Land Development Services

The 2023 Unit Price Schedule (UPS) will go into effect on March 1, 2023. This formulaic change reflects a 4.9% increase linked to inflation as published in the Engineering News-Record 2023 Construction Cost Index (published in January 2023). Affected submittals include the following: 

• New bond requests.
• Replacement bond requests. 
• Bond extension requests.
• Bond reduction requests.
• New conservation deposit requests.
• Replacement conservation deposit requests. 
• Future construction deposit requests.

In the case of development agreement extension and replacement requests, if the estimated value using the 2023 UPS exceeds the existing posted amount, the county will require supplemental security before approval of the request. As noted above, all bond reductions must be calculated using the 2023 UPS.  

The 2023 UPS will be available at the Forms & Publications Library on March 1, 2023.

If you have any questions, please contact Morgan Wolfe in the Bonds and Agreements Center at 703-324-1519, TTY 711. 

When a land development project is initiated in Fairfax County, improvements to the public infrastructure, such as streets, sidewalks, utilities and other bondable items, may be required. Learn more about Bonds and Agreements.

Approved by:
William D. Hicks, P.E., Director
Department of Land Development Services
12055 Government Center Parkway, Suite 659
Fairfax, Virginia 22035
703-324-1780

All fees for first and subsequent submissions of site plans, subdivision plans, public improvement plans, floodplain studies, and rough grading plans can now be paid without the need for the payer to be logged into the Planning and Land Use System (PLUS).

Here are the steps:

1. Make sure you have the record ID of the plan to which you want to make a payment.
2. Go to PLUS without logging in.
3. Once in PLUS, put the record ID into the search bar.  

    

4.  After the record pops up, click on the down arrow next to “Payments” and select “Fees.”

    

5. A new screen will pop up showing the outstanding fees. Toward the right of the fees is the option to “Pay Fees.”

    

6. A new screen will pop up, if the fees shown accurately represent your record, select “Continue Application” at the bottom of the screen.

    

7. A new screen will provide information about payment options including Credit /Debit Card or E-check. Select the option you are using and then select “Submit Payments” at the bottom of the screen.

    

8. After selecting “Submit Payments” you will be directed to a secure checkout page to complete your transaction. If you need help at this point, please call 804-318-4133 or email customerservice@virginiainteractive.org.

For all other site permit types that are subject to flat fees such as infill lot grading (INF) plans and soils reports, the payer needs to login to PLUS.

For assistance using PLUS, please visit the LDS PLUS Support page.

The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors authorized the exemption of all electrical, building and sign permit fees for electric vehicle charging stations (EVCS) for a trial period of 18 months. The exemption was effective Oct. 31, 2022.

The exemption supports the main vision of the Carbon-Free Fairfax initiative—“a future for Fairfax County that is healthy, sustainable, and economically prosperous without local greenhouse gas emissions”—as well as the Environment Community Outcome Area of the Countywide Strategic Plan. Eliminating the permit fees for EVCS may encourage the use of electric vehicles, which is an important step toward fulfilling that vision.

A permit is still required for any new installation of EVCS, in accordance with the Uniform Statewide Building Code, and the permit holder is subject to the re-inspection fee. Freestanding charging stations also may, on rare occasion, require sign permits (for example, commercial charging stations with advertising signs). However, no permit is required if you are plugging a stand-alone charging station into an existing outlet. In addition, EVCS must comply with applicable zoning requirements.

Staff will report to the Board of Supervisors after 12 months whether the fee elimination was successful in incentivizing the use of EVC equipment.

The Board of Supervisors may extend the fee elimination beyond the 18-month trial period.

For general information on permits for EVCS, please visit Electric Vehicle Charging Stations Permits.

Release 4 of the Planning and Land Use System (PLUS) will launch Oct. 31, 2022, and will replace the existing land use, plan review, inspections and complaint systems (including FIDO, PAWS and ProjectDox). In preparation for PLUS, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors adopted amendments to Appendix Q – the Land Development Services (LDS) Fee Schedule of the Fairfax County, Virginia, Code of Ordinances, on Dec. 7, 2021.  Several of those fees will become effective with the implementation of PLUS on October 31. Find the new fees at Appendix Q .

The revised fees will be assessed to applicable plans and permits submitted on or after October 31, with the exception of site-related pre-submission fees which will not be assessed on any plan filed prior to October 31 nor on any resubmission or revision of that plan filed after October 31. (Please note that the transition to PLUS on October 31 will require FIDO, PAWS, ProjectDox and PLUS to be inaccessible starting on Friday afternoon October 21. Consequently, it will not be possible to submit plans or permit applications between Friday evening October 21 and Monday morning October 31)    

For background information, a copy of the staff report and amendments can be found at:
https://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/landdevelopment/public-facilities-manual-and-code-amendments.

Fairfax County Land Development Services (LDS) has updated the Resource Protection Area (RPA) Exemption/Exception Request Coversheet.

The latest revision clarifies forms and documents required for different types of applications. As a reminder, submitters should always reference the link to the online form to ensure the latest version is being used when submitting.

All LDS forms can be found on the Forms & Publications Library.

Please contact LDS Site Development and Inspections Division (SDID) at 703-324-1720, TTY 711 or LDS SDID Admin with any questions about requirements for RPA applications.

The Department of Land Development Services (LDS) developed a new 3rd Party Construction Inspection Checklist and Certification form for underground detention chambers submitted to meet the detention requirements for development plans. This checklist supplements the existing 3rd Party Construction Inspection Checklist and Certification forms tailored to other stormwater Best Management Practices (BMP) already available in the LDS Forms library.

The 3rd Party Construction Inspection Checklist and Certification forms are required for underground detention chambers installed in Fairfax County. A checklist must be certified and submitted before issuance of the occupancy permit and release of the conservation deposit. Previously, underground detention chambers were certified using checklist forms not tailored specifically for this facility type. This new checklist form is specifically written for small detention-only facilities.

On August 5, 2022, LDS issued Technical Bulletin 22-06 “Localized Flooding Mitigation Policy for Residential Infill Development Detention Requirements.” The policy also published new county-approved BMP designs, including an underground detention chamber. This new checklist is suitable for certifying the as-built information for these underground detention chambers and for similar facilities even if not designed using the Simplified Infill Detention Method.

Please contact Yosif Ibrahim, Residential Infill Development Branch Chief, with general questions, or your assigned site inspector, if you have questions related to using this checklist for a specific project.

Effective immediately, zoning documents, including Conceptual Development Plans and Final Development Plans (CDPs/FDPs), are not required to be submitted as plan sheets within site-related plans governed by approved zoning cases.

For all resubmissions of currently pending site-related plans, Land Development Services (LDS) requires CDP/FDP sheets be replaced with blank sheets bearing a note:

“Sheet intentionally left blank. See approved entitlement application number _____________.”

Please revise the sheet index of any impacted plan with a reference to the approved zoning case.

This change is being made recognizing that the Planning and Land Use System (PLUS) will utilize linked records that will obviate the need for including CDPs/FDPs within site related plans. This change is being immediately implemented to reduce file sizes of site records in advance of data conversion into PLUS.

For any questions, please email Matthew Hansen, Director, LDS Site Development & Inspections Division.

The Chesapeake Bay is one of the world’s most productive coastal water bodies, and it collects water from county streams and rivers. The Board of Supervisors declared June 4-12, 2022, as Chesapeake Bay Awareness Week to increase understanding of this important estuary and the role it plays in our environment. Read the full story on Fairfax County’s NewsCenter.

Read the original April 19, 2022, notification.

Two changes occurring over the next eight months in Fairfax County will impact the submission of residential Masterfile plans. The first occurs on July 1, 2022, when all new permit applications and plans are expected  to comply with the 2018 Uniform Statewide Building Code (USBC); the second occurs in the fall with the final release of the new Planning and Land Use System, PLUS.

To facilitate a smooth transition to both the 2018 building code and the new Masterfile process, the county will extend the validity of currently approved Masterfiles under the 2015 USBC through February 2023.

To take advantage of this process, the following steps must be taken (this process will be altered with the release of PLUS):

1. Apply for a code modification using PLUS prior to applying for the building permit. The code modification must cite the use of an approved 2015 residential Masterfile number. The fee for the code modification will be waived. 
2. Once the code modification has been approved, apply for a building permit for a single-family dwelling using FIDO/ProjectDox with the approved 2015 residential Masterfile number in the description of work.
   1. The approved code modification described above in (1) must be uploaded into the documents folder of ProjectDox to pass the prescreen review.
   2. It must have a specific lot with an approved grading plan to pass the prescreen review.
   3. Upload of the Fairfax County cover sheet is required (applicable for INF lot transfers).

While the use of the 2015 residential Masterfile will be permitted, each lot specific permit will be required to comply with the energy, mechanical, plumbing and electrical sections of the 2018 Virginia Residential Code (VRC). This includes all inspections required under the 2018 VRC.

Please note the following are not eligible to be updated using this process:

• Revisions or amendments to existing 2015 residential Masterfiles.
• New sub-divisions to be transferred to a 2015 residential Masterfile.
• Masterfiles that took advantage of the 2012/2015 code-update.
• Only the R-5 construction type is permitted in this program. R-3 Townhouse Masterfiles and all commercial Masterfiles are not eligible for this process and must be updated to 2018 code.

PLUS, scheduled for full implementation October 31, 2022, will result in changes to the Masterfile process. Additional information on these changes will be communicated prior to the launch.

The Chesapeake Bay is one of the world’s most productive coastal water bodies, and it collects water from county streams and rivers. The Board of Supervisors declared June 4-12, 2022, as Chesapeake Bay Awareness Week to increase understanding of this important estuary and the role it plays in our environment.