Newport News, VA Home Business: Customer Traffic Restrictions (2026)

Section 45-517 sets five conditions that together define an unlawful home occupation in the City of Newport News. No home-based business may use more than 400 square feet of floor space, may not make use of any accessory building such as a detached garage or shed, may not change the outside appearance of the dwelling or be visible from the street, and may not display or store materials outside. The fifth condition, subsection (5)a, is the traffic and nuisance test: a home occupation cannot generate more traffic, noise, parking demand, sewerage or water use than is normal for residential uses in that neighborhood, cannot create a hazard to person or property, and cannot create an assembly of persons or vehicles under subsection (5)b-c.

The code defines a home occupation, at § 45-201, as any occupation clearly incidental to use of the dwelling that forms all or part of the livelihood of a family member living there. Before opening, an owner must obtain a certificate of use and occupancy from the department of codes compliance; § 13-170(d) sets a $50 fee for a home-occupation application and requires an inspection of the premises. The zoning administrator, appointed under § 45-3501(a), enforces § 45-517 by inspection and by ordering in writing the correction of any violation found on the premises.

An owner who disagrees with a determination that a home business is generating excess traffic or nuisance may appeal to the Board of Zoning Appeals; § 45-3202(b) gives 30 days from the decision to file notice of appeal, or only 10 days if the violation involves a temporary, seasonal or recurring condition such as parking overflow.