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

Clay Township’s own rules

• Local zoningPresent

  Land inside Clay township limits: the township administers its own zoning ordinance

  • Article II divides the township into the FR, AG, AT, R-1, R-2, NC, LI and FP districts; the zoning map is kept in the township office.
  • Dimensional and use rules below come from the township Zoning Ordinance Articles II and III.

  “section 201. list of districts for the purpose of this ordinance, the township is hereby divided into the following districts:”

• Zoning districtsPublished

  Land inside Clay township limits

  • Districts listed in Section 201: FR forest recreation, AG agricultural, AT agricultural transition, R-1 residential-1, R-2 residential-2, NC neighborhood commercial, LI limited industrial, FP flood plain.
  • The zoning map is incorporated by reference and kept in the township office (Section 202).

  “a. fr – forest recreation b. ag – agricultural c. at - agricultural transition [amended by ord. 060903, §2, 6/9/03] d. r-1 – residential - 1 e. r-2 – residential – 2 f. nc – neighborhood commercial g. li – limited industrial”

• Minimum lot sizeSpecified

  Single-family detached dwellings in the Residential-1 (R-1) district inside Clay township

  • Lot area depends on water and sewer service: the R-1 purpose statement says on-site water and sewage disposal are generally the only types available.
  • Source table also lists minimum lot widths of 100 feet (on-lot sewer) and 80 feet (public sewer).

  minimum lot area, on-lot water and on-lot sewer: >= 22500 square feet · minimum lot area, public sewer only: >= 15000 square feet · minimum lot area, public sewer and public water: >= 12000 square feet

  “minimum lot area with on-lot water and on-lot sewer twenty-two thousand five hundred (22,500) square feet minimum lot area with public sewer b fifteen thousand (15,000) square feet [amended by ord. 01-3-25-85, 3/25/85, 'ii.] minimum lot area with public sewer and public water twelve thousand (12, 000) square feet.”

• SetbacksSpecified

  Single-family detached dwellings in the Residential-1 (R-1) district inside Clay township

  • Setbacks as stated for the single-family detached row in Section 304.
  • Accessory structure setbacks are governed by Section 303.c, not recorded here.

  front yard: >= 25 feet · side yard: >= 15 feet · rear yard: >= 35 feet

  “d. yard requirements: front yards b twenty-five (25) feet. rear yard b thirty-five (35) feet. side yard b fifteen (15) feet.”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — Single-family residential dwellings on Agricultural (AG) district lots containing less than 20% class I, II and III agricultural soils, by special exception

    “(a) front yard minimum depth b forty (40) feet (b) side yard b twenty-five (25) feet (c) rear yard minimum depth b fifty (50) feet”

• Lot coverageSpecified

  Single-family detached dwellings in the Residential-1 (R-1) district inside Clay township

  • Maximum lot coverage for single-family detached dwellings as stated in Section 304.

  maximum lot coverage: <= 25 percent

  “c. maximum lot coverage - twenty-five percent (25%)”

• Building heightSpecified

  Single-family detached dwellings in the Residential-1 (R-1) district inside Clay township

  • Maximum height stated in Section 304 for single-family detached dwellings.

  maximum building height: <= 35 feet

  “b. maximum building height b thirty-five (35) feet.”

• Subdividing landRegulated (with conditions)

  Land subdivision and land development inside Clay township

  • Governed by the township Subdivision and Land Development Ordinance (SALDO) listed on the township ordinances page; SALDO text not opened.

  “zoning ordinance zoning map subdivision and land development ordinance (saldo) code of ordinances of the township of clay”

• Building in a floodplainLimited

  Land inside Clay township within the flood plain (FP) zoning district, which overlays all other districts

  • Floodplain district regulations apply in addition to the underlying district where applicable.
  • Township ordinances list also includes a separate Floodplain Ordinance; not opened.

  “f. the floodplain zoning district shall be deemed an overlay district on all other zoning districts. the regulations set forth in the floodplain zoning district, where applicable shall apply in addition to the regulations of the underlying district.”

• Short-term rentalsLimited

  Short-term rentals in the Forest Recreation (FR) and Agricultural Transition (AT) zoning districts inside Clay township

  • Requires a conditional use approval in addition to meeting all conditions in the short term rental ordinance.
  • Ordinance adopted August 12, 2024 per township notice; full text not opened.

  “in the forest rec and agricultural transition zoning districts a conditional use is required.”

  2 more reviewed findings on this topic

  • Limited — Short-term rentals in the Agricultural (AG) and Neighborhood Commercial (NC) zoning districts inside Clay township

    “in the agricultural and neighborhood commercial zoning districts a special exception is required”

  • Prohibited — Short-term rentals in the residential districts (R-1 and R-2) and the limited industrial (LI) district inside Clay township

    “short term rentals are not permitted in the residential and limited industrial zoning districts.”

Still unanswered

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

• Building permit — New dwelling construction inside Clay township
• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder exemption for residential construction inside Clay township
• Building code adopted — Building construction standards inside Clay township
• Inspections — Building inspections for new construction inside Clay township
• Certificate of occupancy — Certificate of occupancy for new dwellings inside Clay township

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.