Committee discusses combining site-plan and design-review procedures to meet new state rule

The Zoning Code Update Citizen Advisory Committee spent much of its Jan. 15 meeting on Chapter 11, debating whether to label the chapter "design review" and to fold site-plan review into that process.

Scott, a staff presenter, said a state requirement effective Jan. 1 prevents planning commissions and councils from approving design review and plats at public meetings, meaning those approvals must be administrative staff actions. He told the committee the code needs to reflect that shift while keeping submission requirements consistent with historical practice so projects continue to provide the same information for review.

"Everything should have to have a site plan review, but not everything should necessarily have to have a design review," Scott said, drawing a distinction between broadly required site-plan checks and the narrower design-review standard that applies to larger or visually sensitive projects. Committee members discussed whether naming the chapter "design review" or "site plan review and design review" would be less confusing for applicants and whether submission checklists—and examples such as 24-by-36-inch prints—should be moved into application materials rather than the code itself.

Staff said they will return with draft design-review criteria and suggested that some technical items highlighted in blue could be transferred into the town engineering or public-works code after consulting with Virginia and the public-works department.

The committee did not take a formal vote on Chapter 11 at the meeting and scheduled further review in upcoming meetings.