A. The General Assembly finds that there is a public interest in encouraging the development of living historical farm museums to preserve for posterity living examples of earlier farm operation and farm life in Virginia. Such living historical farm museums lead to respect for the past, the education of the young and also serve as tourist attractions in the Commonwealth.

B. A “living historical farm museum,” for the purposes of this section, shall be a nonprofit corporation or association dedicating no less than five acres for the sole purpose of portraying by restoration, preservation or reconstruction of farm operation and farm life, including milling, of a selected period in the agricultural history of Virginia. The requirement that the museum shall be nonprofit shall not prevent the museum from charging admittance fees adequate to cover costs of operation and maintenance.

C. Any locality may provide, by appropriate ordinance, that whenever a person dedicates five or more acres to a nonprofit corporation or association dedicated solely for the purpose of organizing, operating, and maintaining a living historical farm museum, such person may be authorized to build and maintain such structures for the living historical farm museum as will be used in the operation, maintenance and support of such museum, subject, however, to any provisions of any zoning or planning ordinance of such locality.

History

1973, c. 332, § 15.1-18.1:1; 1997, c. 587.