Norfolk, VA Sidewalk & Pedestrian Rules: Obstruction Rules (2026)

Section 42-10 is Norfolk's general obstruction and encroachment statute. Subsection (a) forbids any piazza, porch, step, fence, enclosure or projection attached to a building from extending beyond the building line without council authorization. Subsection (b) broadens that to any sign, banner, poster, sticker, shed, porch, portico, door, platform, step or 'any other object or thing of any form or nature whatsoever' placed in a right-of-way, street, alley or city land without authorization. If a violation is not corrected, the director of public works or designee may remove it directly, and the cost of removal, plus any damage caused to city property during removal, becomes chargeable to the person who caused the obstruction and collectible as a lien on their real property with the same priority as unpaid real estate taxes.

Enforcement authority extends beyond public works staff to any law enforcement officer, designated special police officer, and the fire marshal or assistant fire marshal. The chapter also names specific obstruction types elsewhere in the same article: § 42-11 bars gates or doors that swing outward over a sidewalk or into a street, § 42-12 bars unauthorized posts or wooden framework across a sidewalk, and § 42-13 bars leaving goods, wares, show cases or merchandise on a sidewalk except briefly during active delivery.