Chap. 215.—An ACT to amend and reenact Section 4 of Chapter 197 of the
1926 Acts of Assembly, approved March 18, 1926, as heretofore amended,
entitled an act to authorize the councils or other governing bodies of cities
and towns of the Commonwealth, to divide the municipal area into one or more
districts, and in such districts to regulate the use of land and of buildings or
other structures and the height thereof, and also to establish building lines
and to regulate and restrict the construction and location of buildings and
other structures, and to repeal an act entitled an act to authorize the councils
or other governing bodies of cities of the Commonwealth to divide the
municipal area into one or more districts, and in such districts to regulate the
use of land and of buildings or other structures and the height thereof, and,
also to establish building lines and to regulate and restrict the construction
and location of buildings and other structures, approved February 17, 1922,
in relation to the manner of effecting regulations by the council or other gov-
erning body of a city or town. {S 115

Approved March 13, 1948

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:

1. That section four of chapter one hundred and ninety-seven
of the nineteen hundred twenty-six Acts of Assembly, approved
March eighteenth, nineteen hundred and twenty-six, entitled an
act to authorize the councils, or other governing bodies of cities
and towns of the Commonwealth, to divide the municipal area
into or more districts, and in such districts to regulate the use of
land and of buildings or other structures and the height thereof,
and also to establish building lines and to regulate and restrict the
construction and location of buildings and other structures, and to
repeal an act entitled an act to authorize the councils or other gov-
erning bodies of cities of the Commonwealth to divide the municipal
area into one or more districts, and in such districts to regulate the
use of land and of buildings or other structures and the height
thereof, and, also to establish building lines and to regulate and
restrict the construction and location of buildings and other
structures, approved February seventeenth, nineteen hundred
twenty-two, be amended and reenacted so as to read as follows:

Section 4. The council or other governing body of such city
or town shall provide for the manner in which such regulations
and restrictions and the boundaries of such districts shall be
determined, established and enforced, and from time to time
amended, supplemented or changed. However, no such regulation,
restriction or boundary shall become effective until after a public
hearing in relation thereto, at which parties in interest and citizens
shall have an opportunity to be heard. At least fifteen days’ notice
of time and place of such hearings shall be published in an official
paper, or a paper of general publication, in such city or town;
provided, however, that in any city or town where each proposed
change in, or amendment or supplement to, any such regulation,
restriction, or boundary shall be first referred by the council or
other governing body to the board of zoning appeals or planning
commission for report and recommendation, and where said board
or commission makes such report and recommendation to the coun-
cil or other governing body after public hearing in relation thereto
held by said board or commission pursuant to prior notice published
five days in an official paper, or paper of general publication, in
such city or town, the public hearing by the council or other
governing body in relation to such change, amendment or supple-
ment may be held after at least ten days notice of time and place
of such hearing published in an official paper, or a paper of general
publication, in such city or town.