Richlands

Tazewell County does NOT maintain a standalone accessory-dwelling-unit ordinance. The county's regulatory posture is moderate — more structured than Russell or Buchanan counties given Tazewell's higher population and town infrastructure, but lighter than Tidewater Virginia. ADUs are regulated indirectly through the Zoning Ordinance's treatment of 'accessory use,' 'accessory structure,' 'guest house,' and 'family-member dwelling' in combination with the per-district use schedules where zoning applies. In zoned areas (typically the higher-density corridors near the towns and the principal valley-floor agricultural areas), an A-1 or A-R district 'family-member dwelling' or farm-labor tenant dwelling is typically permitted subject to minimum lot area requirements; a fully independent second dwelling for non-family occupancy on a single lot typically requires a Special Use Permit. In residential districts, accessory structures are typically permitted by-right; an independent second dwelling typically requires SUP review. Many ridge-and-hollow parcels and the Burke's Garden interior have light-touch zoning where the principal regulatory touchpoints are USBC building permit and VDH onsite-sewage. Mine-subsidence concerns from historic underground coal mining apply on portions of the county, particularly around Pocahontas and the major coalfield communities. Applicants should confirm current ordinance text and zoning status of the specific parcel with the Tazewell County Department of Community Development before committing to a project pro forma.

Tazewell County's overlay regime reflects its Appalachian coalfield geography and exceptional historic-resource concentration. The relevant overlays / hazard layers are: (1) a Floodplain Overlay tied to FEMA Special Flood Hazard Areas along the Clinch River, the Bluestone River, Indian Creek, and other mapped tributaries; (2) a mine-subsidence hazard layer tied to historic underground coal workings, administered jointly by the Virginia Department of Energy Division of Mined Land Repurposing — significant portions of the Pocahontas / Richlands / coalfield-corridor area overlie former room-and-pillar coal mining with measurable subsidence risk; (3) karst-terrain hazard zones in portions of the county with limestone bedrock — Burke's Garden notably sits in a Mississippian-age limestone formation and has karst features affecting septic-system siting and foundation design; (4) the Burke's Garden Rural Historic District (a National Historic Landmark District covering the entire enclosed valley, NRHP-listed) — the District's NHL status does not directly impose local-zoning restrictions but Section 106 review applies to federally-funded projects and federal historic-rehabilitation tax credits affect the rehab investment regime; (5) the Pocahontas Historic District (NRHP-listed coal-mining-era company-town district); (6) various individually-listed NRHP plantations, houses, and industrial structures; (7) the Bluefield twin-city historic-resource overlap with the Town of Bluefield, VA. The Chesapeake Bay Preservation Act DOES NOT apply (Tazewell drains to the Tennessee River system and the Ohio River system, not to the Chesapeake watershed). There is NO California-style coastal commission, NO CalFire-equivalent WUI overlay, NO seismic-retrofit overlay, and NO airport-noise overlay in Tazewell County (Tazewell County Airport / Tazewell County / WV / Pocahontas Airport JFZ is a small general-aviation strip without published noise-contour mapping that would constrain residential development).

• Floodplain Overlay along the Clinch and Bluestone Rivers and tributaries
• Mine-subsidence hazard from historic underground coal mining (Pocahontas coalfield)
• Burke's Garden Rural Historic District (National Historic Landmark District)
• Pocahontas Historic District (coal-mining-era company-town district)
• Karst-terrain sinkhole susceptibility in limestone bedrock areas

Tazewell County's Department of Community Development handles zoning permits, Special Use Permits, site plan review, subdivision review, and floodplain-overlay administration for every parcel in the county except those inside the incorporated towns (Tazewell, Bluefield, Cedar Bluff, Pocahontas, Richlands) or on state/federal land. Building Inspections issues building permits and trade permits for the same non-town territory. A typical second-dwelling permit bundle includes: (1) where zoning applies and SUP is required, an SUP from the Board of Supervisors with Planning Commission recommendation, (2) a Zoning Permit confirming use compliance and district setback compliance (where applicable), (3) a Building Permit with stamped residential plans, (4) Electrical, Plumbing, and Mechanical trade permits, (5) a Virginia Department of Health (VDH) - Cumberland Plateau Health District construction permit for well and/or septic on parcels not served by public water or sewer, (6) any applicable Floodplain Development Permit if the parcel intersects the mapped 100-year SFHA along the Clinch River, the Bluestone River, the Tug Fork tributaries, or other mapped tributaries (Tazewell County is bisected by the Clinch and is the headwaters area for the Bluestone River system that drains north into West Virginia), (7) any applicable mine-subsidence acknowledgment for parcels overlying historic underground coal workings (significant in the Pocahontas, Richlands, and former-active-mine areas), (8) any applicable historic-overlay review at Burke's Garden (a National Historic Landmark District), Pocahontas (the historic coal-mining-town district), and individual NRHP-listed parcels. The Chesapeake Bay Preservation Act does NOT apply.