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Planning commission recommends county code updates to implement Chesapeake Bay resiliency rules
Summary
The Planning Commission recommended approval of two county code updates (DPA 2025‑00020 and DPA 2025‑00021) to implement state‑mandated Chesapeake Bay resiliency and adaptation measures, including resiliency impact mapping, limited nature‑based adaptation within RPAs and tree‑preservation provisions. Staff said the changes are statewide mandates and are expected to have limited countywide impact outside low‑lying Bay Street areas.
Prince William County planning staff briefed commissioners on July 2 about two Development Policy Amendments (DPAs) to align the county’s DCSM and zoning ordinance with state‑mandated Chesapeake Bay resiliency and adaptation rules. The commission recommended both updates.
Clay Morse, Environmental Program Manager, told the commission the amendments require a resiliency impact map and a 30‑year assessment of a parcel’s vulnerability to sea‑level rise, storm surge and related hazards. In certain Resilience‑mapped RPAs the code will allow specific nature‑based adaptation measures that were not previously permitted, and the updates add provisions addressing living shorelines and preservation of mature trees as water‑quality protection tools.
Morse said the statewide model ordinance was developed largely for Tidewater localities; for Prince William County staff’s mapping and modeling show the changes will have limited geographic effect, with Bay Street and other low‑lying shoreline areas most likely to be affected. "This basically you're looking at your building within 30 years," Morse said when describing the 30‑year assessment requirement. He noted that where the county’s floodplain is present it will remain the more restrictive regulatory constraint for redevelopment.
Staff also explained that the county’s existing tree‑canopy and related provisions satisfy the model ordinance’s mature‑tree preservation intent and that the living‑shoreline definition would be harmonized across DCSM and zoning text prior to Board consideration.
Outcome Commissioners voted to recommend both DPA 2025‑00020 (DCSM updates) and DPA 2025‑00021 (zoning text updates) to the Board of Supervisors. Both motions passed on roll calls that recorded Commissioner Justice as abstaining and the remainder voting yes.
Why it matters The amendments implement a state mandate intended to give localities new tools to assess and adapt development in areas vulnerable to sea‑level rise and coastal storm impacts. For Prince William County staff said the policy will mainly apply in limited low‑lying shoreline areas and is likely to be used primarily for future redevelopment or site‑specific reviews in mapped resiliency areas.
What’s next Staff will finalize redline text and harmonize definitions (in particular the "living shoreline" definition) before the package goes to the Board of Supervisors for final action.
