Zoning, building permits and septic rules in Conewago Township, Pennsylvania

Conewago Township’s own rules

• Local zoningPresent (with conditions)

  Land inside Conewago township, Dauphin County, PA: the township administers its own Chapter 27 Zoning ordinance.

  • Chapter 27 Zoning sets districts A, R-C, R-S, R-M, C-G and W-M; use is conditional on the district rules.
  • Ordinance date shown in the code history is ord. 1985-1, 10/9/1985, amended in later years; no separate effective date was stated, so effective_at is left null.
  • Zoning map (Chapter 27 Zone Map PDF) and zoning tables were not used for this claim.

  “for the purpose of this chapter, the township is hereby divided into districts which shall be designated as follows:”

• Zoning districtsPublished

  Zoning districts inside Conewago township: A agricultural, R-C residential country, R-S residential suburban, R-M residential multi-family, C-G commercial general, W-M wholesale manufacturing.

  • The district list is in Chapter 27 §301; the zoning map is a separate Chapter 27 Zone Map PDF that was not opened.

  “for the purpose of this chapter, the township is hereby divided into districts which shall be designated as follows:”

• Minimum lot sizeSpecified

  Single-family detached dwellings in the R-S residential suburban district, Conewago township (Chapter 27 §605).

  • Lot area depends on water and sewer service: septic and well 1.5 acres; septic and public water 1.0 acre; sewer and well 30,000 sq ft; sewer and public water 20,000 sq ft.
  • Table text in the PDF is partly garbled; column mapping is taken from the header order in the extracted text.

  minimum lot area, single-family detached, septic and well: >= 1.5 acres · minimum lot area, single-family detached, septic and public water: >= 1 acres · minimum lot area, single-family detached, sewer and well: >= 30000 square feet · minimum lot area, single-family detached, sewer and public water: >= 20000 square feet

  “single-family detached dwelling unit 1.5 acres 1.0 acres 30,000 square feet 20,000 square feet”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — Single-family detached dwellings and accessory structures in the A agricultural district, Conewago township (Chapter 27 §405).

    “for single-family detached dwellings and accessory structures, the minimum permitted lot area shall be not less than 1.5 acres and the maximum permitted lot area shall not exceed three acres.”

• Building heightSpecified

  Buildings in the R-C residential country district, Conewago township (Chapter 27 §504).

  • A dwelling must be at least one story.
  • Permitted height modifications are in Part 10 of Chapter 27 (not opened).

  maximum building height: <= 35 feet (permitted modifications under Part 10 not reviewed)

  “the height of a building shall not exceed 35 feet.”

  2 more reviewed findings on this topic

  • Specified — Buildings in the A agricultural district, Conewago township (Chapter 27 §404).

    “the height of a building shall not exceed 50 feet.”

  • Specified — Buildings in the R-S residential suburban district, Conewago township (Chapter 27 §604).

    “the height of a building shall not exceed 35 feet.”

• Accessory dwellingsLimited

  Accessory single-family dwelling in the W-M wholesale-manufacturing district only, Conewago township (Chapter 27 §905 area regulations). The W-M permitted-use list (§902) was not opened, so this is not a general accessory-dwelling permission.

  • On-lot septic and well: at least 43,560 square feet (one acre).
  • Where public sewer and/or water are available, the lot area is the same as the R-S district.
  • Other accessory dwelling rules in residential districts were not verified.

  minimum lot area, accessory single-family dwelling, on-lot septic and well: >= 43560 square feet (where public sewer and/or water available, same as R-S)

  “the minimum permitted lot area for an accessory single-family dwelling using onlot septic and well shall not be less 43,560 square feet (one acre).”

• Who permits septicLocal (with conditions)

  On-lot sewage systems inside Conewago township, Dauphin County: the township's appointed sewage enforcement officer administers the permit and inspections.

  • Chapter 18 §119 gives the sewage enforcement officer the permit role; the Part 1 definition says the officer is appointed by the township.
  • Chapter 18 Part 1 also lists a county sanitarian consultation step for certain systems (heading only, text not opened), so the county role is not fully resolved.

  “sewage enforcement officer — the person, or his duly authorized agent, appointed by the township to have the responsibility for administering these regulations, issuing permits and making inspections as herein provided.”

• Septic permitRequired

  Any sewage system and any structure served by one inside Conewago township, Dauphin County (Chapter 18 applies throughout the township).

  • Permit is issued by the township's sewage enforcement officer before construction, installation, alteration, extension or repair of any sewage system.
  • Exception only if the sewage enforcement officer determines in writing that a permit is not necessary in a particular case, listing the provisions of law allowing the exception.
  • Construction may proceed after the permit is issued; no separate permit fee was extracted in this research.

  “a sewage facilities permit, issued by the sewage enforcement officer, shall be required prior to the construction, installation, alteration, extension or repair of any sewage system”

• Septic inspectionRequired

  Installation of sewage systems inside Conewago township, Dauphin County.

  • Inspections are made by the township's sewage enforcement officer as Chapter 18 provides; the inspection section's text was not opened, so frequency and timing are not recorded.
  • Chapter 18 table of contents also links inspection of installation to building permit issuance.

  “no installation shall be covered until it is inspected and given final written approval by the sewage enforcement officer”

• Off-grid sanitationLimited

  On-lot (off-grid) sewage systems inside Conewago township, Dauphin County.

  • On-lot systems are allowed only with a sewage facilities permit from the township sewage enforcement officer.
  • Chapter 18 applies throughout the township to all sewage systems hereafter constructed, installed, altered, extended or repaired.
  • Holding tanks (Chapter 18 Part 3) have a separate permit path; not opened.

  “these regulations, procedures, practices and standards shall apply throughout the township, to all sewage systems hereafter constructed, installed, altered, extended or repaired.”

• Subdividing landRegulated (with conditions)

  Subdivision and land development inside Conewago township, Dauphin County.

  • Subdivision is regulated by Chapter 22 Subdivision and Land Development; the chapter text was not opened, so thresholds and exemptions are not confirmed.
  • Chapter 18 Part 1 requires sewage suitability and percolation testing with subdivision plans.

  “no subdivision or land development of any lot or parcel of land located in conewago township shall be effected;”

Still unanswered

We looked and could not find an official answer yet. Silence is not permission; ask Conewago Township or Dauphin County directly.

• Building permit — Building permits for construction inside Conewago township, Dauphin County.
• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder exemption from township permits in Conewago township.
• Building code adopted — Building code adoption in Conewago township, Dauphin County.
• Inspections — Building inspections for construction inside Conewago township, Dauphin County.
• Certificate of occupancy — Certificates of occupancy in Conewago township, Dauphin County.

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.