Roanoke County, VA Environmental Rules: Flood Elevation Requirements (2026)

Roanoke County's freeboard standard sits inside the elevation and construction rules of the Floodplain Overlay District, Code § 30-74-15, adopted by Ordinance No. 090820-14 on September 8, 2020. Where FEMA or a certified engineer has produced a base flood elevation for a Zone AE, AH or A parcel, § 30-74-15(A) requires new construction or substantial improvement of any residential structure, including a manufactured home, to have its lowest floor, including the basement, elevated to or above the base flood level plus 24 inches. Even the equipment, electrical panels, HVAC units, water heaters, on a residential building built, substantially improved, or rebuilt after substantial damage must sit at or above base flood level plus 12 inches.

Commercial, industrial and other non-residential buildings get a lower bar under § 30-74-15(B)1: lowest floor, including basement, elevated to base flood level plus 12 inches, unless the owner opts for full flood-proofing to base flood level plus 2 feet with a licensed engineer's certification under § 30-74-15(B)2. The floodplain administrator collects the as-built elevation certificate for every project and keeps it on permanent file under § 30-74-18, and § 30-74-6(H) makes an incomplete or deficient elevation certificate grounds for the county to require correction before the file closes.

A subdivision that spans a floodplain must show the base flood elevation on its final recorded plat under § 30-74-13(C), so future buyers see the number before they build.