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

Springville Township’s own rules

• Local zoningAbsent

  Land inside Springville Township, Susquehanna County, Pennsylvania.

  • The county's Springville Township profile reports no township zoning; this does not eliminate non-zoning state, sewage, floodplain, building-code, or subdivision controls.

  “Driveway Permit: Yes Building Permit: Yes Zoning: No Planning Ordinance: Yes Comprehensive Plan: Yes Flood Plain Management Ordinance: Yes”

• Zoning districtsNot published

  Springville Township zoning districts.

  • No township zoning is reported; this does not mean that non-zoning districts or other state and county regulatory overlays are absent.

  “Driveway Permit: Yes Building Permit: Yes Zoning: No Planning Ordinance: Yes Comprehensive Plan: Yes Flood Plain Management Ordinance: Yes”

• Minimum dwelling sizeNone

  Minimum dwelling size imposed by Springville Township zoning.

  • This addresses zoning only and does not displace statewide UCC requirements.

  “Driveway Permit: Yes Building Permit: Yes Zoning: No Planning Ordinance: Yes Comprehensive Plan: Yes Flood Plain Management Ordinance: Yes”

• Minimum lot sizeNone

  Minimum lot size imposed by Springville Township zoning.

  • Subdivision, sewage-planning, floodplain, and other non-zoning requirements may impose parcel-specific controls.

  “Driveway Permit: Yes Building Permit: Yes Zoning: No Planning Ordinance: Yes Comprehensive Plan: Yes Flood Plain Management Ordinance: Yes”

• SetbacksNone

  Setbacks imposed by Springville Township zoning.

  • Subdivision, floodplain, road-access, sewage, and building requirements may impose non-zoning site constraints.

  “Driveway Permit: Yes Building Permit: Yes Zoning: No Planning Ordinance: Yes Comprehensive Plan: Yes Flood Plain Management Ordinance: Yes”

• Lot coverageNone

  Lot coverage imposed by Springville Township zoning.

  • Subdivision, floodplain, stormwater, and other non-zoning requirements may still restrict a project.

  “Driveway Permit: Yes Building Permit: Yes Zoning: No Planning Ordinance: Yes Comprehensive Plan: Yes Flood Plain Management Ordinance: Yes”

• Building heightNone

  Building height imposed by Springville Township zoning.

  • This addresses zoning only and does not displace statewide UCC, floodplain, aviation, or other applicable requirements.

  “Driveway Permit: Yes Building Permit: Yes Zoning: No Planning Ordinance: Yes Comprehensive Plan: Yes Flood Plain Management Ordinance: Yes”

• Living in an RVUnrestricted

  RV occupancy as a township zoning matter inside Springville Township.

  • This is limited to the absence of a township zoning restriction; subdivision, sewage, building, campground, health, floodplain, and other applicable rules may still regulate a specific proposal.

  “Driveway Permit: Yes Building Permit: Yes Zoning: No Planning Ordinance: Yes Comprehensive Plan: Yes Flood Plain Management Ordinance: Yes”

• Camping on your landUnrestricted

  Temporary camping as a township zoning matter inside Springville Township.

  • This is limited to the absence of a township zoning restriction; subdivision, sewage, building, campground, health, floodplain, and other applicable rules may still regulate a specific proposal.

  “Driveway Permit: Yes Building Permit: Yes Zoning: No Planning Ordinance: Yes Comprehensive Plan: Yes Flood Plain Management Ordinance: Yes”

• Tiny homesUnrestricted

  Tiny-home occupancy as a township zoning matter inside Springville Township.

  • This is limited to the absence of a township zoning restriction; subdivision, sewage, building, health, floodplain, and other applicable rules may still regulate a specific proposal.

  “Driveway Permit: Yes Building Permit: Yes Zoning: No Planning Ordinance: Yes Comprehensive Plan: Yes Flood Plain Management Ordinance: Yes”

• Manufactured homesUnrestricted

  Manufactured-home occupancy as a township zoning matter inside Springville Township.

  • This is limited to the absence of a township zoning restriction; subdivision, manufactured-housing, sewage, building, health, floodplain, and other applicable rules may still regulate a specific proposal.

  “Driveway Permit: Yes Building Permit: Yes Zoning: No Planning Ordinance: Yes Comprehensive Plan: Yes Flood Plain Management Ordinance: Yes”

• Accessory dwellingsUnrestricted

  Accessory-dwelling use as a township zoning matter inside Springville Township.

  • This is limited to the absence of a township zoning restriction; subdivision, sewage, building, health, floodplain, and other applicable rules may still regulate a specific proposal.

  “Driveway Permit: Yes Building Permit: Yes Zoning: No Planning Ordinance: Yes Comprehensive Plan: Yes Flood Plain Management Ordinance: Yes”

• Who permits septicLocal (with conditions)

  Sewage enforcement for land inside Springville Township.

  • The township profile identifies JHA (John Watts) for sewage enforcement; the county explains that a sewage enforcement officer is hired by the township or borough to administer sewage-facilities regulations.

  “Sewage Enforcement: JHA (John Watts) Code Enforcement: NEIC (Ken Marino)”

• Driveway accessRequired

  Driveway access inside Springville Township.

  • The county township profile indicates a driveway permit. State-highway access may separately require a PennDOT highway-occupancy permit.

  “Driveway Permit: Yes Building Permit: Yes Zoning: No”

Rules another office applies inside Springville Township

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

• Building permitRequired

  UCC-regulated construction or building work inside Springville Township.

  • Emergency repairs or equipment replacements may proceed without a permit if an application is submitted to the building-code official within three business days.

  “The UCC requires property owners to obtain a construction or building permit before starting any work.”

• InspectionsRequired

  Specified UCC-regulated residential and commercial construction, system work, pools, hot tubs, and manufactured or industrialized housing projects inside Springville Township.

  • The cited UCC guidance limits the statement to the listed cases, including construction or changes to buildings, electrical, gas, mechanical or plumbing systems, pools or hot tubs, and specified manufactured or industrialized housing work.

  “Inspections are also necessary in several cases, including construction or changes to commercial or residential buildings, electrical, gas, mechanical or plumbing systems, and the installation of swimming pools or hot tubs.”

• Certificate of occupancyRequired

  A building or facility inside Springville Township before it is used.

  “A UCC certificate of occupancy must be issued before a building or facility can be used.”

• Septic permitLimited

  Installation, construction, alteration, repair, connection, or occupancy involving an individual or community sewage system inside Springville Township.

  • A permit is generally required before the listed sewage-system work or related occupancy. A same-size and same-use replacement dwelling may qualify for an exception if the previous dwelling was in use within one year and no active malfunction investigation is underway. Unless a local ordinance requires a permit, the Act also provides a ten-acre owner or immediate-family residential on-lot-system exemption for an owner of record as of January 10, 1987.

  ten-acre permit-exemption tract size: >= 10 acres (Only for a qualifying owner-occupied or intended owner/immediate-family residential on-lot system; the owner must have been owner of record on January 10, 1987, unless local ordinance requires a permit.)

  “No person shall install, construct, or award a contract for construction, or alter, repair or connect to an individual sewage system or community sewage system [...] without first obtaining a permit”

• Off-grid sanitationLimited

  Off-grid sewage disposal inside Springville Township.

  • Individual or community sewage systems are subject to Act 537 permitting unless an identified statutory exception applies. Discharge of untreated or partially treated sewage to ground surface or Commonwealth waters is a nuisance unless specifically approved by DEP or permitted by the local agency under Section 7.3.

  “the discharge of untreated or partially treated sewage to the surface of the ground or into the waters of this Commonwealth [...] shall constitute a nuisance”

• Subdividing landRegulated (with conditions)

  Subdivisions and land developments inside Springville Township, as part of Susquehanna County.

  • The ordinance applies to subdivisions and land developments proposed after its effective date. County ordinance page identifies Ordinance No. 2005-1 as effective January 26, 2011 and amended July 12, 2023.

  “This Ordinance shall apply to all subdivisions and land developments in the County proposed after the effective date of this Ordinance.”

• Permit processPublished (with conditions)

  County subdivision and land-development plan process affecting proposals inside Springville Township.

  • The process described is for subdivision and land-development plans; the township or borough has an opportunity to comment, some minor subdivisions may be approved or disapproved by the Planning Director, and otherwise a submission at least 10 working days before the Planning Commission meeting is stated.

  “The Planning Commission staff is responsible for initial review of all plans. The Township or Borough is given the opportunity to comment on the plan.”

Still unanswered

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

• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder treatment for construction inside Springville Township.
• Septic inspection — Final inspection of private sewage-system installation inside Springville Township.
• Well permit — Private wells inside Springville Township.
• Mandatory utility hookup — New residential construction inside Springville Township.
• Agricultural exemption — Agricultural exemption from local construction or land-development controls inside Springville 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.