2018

Prince William Board of County Supervisors v. Archie

Supreme Court of Virginia

296 Va. 1, 817 S.E.2d 323

Landowner had used three connecting parcels of land continuously for an automobile junkyard since 1954, before County adopted a zoning law in 1958. In 2015, landowner applied for a verification of a nonconforming use on the three parcels and the County denied it as to one. The County based that denial on litigation from 1990 that had ordered the landowner to remove all junked vehicles from the one parcel. Landowner denied that was ever accomplished and the junkyard use had been continuous from 1954. County ruled against landowner, and on appeal the trial court reversed the County’s decision, holding the nonconforming junkyard use had never been discontinued or abandoned. It was clear that the junkyard was a lawful nonconforming use when the zoning was enacted. Although another entity had legal title to the one property between 1987 and 1992, more than five junked cars were present the entire time. As the lawful nonconforming use was not discontinued for more that two years, the Supreme Court affirmed.

Back to Case Finder Main Page
Volume One Indexes:
To Case Name Index
To Topic Index
To Date Index
To Code Section Index