitchen facilities is generally permitted as a by-right accessory structure subject to setback, height, and lot-coverage standards; a second independent dwelling on the same parcel requires an SUP. In the Waterfront (W) and HC (Historic Commercial) districts, additional overlay constraints and Historic District review apply. Applicants should confirm current ordinance text with the Zoning Administrator before committing to a project pro forma — the ordinance has been amended periodically and specific ADU-like allowances vary by district and by interpretation of the 'customarily incidental' accessory-use standard.

Northampton County administers several overlay regimes that bear materially on ADU projects, and coastal exposure is the single most important physical constraint on county land use. The relevant overlays are: (1) a Floodplain Overlay District tied to FEMA Special Flood Hazard Areas, which covers an unusually large share of the county because the entire county is a narrow low-elevation peninsula (maximum elevation ~50 feet, median parcel elevation closer to 15-25 feet) with Chesapeake Bay on the west, Atlantic barrier islands and lagoons on the east, and extensive internal tidal creek and marsh systems; (2) Chesapeake Bay Preservation Act jurisdiction across the entire county (Northampton is a Tidewater locality designated under Va. Code § 62.1-44.15:67 et seq.), with Resource Protection Area (RPA) buffers of 100 feet from perennial water bodies and tidal wetlands and Resource Management Area (RMA) coverage on nearly all remaining landward extent; (3) Virginia Marine Resources Commission (VMRC) tidal-wetlands and subaqueous-bottom jurisdiction reaching any project touching tidal waters, wetlands, dunes, or beaches; (4) the Eastern Shore of Virginia National Wildlife Refuge and the Fisherman Island National Wildlife Refuge (federal refuge land near the southern tip of the peninsula — the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel north terminus is adjacent to the Fisherman Island refuge and federal-land restrictions apply nearby); (5) the Airport Safety Overlay around the Accomack County Airport and the smaller general-aviation strip at Eastville (Northampton Airport); (6) locally-adopted historic overlays and NRHP-listed rural corridors including the Eastville Historic District (one of the oldest continuously functioning county-seat complexes in Virginia, with records going back to 1677), the Hungars Parish Historic District, Cape Charles Historic District (inside the Town of Cape Charles and administered there), and numerous NRHP-listed plantations and village cores. Northampton County has NO California-style coastal commission (Virginia has no coastal-commission analog; coastal regulation flows through the CBPA, the VMRC for tidal-wetlands permits, and local ordinances), NO CalFire-equivalent WUI regulatory overlay (Virginia has no statewide WUI overlay), and NO seismic-retrofit overlay. However, the combination of pervasive floodplain, pervasive CBPA, regular VMRC joint-permit triggers, and federal refuge proximity makes this one of the most overlay-dense rural counties on the Atlantic seaboard.

• Floodplain Overlay District
• Chesapeake Bay Preservation Act (CBPA) Resource Protection Area and Resource Management Area
• Virginia Marine Resources Commission (VMRC) tidal-wetlands, subaqueous-bottom, and sand-dune jurisdiction
• Eastern Shore of Virginia National Wildlife Refuge and Fisherman Island National Wildlife Refuge
• Airport Safety Overlay (Accomack County Airport north of the county line; Northampton Airport near Eastville)
• Eastville Historic District, Hungars Parish Historic District, and NRHP-listed rural corridors

Northampton County's Department of Planning, Permitting, & Enforcement handles zoning permits, Special Use Permits, site plan review, and subdivision review for every parcel in the county except those inside the Town of Cape Charles (which administers its own zoning and permitting) and federal refuge land. Building Inspections issues building permits and trade permits for the same non-town, non-federal territory. A typical ADU-like permit bundle (where a second dwelling is permitted) includes: (1) a Special Use Permit from the Board of Supervisors with Planning Commission recommendation, unless the parcel qualifies for an A / RR family-member or farm-labor dwelling allowance, (2) a Zoning Permit confirming use compliance and district setback compliance, (3) a Building Permit with stamped residential plans, (4) Electrical, Plumbing, and Mechanical trade permits, (5) a Virginia Department of Health (VDH) - Eastern Shore Health District construction permit for well and/or septic on parcels not served by public water or sewer (which is the great majority of parcels — public sewer coverage is limited to portions of Cape Charles, Exmore, Nassawadox, and small service-district pockets), (6) a Floodplain Development Permit if any portion of the parcel is within the mapped Special Flood Hazard Area — which is a LARGE fraction of parcels in Northampton County because the county is a narrow peninsula with Chesapeake Bay on the west, the Atlantic barrier islands and lagoons on the east, and extensive tidal creek and marsh systems inland, (7) a Chesapeake Bay Preservation Act review — Northampton County IS a Tidewater locality subject to the CBPA, with Resource Protection Area (RPA) and Resource Management Area (RMA) rules applying across nearly the entire county given its tidal geometry, (8) a Virginia Marine Resources Commission (VMRC) permit for any work below mean high water or encroaching on tidal wetlands, (9) a US Army Corps of Engineers permit where federal waters are involved, and (10) Historic District review if the parcel is within the Eastville Historic District, the Hungars Parish Historic District, or another designated local or NRHP-listed overlay.