Blount County government lists no building department. Its Engineering Department (205-274-2128) administers the county Subdivision Regulations, approves Flood Plain Development Permits and issues access permits for driveways onto county roads; a major subdivision pays a $250 plat review fee plus $25 per lot. Building permits are issued by the City of Oneonta, which works to the 2021 International Codes, and by towns such as Blountsville, Cleveland, Highland Lake and County Line.
What requires a permit in Blount County?
On land outside the cities and towns, the county’s published requirements are about the land, not the building:
County Engineering
- Flood Plain Development Permit: no structure or fill may go in a designated flood plain until the County Engineer has approved one
- Access permit: a turnout or driveway from private land onto a county right-of-way
- Permit to Develop: issued by the County Engineer before work starts on a major subdivision
- Plat approval: for dividing land under the Subdivision Regulations
Not published by the county
- Building permits
- Trade permits of any kind
- Building inspections and certificates of occupancy
- Septic permits, which the Blount County Health Department issues
Who issues building permits in Blount County?
The Census Bureau counts 15 incorporated places wholly or partly in Blount County. Eight publish a permit rule of their own; for the rest the official sources say nothing.
Short on time to read all of this?
Get a free quote →| Place | What the official sources say | Phone |
|---|---|---|
| Oneonta (county seat) | City Building Inspections & Permits; applications through the City’s OpenGov portal. The City works to the 2021 International Codes and posts a Permit Fee Schedule that starts at $35 | 205-813-7191 |
| Blountsville | The town code creates a building inspector who enforces the building codes, zoning ordinance and subdivision regulations. Its Sec. 4-2 adopts the 2006 International Building Code; the code prints no fee table | 205-429-2406 |
| Highland Lake | Town building permit; the Building Inspector must approve all plans first. Ordinance HL-O-2026-04, adopted April 7, 2026, adopts the 2021 International Codes and the 2020 National Electrical Code | (205) 625-6407 |
| County Line | Town Ordinance 2010-02 requires a permit for any construction, addition, repair, demolition or excavation, issued through the Town Clerk once the Building Inspector certifies the plans. A 2020 amendment sets the 2018 International Building and Residential Codes | 205-590-1649 |
| Cleveland | Town building permit under Ordinance 2021-04. The Town posts Building, Demolition, Electrical, Gas, Land Disturbance, Mechanical, Plumbing, Pool and Roofing permit applications, and Ordinance 2024-01 adopts the 2018 or later International Codes | Town Hall, 62732 US Hwy 231, 205-274-9640 |
| Locust Fork | The town publishes a manufactured home permit application and subdivision rules; ask Town Hall about site-built work | (205) 681-4581 |
| Snead | Town Ordinance 2009-05 adopts the 2006 International Building Code and provides for permits and fees; the Town posts no application or fee schedule. Town Hall, 87169 US Hwy 278 | 205-466-3200 |
| Garden City (almost all in Cullman County) | Town building permit from the town clerk, reviewed by the Town’s Building Inspector, for work inside the incorporated area; rates under Ordinance 003-2024 start at $20 | (256) 352-5408 |
| Allgood, Hayden, Nectar | The published sources do not say; ask the town hall | Allgood 205-274-7138; Hayden 205-543-6881; Nectar 205-559-7780 |
| Susan Moore, Rosa | The published sources do not say; ask the town hall | Susan Moore (205) 466-7400 |
| Altoona, Trafford (each mostly in a neighboring county) | The published sources do not say; ask the town hall | Altoona 205-589-2311; Trafford (205) 647-3751 |
| Unincorporated Blount County | No county building permit; Engineering handles subdivision, floodplain and access | 205-274-2128 |
Dustin Stewart, P.E., is the County Engineer. The Engineering office is at 6454 Second Ave. West in Oneonta, and the County Commission is at the courthouse, 220 2nd Ave East (205-973-0285).
Blount County permit types and filing
- Access Permit. A four-page application mailed to the Blount County Commission, 220 2nd Ave. E., Room 106, Oneonta. Since February 1, 2018 the county no longer installs or maintains turnouts: the owner buys the pipe, hires a contractor and gives the contractor’s name to the district commissioner.
- Flood Plain Development Permit. Submitted to and approved by the County Engineer under the county Flood Damage Prevention Ordinance.
- Subdivision plats. Minor and rural subdivisions and major subdivisions follow different tracks in the regulations as amended on August 7, 2025. A major subdivision needs a Permit to Develop before construction or lot sales begin.
Not sure this scope needs a permit?
Get a free quote →Land inside a city’s planning jurisdiction follows that city’s subdivision rules, and the county’s role there is limited to plat approval.
Permit costs and fees in Blount County
| Item | Fee |
|---|---|
| Minor or rural subdivision | No submittal fee |
| Major subdivision, proposed plat review | $250 |
| Major subdivision, lot fee | $25 per lot, site or unit |
| Fine for selling or offering lots in breach of the regulations | $1,000 per lot |
| Fine not paid within 30 days | Doubled |
The access permit form carries no county fee, but every cost of the turnout falls on the owner: the pipe, the contractor and any road-building material.
| Item | Fee |
|---|---|
| Oneonta: construction permit, residential or commercial, job cost $1,000 to $50,000 | $35 for the first $1,000 plus $7 per additional $1,000 or fraction ($35 minimum) |
| Oneonta: $50,000 to $100,000 | $385 for the first $50,000 plus $6 per additional $1,000 |
| Oneonta: $100,000 to $500,000 | $685 for the first $100,000 plus $5 per additional $1,000 |
| Oneonta: $500,000 and up | $2,685 for the first $500,000 plus $4 per additional $1,000 |
| Oneonta: plan review | $50 residential; commercial $75 for the first 5,000 sq ft plus $0.50 per additional 1,000 sq ft |
| County Line: new home, or an addition of 1,000 sq ft or more | $250 base per residential unit plus $4 per $1,000 of cost |
| County Line: addition under 1,000 sq ft | $100 base plus $4 per $1,000 |
| County Line: alterations, repairs and accessory structures such as garages, pools and fences | $20 up to $1,000 of cost, then $6 per additional $1,000 |
| County Line: commercial building of one or two stories | $250 base per structure plus $5.50 per $1,000 |
| Garden City: building permit, $1,001 to $49,999 | $20 for the first $1,000 plus $5 per additional $1,000 |
Rather talk it over?
Call 1-855-478-4290 →For example, a $150,000 job in Oneonta pays $685 plus 50 × $5, which is $935, and a $50 plan review if it is a house. County Line works out a house’s cost at $50 per sq ft of heated space and $25 per sq ft of unheated space, or the appraisal value if that is greater; those are valuation rates, not the fee. County Line doubles its fees for work started without a permit. Cleveland, Blountsville and Snead require permits but post no fee figures.
Trade permits and septic approval in Blount County
The county publishes no trade permits. In Oneonta the building, residential, plumbing, electrical and mechanical codes are all the 2021 editions and are enforced by the City’s inspectors; a mechanical, plumbing and gas or electrical permit costs $35 for the first $1,000 of job cost plus $10 per additional $1,000. Cleveland takes separate electrical, gas, mechanical and plumbing applications. Highland Lake’s inspector checks electrical, plumbing and mechanical rough-ins on every new house.
Septic permits come from the Blount County Health Department at 1001 Lincoln Avenue in Oneonta; its environmental line is 205-947-1076. Highland Lake will not accept a building permit application without the approved Health Department application and permit, and Blountsville’s zoning ordinance requires a health department finding on soil suitability before a permit application for an unsewered site.
Application documents
Oneonta
- Two complete sets of construction plans
- Review by the Building Inspector and the Fire Marshal before any work is done
Highland Lake
- Survey or sketch showing the house location and setbacks
- Elevation Certificate, if the lot is in a special flood hazard area
- Approved Health Department application and permit
- House plans showing building materials, foundation plans and framing details
- Business licences for the general contractor and all subcontractors
Cleveland wants a plot plan drawn to scale with every application, showing the lot, every existing and proposed structure and the setbacks. Its form asks whether the site is in a special flood hazard area and adds the state craft training fee of $1 per $1,000 on non-residential work.
For a county access permit, give the owner’s name and the address of the new driveway or turnout, or directions to it. County staff fill in the road and pipe size, and the permit covers at most 40 ft of galvanized metal, double-wall plastic or reinforced concrete pipe.
Rather not deal with the Blount County building department?
Get a free quote →How to apply in Blount County: 6 steps
Check whether the parcel is inside one of the 15 municipalities; if it is, start with that town hall or Oneonta’s portal.
Before placing a structure or fill in a designated flood plain, apply to the County Engineer for a Flood Plain Development Permit.
Have the soils tested and apply to the Blount County Health Department.
Mail the Access Permit application to the Commission, buy the pipe size the county notes on it and hire your installer.
Take any division of land to the Subdivision Regulation Administrator in Engineering before selling a lot.
In Oneonta, submit two sets of plans; in Highland Lake, bring the survey, health permit and house plans to Town Hall; in Cleveland, download the Town’s application and return it with the plot plan to Town Hall on US Hwy 231.
Inspections in Blount County
County Engineering inspects subdivision roads and drainage, not houses, and the County Engineer decides whether a turnout complies with Article V of the Subdivision Regulations.
Highland Lake lists the basic inspections for a new house: plan review, footing, under-slab plumbing and electrical or gas piping, basement or garage slab, completion of the lowest floor where it applies, temporary power pole, electrical, plumbing and mechanical rough-ins, framing and sewer connection. Cleveland’s Building Official, who is the Mayor, the Town Water Superintendent or their designee, makes the final inspection within 3 days of being told a building is ready and then issues the certificate of occupancy. In Oneonta, once a certificate of occupancy is granted the owner or occupant is responsible for keeping the building and its systems as they were approved.
Local details for Blount County projects
Selling lots too early: the county fines a developer $1,000 for each lot sold, offered, transferred or leased in breach of the Subdivision Regulations, and suspends pending approvals once a fine is overdue.
Turnouts are permanent obligations: the access permit can be recorded and binds later owners for as long as the driveway exists, and the Commission can revoke it if its conditions are not met.
Highland Lake flood rule: on a lot in a FEMA special flood hazard area, the survey must show the lowest floor, basement included, at least 1 ft above the base flood elevation.
Want this handled start to finish?
Get a free quote →Small repairs in Cleveland: the Town’s permit ordinance exempts painting, wallpapering and repairs worth $2,000 or less that change neither the character nor the square footage of a structure. Everything else, accessory structures included, needs the permit, and construction must be finished within 1 year of issue.
Engineering hours: the department works Monday to Thursday, 6 am to 4:30 pm, while the courthouse is open Monday to Friday, 8AM to 5PM.
Alabama building code
From 1 January 2027, under Act 2024-443, a residential home builder must build to the applicable residential code (the Alabama Residential Building Code, or the local code where one applies) even where no building department inspects the work. Since 1 October 2024 the Alabama Home Builders Licensure Board adopts the residential code, and the Licensing Board for General Contractors the commercial energy code. Alabama’s codes and the 2027 change
Official Blount County resources
- Blount County Commission
- Blount County Engineering Department
- Blount County Subdivision Regulations (amended August 7, 2025)
- Blount County Access Permit application
- Blount County local governments
- City of Oneonta Building Inspections & Permits
- City of Oneonta Permit Fee Schedule
- Town of Cleveland building permit applications
- Town of Cleveland ordinances
- Town of Highland Lake: steps to obtain a building permit
- Town of Highland Lake ordinances
- Town of County Line ordinances
- Town of County Line Ordinance 2010-02: building permits and fees
- Town of Snead ordinances
- Town of Garden City documents
- Town of Locust Fork documents and ordinances
- Blount County Health Department
- Alabama Home Builders Licensure Board
- Alabama Division of Construction Management
Inspections are where schedules slip.
Get a free quote →Blount County building permit FAQs
Does Blount County issue building permits?
No county building permit is published. County Engineering issues access permits, Flood Plain Development Permits and subdivision approvals.
Who issues building permits in Oneonta?
The City’s Building Inspections & Permits office, under the 2021 International Codes. The Chief Building Inspector is on 205-813-7191.
How much is a building permit in Oneonta?
$35 for the first $1,000 of job cost plus $7 per additional $1,000 up to $50,000, with lower rates per $1,000 above that: a $150,000 job pays $935.
Does the Town of Cleveland require a building permit?
Yes. Ordinance 2021-04 requires one for construction, moving, alterations and most repairs, and the Town posts nine permit applications. Town Hall is at 62732 US Hwy 231, 205-274-9640.
Do I need a permit for a driveway onto a county road?
Yes, a Blount County Access Permit. The county has not installed turnouts since February 1, 2018, so you pay for the pipe and the contractor.
How much does it cost to subdivide land in Blount County?
Nothing for a minor or rural subdivision. A major subdivision pays $250 for plat review and $25 per lot.
Can I build in a flood plain in Blount County?
Only after the County Engineer approves a Flood Plain Development Permit, and the work must meet the county Flood Damage Prevention Ordinance.
Where do I get a septic permit?
From the Blount County Health Department, 1001 Lincoln Avenue, Oneonta. The environmental office is 205-947-1076.
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More Alabama permitting guides
This guide is provided by Alliance Permitting for general information about Blount County permitting. Requirements, fees, and procedures change; confirm details with the permitting authority before relying on them.