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

Strasburg Township’s own rules

• Local zoningPresent (with conditions)

  Land inside Strasburg Township limits (not the county unincorporated area or Strasburg Borough). The township administers its own zoning ordinance, titled the Strasburg Township Zoning Ordinance of 1995.

  • Article 1 section 101 states the short title is the Strasburg Township Zoning Ordinance of 1995.
  • Ordinances index says township zoning PDFs carry revisions through November 3, 2025; the Article 2 text read here is the revised 2021-11-01 PDF, so later amendments may apply.

  “for the purpose of this ordinance, strasburg township is hereby divided into zones which shall be designated as follows”

• Zoning districtsPublished (with conditions)

  Zoning districts inside Strasburg Township. Zones are listed in Article 1 section 108: agricultural (A), rural residential (RR), village residential (VR), residential (R-1), village commercial (VC), residential (R-2), highway commercial (HC), restricted commercial (RC), industrial (I), gateway north (GN), railroad heritage (RH).

  • Official zoning map is Appendix 3 (township zoning map) per the ordinances index; the map itself was not opened, so parcel-level zone assignment is not confirmed.
  • Township notes district text and zones should be verified with township staff before reliance.

  “for the purpose of this ordinance, strasburg township is hereby divided into zones which shall be designated as follows”

• Minimum lot sizeSpecified

  Single-family detached dwelling in the Agricultural (A) zone of Strasburg Township (section 201.6.2)

  • Maximum lot area of two acres per dwelling also applies.
  • Applies to lots with on-site sewage disposal; section 317 applies.

  minimum lot area per dwelling: >= 1 acre (plus maximum of 2 acres per dwelling)

  “a. the lot area shall be a minimum of one (1) acre per dwelling; b. a maximum lot area of two (2) acres per dwelling shall also apply;”

  2 more reviewed findings on this topic

  • Specified — All uses in the Rural Residential (RR) zone of Strasburg Township (section 202.5)

    “minimum lot area requirements unless otherwise specified, all uses within this zone shall contain a minimum area of one (1) acre; however, the minimum required lot size may be increased to accommodate the use of on-lot sewers as determined by the pa dep.”

  • Specified — Single-family detached dwelling in the Residential (R-1) zone of Strasburg Township with both public water and public sewer (section 204.5 design table)

    “sfd both public water and public sewer 10,000 sq. ft. 4 90 ft.2 35% 10 ft. 20 ft. 25 ft. 20”

• Lot coverageSpecified

  Single-family detached dwelling in the Agricultural (A) zone of Strasburg Township (section 201.6.2 table)

  • Table extracted as flattened text; the 20% value is read under the maximum lot coverage column.
  • Accessory structures under 200 sq. ft. have separate standards.

  maximum lot coverage: <= 20 percent

  “minimum lot width maximum lot coverage minimum yard setbacks front one side 150 ft. 20% (see section 316) 25 ft.”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — Single-family detached dwelling in the Residential (R-1) zone of Strasburg Township with both public water and public sewer (section 204.5 design table)

    “sfd both public water and public sewer 10,000 sq. ft. 4 90 ft.2 35% 10 ft. 20 ft. 25 ft. 20”

• Building heightSpecified

  Agricultural (A) zone of Strasburg Township: agricultural, horticultural and forestry-related uses (section 201.6.1(d)); single-family dwelling height in the same zone appears as 35 ft in the section 201.6.2 table

  • Uninhabitable accessory farm structures may reach 150 ft, and every structure must be set back from each property line a distance equal to its height.
  • R-1 and RR height limits were not established from the opened text.

  maximum height, other structures: <= 35 feet (uninhabitable accessory farm structures: 150 ft)

  “maximum permitted height - one hundred fifty (150) feet for uninhabitable accessory farm structures, and thirty-five (35) feet for other structures.”

• Accessory dwellingsLimited

  Echo housing (accessory dwelling) in the Agricultural zone of Strasburg Township

  • Echo housing requires approval by the Lancaster County Planning Commission as a land development.
  • Definition of echo housing and dimensional standards in section 201 were not opened.

  “echo housing, as defined herein, subject to approval by the lancaster county planning commission as a land development;”

• Mandatory utility hookupSewer (with conditions)

  Improved property inside Strasburg Township whose principal building is within 150 feet of the township sewer system must connect to the sewer system when the township so requires. The sewer system is defined as owned by the township.

  • Connection is required within 60 days after township notice to the owner.
  • Applies to properties within 150 feet of the sewer system, measured as stated in the ordinance; a new home farther away is not required to connect by this section.
  • The definition of sewer system covers facilities owned by the township; Refton and Strasburg Borough systems are separately regulated (Refton sewer rates ordinance #94 listed on the township index) and were not analyzed.
  • Water connection requirement was not established in the opened pages (ordinance #96 urban growth area sewer and water listed on index, not opened).

  distance from sewer system requiring connection: <= 150 feet (measured to principal building; see ordinance text) · time to connect after notice: <= 60 days

  “the owner of any improved property adjoining or adjacent to or whose principal building is within 150 feet from the sewer system shall connect such improved property”

• Subdividing landRegulated (with conditions)

  Subdivision and land development inside Strasburg Township

  • Governed by the township subdivision and land development ordinance (SALDO), Ordinance #97, amended 7/3/17 per the index.
  • Flag lots for single-family dwellings are subject to SALDO standards (Article 2 section 201.11 and 202.12).

  “#97 – subdivision and land development (saldo)”

• Short-term rentalsLimited

  Short-term rental in the Rural Residential (RR) zone of Strasburg Township, as a special exception

  • Requires special exception review under section 604.3 of the zoning ordinance.
  • Standards in section 459 not opened.
  • Ordinance #129 (amending the short-term rental and bed-and-breakfast rules) appears on the township index but was not opened; it may change these rules.

  “3. two-family conversion (see section 455); and, 4. short- term rental (see section 459). (revised 6/20)”

Still unanswered

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

• Building permit — Building permit requirement for new homes inside Strasburg Township
• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder exemption for permits inside Strasburg Township
• Building code adopted — Building code adoption inside Strasburg Township
• Inspections — Building inspections for new homes inside Strasburg Township
• Certificate of occupancy — Certificate of occupancy for new homes inside Strasburg 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.