Fairview Township, York County, Pennsylvania Building Permit Guide

In Fairview Township, York County, the Codes Administration Office (717-901-5220) issues all building permits and the zoning permits that go with them, reviews plans and inspects with its own staff. Resolution 2026-1, adopted January 5, 2026, prices a building permit at $7 per $1,000 of construction cost with a $50 minimum, and any project adding more than 400 square feet of impervious surface needs a stormwater system sized for a two-year storm.

What requires a building permit in Fairview Township?

The township’s permit page asks for a building permit application for all building projects, residential and commercial, and a zoning permit application for any project that expands the exterior footprint of a site. Its construction guides show the usual triggers for homes.

Excavation and fill of 1 to 11 cubic yards carries no fee, while 11 to 100 cubic yards costs $50 and larger jobs add engineering review. Any new or relocated driveway onto a township road needs a highway occupancy permit before the building or zoning permit can issue.

What Fairview decides and what the state holds

The building standards are Pennsylvania’s Uniform Construction Code, which Fairview chose to enforce on July 7, 2004 without local amendments, according to L&I’s list; the permit page links the 2021 codes. The Board of Supervisors sets the zoning ordinance and map (last revised by Ordinance 2025-2), the stormwater ordinance, the Act 209 traffic impact fees and the yearly fee resolution, and in 2025 it adopted Ordinance 2025-3, a zoning text amendment on data centers.

Fairview Township building department: who handles permitting

The Codes Administration Office, also called the Office of Building Code and Zoning Administration, is responsible for issuing all building permits in the township and for zoning, subdivision and land development and property maintenance enforcement. Stephen Waller is Codes Administration Director and the building code official on L&I’s list. The office is staffed with an administrative assistant, a building inspector, an MS4 coordinator who is also the township’s Sewage Enforcement Officer, and a stormwater specialist. The 2026 fee resolution also lists Approved Code Services, Inc. as a third-party inspection agency, with its schedule marked for backup services.

York County itself issues no building permits; for the county picture and other municipalities see the York County guide.

Fairview Township permit types

One building permit and plan review application covers new dwellings, additions, alterations, accessory structures, plumbing, electrical, mechanical and fire protection work, modular and mobile homes, and commercial changes of use. A separate zoning permit application covers site expansions, and the township posts guides for residential construction, decks, pools, residential electrical work and commercial construction.

Residential permits

For a house, addition, attached garage or accessory building of 400 square feet or more, the residential guide asks for two copies of a plot plan for zoning and three complete sets of construction drawings for the building permit, plus three copies each of heating and cooling, energy code, plumbing and electrical information. Plans need not be drawn by an engineer or architect but must be to scale and clear. The plot plan shows property lines with a north arrow, every existing structure and its distances, the proposed work, the driveway, any well and septic system, and streets, easements and rights-of-way. The guide also prints the township’s design data: 30 pounds per square foot ground snow load, 90 mph wind, seismic category B, a 36-inch frost line and ice-shield underlayment required.

Building or remodeling a home here? Alliance handles residential permit applications, so the crew isn't waiting on the counter.

Commercial permits

Commercial projects use the same application with the type of construction and use group, follow the township’s commercial construction guide, and pay $200 for the zoning permit. Commercial electrical, plumbing and mechanical alterations are priced as component permits when they are not part of a larger project.

For tenant improvements and new commercial builds, Alliance handles commercial building permits through issuance. More on this: commercial building permits explained.

What comes before the building permit

• Zoning. Variances, special exceptions and appeals go to the Zoning Hearing Board ($850, or $450 more for a second advertisement); the Zoning Officer may ask for a cash bond when hearing costs will exceed the fee.
• Stormwater. New impervious surface over 400 square feet needs a stormwater system for a two-year storm, usually an infiltration pit. The office provides a township pit design for up to 5,000 square feet ($230, two inspections included); other designs go to the township’s stormwater engineer, RETTEW, at its hourly rates.
• Septic. Four copies of the system design go in with the septic permit application.
• Sewer. The township no longer owns the public sewer; sewer permits come from the water company that does.
• Driveways. Mark the centerline of a new driveway in white paint for Public Works to review; state roads need a PennDOT permit, and either approval must come before the building permit.

Fairview Township permit costs and fees

Fees come from Resolution 2026-1, the schedule of fees the Board of Supervisors adopted on January 5, 2026. The construction cost behind a building permit is taken from the ICC building valuation chart or a detailed estimate or contract signed by the applicant, including labor and materials; an applicant who disagrees with the code official’s figure may appeal to the Board of Supervisors within 15 days.

Worked from the resolution: an $80,000 home addition costs 80 × $7 = $560 for the building permit, $140 for the zoning permit and $4.50 for the state fee, or $704.50; if it adds more than 400 square feet of roof and paving and uses the township pit design, add $230 for $934.50. A $12,000 deck over 30 inches high is 12 × $7 = $84 plus the $35 zoning permit and $4.50, or $123.50. Work begun before a permit doubles the building fees, though not zoning, septic, road or state fees.

Other charges in the resolution include $1,583 per new evening peak-hour trip in transportation service area 1 and $1,964 in area 2 under the traffic impact fee ordinance, a recreation fee of $1,000 per lot or dwelling unit in place of land, sketch plans at $250 and preliminary residential plans at $250 plus $10 a lot, and a deposit of 4% of the approved improvement estimate for engineering inspections. A certificate of use is $50, a zoning compliance statement or nonconformance certificate $100, and a conditional use or zoning amendment $1,000.

Septic work has its own fee list. The township requires an on-lot permit to repair or replace any part of a system, before soil probes or percolation tests, and for every emergency repair, and asks owners to call the Sewage Enforcement Officer before work starts. A deep soil probe costs $135, a six-hole percolation test $360, design review with stake-out and permit issue $180, a final inspection $135 and a minor repair permit $180, plus a $25 administrative fee.

Trade permits and who may pull them

• Electrical: reviewed against the National Electrical Code adopted with the UCC; the township’s residential electrical guide lists what to show on the plans, from receptacle spacing to the circuit schedule.
• Plumbing, mechanical and fuel gas: priced as component permits when they stand alone, with included inspections and $65 for each extra one; replacing soil or waste piping is $65.
• Insurance: proof of workers’ compensation coverage is required for all projects, and the township’s exemption form, which must accompany every building permit application, covers contractors with no employees (notarized) and religious exemptions.

The township’s pages set no local contractor, electrician or plumber license or registration. Home improvement contractors register with the state Attorney General.

How to apply for a Fairview Township building permit

Review, corrections and what causes delay

The township states the UCC limits of 15 business days for residential reviews and 30 for commercial reviews, and an application missing guide items is returned as incomplete. Waiting for a highway occupancy approval, a stormwater review by RETTEW, septic testing or a Zoning Hearing Board decision are the usual causes of delay.

Inspections in Fairview Township

The application requires at least 24 hours’ notice for every inspection. The office checks off the inspections a job needs from a list that includes the highway occupancy permit, sewer or septic, site stake-out, footing, foundation, framing, rough plumbing, mechanical and electrical, insulation, wallboard, final electrical, plumbing and mechanical, accessibility, sprinklers, site improvements and the final use and occupancy inspection. No building may be used or occupied until the certificate of use and occupancy is issued.

A failed inspection is charged $70 after two attempts at the same inspection, and inspections outside normal hours cost $98 an hour with a four-hour minimum and prior approval. Septic installations get their own final inspection ($135). The township’s pages describe no resale use and occupancy inspection for house sales.

Pennsylvania building code in Fairview Township

Fairview has enforced the Uniform Construction Code since July 7, 2004 with no local amendments, links the ordinances adopting it on its permit page, and sends UCC appeals to the CAPCOG appeals board. FEMA’s Community Status Book lists Fairview Township, York County (community 420923) as participating in the National Flood Insurance Program, with flood maps effective December 16, 2015; a floodplain variance costs $850.

Pennsylvania has one Uniform Construction Code for the whole state, based on the 2021 International Codes since January 1, 2026. Most municipalities enforce it themselves or through a certified third-party agency; where a municipality has opted out, the Department of Labor and Industry handles commercial work and home owners hire a certified agency. Counties do not issue building permits. Pennsylvania rules

Fairview Township permit search and official resources

Fairview offers no online permit search. Records of past permits are requested through the township’s right-to-know request form, which goes to the Right-to-Know Officer by email or fax (717-901-5233) during office hours. Owners on septic must have tanks pumped every four years by zone: zone 3 in 2026, zone 4 in 2027, zone 1 in 2028 and zone 2 in 2029.

• Codes Administration Office
• Building and zoning permit information
• Resolution 2026-1 schedule of fees (PDF)
• Building permit and plan review application (PDF)
• Zoning permit application (PDF)
• Residential construction permit guide (PDF)
• Residential deck guide (PDF)
• Residential swimming pool guide (PDF)
• Residential electrical permit guide (PDF)
• Commercial construction permit guide (PDF)
• Workers’ compensation form (PDF)
• Sewage enforcement and septic pumping zones
• Ordinances and resolutions
• Right-to-know requests
• L&I municipal UCC elections list
• FEMA Community Status Book, Pennsylvania

Fairview Township building permit FAQs

Who inspects my project in Fairview Township?

The township’s own building inspector in the Codes Administration Office; Approved Code Services is listed in the fee resolution as a backup third-party agency.

How much is a building permit?

$7 per $1,000 of construction cost with a $50 minimum, plus the $4.50 state fee and any zoning permit.

Do I need a permit for a deck?

A deck needs a $35 zoning permit, and the township’s deck guide covers the building permit for decks more than 30 inches above the ground.

Does a shed need a building permit?

Accessory structures of 400 square feet or more fall under the residential construction guide; smaller sheds need a $35 zoning permit.

Who handles public sewer connections?

The township no longer owns the sewer system; its construction guide sends sewer permit questions to the water company at 1-800-565-7292.

Do my house plans need an architect?

No. The residential guide says drawings need not come from an engineer or architect, as long as they are clear, accurate, to scale and detailed enough to show the work.

How much notice do inspections need?

At least 24 hours for every inspection.

Is this the Fairview Township near Erie?

No. This Fairview Township lies in northern York County, with its municipal building in New Cumberland; the Erie County township of the same name has its own office.

Simplify Fairview Township, York County permitting with Alliance Permitting

Alliance Permitting is a permit documentation and submission company in Pennsylvania. We prepare your paperwork, file it correctly and coordinate with the permitting authority through issuance. We are not a contractor and we do not perform licensed plan review or inspections; that work stays with your licensed team and the jurisdiction.

This guide is provided by Alliance Permitting for general information about Fairview Township, York County permitting. Requirements, fees, and procedures change; confirm details with the permitting authority before relying on them.