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

Fulton Township’s own rules

• Local zoningPresent (with conditions)

  Land inside Fulton township limits (Lancaster County, PA). Fulton township administers its own zoning ordinance.

  • The codified zoning ordinance is dated June 1994 and states it was codified with amendments through August 7, 2014; the township ordinances page also lists a 2019 stormwater amendment, so the current text must be confirmed before relying on any dimensional figure.

  “zoning ordinance fulton township lancaster county, pa june, 1994 codified with amendments august 7, 2014”

• Zoning districtsPublished (with conditions)

  Zoning districts established for land inside Fulton township

  • The zoning map is published as a separate download on the township zoning page; the map itself was not opened.
  • The ordinance lists these districts in the table of contents: agricultural (A), rural residential (RR), village residential (VR), village commercial (VC), commercial/industrial (C/I), quarry (Q), and floodplain (F).

  “section 201 agricultural zone (a)[...]section 202 rural residential zone (rr)”

• Minimum lot sizeSpecified

  Single-family detached nonfarm dwellings in the Agricultural zone (A, section 201) inside Fulton township

  • Farm uses, including farm dwellings, require a minimum lot area of ten acres (including parent tract remainders).
  • Lot size may be increased to accommodate an on-lot sewage disposal site as determined by PA DEP and an alternate site required under section 317.

  minimum lot area, single-family detached nonfarm dwelling: >= 1 acre (minimum may be increased for on-lot sewage disposal site) · maximum lot area, single-family detached nonfarm dwelling: <= 2 acre

  “single-family detached nonfarm dwelling - the minimum lot area for single-family detached nonfarm dwellings and lots is one (1) acre and the maximum is two (2) acres.”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — Single-family dwellings and other uses in the Rural Residential zone (RR, section 202) inside Fulton township

    “lot area requirements - unless otherwise specified, all uses within this zone shall contain a minimum lot area of 43,560 square feet, measured exclusive of public right of way; however, the minimum required lot size may be required to be increased to accommodate an on-lot sewage disposal site as determined by the pa der as well as an alternate site as required by section 317 of this ordinance.”

• SetbacksSpecified

  Principal structures in the Rural Residential zone (RR, section 202) inside Fulton township

  • The flattened PDF text does not show cleanly which heading each setback belongs to, so this figure is read as the principal-use yard setback in section 202.9 and should be confirmed against the source layout.
  • Accessory-use setbacks are in a separate claim.

  front yard setback: 50 ft (measured from street right-of-way line) · side yard setback (each side): 10 ft · rear yard setback: 40 ft

  “front yard - fifty (50) feet from street right-of-way line; side yards - ten (10) feet each side; and, rear yard - forty (40) feet.”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — Accessory uses and structures in the Rural Residential zone (RR, section 202) inside Fulton township

    “front yard - no accessory use (except permitted signs) shall be located in the front yard; side yards - ten (10) feet each side; and, rear yard - ten (10) feet.”

• Lot coverageSpecified

  All uses in the Rural Residential zone (RR, section 202) inside Fulton township

  • Unless otherwise specified in article 4 of the ordinance.

  maximum lot coverage: <= 20 percent (unless otherwise specified in article 4)

  “maximum lot coverage - twenty percent (20%), unless otherwise specified in article 4 of this ordinance.”

• Building heightSpecified

  Maximum building height in the Rural Residential zone (RR, section 202) inside Fulton township

  • The heading for this figure is not cleanly separated in the flattened text; it appears in section 202.9 and should be confirmed against the source layout.

  principal structure maximum height: <= 35 ft · accessory structure maximum height: <= 20 ft

  “principal structures - thirty-five (35) feet; and, accessory structures - twenty (20) feet.”

• Subdividing landRegulated (with conditions)

  Subdivision and land development of land inside Fulton township

  • The township publishes a Subdivision and Land Development Ordinance with articles on plan processing, improvement assurances, design standards, traffic impact studies, and mobile home parks.
  • Only the ordinances page listing was read; the articles' substantive standards were not opened.

  “subdivision & land development ordinance”

• Permit processPartial

  Zoning and building permit applications for land inside Fulton township

  • The zoning page publishes downloadable application forms (building/zoning permit, zoning hearing board, conditional use, stormwater site plan, plan review) and lists zoning hours (1st, 2nd and 3rd Tuesday 3pm-5:30pm; 4th Tuesday 5:30pm-7:00pm; 5th Tuesday as posted).
  • The full step-by-step review sequence and timing were not published on the page that was opened.

  “click on the name of the application you need to download it to your computer.”

Still unanswered

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

• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder permit exemption inside Fulton township
• Building code adopted — Which construction code Fulton township enforces inside its limits
• Inspections — Building inspections for construction inside Fulton township
• Certificate of occupancy — Certificate of occupancy for new buildings in Fulton township
• Minimum dwelling size — Minimum dwelling floor area inside Fulton 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.