Staff presented a package of zoning "cleanup" changes at the Norfolk Planning Commission preview meeting Wednesday, including a proposal to permit houseboats in most marinas under narrowly defined performance standards.

The amendment would add four performance standards that marinas must meet to host houseboats by right; marinas that do not meet all standards — for example, facilities with fewer slips — could request a conditional use permit. Planner (Unidentified Speaker 9) said the standards are intended to ensure safe maintenance, limit discharges to the water and preserve consistency with existing marina operations. "This currently is not allowed in the city, so we're opening the door slightly to where we feel there's enough protections and enough oversight of it where we can allow it in those minimal circumstances by right," the planner said.

Why it matters: allowing houseboats could expand short-term rental-style lodging and waterfront access options while creating new oversight responsibilities for health and marina safety. Staff emphasized that the longstanding liveaboard rules — which govern owners who keep and sometimes travel with their boats — would remain unchanged; the amendment targets vessels used primarily as residences and typically not used for regular transportation.

Key clarifications and related fixes: staff also proposed technical edits across several articles of the zoning ordinance. Notable changes include clarifying that the "30,000 square foot" trigger in district-specific review standards refers to a building footprint (not cumulative floor area), restoring a community recreation center use to the institutional (IN) district where it had been inadvertently removed, and replacing references to "Plan Norfolk 2030" with a generic "comprehensive plan" to future-proof ordinance language.

Several commissioners asked whether small marinas had expressed interest; staff said most small facilities are unlikely to pursue houseboat programs and that only one marina was a single slip short of meeting performance thresholds. Staff will provide handouts and return with in-depth technical details at future briefings and the formal public hearing sequence.

What's next: staff said the text amendment is being readied for initiation at the public hearing process; as a preview item, commissioners received materials and will consider the formal initiation and subsequent votes in the coming meetings.