June 24, 2024
REMINDER: Land Development Fee Changes Effective July 1, 2024
Land Development Services fee changes effective on July 1, 2024. The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors approved proposed fee adjustments from Land Development Services (LDS) on April 16, 2024, marking the first significant update since 2015. The new fees will better align with the current costs of providing land development services, which have risen due to increased personnel costs and other inflation-related factors.
Building fees (excluding vertical transportation) will experience a 12.5% increase on July 1, 2024. Site-related fees will increase by 5%. A technology surcharge fee that is normally 4% will increase to 7%. There will also be a new code academy surcharge fee of 1% applied to all building records. New fees will also be introduced for pedestrian bridges and minor revisions to site-related plans. See the infographic below for more details on all the fee changes.
All fee changes will apply only to applications submitted after July 1, 2024. Applications filed before these dates will be subject to the fees that were in place at the time of filing. Read more about these changes. To see the amended fees policy document, click here to review Appendix Q.
For more information about residential fast-track projects, visit the Fast Track Building Plan Review webpage.
September 16, 2024
Land Development Services closed briefly from 11 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 24, for an LDS awards ceremony. The Customer Experience Team in Suite 324, the Customer Information Center in Suite 111, and the Cashier’s Office in Suite 636 will close during that time. Plan review and inspections services will also be unavailable for this brief period of time.
The Planning and Land Use System (PLUS) will remain accessible to customers, but staff will not be available to respond to questions in person or via phone or email.
September 3, 2024
County staff continue to implement additional improvements to the Planning and Land Use System (PLUS) to serve you better. Check out these new PLUS fixes for Land Development Services (LDS) customers.
PLUS Enhancement
LDS Customer Benefit
Updates to Building
Updated Residential New Records
Added a new Utility Shed option type to the available options listed under Townhouses. This will allow for more accurate permitting and reporting.
Updated Related Records Logic
Updated logic that was previously blocking Certificate of Occupancy’s (CO’s) from being processed/issued in certain instances, for new residential single-family homes and townhomes.
Updated Elevator Workflows
A Fire Marshal review was added to the Elevator Installation and Elevator Maintenance records, increasing efficiency and coordination with the Fire Marshal’s office on these record types.
Updates to Site
Created a Record Specific Site Pre-Approval Condition for Infill Lot (INF) Plans Regarding the Virginia Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (VPDES) General Permit Coverage
A new VPDES General Permit condition was created for infill lot development projects with an acre or more of disturbance. Clarifying instructions were also added to better direct customers on where to obtain their general permit coverage and Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan (SWPPP) template for infills only.
Updated the Waiver for Minor Additions in Resource Protection Area (RPA) Intake Forms
To streamline the application process for Walk Through (WRPA) waivers for minor additions proposed in the RPA, additional questions were added to PLUS eliminating the need for a separate form and process.
Updated acceptance workflows for non-ESI (Engineers and Surveyors Institute) major plans
Updates were made to the workflow for non-ESI major plans to more closely mimic the workflow of ESI plan submissions at the Application Submittal and Minimum Submission Review workflow stage. This allows applicants to achieve Gateway Acceptance before paying the full review fees and allows for more accurate review fee assessment by staff.
We welcome your feedback on future PLUS enhancements. If you have ideas to improve the system, please take a moment to enter them here: LDS Customer PLUS Feedback Form.