New Kent County launches 18–24 month rewrite of zoning and subdivision ordinances; consultants flag compliance gaps and community priorities

Berkeley Group principal planner Caroline Vanurve told the joint meeting of the New Kent County Board of Supervisors, Planning Commission and Board of Zoning Appeals on June 29 that the county has not comprehensively updated its zoning and subdivision ordinances since the mid-2000s and that the firm was engaged late in 2025 to lead a rewrite.

"My name is Caroline Vanurve. I'm a principal planner with Berkeley Group," she said, explaining the project is split into three phases: an investigation phase (nearing completion), an ordinance-drafting phase and a final adoption and review phase. Vanurve said the firm and county staff are tentatively targeting ordinance adoption in late 2027 and that the drafting phase will run through spring–early summer 2027.

Why it matters: Vanurve said the rewrite is timed to implement the county's newly adopted comprehensive plan and to incorporate numerous recent changes in state law. "Because Virginia is a Dillon's Rule state," she told the boards, the update team will ensure mandatory state provisions are incorporated so county ordinances remain enforceable.

What consultants found: Berkeley Group presented a diagnostic audit that compared the county'9s ordinances with provisions of the Code of Virginia. For zoning, the audit showed roughly 43% of mandatory state provisions are fully included, 21% partially included and 36% not included; many of the missing items reflect statutory changes from the most recent General Assembly session. The consultants described the subdivision ordinance as comparatively stronger, with about half of mandatory provisions included, but still in need of reorganization and targeted updates.

Community priorities and engagement: Vanurve and senior planner Stephanie Mathenina summarized outreach that produced 741 survey responses plus workshops, focus groups and farmers-market pop-ups. They said respondents consistently prioritized preserving rural character, context-sensitive design standards, limiting infrastructure and transportation impacts from new development, and improving transparency and predictability in permitting.

Survey highlights cited by Berkeley Group included:
- 741 total survey responses, with 94% identifying as residents and a majority of respondents owning their property; 59% reported living in the county at least 10 years.
- Strong support for tree cover and landscaping requirements (about 94% agreement that buffers should be required between business/industrial and residential/agricultural uses).
- High opposition to data centers: roughly 87% of survey respondents discouraged allowing data centers in the county.
- Divided views on housing: respondents split on whether to allow more housing types countywide or to retain primarily single-family areas.

What comes next: Berkeley Group said it will present a reorganized ordinance in the fall that reflects state-code edits and reformatting. Policy drafting and redlines will follow in a series of joint work sessions beginning in early 2027. The consultants also said they plan at least one open house and a second formal public-engagement period before public hearings.

Quotes and source notes: Vanurve and Mathenina led the presentation and Q&A. The diagnostic and the community-engagement summary are posted on the project website the team provided to the board and the public; Berkeley Group said the diagnostic matrices flag "shall" versus "may" language and highlight new or amended state provisions.

Next procedural step: Berkeley Group will return in November with the reorganized ordinance and state-code highlights; the board expects additional work sessions and a public hearing schedule in 2027.