Donation Boxes

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Thinking about placing a Donation Box on your commercial property in the Town of Leesburg?

Before you do, make sure you know the Town of Leesburg's regulations regarding Donation Boxes, outlined below. If you have any questions that have not been answered below, contact a member of the Zoning Division staff at 703-771-2765 or zoning@leesburgva.gov.

You can also download a pdf of out Donation Boxes Quick Guide that will answer many of your questions.

Definition

A Donation Box is defined in the Town of Leesburg's Zoning Ordinance as, "an unattended container, receptacle, or similar device for the purpose of soliciting and collecting donated items. A donation box is not a recycling container."

Basic Guidelines

Donation boxes shall require a Town of Leesburg Permit and are exempt from any architectural overlay standards.
Donation boxes are not permitted in the following districts:
- B-1 (Community (Downtown) Businesses)
- CD-RH (Crescent District-Residential High)
- CD-RM (Crescent District-Residential Medium)
- PRN (Residential Neighborhood)
- All residential districts and sub-districts
No more than two (2) donation boxes may be permitted on any property.
The footprint of individual containers shall be limited to no more than twenty (20) square feet and the height of individual containers shall not exceed six (6) feet in height.
The collection of donated items shall occur at least bi-weekly unless otherwise agreed upon by the Zoning Administrator.
Donation boxes shall be maintained in good repair and the property owner shall be responsible for ensuring all items advertised for collection are located completely within the container.

Location Criteria

Donation boxes are not permitted in the following areas:

Public rights-of-way; and
A required front or side yard, or within twenty feet (20') from the right-of-way, whichever is greater; and
Within a required off-street parking space; and
A required landscape area, open space area, or buffer yard; and
Any pedestrian path or vehicular access; and
Any sight distance requirements; and
Any area restricted by the USBC and Fire Code regulations.

Please see our Donation Boxes Quick Guide for additional information.

How to Apply

1. Apply for a Donation Box Zoning Permit. You will need to provide:

Sketch plan of the property showing the proposed location of the Donation Box(es)
- This should include information on how you meet the requirements laid out in the Town's Zoning Ordinance for placement in this location.
Total square footage of Donation Box space
Schedule for the collection of donations
Property owner's consent

All documents must be submitted via our eTRAKiT online portal.

2. When submitting the application, the applicant is required to pay the $250 fee. This fee is non-refundable.

3. Following an approvable location proposal and successful inspection, staff will approve the Donation Box Zoning permit.

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