Title 15.2, Title 15.2. Counties, Cities and Towns

Whenever the necessity arises (i) for the enforcement of laws designed to control or prohibit the use or sale of controlled drugs as defined in § 54.1-3401 or laws contained in Article 3 (§ 18.2-47 et seq.) of Chapter 4 or Article 3 (§ 18.2-346 et seq.) of Chapter 8 of Title 18.2…

Any locality owning and operating an airport, public hospital, sanitarium, nursing home, public water supply or watershed, public park, recreational area, sewage disposal plant or system, public landing, dock, wharf or canal, public school, public utility, public buildings and ot…

For the purposes of local public safety regulatory authority and enforcement, the territorial limits of the City of Virginia Beach shall extend from its coastal shorelines, the coastal shorelines of Camp Pendleton, the coastal shorelines of First Landing State Park, and the coast…

A. Any locality may, in its discretion, enter into a reciprocal agreement with any other locality, any agency of the federal government exercising police powers, the police of any public institution of higher education in the Commonwealth appointed pursuant to subsection B of § 2…

A. For the purposes of this section: "Federal immigration enforcement agreement" means an agreement with a federal agency authorizing a law-enforcement officer or employee of the Commonwealth or any of its localities to perform a function of a federal immigration officer or an in…

A locality, public institution of higher education in the Commonwealth, or private institution of higher education in the Commonwealth may, in its discretion, enter into reciprocal agreements for such periods as it deems advisable with any locality outside the Commonwealth, inclu…

In any case where exclusive jurisdiction over any property or territory has been granted by the Commonwealth to the United States government, or to a department or agency thereof, the governing body of any contiguous locality or the Division of Capitol Police may enter into a mut…

A. The governing body of any county may enter into an agreement with the United States government or a department or agency thereof, under the terms of which agreement law-enforcement officers employed by such government, including but not limited to members of the United States …

In case of an emergency declared by the chief law-enforcement officer of a locality, such officer may call upon the chief law-enforcement officer of towns within his county and the chief law-enforcement officer of an adjoining county or city, or towns in adjoining counties for as…

In counties where no police department has been established and the sheriff is the chief law-enforcement officer, the sheriff may enter into agreements with any other governmental entity providing law-enforcement services in the Commonwealth, and may furnish and receive interjuri…

A. Localities, for the further preservation of the public peace, safety, and good order of the community, may establish, equip, and maintain auxiliary police forces that have all the powers and authority and all the immunities of full-time law-enforcement officers, if all such fo…

Localities may make such appropriations as may be necessary to arm, equip, uniform and maintain such auxiliary police force.

The governing body of the locality may appoint or provide for the appointment as auxiliary police officers as many persons of good character as it deems necessary, not to exceed the number fixed by ordinance adopted by the governing body, and their appointment shall be revocable …

A. A locality may call into service or provide for calling into service such auxiliary police officers as may be deemed necessary (i) in time of public emergency; (ii) at such times as there are insufficient numbers of regular police officers to preserve the peace, safety, and go…

The members of any such auxiliary police force shall not be required to act beyond the limits of the jurisdiction of any such locality except when called upon to protect any public property belonging to the locality that may be located beyond its boundaries, or as provided in § 1…

The governing bodies of localities, institutions of higher learning having a police force appointed pursuant to subsection B of § 23.1-812, and institutions of higher education having a private police force, as well as sheriffs, and the Director of the Department of Conservation …

A. The governing bodies of two or more localities or other political subdivisions or other public bodies hereinafter collectively referred to as "governmental units," may by ordinance or resolution enter into an agreement which creates a regional criminal justice academy under an…

A. Upon organization of an academy, it shall be a public body corporate and politic, the purposes of which shall be to establish and conduct training for public law-enforcement and correctional officers, those being trained to be public law-enforcement and correctional officers, …

A. Each academy is hereby authorized, after a resolution adopted by a majority of its board of directors, to issue, at one time or from time to time, revenue bonds of the academy on a taxable or tax-exempt basis for the purpose of acquiring, purchasing, constructing, reconstructi…

The governmental units which are parties of the agreement creating the academy or which arrange to have personnel trained at the academy are authorized to appropriate or lend funds; pay fees or charges for services; convey by sale, lease or gift real or personal property, or any …

Any academy created under the provisions of this article shall not be required to pay taxes or assessments upon any project or upon any property acquired or used by it or upon the income therefrom and income derived from bonds shall be exempt at all times from every kind and natu…

Any academy created pursuant to this article shall be deemed to be a governmental entity exercising essential governmental powers. Any such academy; its directors, officers, and employees; and any person serving as a trainer at the academy who is certified by the Department of Cr…

No member of the board of directors of an academy shall be personally liable for any indebtedness, obligation or other liability of an academy, barring willful misconduct.

A. A locality may acquire by purchase, gift, devise, bequest, exchange, lease as lessee, or otherwise, title to, or any interests in, any real property, whether improved or unimproved, within its jurisdiction, for any public use. Acquisition of any interest in real property by co…

Notwithstanding the provisions of § 22.1-125 or any other provision of law, whenever a locality has incurred a financial obligation, payable over more than one fiscal year, to fund the acquisition, construction or improvement of public school property, the local governing body of…

If a locality in the Commonwealth appropriates funds, from any source, for the acquisition of property rights surrounding Fentress Naval Auxiliary Landing Field ("Fentress") in Chesapeake, the chief executive officer of the locality shall ensure that written notice is provided to…

In any instance in which a parcel of real estate is (i) located within an undeveloped common area in a subdivision, (ii) located in a subdivision with a homeowners' association that has been previously dissolved, and (iii) tax delinquent, a locality may, after giving at least 30 …

A restrictive covenant that limits the use of property for recreation, voluntarily conveyed by a nonprofit recreational association to Loudoun County for recreational purposes, is void and against public policy to the extent that it would prohibit the recreational use of the prop…

A locality may acquire pursuant to § 15.2-1800 real property adjoining its parks, land on which its monuments are located, or other land used for public purposes; or real property in the vicinity of such parks, land on which its monuments are located or other public real property…

A city or county may acquire by contract, with such consideration as is agreed to by the parties, but not by condemnation, land within its boundaries for the development thereon of business and industry. A town may acquire pursuant to § 15.2-1800, but not by condemnation, land wi…

Every deed purporting to convey real estate to a locality shall be in a form approved by the attorney for the locality, or if there is no such attorney, then a qualified attorney-at-law selected by the governing body. No such deed shall be valid unless accepted by the locality, w…

Notwithstanding any contrary provision of law, general or special, when a locality builds facilities for its own use on real property owned by it but located in another locality's jurisdiction, all building inspections required by law shall be conducted without payment of any fee…

A. As used in this section: "Appropriate resilience features" means features that are included to prepare for, by reducing risk or enabling recovery, acts of nature, failures of systems, or adversarial acts that could cause a major disruption to building functionality. A locality…

A locality, by ordinance or resolution, may authorize any individual with a visual impairment to construct, maintain and operate, under the supervision of the Virginia Department for the Blind and Vision Impaired, in the county or city courthouse or in any other property of the l…

A. A locality may establish parks, recreation facilities and playgrounds; set apart for such use any land or buildings owned or leased by it; and acquire land, buildings and other facilities pursuant to § 15.2-1800 for the aforesaid purposes. In regard to its parks, recreation fa…

A. Whenever a petition, signed by voters equal in number to at least ten percent of the number of voters registered in the locality on January 1 preceding its filing, is filed with the applicable circuit court, the court shall by order entered of record, in accordance with Articl…

A locality may provide and operate stadiums and arenas and the lands, structures, equipment and facilities appurtenant thereto; provide for their management and operation by an agency of the locality; contract with others for the operation and management thereof upon such terms a…

A. For the purposes of this section: "Automated external defibrillator" or "AED" means the same as that term is defined in § 32.1-111.1. "Local government sporting event" means any athletic or sporting event organized or sponsored by a locality. "Local government sporting facilit…

No city or town which operates any park, recreational facility or playground shall be liable in any civil action or proceeding for damages resulting from any injury to the person or from a loss of or damage to the property of any person caused by any act or omission constituting …

A locality, or a park authority created by the Park Authorities Act (§ 15.2-5700 et seq.), that establishes, conducts, and regulates a system of walking, hiking, biking, or horseback riding trails, a system of trails for all-terrain vehicles, off-road motorcycles, or a system of …

Any locality, in its discretion, may lease to any responsible person, firm or corporation any lands owned or held by such locality for the purpose of constructing or erecting thereon a swimming pool and buildings and improvements incident thereto. The terms and provisions of any …

The governing body of any county or city in which a sanitary district has been established under the laws of this Commonwealth may, for the use and benefit of the public in such sanitary district in addition to the other powers and duties granted under other laws: 1. Construct, m…

A. A locality may, within the geographical limits of the locality, authorize and permit the erection of monuments or memorials for the veterans of any war or conflict, or any engagement of such war or conflict, to include the following : Algonquin (1622), French and Indian (1754-…

A. If any monument or memorial for war veterans as designated in § 15.2-1812 is damaged or defaced, an action for the recovery of damages may be commenced as follows: 1. For a publicly owned monument or memorial, such action may be commenced against a person other than a locality…

A. Any locality may by ordinance make unlawful the willful and malicious damage to or defacement of any public buildings, facilities and personal property or of any private buildings, facilities and personal property. The penalty for violation of such ordinance is a Class 1 misde…

Any public hearing required by this chapter shall be advertised once in a newspaper having general circulation in the locality at least seven days prior to the date set for the hearing.