Zoning, building permits and septic rules in Borough of Avoca, Pennsylvania

Borough of Avoca’s own rules

• Building code adoptedAdopted (with conditions)

  Construction inside Avoca borough: Uniform Construction Code administered through a borough-appointed UCC inspector

  • Page names the UCC inspector effective July 14, 2022; the adopting ordinance was not opened
  • Borough also posts the International Property Maintenance Code and its own property maintenance ordinance

  “effective july 14, 2022, avoca borough's uniform construction code & building inspector is bhw construction consultation services, inc. (jason humenanski)”

• Driveway accessRequired

  Driveway connections and curb cuts onto borough roadways inside Avoca borough

  • Applies regardless of surface material
  • Permit issued only after engineer review and council approval

  “anyone connecting a driveway, regardless if asphalt, concrete, rock, gravel, etc. and/or cutting the curb connecting to a roadway must obtain a permit before doing so.”

• Permit feesPublished (with conditions)

  Borough sewer connection permit fee inside Avoca borough (building permit fees not found)

  • Fee includes inspection
  • Construction/UCC permit fees not published on the page

  sewer connection permit fee: 475 USD (includes inspection fee)

  “fee for permit/connecting to the main line - $475.00 (includes inspection fee)”

• Permit processPartial

  Driveway permit process inside Avoca borough; construction permit process only says to call the borough office

  • Application reviewed by borough engineer, then approved by council
  • Contractor supplies requested information

  “application will be reviewed by the borough engineer and once approved by council, the permit to proceed will be issued.”

Rules another office applies inside Borough of Avoca

Borough of Avoca does not set these itself; the county, a health district or the state does, and they apply to every address inside its limits.

• Local zoningPresent (with conditions)

  Land inside Avoca borough: zoning is under the Luzerne County zoning ordinance, not a borough-adopted ordinance

  • Borough page directs zoning questions to the Luzerne County Planning & Zoning Office, 570-825-1560
  • Borough did not publish its own zoning ordinance on the page opened

  “avoca borough is part of the luzerne county zoning ordinance. all zoning related questions and/or concerns should be directed to luzerne county planning & zoning office at 570-825-1560”

Still unanswered

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

• Building permit — Building permits for construction inside Avoca borough
• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder exemption inside Avoca borough
• Inspections — Construction inspections inside Avoca borough
• Certificate of occupancy — Certificates of occupancy inside Avoca borough
• Zoning districts — Zoning districts applying inside Avoca borough under the Luzerne County ordinance

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.