Bolthole Index

Tarrant County, Texas

Building permits, zoning and septic in the Town of Westlake, Texas

The Town of Westlake, Texas requires building permits for most construction and residential work inside town limits.1 Westlake’s Planning and Development Department administers town zoning, while Tarrant County regulates on-site sewage facilities in Westlake.23 For a property in the Tarrant County portion of Westlake, use the town’s building and planning offices rather than the county’s unincorporated-land rules.24

At a glance

Building permits
Required for most work inside Westlake town limits1
Zoning
Town Planning and Development administers zoning2
Septic authority
Tarrant County regulates on-site sewage facilities in Westlake3
Mobile-home living
Mobile homes cannot be placed or parked for residential purposes in town5
Agricultural barns
Agricultural or farm-animal barns on sites of at least 10 acres have a masonry-requirement exemption6
RA accessory buildings
In the Residential Airpark district, maximum accessory-building height is 18 feet and area is 3,000 square feet, also capped by the principal residence’s area7

Who to call

Planning & zoning

Town of Westlake Planning and Development Department

Town of Westlake Planning and Development Department

817-490-5742

[email protected]

Online permits →

Building permits

Town of Westlake Building Inspections

Town of Westlake Building Inspections

[email protected]

Online permits →

Building permits

Town of Westlake Residential Building Permit Submittals

Town of Westlake Residential Building Permit Submittals

Septic permits

Tarrant County Engineering Department OSSF Service Area

Tarrant County Engineering Department OSSF Service Area

Septic permits

Tarrant County OSSF Program (Engineering Services)

OSSF (septic) permit applications, residential and non-residential, for unincorporated Tarrant County and several contract cities; questions go to the Wastewater Specialist or Environmental Specialist listed on the permit page

817-212-7082

100 E. Weatherford St., Fort Worth, Texas 76196

Contact details are copied from each office’s official page and were checked against it on October 11, 2026.

Off-grid gear

Going off-grid in Town of Westlake means bringing your own water and power. The kit we’d start with:

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Do you need a building permit in the Town of Westlake, TX?

Westlake requires a building permit for most construction and residential work within town limits.1 Residential submissions require plans and a plan review fee, and most new single-family homes also require an HOA approval letter.1 Westlake says no work may start until tree protection and erosion control are in place and the building permit has been issued.8 We could not confirm a town owner-builder exemption; ask Building Inspections about your proposed work before assuming that doing the construction yourself removes the building-permit requirement.81

Who handles building permits and zoning in the Town of Westlake?

Westlake’s Planning and Development Department handles zoning requests, plan review and building inspection.2 Submit contractor registrations and building-permit applications online through the town’s MyGov portal.2 Direct building-inspection process questions to [email protected], and zoning, platting, variance and development questions to [email protected] or 817-490-5742.82 For past Westlake building permits, plans or reports, the department directs readers to its online open-record request form.2 Tarrant County remains the OSSF regulator in Westlake; the town building-permit application does not replace the separate Texas septic approval process.39

Does the Town of Westlake have zoning, lot-size and setback rules?

Westlake’s Planning and Development Department reviews development against the town’s zoning regulations and building codes.2 Ask the department for the rules governing the specific parcel and proposed use; we could not confirm a complete townwide lot-size, dwelling-size, lot-coverage or setback schedule.2 In Westlake’s RA Residential Airpark district, accessory-use buildings cannot exceed the principal residence’s floor area, 3,000 square feet or 18 feet in height.7 Westlake’s agricultural-barn exemption covers exterior-wall masonry for agricultural or farm-animal barns on sites of at least 10 acres; the stated exemption does not establish a building-permit waiver.61

How do septic permits work inside the Town of Westlake?

Tarrant County’s official OSSF service-area page lists Westlake among the municipalities where the county regulates on-site sewage facilities.3 Contact the Tarrant County OSSF Program about a Westlake parcel’s septic proposal or existing system.10 Texas generally requires a permit and approved plan to construct, alter, repair, extend or operate an OSSF, and local programs may impose stricter requirements.9 The state’s 10-acre exemption requires a qualifying single-family dwelling, a licensed site evaluation, all system parts at least 100 feet from property lines, on-site effluent disposal, no nuisance or groundwater pollution, and no other dwelling on the tract.9 Ask the county whether the exemption applies before relying on acreage alone.910

Can you live in an RV or tiny home in the Town of Westlake?

Westlake prohibits placing or parking a mobile home for residential purposes anywhere within town limits and prohibits mobile-home parks.5 Westlake’s code addresses campers and travel trailers separately, and excludes prefabricated homes or structures from its mobile-home definition.5 We could not confirm permission to occupy an RV while building, a distinct tiny-home occupancy rule, or accessory-dwelling permission in Westlake; ask Planning and Development about the proposed structure, use and parcel.2 For land outside town limits, consult the Tarrant County guide: the county’s absence of zoning applies to unincorporated areas outside city limits.4

Building a home in the Town of Westlake: what are the steps?

  1. Ask Westlake Planning and Development to establish the development process for your parcel; zoning, site-plan and platting applications require a Development Review Committee meeting.2
  2. Resolve wastewater approval with the Tarrant County OSSF Program if the home will use septic; Texas requires an approved plan and septic permit unless an applicable exemption is satisfied.3109
  3. Prepare the residential site plan, building plans, drainage/grading plans, wall-bracing plans, engineered foundation documents, tree plans and energy-compliance report required by Westlake.11
  4. Submit the building-permit application through MyGov with the plan review fee and any required HOA approval letter.211
  5. Install tree protection and erosion control and receive the building permit before starting work; schedule building inspections through MyGov.8

Watch-outs

  • Westlake’s certificate-of-occupancy packet lists broad triggers, but the fee schedule limits certificates to nonresidential uses; confirm the residential completion requirements with Building Inspections.128
  • We could not confirm Westlake’s mandatory utility-connection, private-well or floodplain-development requirements; ask Planning and Development to identify the applicable review before buying.2
  • Texas homeowner electrical licensing exemptions do not establish an exemption from local building permits or inspections.13

Sources

  1. Permitting Process (Town of Westlake), quoted and re-checked
  2. Town of Westlake Planning and Development Department (westlake-tx.org)
  3. Tarrant County Engineering Department OSSF Service Area (tarrantcountytx.gov)
  4. Guidelines for Development in the Unincorporated Areas of Tarrant County, quoted and re-checked
  5. Code of Ordinances, Sec. 50-2 Mobile homes and mobile home parks unlawful (Town of Westlake), quoted and re-checked
  6. Code of Ordinances, Sec. 102-122 Residential districts (Town of Westlake), quoted and re-checked
  7. Code of Ordinances, Sec. 102-122.1 Residential airpark district (Town of Westlake), quoted and re-checked
  8. Town of Westlake Building Inspections (westlake-tx.org)
  9. Getting a Permit for an OSSF - Such as a Septic System (Texas statewide rule), quoted and re-checked
  10. Tarrant County OSSF Program (Engineering Services) (tarrantcountytx.gov)
  11. Town of Westlake Residential Building Permit Submittals (westlake-tx.org)
  12. Certificate of Occupancy Packet (Town of Westlake), quoted and re-checked
  13. Exemptions to Electrician Licensing (Texas statewide rule), quoted and re-checked

Written October 11, 2026 from the rules quoted below, each taken from an official source and re-checked by an independent reviewer. This is research, not legal advice: rules change, so confirm with the office before you buy or build.

Answers from the rulebook for Town of Westlake

Town of Westlake’s own rules

  • Building permitRequired

    Most construction and residential work inside Westlake town limits.

    • The town describes the rule as applying to most, if not all, work.
    • Residential permits require listed plans and a plan review fee.
    • Most new single-family homes require an HOA approval letter.
    “Most, if not all work, requires a permit in the Town of Westlake. Below are the requirements for various permits and any documentation required upon submittal.”
  • Certificate of occupancyRequired

    New buildings, new owners, new uses or occupancies, remodels, alterations, expansions, finish-outs, and other listed uses inside Westlake town limits.

    • A non-refundable $250 processing fee is required.
    • For new construction, remodel, alteration, expansion, or finish-out, a building permit must first be submitted.
    • The certificate is issued after construction completion, required departmental approvals, and a building final.
    • The certificate must be conspicuously posted.
    • The fee schedule states certificates of occupancy are only issued to nonresidential uses; the packet separately lists new buildings and structures generally, so residential applicability should be confirmed with the Building Department.

    processing fee: 250 USD (non-refundable)

    “A CERTIFICATE OF OCCUPANCY IS REQUIRED FOR: A new building and/or structure A new owner for an existing building, structure or business A new use, tenant, or occupancy in an existing building, structure or tenant space A remodeled, altered, or expanded building, structure or tenant space”
  • Building heightSpecified

    Accessory use buildings in the RA Residential Airpark district.

    • The rule applies to accessory use buildings in the RA district.
    • An accessory use building may not exceed the square footage of the principal residential use and may not exceed 3,000 square feet or 18 feet in height.
    • Each lot may have no more than one accessory building over 200 square feet.

    maximum accessory-building height: <= 18 feet · maximum accessory-building area: <= 3000 square feet

    “Accessory use buildings may not exceed the square footage of the principal residential use and may under no circumstances exceed 3,000 square feet or 18 feet in height. Each lot may have not more than one accessory building over 200 square feet.”
  • Manufactured homesProhibited

    Mobile-home residential occupancy and mobile-home parks inside Westlake town limits.

    • The code separately defines mobile homes and states that prefabricated homes or structures are excluded from that definition.
    • Campers and travel trailers are addressed separately and must be stored under section 102-154.
    “No mobile home shall be placed, parked or permitted for residential purposes upon any land within the town limits. It shall be unlawful to operate a mobile home park within the town limits.”
  • Agricultural exemptionConditional

    Barns used for agricultural or farm-animal purposes on sites of ten acres or more in Westlake town limits.

    • The exemption is from the masonry requirement for exterior walls.
    • The general masonry rule otherwise applies to buildings of 100 square feet or more and over nine feet tall.
    • Exceptions may be permitted case by case by the board upon submission and approval of elevational drawings and material samples.

    minimum site area: >= 10 acres

    “Barns used for agricultural or farm animal purposes on sites of ten acres or more are excluded from this masonry requirement.”

Still unanswered

We looked and could not find an official answer yet. Silence is not permission; ask Town of Westlake or Tarrant County directly.

  • Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builders performing construction inside Westlake town limits.
  • Minimum dwelling size — Residential districts inside Westlake town limits.
  • Minimum lot size — Residential and planned-development districts inside Westlake town limits.
  • Lot coverage — Residential and planned-development districts inside Westlake town limits.
  • Tiny homes — Tiny-home occupancy inside Westlake town limits.
10 more unanswered
  • Accessory dwellings
  • Who permits septic
  • Septic permit
  • Septic inspection
  • Off-grid sanitation
  • Well permit
  • Mandatory utility hookup
  • Driveway access
  • Building in a floodplain
  • Short-term rentals

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.

Unanswered questions are usually a sign that Town of Westlake publishes no rule on the point, not that none exists. Tarrant County’s page lists the county offices to call.

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