Bolthole Index

Butler County, Pennsylvania

Zoning, building permits and septic rules in Seven Fields, Pennsylvania

Seven Fields borough, Butler County, Pennsylvania has its own zoning chapter1 and enforces the state building code, with a certificate of occupancy required before any structure is occupied23. The borough bars tents and trailers as housing on a lot4. We could not confirm who issues septic permits here, so ask the borough office5.

At a glance

Zoning
Borough has its own zoning chapter1
Building code
Borough enforces the International Codes under the state UCC2
Certificate of occupancy
Required before any structure is occupied3
RV, tent or trailer on a lot
Prohibited, except for the developer or its contractor4
Sewer
Adjoining properties must connect to the public sanitary sewer6
Subdivision
Borough has its own subdivision and land development chapter7
Driveways
Must reach an open public street8

Who to call

Building permits

Borough of Seven Fields (borough office)

Borough forms for building permits, residential occupancy, conditional use, grading and other applications

724-776-3090

2200 Garden Drive Suite 100 Seven Fields, PA 16046

Contact details are copied from each office’s official page and were checked against it on October 24, 2026.

Off-grid gear

Going off-grid in Borough of Seven Fields means bringing your own water and power. The kit we’d start with:

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Does Seven Fields, PA have zoning?

Yes. The Seven Fields borough code includes Chapter 340, Zoning1. The borough also has a dedicated subdivision and land development chapter7. Butler County does not zone for its municipalities; zoning decisions are left to individual townships and boroughs9.

The zoning district table was not available to us, so we could not confirm lot sizes, setbacks, minimum dwelling size, accessory dwellings, tiny homes or short-term rentals. Ask the borough office5 for the zoning district of your parcel before you buy.

Can you live in an RV, tent or trailer in Seven Fields?

No, not on a lot you own. Seven Fields prohibits using a tent, trailer, shack or temporary structure on any lot, temporarily or permanently, except by the developer or a contractor the developer hired4. A trailer used as a residence is specifically addressed too10.

Pennsylvania's state-park camping limits do not apply to your own lot11. Temporary structures must be removed as soon as the contract or construction phase ends4.

Do you need a building permit in Seven Fields, and who issues it?

Building work in Pennsylvania generally needs a Uniform Construction Code permit before construction begins12. Seven Fields enforces the International Codes under its own construction-codes chapter2. The borough's forms page lists a Butler County building permit application and a separate MDIA building permit application5.

Inspections must be completed and fees paid to the borough before a certificate of occupancy issues, and no structure, residential or otherwise, may be occupied before it133. The borough sets fees by council resolution, and we could not find the current schedule14. We could not confirm which residential work is exempt or whether an owner-builder rule exists, so ask the borough office5. Pennsylvania has no general contractor license for an owner working on their own residence15.

How do septic permits work in Seven Fields?

The borough requires adjoining and adjacent properties to connect to the public sanitary sewer at the owner's expense, and bars septic tanks, privy vaults and cesspools for those properties616. A written direction to connect gives the owner 60 days to connect and disconnect the old receptacle6.

Where a lot is not on public sewer, Pennsylvania requires an on-lot sewage permit from the local agency before a building is occupied17. We could not confirm which agency serves Seven Fields, so ask the borough office5 before you rely on a septic system. Pennsylvania does not require a driller license for homeowners who drill their own well on their own land, and we found no borough well rule18.

Building a home in Seven Fields: the steps, in order

  1. Ask the borough office5 for your parcel's zoning district and whether a conditional use or zoning approval applies1.
  2. Confirm sewer availability and the septic authority6.
  3. If you are splitting a lot, check the borough's subdivision and land development chapter7.
  4. Apply for the building permit through the borough5.
  5. For a driveway onto a state highway, get a PennDOT highway occupancy permit19; any driveway must reach an open public street8.
  6. Pass the required inspections and pay the fees, then obtain the certificate of occupancy13.

What stays with Butler County, and what to check before you buy

Butler County does not run zoning for its boroughs; each township and borough decides for itself9. For land outside the borough, see the Butler County page.

Check whether the lot lies in a floodplain; the borough has a Floodplain Management chapter, though we could not confirm its permit text20. Butler County's effective property tax rate is 1.1%21.

Watch-outs

  • We could not confirm the borough's lot-size, setback, tiny-home, accessory-dwelling or short-term-rental rules; ask the borough office before buying5.
  • We could not confirm who issues septic permits for lots off public sewer in Seven Fields; ask the borough office5.

Sources

  1. Borough of Seven Fields, PA Code of Ordinances (Borough of Seven Fields), quoted and re-checked
  2. Chapter 144, Construction Codes, Uniform (Borough of Seven Fields), quoted and re-checked
  3. Chapter 144, Construction Codes, Uniform (Borough of Seven Fields), quoted and re-checked
  4. ecode360.com (Borough of Seven Fields), quoted and re-checked
  5. Borough of Seven Fields (borough office) (sevenfields.org)
  6. Chapter 254, Sewers and Sewage Disposal (Borough of Seven Fields), quoted and re-checked
  7. Borough of Seven Fields, PA Code of Ordinances (Borough of Seven Fields), quoted and re-checked
  8. ecode360.com (Borough of Seven Fields), quoted and re-checked
  9. 2017 Awarded Comprehensive Plan, quoted and re-checked
  10. ecode360.com (Borough of Seven Fields), quoted and re-checked
  11. RV and Tent Campsites (Pennsylvania statewide rule), quoted and re-checked
  12. Apply for a Uniform Construction Code Building Permit, quoted and re-checked
  13. Chapter 144, Construction Codes, Uniform (Borough of Seven Fields), quoted and re-checked
  14. Chapter 144, Construction Codes, Uniform (Borough of Seven Fields), quoted and re-checked
  15. Contractor Licensing (Pennsylvania statewide rule), quoted and re-checked
  16. Chapter 254, Sewers and Sewage Disposal (Borough of Seven Fields), quoted and re-checked
  17. 25 Pa. Code § 72.22. Permit issuance (Pennsylvania statewide rule), quoted and re-checked
  18. Apply for a Water Well Drillers License and Rig Permit (Pennsylvania statewide rule), quoted and re-checked
  19. Apply for a PennDOT Highway Occupancy Permit (Pennsylvania statewide rule), quoted and re-checked
  20. PennsylvaniA Floodplain Development Guide (Pennsylvania statewide rule), quoted and re-checked
  21. Effective property tax rate: Bolthole Index county data

Written October 24, 2026 from the rules quoted below, each taken from an official source and re-checked by an independent reviewer. This is research, not legal advice: rules change, so confirm with the office before you buy or build.

Answers from the rulebook for Borough of Seven Fields

Borough of Seven Fields’s own rules

  • Building code adoptedAdopted (with conditions)

    Construction inside Seven Fields borough.

    • The Borough enforces the UCC International Codes as amended and listed in 34 Pa. Code § 403.21.
    “the Borough enforces the International Codes”
  • InspectionsRequired

    Structures for which a certificate of occupancy is sought inside Seven Fields borough.

    • All inspections required by the article must be completed before a certificate of occupancy issues.
    • Associated fees must be paid to the Borough.
    “No such certificate of occupancy shall be issued until all inspections required by this article have been completed, and all associated fees have been paid to the Borough.”
  • Certificate of occupancyRequired

    Residential, commercial, and industrial structures inside Seven Fields borough.

    • Required inspections must be completed.
    • Associated Borough fees must be paid before issuance.
    “No structure, whether residential, commercial or industrial, shall be occupied until a certificate of occupancy is issued by the building officials designated by the Borough Council in accordance with this article.”
  • Local zoningPresent (with conditions)

    Land inside Seven Fields borough.

    • The adopted municipal code includes Chapter 340 Zoning.
    “Chapter 340 Zoning (§ 340-1 – § 340-129)”
  • Camping on your landProhibited

    Use of a tent, trailer, or other temporary structure on a lot inside Seven Fields borough.

    • Exception: developer use in completing development or contractor hired by developer.
    • Temporary structures must immediately be removed upon completion of a contract or construction phase.
    “No structure of a temporary character, fenced dog run, animal pen, trailer, tent, shack, garage, barn or any other outbuilding or similar structure or installation shall be used on any lot at any time, either temporarily or permanently, except by the developer in completing the development, or by a contractor hired by the developer.”
  • Manufactured homesLimited

    Use of a trailer as a residence inside Seven Fields borough.

    • The provision directly addresses trailers and does not resolve every possible permanently installed manufactured-home classification.
    “trailer [...] shall be used [...] as a residence”
  • Off-grid sanitationLimited

    Adjoining and adjacent properties inside Seven Fields borough with public sanitary sewer availability.

    • The restriction applies to adjoining and adjacent property owners, lessees, and occupants.
    • The rule concerns receptacles for human excrement, including septic tanks, privy vaults, cesspools, and mine holes.
    • Public sanitary-sewer connection is required.
    “shall not use any receptacles for human excrement except the public sanitary sewers”
  • Mandatory utility hookupSewer (with conditions)

    Adjoining and adjacent properties inside Seven Fields borough served by the public sanitary sewer.

    • Connection is at the property owner's expense.
    • Existing human-excrement receptacles must not be used by adjoining or adjacent owners and occupants except for public sanitary sewers.
    • A written direction to connect requires permits, fees, connection, and disconnection of the receptacle within 60 days.

    connection deadline after written notice: 60 days (Applies to an adjoining or adjacent owner with a human-excrement receptacle in use.)

    “shall connect [...] with the public sanitary sewers”
  • Subdividing landRegulated (with conditions)

    Subdivision and land development inside Seven Fields borough.

    • The adopted municipal code has a dedicated subdivision and land-development chapter.
    “Chapter 290 Subdivision and Land Development”
  • Driveway accessRequired

    Proposed uses and development driveways or private streets inside Seven Fields borough.

    • Driveways or private streets must access an open public street.
    • They may not cross property outside the ownership or control of the current or future development owner.
    “All proposed uses of any lot shall provide direct access to an open public street. Driveways or private streets servicing developments must access to an open public street and are not permitted to cross property not under ownership or control of the current or future owner of the development.”
  • Permit feesVariable (with conditions)

    Construction-code permits, services, certificates, and inspections inside Seven Fields borough.

    • Fees may be adopted, changed, altered, or amended by Borough Council resolution.
    • The opened code did not provide the current resolution schedule or dollar amounts.
    “The Borough Council may from time to time, by resolution, adopt, change, alter or amend fees for any permits, services, certificates, or inspections authorized by this article.”

Still unanswered

We looked and could not find an official answer yet. Silence is not permission; ask Borough of Seven Fields or Butler County directly.

  • Building permit — Residential construction inside Seven Fields borough.
  • Owner-builder exemption — Owner-built residential work inside Seven Fields borough.
  • Minimum dwelling size — Dwellings inside Seven Fields borough.
  • Minimum lot size — Lots inside Seven Fields borough.
  • Setbacks — Lots inside Seven Fields borough.
11 more unanswered
  • Lot coverage
  • Building height
  • Tiny homes
  • Accessory dwellings
  • Who permits septic
  • Septic permit
  • Septic inspection
  • Well permit
  • Agricultural exemption
  • Building in a floodplain
  • Short-term rentals

Each answer was extracted from an official source and independently re-checked against that source by a second reviewer. That is an evidence check, not legal advice. Rules change; confirm with the authority before you buy or build.

Unanswered questions are usually a sign that Borough of Seven Fields publishes no rule on the point, not that none exists. Butler County’s page lists the county offices to call.

← All of Butler County: county rules, score and offices