Roanoke County, VA Hurricane Preparedness: Flood Elevation (2026)

Roanoke County's flood-construction standards go beyond a minimum elevation: § 30-74-15(C) governs any fully enclosed space below the regulatory flood protection elevation in Zones A, AE, AH and AO. That space cannot be designed or used for human habitation, only for parking, building access, or limited storage of maintenance equipment, and it must be built of flood-resistant materials below the flood protection elevation. To equalize hydrostatic pressure, § 30-74-15(C)3 requires at least two openings on different sides of each enclosed area, with combined net area of at least one square inch per square foot of enclosed floor area, and the bottom of every opening no higher than one foot above the adjacent grade.

Flexible skirting does not count as an enclosure needing openings, but masonry or wood underpinning does. Accessory structures sitting in the special flood hazard area get their own standard under § 30-74-15(D): unless elevated or dry flood-proofed to the § 30-74-15(B) standard, an accessory building must skip human habitation entirely, top out at 600 square feet of floor area, use flood damage-resistant materials below the base flood elevation, be anchored against flotation, and raise its electrical service and mechanical equipment above the base flood elevation, plus meet the same two-opening flood-venting standard.

Section 30-74-17(A)13 reinforces the cap by barring the Board of Zoning Appeals from granting any variance for an accessory structure over 600 square feet, even for hardship.