County may limit residents in homes

By Uriah A. Kiser

Published: April 3, 2008

STAFfORD — Following in the footsteps of other local jurisdictions, Stafford County has proposed limiting the number of people who can occupy a single home.

The Stafford County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday night looked to amend the current zoning ordinance to only allow up to three people who are not related my marriage, adoption, guardianship or blood to occupy a single residential dwelling in the county.

“This is something where we are trying to play catch-up with the other surrounding counties, and make sure that we provide a safe living environment for our citizens,” said Supervisor Paul Milde, R-Aquia.

Neighboring Prince William County and Fredericksburg limits the number of non-related people living in a home to three. The more lenient Town of Culpeper limits the number to five.

Milde said that the county is not experiencing a problem with overcrowding right now, but thinks a revised ordinance will limit any future overcrowding problems that could arise.

“The ordinance does not target any one group of people, it could affect anybody,” said Milde. “If they’re was a big frat house in the middle of North Stafford, then this would type of ordinance would address that and not allow it.”

The topic of overcrowding has been brought to light after several county residents last year complained of the issue in their neighborhoods. During meetings of the county’s Illegal Immigration Task Force, residents said neighborhood streets, driveways and lawns were overflowing with cars, due to overcrowding conditions in certain neighborhood homes.

Residents said those homes were creating eyesores that could possibly bring down area property values.

The measure will now go before the Stafford County Planning Commission for approval. If passed this will be the first time the county has attempted to regulate how many people can live in a residence.