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Planning Commission begins rewrite of wireless ordinance, forms short-term rental/TOT committee
Summary
The commission reported that the county's wireless-telecommunications ordinance (from 2001) is out of date with 2017 changes to the Virginia Code and approved keeping the Event Venue committee intact to draft short-term rental and transient-occupancy tax ordinances.
At its Jan. 5, 2023 meeting the Lunenburg County Planning Commission discussed two ordinance efforts: updating the county's Wireless Telecommunications Ordinance and drafting Short-Term Rental and Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT) ordinances.
Assistant County Attorney Drew DiStanislao told the commission the existing wireless ordinance dates to 2001 and was written around 1996 regulations, and that the Virginia Code changed in 2017 in ways that affect local authority on telecommunications siting. "The current ordinance is from 2001, which was based on 1996 regulations," DiStanislao said, noting the committee is reviewing ordinances from other localities and considering a rewrite to clarify process and encourage tower deployment.
Separately Chair James "Buck" Tharpe and Clerk Taylor N. Newton said the county needs a Short-Term Rental Ordinance and a Transient Occupancy Tax Ordinance so the locality can collect taxes that are now remitted by booking platforms and direct those revenues to the general fund and the tourism budget. Clerk Newton proposed that the Event Venue committee also serve as the Short-Term Rental/TOT committee; Commissioner Shell moved to keep the same committee membership, Commissioner Pennington seconded, and the motion carried unanimously.
The county will continue committee review; no text of the new ordinances was adopted. The commission scheduled its next meeting for Feb. 2, 2023, at 7 p.m., subject to agenda items.
