Commissioners recap two rezoning decisions, emphasize property rights and UDO guidance

Kevin Berger, chairman of the Rockingham County Board of Commissioners, said the board considered two rezoning cases at its Jan. 21 meeting and emphasized a commitment to property rights and consistency with county planning documents. "Also at our meeting, we had 2 rezoning cases. The board has been proponents of property rights for many years," Berger said.

Berger said one property was rezoned "from neighborhood commercial back to RA, residential agriculture," and Commissioner Charlie Hall said a second property was rezoned to highway commercial adjacent to a Lowe's site within the town of Mayodan. Hall described the highway commercial designation as "very consistent with our land use plan." Berger and Hall both urged residents to review the county land use plan and the Unified Development Ordinance, which they said guide rezoning decisions.

The recap stressed that the board’s decisions are guided by the county land use plan and the Unified Development Ordinance (UDO) rather than by the number of public speakers for or against an item. "Our job is to make sure that we're consistent," Hall said.

The transcript excerpt did not include parcel numbers, applicant names, the specific motions or vote tallies, or whether the properties were inside municipal extraterritorial jurisdictions beyond the mention of Mayodan. The board’s recap framed the rezoning outcomes as aligned with the county’s land-use guidance and property-rights priorities.