Do You Need a Dumpster Permit in Chesapeake, VA?

The short answer

Driveway or private lot: the simplest spot, but in Chesapeake a container there is still regulated by zoning. Public street or right-of-way: a permit or consent may be needed in several localities, and we check the City's rules before booking. State highway: never. VDOT controls the right-of-way of state highways and we never place a container there. Who may haul: several localities license or permit haulers, and we check each one before booking.

The rules below are paraphrased from each city's and county's code or official pages, with the section numbers where the research gives them. Where we could not read a code, we say so and check before booking.

Chesapeake: private property and the street

Private property. The City's Portable Storage Containers page, from the Zoning Administration, puts roll-off containers and dumpsters inside its definition of a container on residential property. The page sets limits for portable storage containers on residential lots, but it does not say which limits apply to a dumpster, so we check the City's rules before booking. The page also says containers on a residential lot may not be used for contractors' materials, solid waste or hazardous materials. The page's extension for a damaged home under renovation is also for portable storage containers, and it does not say whether it covers a dumpster.

For non-residential property the page says containers follow other rules, which point to section 13-402 of the Zoning Ordinance. We could not read section 13-402, so we check the City's rules before booking. The Use and Occupancy page allows containers and dumpsters in a temporary construction yard that has a City permit, and the Construction Yard page says such a yard sits outside the public right-of-way and may run up to 18 months.

Street or right-of-way. We found no dumpster or roll-off placement rule in the City pages we could read. The City's code, Chapter 62 on solid waste, could not be read, and the readable pages found no hauler licence rule either. The City's permit page covers excavation, land-disturbing and construction work and does not mention containers. So for a street spot we check the City's rules before booking.

Virginia Beach and Norfolk

Virginia Beach. The City's right-of-way permit page says a permit is required for any activity within a City-owned right-of-way or easement. The page does not mention containers, and the solid waste chapter and zoning ordinance could not be read. We check the City's rules before booking. A separate moving and hauling permit covers oversized vehicles and does not mention containers.

Norfolk. The City's pages could not be read by our research, so we have no rule to state for Norfolk. We check the City's rules before booking.

Portsmouth, Suffolk, Hampton, Newport News and Poquoson

• Portsmouth. Code section 32-9 says it is unlawful to leave a box, barrel, trash or storage container in a street or right-of-way without a permit from the City Engineer. The text does not define "trash or storage container", so whether it covers a roll-off is our reading and we check the City's rules before booking. Section 16-187 requires a permit from the Director of Public Works to operate a private solid waste collection business; that rule is written for haulers, and section 16-188 limits where collected waste may go. Section 16-8 requires a trash receptacle on a construction site during the work. Verdict: permit, we check the City's rules before booking.
• Suffolk. Section 74-1 bars anyone from obstructing a street or sidewalk with any material, and the text has no permit exception. Section 70-95 says contractors and builders must remove their own rubbish, which the City does not collect and which may not be put on the street. We found no private hauler licence or permit. Verdict: restricted, we check the City's rules before booking.
• Hampton. Section 32.2-34 says the City does not provide dumpster service without a written agreement signed by the City Manager, and that any dumpster in the right-of-way must meet Chapter 34. Placing one in a street or right-of-way takes an encroachment application (section 34-86), and for uses not open to the general public, City Council consent (section 34-88). The application fee is set in the code and we do not publish it here. The only hauler licence in the code is for grease haulers. Verdict: permit or consent, we check the City's rules before booking.
• Newport News. Section 19-72 refers to persons licensed for waste hauling, but we could not find the licence rule itself, so we do not state its scope. Section 19-70 covers non-residential waste containers. We found no roll-off right-of-way permit. Verdict: we check the City's rules before booking.
• Poquoson. Section 66-40(a) says no one may collect or transport solid waste in the City without a permit from the City Manager. Verdict: permit, we check the City's rules before booking.

Williamsburg, York County and Gloucester County

• Williamsburg. We found no hauling permit in Chapter 14. Section 14-4 says commercial establishments must arrange their own regular disposal, and section 15-21 bars obstructing a street. We found no rule on hauling; we check the City's rules before booking.
• York County, including Yorktown, Seaford, Tabb and Grafton. We found no hauler permit in York County's code we could read. The County has set a county-wide refuse service area (section 19-61), which the code makes under section 15.2-930 of the Code of Virginia. Section 19-68 keeps construction, renovation and demolition debris out of County containers. Seaford and Tabb are unincorporated communities and Grafton is a Census-designated place. Verdict: we check the County's rules before booking.
• Gloucester County. The County does not provide curbside trash removal, and private haulers operate in the area. We found no roll-off placement rule on the pages we could read, and the County code could not be read. Verdict: we check the County's rules before booking.
• Toano. A Census-designated place in James City County. The County's code could not be read. Verdict: we check the County's rules before booking.

Isle of Wight County, Smithfield, Windsor, Carrollton and Franklin

• Isle of Wight County. Section 8-17 says no one may collect, remove, haul or convey refuse for hire on County streets or roads without a licence from the Board of Supervisors, and section 8-21 makes operating without the required permit a misdemeanor. Whether that reaches a company that delivers and collects its own container is not settled by the text. Verdict: licence rule, we check the County's rules before booking.
• Smithfield (Town). Section 70-4 requires a permit from the Town Manager for work on a dedicated street. We found no hauler licence in the Town code. Verdict: permit for street work, we check the Town's rules before booking.
• Windsor (Town). We found no solid waste or hauler rule in the Town code we could read, and the Town's website was not reachable. Verdict: we check the Town's rules before booking.
• Carrollton. A Census-designated place in Isle of Wight County, not a town. The County has an exclusive franchise for residential solid waste collection, and the County's guide says contractor and commercial waste must go to transfer stations or the regional landfill. The text we read does not settle how a roll-off rental fits. Verdict: restricted, we check the County's rules before booking.
• Franklin (independent city). The City code summary, read through an online code service and not verbatim, says a business needs a permit to collect, haul and dispose of solid waste (section 13-4(b)) and that containers may not sit on public property unless a place is designated in writing (section 13-4(f)). The City runs household collection. Verdict: permit, we check the City's rules before booking.

Wakefield, Courtland and Surry

• Wakefield (Town, Sussex County). According to the Town's code as we could read it, section 6-5 bars emptying a dumpster between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m., except in industrially zoned areas. Section 6-16 requires lidded containment. Section 6-4 bars dumping waste collected outside the Town inside it. Section 7-3 requires a general business licence for a business with a place of business in the Town. The Town's permit list has no dumpster or street permit. The code copy we read is a Town-hosted PDF whose currency we did not check. Verdict: restricted, we check the Town's rules before booking.
• Courtland (Town, Southampton County). We could not find a Town website or Town code. Verdict: we check the Town's rules before booking.
• Surry (Town and County). The County's pages cover its collection centers, which take residential waste from County residents only and not business or commercial waste. We found no rule on roll-off placement in the pages we could read. Verdict: we check the County's rules before booking.

State rules that apply everywhere

• State highways. VDOT's land use permit rules (24VAC30-151, section 20) bar any non-transportation use of state highway right-of-way without written VDOT permission. We never place a container in state right-of-way, including I-64, I-264, I-564, US-17, US-13, US-58, US-460, VA-168, VA-171 or any other state route.
• Placement. Under section 15.2-928(A)(vii) of the Code of Virginia, a locality may regulate the times and placement of waste and waste containers set out for collection, with notice first. That wording is about containers set out for collection, so each locality's own rules come first.
• Haulers. Under section 15.2-930(A), a locality may license haulers and create exclusive service areas, subject to the hearing and notice rules in section 15.2-934. We found no state dumpster, roll-off or hauler licence. Under section 15.2-2009 a locality may prevent unlawful obstruction of its streets.

Who may haul, and what we do

Several localities have licence or permit rules for haulers: Isle of Wight County (section 8-17), Poquoson (section 66-40), Portsmouth (section 16-187), Newport News (section 19-72, where the licence rule was not located), Wakefield (section 7-3, a general business licence) and Franklin (summary). Several of these are written for haulers rather than for a delivery-and-pickup rental, and we do not say how each applies to our service. We check each one before booking. We are Licensed & insured.

What this means when you book

Tell us the address and where you want the box. Driveway first. For a street spot in any city, town or county above, a permit or consent may be needed, and we check the rules before booking. A state highway is never an option. If the spot is in Chesapeake, tell us whether it is a residential lot, because the City's limits for portable storage containers on residential lots need checking there. Call (757) 844-5926. The phone is answered 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.