Roanoke, VA Animal Ordinances: Veterinary Clinic Zoning (2026)

Section 36.2-315 of the Zoning Ordinance sets out where a veterinary practice may operate among Roanoke's nine multiple purpose (commercial and mixed-use) districts. The row for "Animal hospital or veterinary clinic, no outdoor pens or runs" is marked "P," permitted as of right, in the CN (Commercial-Neighborhood), CG (Commercial-General), CLS (Commercial-Large Site), D (Downtown), UF (Urban Flex), and UC (Urban Center) Districts. The same use is left blank, meaning not permitted, in the MX (Mixed Use), IN (Institutional), and ROS (Recreation and Open Space) Districts. A clinic that keeps outdoor pens or runs is downgraded to "S," requiring a special exception from the Board of Zoning Appeals, in every one of the same six districts where the indoor-only version is by-right.

Appendix A of Chapter 36.2 defines "animal hospital or veterinary clinic" as "an establishment for the care, observation, or treatment of domestic animals, including household pets, and which may include medical or surgical treatment and care," adding that boarding "shall be limited to short-time boarding necessitated by and directly related to surgery or medical treatment and shall be clearly incidental to the operation of the animal hospital or veterinary clinic." The definitions section separately cross-references "Veterinary clinic: See 'Animal hospital,'" confirming the two terms share one regulatory entry rather than being treated as distinct uses. In Roanoke's residential districts, by contrast, Section 36.2-311's use table does not list an animal hospital or veterinary clinic use at all, so the practice is confined to the multiple purpose districts covered by Section 36.2-315.