Norfolk, VA Environmental Rules: Boat Dock Permits (2026)

Chapter 49 creates the seven-member Norfolk Wetlands Board (Sec. 49-4), appointed by city council to five-year staggered terms. Sec. 49-3(1) exempts noncommercial catwalks, piers, boathouses, boat shelters, fences, duckblinds and similar structures from a permit only if they are built on pilings that allow the reasonably unobstructed flow of the tide and preserve the wetland's natural contour. Any other use or development of wetlands in the city, including commercial docks, bulkheads or larger structures, requires an application filed directly with the wetlands board or the Virginia Marine Resources Commission under Sec.

49-6. The application must include a scaled site map, the location and dimensions of proposed structures and fill or excavation, a cost estimate, the project's purpose and public benefit, and a statement on why a living shoreline alternative is not used, plus a nonrefundable permit fee set by city council. Applications are open for public inspection through the Bureau of Environmental Services in the department of city planning (Sec. 49-7). The board must hold a public hearing within 60 days of a complete application, with notice mailed to adjacent owners at least 20 days ahead, published in a newspaper within the prior seven days, and posted online 14 days before the hearing (Sec.

49-8). Granting a permit needs an affirmative vote of four of seven board members, or three of five, and the board must decide within 30 days of the hearing or the permit is deemed approved (Sec. 49-9). The board may require a bond and can suspend or revoke a permit for noncompliance (Sec. 49-10), and every permit carries a board-set expiration date (Sec. 49-13). A wetlands permit does not override the city's separate zoning and land use approvals (Sec. 49-14).