Washington County Adopts Agritourism Zoning Rules

What Did Washington County Adopt? Quick Answer

On October 20, 2026, the Washington County Commission voted to pass the first third of a full rewrite of Title 10, the county zoning code. According to the meeting recording, the package covers Chapters 1 through 10, new agritourism rules and a new Rural Tourism Zone, and the changes take effect January 1, 2027. In a separate vote, the commission replaced Chapter 12, the Mining and Gravel Zone, adding rules for subsurface mining. This follows the Planning Commission hearing we previewed in our earlier article on the zoning rewrite.

Both items passed on voice votes, according to the meeting recording. The county's minutes had not been approved when this article was published, and the ordinance text was not attached to the public notice.

Item	What the recording shows
Mining and Gravel Zone (Chapter 12)	Repealed and replaced; adds subsurface mining and reclamation provisions; passed
Title 10, Chapters 1-10, agritourism, Rural Tourism Zone	Passed, with changes made at the meeting; effective Jan. 1, 2027
Remaining Title 10 chapters	Expected in November and December, same Jan. 1 effective date

Ordinance numbers: the agenda lists both items as Ordinance 2026-1338-O. In the recording, the mining chapter is read as 2026-1338-O and the Title 10 item as 2026-1339-O, so the second number appears to be an agenda typo.

What Is Agritourism Under the New Code?

County staff told the commission the agritourism section is meant to help farm and ranch families earn extra income so they can stay in business. As described at the meeting:

No zone change. A producing farm applies under a permitted-with-standards chapter, gets administrative approval of a site plan and obtains a business license.
Farm status comes from the assessor. Staff said producing farms are designated through the county assessor under the Farmland Assessment Act (or its urban version for smaller parcels), and that more than half the land must be in agricultural production.
Five use categories, following state code: direct sales, education, entertainment, outdoor recreation and hospitality.
Relaxed requirements for utilities, parking, power and septic. Staff said portable toilets could serve events.
Farm stays. The number depends on zone size, from one to five, using a one-bedroom unit with a stated occupancy of four. Staff said this is not a short-term rental.

Staff said the use matrix scales activity to lot size, so only the largest zone (A-20) allows the biggest events.

The Visitor Cap Debate

The longest discussion was about a limit on visitors per day. The Planning Commission had asked for a cap of 100 visitors a day at an agritourism site. Staff said event days draw the most complaints and preferred a cap that is easy to enforce, but several commissioners said a fixed number could hinder larger farms and ranches. Commissioners floated striking the limit, raising it and tying it to acreage. At one point a figure of 10,000 was floated as a stand-in while a chart that scales with acreage was considered.

The final motion, as heard on the recording, was to pass the code with the 100 struck and with the expectation that a chart on limits by acreage comes back to the commission. We could not confirm the adopted text, so check the ordinance with the Community Development Department at 435-301-7250. Commissioners also discussed dropping a bathroom-cleanliness requirement and limiting farm parking rules to dust mitigation.

Rural Tourism Zone and Overlay Opt-Outs

The Rural Tourism Zone is a separate zone for properties near a farm or ranch and described by staff as being in close proximity to a qualifying farm or ranch. It would allow farm stays without an owner living on site, in effect short-term rentals, and other farm-related uses. Getting it requires a zone change, proof of an adjacent farm, compliance with a use matrix, a narrative and a business license. Staff said the code treats it as the more regulated path.

The New Harmony Valley and Pine Valley overlay zones are opted out of both agritourism and the Rural Tourism Zone for now. Staff said those communities have until a December timeframe to decide whether to opt in, and the final draft will be sent to them.

Mining and Gravel Zone Changes

Staff said the county had no subsurface mining provisions despite renewed interest. The replacement chapter splits surface and subsurface mining, adds reclamation rules for subsurface mines, and allows subsurface operations to run around the clock. It also loosens bonding by accepting automatically renewing, irrevocable letters of credit and includes a provision for declaring a mine closed if it is left idle without reclamation. Staff asked that this chapter take effect without waiting for January 1.

Other Chapters 1-10 Changes

Staff described Chapters 1 through 10 as a plain-language update to bring the code in line with state law, clarify application steps and consolidate penalties and definitions. Items included a one-year processing window for completed applications with possible extension, one year's notice for stale applications, a restricted certificate of occupancy option, and a state-driven process to request an unlisted use. A 10-year vesting rule, extendable through a development agreement, was added. New residential zones for manufactured-housing parks and workforce-housing parks were also described, along with a trial commercial RV park zone limited to the I-15 corridor map used for multi-family housing and a lower two-acre minimum for planned-development commercial projects.

What Is Coming Up

Nov. 10, 1:30 p.m.: Planning Commission public hearing on a rezone from A-20 to RA-1 for a 1.03-acre parcel in the Pintura area. Written comments go to Community Development, 111 E. Tabernacle.
Nov. 17, 4 p.m.: County Commission public hearing on enacting an Agricultural Protection Area.
Nov. 19, noon: Planning Commission work meeting on Title 10 Chapters 21 through 31, Conference Room 226.

Meetings are at the Washington County Administration Building, 111 E. Tabernacle in St. George, with a Zoom option. County zoning applies to unincorporated land only. See the Hurricane city guide and St. George city guide for nearby communities.

Frequently Asked Questions

What did the Washington County Commission adopt on Oct. 20, 2026?

According to the meeting recording, the commission passed a rewrite of Title 10 (zoning), Chapters 1 through 10, that adds agritourism and a Rural Tourism Zone, with changes taking effect Jan. 1, 2027. It also passed a replacement of Chapter 12, the Mining and Gravel Zone, which adds subsurface mining rules.

When does the new Washington County zoning code take effect?

January 1, 2027. The agenda title for the ordinance says the changes take effect on that date, and county staff told the commission the remaining chapters will come up in November and December with the same effective date.

Do farmers need a zone change to host agritourism?

Not under the new code, according to county staff. A farm assessed as agricultural land could apply under the permitted-with-standards chapter, get administrative approval of a site plan, and obtain a business license. A zone change is needed only for the separate Rural Tourism Zone.

Do the New Harmony Valley and Pine Valley overlays have to allow agritourism?

No. Staff said both overlays are opted out for now and have until a December timeframe to decide whether to adopt the agritourism and Rural Tourism provisions.

Is there still a 100-visitor daily limit on agritourism?

The Planning Commission had added a cap of 100 visitors per day. At the Oct. 20 meeting a commissioner moved to pass the code with that 100 struck and to have a chart on limits by acreage come back. The final adopted wording was not available to confirm, so check the ordinance text with the county.

Which other zoning hearings are coming up?

The Planning Commission holds a work meeting on Title 10 Chapters 21-31 on Nov. 19 at noon, a public hearing on a Pintura-area rezone on Nov. 10 at 1:30 p.m., and the County Commission holds a hearing on an Agricultural Protection Area on Nov. 17 at 4 p.m.

Sources

Published November 1, 2026. Based on the Oct. 20 meeting recording; minutes were not yet approved.

Washington County Adopts Zoning Code Rewrite With Agritourism and a Rural Tourism Zone, Effective Jan. 1, 2027