York County, VA Right to Farm: Agricultural Zoning Protection (2026)
Key Facts
- Minimum parcel size
- 2 usable acres, Sec. 24.1-414.2(a)
- Standard pen setback
- 100 ft from an adjoining dwelling
- Absolute minimum setback
- 25 ft from any property line
- Swine setback
- 500 ft from dwelling, 300 ft from line
- Large poultry setback (16+)
- 200 ft from dwelling, 100 ft from line
Summary
York County, Virginia's zoning code sets the ground rules for keeping livestock as a land use. Sec. 24.1-414.2 requires a minimum two-acre parcel for any agricultural use involving livestock and imposes distance buffers between animal pens and neighboring homes, with tighter setbacks for swine and larger poultry operations.
(a)Notwithstanding the minimum area requirements stated elsewhere in this chapter for any zoning classification, the minimum area of any parcel proposed for an agricultural use involving livestock, as defined in section 24.1-1-104, shall be two (2) usable acres. ... (b)Any open-air pen, fenced area, or other confinement area for livestock in which the available space is less than 200 square feet per animal shall be located at least 100 feet from the property line of any adjoining parcel on which a residential dwelling unit exists, is under construction, or would be permitted pursuant to its existing zoning classification. In no event shall any pen or confinement area, regardless of its size/area and the number of animals confined, be located less than 25 feet from any perimeter property line.
Full Breakdown
York County treats livestock farming as a zoning use with real dimensional standards, not an unregulated by-right activity. Sec. 24.1-414.2(a) sets the minimum parcel size for any agricultural use involving livestock at two usable acres, excluding from that calculation the footprint of residential structures, required front or side yards, low-lying land under two feet above mean sea level, and the 25-foot buffer along the upland side of that contour. Sec. 24.1-414.2(b) then regulates where animals can actually be confined: any pen, fenced area, or other confinement space that gives an animal less than 200 square feet has to sit at least 100 feet from the property line of any adjoining parcel with an existing, under-construction, or zoning-permitted residential dwelling, and no confinement area of any size can come closer than 25 feet to any perimeter property line.
Swine operations are singled out for tighter buffers: any structure or fenced area confining swine must be at least 500 feet from an off-site dwelling and 300 feet from any property line, while a structure or pen for more than 16 chickens needs 200 feet from an off-site dwelling and 100 feet from any property line. Sec. 24.1-414.2(c) sets pasture fencing back at least 25 feet from a perimeter line abutting a parcel under two acres, and subsection (d) folds in Chapter 4's separate Livestock article and the Chapter 23.2 Chesapeake Bay Preservation Area rules. Subsection (f) carves out accessory horsekeeping and domestic chicken-keeping, governed instead by Sec. 24.1-414 and Sec. 24.1-414.1.
Violations & Fines
These livestock setbacks and acreage standards aren't on the code's short list of civil-ticket offenses, so a violation is enforced as a straight zoning misdemeanor under Sec. 24.1-109(c)(1): a fine of $10 to $1,000 for a first conviction, and $100 to $1,500 for each following ten-day period the noncompliant pen, confinement area, or operation isn't corrected.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much land does York County require for keeping livestock?
How far do animal pens have to be from a neighbor's house?
Does keeping pigs or a lot of chickens require extra distance?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in York County
Compare York County to another location·View the Virginia right to farm overview
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