ROANOKE, Va. – Roanoke City Council voted 4-3 Monday to table proposed changes to the city’s residential zoning rules — sending the matter back for more public comment more than two years after the original ordinance was passed.
In a 4-3 decision, the council decided to table the measure for now and get more public comments on the matter.
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The decision means the current zoning rules, first passed in March 2024 and re-adopted in September 2024, remain in effect. That ordinance allows townhomes, cottage courts and small apartments in single-family neighborhoods, effectively eliminating single-family-only zoning across Roanoke.
The measure will now go back for more public comment.
“We basically directed the planning commission to take a look at what the citizens group is proposing and in order to better represent what the community has told us that they would like to see,” Councilman Nick Hagen said.
“It feels very much to me that we’re just rolling a lot of that back by sending this back for a fourth time. I’ve heard overwhelming support from the community, you know with some concerns and questions about the direction that we took,” Mayor Joe Cobb said.
In a separate vote Monday, the council unanimously approved zoning changes related to vape shops and data centers.
Zoning Amendment timeline so far:
- February 2024: City holds open houses on major zoning changes.
- March 2024: Council votes 5–2 to allow townhomes, cottage courts, and small apartments into single-home neighborhoods.
- April 2024: Homeowners file lawsuit against the city, claiming lack of proper notice, limited input, parking concerns, increased density, and potential drops in property values.
- June 2024: Council votes to reconsider and sends the amendments back to the Planning Commission, restarting the public process.
- Planning Commission: Votes not to recommend the changes.
- September 2024: Council rejects that advice and readopts the zoning amendment with no major changes.
- August 2025: A motion is made to repeal the amendments. Residents pause their lawsuit “to facilitate open discussion.”
- December 2025: Roanoke City combines zoning text amendments with vape ordinance and Evans Spring.
- February 2026: Roanoke City holds community meetings to hear feedback from the public.
- April 2026: Roanoke planning commission voted to move the three ordinances forward to City Council for final decisions.
- July 2026: Roanoke City Council votes 4-3 to table the 2024 zoning amendment, sending the amendment back for public comment and review.