Zoning, building permits and septic rules in Borough of New Holland, Pennsylvania

Borough of New Holland’s own rules

• Local zoningPresent

  Land inside New Holland Borough, Lancaster County, PA

  • Source is a 2019 PDF on the borough's own site; later amendments (e.g., a Dec. 2024 rezoning hearing) were not reviewed.

  “borough of new holland lancaster county, pennsylvania zoning ordinance published by the authority of the borough”

• Zoning districtsPublished

  Zoning districts inside New Holland Borough

  • Districts: RA, R-1, R-2 residence; C-1, C-2 commercial; M manufacturing.

  “part 3 - ra residence district 550 §301. regulations 550 part 4 - r-1 residence district 553 §401. regulations 553 part 5 - r-2 residence district 555”

• Minimum lot sizeSpecified

  RA Residence District inside New Holland Borough

  • 11,250 sq ft with public sanitary sewer; 40,000 sq ft without sewer; width 75 ft at building setback line.

  min lot area with sewer: >= 11250 sq ft · min lot area without sewer: >= 40000 sq ft · min lot width: >= 75 ft

  “a lot area of not less than eleven thousand two hundred and fifty (11,250) square feet shall be provided when served by sanitary sewer. where such lot is not served by sanitary sewer; the minimum lot area shall be forty thousand (40,000) square feet. each lot shall have a width at the building setback line of not less than seventy-five (75) feet.”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — R-1 Residence District inside New Holland Borough, single-family detached dwelling

    “a lot area of not less than eight thousand five hundred (8,500) square feet per dwelling shall be provided, and each lot shall have a width at the building setback line of not less than sixty (60) feet.”

• SetbacksSpecified

  RA Residence District inside New Holland Borough

  • Side yards: two, each not less than 10 ft (corner-lot exception not fully reviewed); rear yard not less than 30 ft; R-1 yards not reviewed.

  front yard: >= 35 ft · rear yard: >= 30 ft

  “(1) front yard. one (1) yard, not less than thirty-five feet in depth. (2) side yard. two (2) yards, not less than ten (10) feet in width; except that in the case of a corner lot, any yard which abuts a street shall not be less than twenty (20) feet in width. (3) rear yard. one (1) yard, not less than thirty (30) feet in depth.”

• Lot coverageSpecified

  R-1 Residence District inside New Holland Borough

  • Building coverage 20% for apartment/condominium/townhouse developments of six or more buildings; impervious area capped at 50% of lot.

  max building coverage: <= 35 percent (20% for developments of 6+ buildings) · max impervious area: <= 50 percent

  “b. building area/impervious area. not more than thirty-five (35%) percent of the area of each lot may be occupied by buildings, except that in the case of an apartment, condominium or townhouse development of six (6) or more buildings, the percentage of the lot that may be occupied by buildings shall not exceed twenty (20%) percent; and not more than fifty (50%) percent of the lot area shall be occupied by impervious area.”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — RA Residence District inside New Holland Borough

    “b. building area. not more than thirty (30%) percent of the area of each lot shall be occupied by buildings.”

• Building heightSpecified

  RA Residence District inside New Holland Borough

  • May be exceeded by one foot per foot of side yard added beyond minimum, up to 45 ft.

  max height: <= 35 ft (up to 45 ft with wider side yards)

  “height regulations. no building shall exceed thirty-five (35) feet in height; provided that such height limits for a building may be exceeded by one (1) foot for each foot by which the width of each side yard is increased beyond minimum side yard requirements, up to a maximum height of forty-five (45) feet.”

• Short-term rentalsLimited

  Short-term rentals inside New Holland Borough residence districts

  • Prohibited in RA and R-1 districts; the same list appears in R-1. Other districts not reviewed.

  “prohibited uses. the following uses are prohibited in the ra residence district: (1) 2. (a) short term rentals.”

• Permit feesPublished (with conditions)

  Building permit fees inside New Holland Borough

  • Fees are set by the inspection firm chosen; the page links firm fee schedules (ABI 2026, Code Administrators 2025, Commonwealth 2026). Amounts not reviewed.

  “a set of plans is returned to the applicant, with applicable costs.”

• Permit processPublished (with conditions)

  Building permits inside New Holland Borough

  • Plans reviewed by a borough-selected inspection firm; applicant chooses one of three firms; inspections scheduled directly between contractor and firm; a plot plan is required for any exterior wall change.

  “a permit application must be filled out and three sets of plans submitted with the application at the borough office.”

Still unanswered

We looked and could not find an official answer yet. Silence is not permission; ask Borough of New Holland or Lancaster County directly.

• Building permit — Building permit requirement inside New Holland Borough
• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder exemption inside New Holland Borough
• Building code adopted — Building code inside New Holland Borough
• Minimum dwelling size — Minimum dwelling size inside New Holland Borough
• Living in an RV — RV occupancy inside New Holland Borough

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.