                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

DEFINITIONS (§ 36-97)

As used in this chapter, unless the context requires a different
meaning:		&#8220;Board&#8221; means the Board of Housing and Community
Development.		&#8220;Building&#8221; means a combination of any materials,
whether portable or fixed, having a roof to form a structure for the use or
occupancy by persons or property. The word &#8220;building&#8221; shall be
construed as though followed by the words &#8220;or part or parts thereof&#8221;
unless the context clearly requires a different meaning. &#8220;Building&#8221;
does not include roadway tunnels and bridges owned by the Department of
Transportation, which shall be governed by construction and design standards
approved by the Commonwealth Transportation Board.		&#8220;Building Code&#8221;
means the Uniform Statewide Building Code and building regulations adopted and
promulgated pursuant thereto.		&#8220;Building regulations&#8221; means any law,
rule, resolution, regulation, ordinance, or code, general or special, or
compilation thereof, enacted or adopted by the Commonwealth or any county or
municipality, including departments, boards, bureaus, commissions, or other
agencies of such state or local governments, relating to construction,
reconstruction, alteration, conversion, repair, maintenance, or use of
structures and buildings and installation of equipment therein. &#8220;Building
regulations&#8221; does not include zoning ordinances or other land use controls
that do not affect the manner of construction or materials to be used in the
erection, alteration, or repair of a building or structure.		&#8220;Code
provisions&#8221; means the provisions of the Uniform Statewide Building Code as
adopted and promulgated by the Board and the amendments thereof as adopted and
promulgated by the Board from time to time.		&#8220;Construction&#8221; means
the construction, reconstruction, alteration, repair, or conversion of buildings
and structures.		&#8220;Department&#8221; means the Department of Housing and
Community Development.		&#8220;Director&#8221; means the Director of the
Department of Housing and Community Development.		&#8220;Equipment&#8221; means
plumbing, heating, electrical, ventilating, air-conditioning and refrigeration
equipment, elevators, dumbwaiters, escalators, and other mechanical additions or
installations.		&#8220;Farm building or structure&#8221; means a building or
structure not used for residential purposes, located on property where farming
operations take place, and used primarily for any of the following uses or
combination thereof:

1. Storage, handling, production, display, sampling, or sale of agricultural,
horticultural, floricultural, or silvicultural products produced in the farm;

2. Sheltering, raising, handling, processing, or sale of agricultural animals or
agricultural animal products;

3. Business or office uses relating to the farm operations;

4. Use of farm machinery or equipment or maintenance or storage of vehicles,
machinery, or equipment on the farm;

5. Storage or use of supplies and materials used on the farm; or

6. Implementation of best management practices associated with farm operations.
			&#8220;Local building department&#8221; means the agency or agencies of any
local governing body charged with the administration, supervision, or
enforcement of the Building Code and regulations, approval of plans, inspection
of buildings, or issuance of permits, licenses, certificates, or similar
documents.			&#8220;Local governing body&#8221; means the governing body of any
county, city, or town in the Commonwealth.			&#8220;Municipality&#8221; means
any city or town in the Commonwealth.			&#8220;Owner&#8221; means the owner or
owners of the freehold of the premises or lesser estate therein, a mortgagee or
vendee in possession, assignee of rents, receiver, executor, trustee, or lessee
in control of a building or structure.			&#8220;Review Board&#8221; means the
State Building Code Technical Review Board.			&#8220;State agency&#8221; means
any department, board, bureau, commission, agency, or other unit of state
government in the Commonwealth.			&#8220;Stop work order&#8221; means a legally
binding written order to immediately cease work on a building or structure that
(i) is issued by a local building official to a property owner, the property
owner&#8217;s agent, or the person performing the work; (ii) identifies the
specific violations of the Building Code in regard to the work being performed;
and (iii) states the conditions under which such work may be
resumed.			&#8220;Structure&#8221; means an assembly of materials forming a
construction for occupancy or use, including stadiums, gospel and circus tents,
reviewing stands, platforms, stagings, observation towers, radio towers, water
tanks, underground and aboveground storage tanks, trestles, piers, wharves,
swimming pools, amusement devices, storage bins, and other structures of this
general nature but excluding water wells. The word &#8220;structure&#8221; shall
be construed as though followed by the words &#8220;or part or parts
thereof&#8221; unless the context clearly requires a different meaning.
&#8220;Structure&#8221; does not include roadway tunnels and bridges owned by
the Department of Transportation, which shall be governed by construction and
design standards approved by the Commonwealth Transportation Board.

HISTORY: 1972, c. 829; 1974, cc. 622, 668; 1975, c. 394; 1977, cc. 423, 613;
1978, c. 703; 1986, c. 401; 1993, c. 662; 1994, c. 256; 1998, c. 755; 2005, c.
341; 2023, cc. 446, 448.