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

Borough of Glendon’s own rules

• Building permitRequired

  Construction, development or razing of any building or structure inside Glendon borough

  • Minor repairs to existing buildings or structures with no structural changes or modifications do not require a permit
  • Building permit officer reviews that other required permits (e.g., Act 537 sewage facilities) have been obtained before issuing
  • Zoning approval is also required (zoning officer)

  “it shall be unlawful for any person to undertake, or cause to be undertaken, any construction or development or razing of any building or structure anywhere within the borough unless an approved building permit has been obtained from the appropriate building permit officer.”

• Local zoningPresent

  All land inside Glendon borough, Northampton County, PA

  • Zoning ordinance adopted 8/26/1987 (Ord. 87-2); administered by a zoning officer with a zoning hearing board

  “this chapter shall be known and may be cited as the "glendon borough zoning ordinance of 1987."”

• Zoning districtsPublished

  Zoning districts inside Glendon borough

  • Four districts: R-1, R-2, IO, HI; the borough's zoning page offers a zoning map to view/download

  “r-1 low density residential district r-2 medium density residential district io industrial-office district hi heavy industrial district”

• Minimum lot sizeDistrict specific (with conditions)

  R-1 Low Density Residential District inside Glendon borough

  • Single-family detached with public water: 30,000 sq ft, 100 ft width; church 2 acres, 200 ft
  • All other allowed uses including single-family detached with on-lot water: 1 acre, 125 ft width
  • Table text extracted from PDF; column alignment reconstructed

  min lot area, SFD with public water: >= 30000 sq ft (on-lot water: 1 acre) · min lot area, SFD with on-lot water: >= 1 acre

  “single family detached dwelling with public water service church 30,000 sq. ft. 100 ft. 20% 35 ft. 2 acres 200 ft. 30% 40 ft. all other allowed uses including single family detached dwellings with on-lot water service 1 acre 125 ft. 15% 35 ft.”

• SetbacksDistrict specific (with conditions)

  R-1 Low Density Residential District inside Glendon borough

  • Column headers (front yard, side yard, side yard abutting street, rear yard) separated from values in extracted text; SFD with public water appears to be front 50 ft, side 15 ft, side abutting street 50 ft, rear 50 ft; other uses front 50, side 20, 50, 50
  • Exact column mapping should be confirmed against the PDF

  front yard: >= 50 ft

  “e. minimum yard requirements. uses front yard side yard single family detached dwelling with public water service church 50 ft. 15 ft. 50 ft. 50 ft. 50 ft. 30 ft. 50 ft. 50 ft. all other allowed uses including single family detached dwellings with on-lot water service 50 ft. 20 ft. 50 ft. 50 ft.”

• Lot coverageDistrict specific (with conditions)

  R-1 Low Density Residential District inside Glendon borough

  • Maximum coverage by buildings: 20% (SFD with public water), 30% (church), 15% (other uses incl. SFD with on-lot water)

  max building coverage, SFD with public water: <= 20 percent (15% with on-lot water)

  “single family detached dwelling with public water service church 30,000 sq. ft. 100 ft. 20% 35 ft. 2 acres 200 ft. 30% 40 ft. all other allowed uses including single family detached dwellings with on-lot water service 1 acre 125 ft. 15% 35 ft.”

• Building heightDistrict specific (with conditions)

  R-1 Low Density Residential District inside Glendon borough

  • 35 ft for single-family detached (public or on-lot water) and other uses; 40 ft for churches

  max building height, single-family detached: <= 35 ft (church 40 ft)

  “single family detached dwelling with public water service church 30,000 sq. ft. 100 ft. 20% 35 ft. 2 acres 200 ft. 30% 40 ft. all other allowed uses including single family detached dwellings with on-lot water service 1 acre 125 ft. 15% 35 ft.”

• Mandatory utility hookupConditional

  Uses in the industrial districts (IO/HI) inside Glendon borough; residential R-1 differs by water service type

  • Exempt if sewage produced is less than one equivalent dwelling unit per acre and involves no process waste
  • Does not apply to continuation or expansion of existing uses
  • Only uses meeting the criteria are granted occupancy permits
  • Residential districts: R-1 lot sizes depend on public vs on-lot water service; R-2 connection rule not reviewed
  • Which district (IO vs HI) each repeated passage belongs to was inferred from order in the text

  “all uses in this district shall be connected upon construction to public sanitary sewer and water system unless the amount of sewage produced is less than one equivalent dwelling unit per acre and involves no process waste.”

Still unanswered

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

• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder inside Glendon borough
• Building code adopted — Building code inside Glendon borough
• Inspections — Inspections inside Glendon borough
• Certificate of occupancy — Occupancy permits inside Glendon borough
• Minimum dwelling size — Minimum dwelling size inside Glendon 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.