Small Lot Residential Ordinance

In 2024, the Town of Blacksburg considered a Zoning Ordinance amendment to address the need for additional residential development. This amendment (Ordinance 2053) provides a framework for small-lot residential development to fill a market need for smaller homes and the “missing middle” housing market.

“Missing middle housing” refers to housing types that fall between a single-family large lot home and mid-rise apartment buildings. Examples include townhomes, duplexes, triplexes, and courtyard clusters. Missing middle housing can help localities increase the availability of less expensive housing types and support vibrant, walkable neighborhoods while gently increasing density. These housing types are important to a diverse housing stock, contributing to more inclusive neighborhoods.

In the Town’s 2017 Comprehensive Plan survey, 41% of the 1,500 respondents identified the need for more affordable housing as one of three top community priorities. In a 2021 Blacksburg Housing survey, the majority of respondents overwhelmingly supported small lot single-family development as an acceptable and priority strategy for increasing housing affordability and housing choice for permanent residents. The adopted Comprehensive Plan specifically calls for the Town to review minimum lot sizes and promote smaller homes.

In response, Town staff drafted Zoning Ordinance changes that would permit residential development on smaller lots, while ensuring high-quality design and neighborhood amenities.

The residential development that has occurred in Town over the past 5-10 years has predominately been larger lot detached single-family developments and student apartment complexes. However, strong and financially resilient communities require a variety of housing types, not just large single-family detached homes on one end of the spectrum and dense apartment complexes on the other. A wider range of housing options, such as smaller single-family detached homes, duplexes, and townhomes are needed to support a diverse community of residents. In today’s market, these housing types are harder to build due to a combination of factors, including the Town’s current zoning regulations.

Combined, these new standards are designed to create small, walkable neighborhoods with a denser development pattern than the current R-4 zoning allows, while requiring high-quality design.

Here are some key aspects of the Small Lot Residential Zoning Ordinance Amendment:

Ordinance 2053:

1. Applies only to zoned R-4 Low-Density Residential properties with a minimum area of two contiguous acres.

The Town of Blacksburg is divided into different zones that each have their own land use designation. Some areas are strictly for residential use, some are strictly for commercial use, but most allow a little bit of both. The current R-4 zoning district governs development in much of the Town’s traditional single-family neighborhoods. Areas eligible for development as part of Ordinance 2053 must have a minimum of two contiguous developable acres under common ownership. The requirement for two contiguous developable acres means that Ordinance 2053 is not intended for infill development.

Areas of eligibility for this district can change over time as properties are bought and sold.

2. Allows for smaller homes on smaller lots.

The previous R-4 zoning district allowed only for strictly single-family residential development with minimum lot sizes of 10,000 square feet. Ordinance 2053 allows for development on a minimum 3,000 square foot lot size (.06 of an acre) with smaller front, side, and back yard setbacks, which varies depending on lot size. It also allows for homes with an overall height of 30 feet or 2-1/2 stories. However, the footprint of the home may not exceed 25% of the lot size, which between the maximum footprint and the maximum height helps ensure that the homes are more modest in overall square footage. These conditions were developed to retain the character of single-family neighborhoods.

Example: Portions of Village at Toms Creek, Blacksburg
Lot size of at least 5,000 square feet for single-family units
Lot size of approximately 3,500 square feet per unit for duplexes

3. Allows duplexes and townhomes only if an alley serves them.

Previously, only detached single-family dwellings were allowed in the R-4 zoning district. Under Ordinance 2053, duplexes and townhomes are permitted in small lot developments with alley access. This minimizes driveways at the street and ensures a pedestrian-friendly streetscape.

Example of alley access: Honeysuckle Drive houses with access by Plum Alley in Village at Toms Creek

4. Limits the number of duplexes and townhomes in a small lot development.

On sites of less than 5 acres, attached units comprise no more than 50% of the total units. On sites 5 acres or more, attached units are limited to no more than 30% of the total units. This ensures that small lot developments contain a mix of unit types within them when attached units are included.

5. Requires sidewalks on both sides of the street.

This accommodates more users with the higher density.

6. Maintains the minimum requirement that 10% of the development must be open space.

This retains the previous open space standard for R-4 subdivisions. For developments containing more than 10 attached duplex or townhome units, a minimum of 15% of the development must be preserved as open space. This helps ensure that open space is adequate and can accommodate features such as playgrounds, ball fields, and neighborhood gathering spaces.

7. Reduces the number of unrelated individuals that may live in the home.

The occupancy for the district is a family plus no more than one (1) unrelated person; or no more than two (2) unrelated persons per residential dwelling.The Town desired to ensure that new units did not default to investment properties housing students and wished to create new options for long-term residents or those who may want to live in Blacksburg.

8. Allows for small lot residential development ‘by-right’ if developers meet all the conditions of the ordinance. ‘

'By-right’ development refers to projects that are permitted under current zoning and do not require any legislative action by Town Council. They are approved administratively and do not require public hearings because they already meet Town standards.

In November of 2024, Blacksburg Town Council held a public hearing on the ordinance and approved it by a vote of 7 - 0.

To learn more about the Small Lot Residential Zoning Amendment, please see Ordinance 2053 on the right-hand side of this page.