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(a) If a permit is issued under Section 8-25 for new construction on vacant residentially or agriculturally zoned land, or construction of a building or structure that would affect the footprint or height of any existing structure located on residentially or agriculturally zoned land or that is exempt from and exceeds any applicable building height limit, the Director must promptly require the recipient to post on the lot a conspicuous sign describing the proposed construction, specifying the time limit to appeal the issuance of the permit to the Board of Appeals, and including any other information the Director requires. The sign must conform to design, content, size, and location requirements set by regulation under Section 8-13(a).
(b) The regulations adopted under subsection (a) may allow a central sign to be posted, or otherwise vary the design, content, size, or location requirements, for any subdivision that consists of more than 5 new dwellings at a single site.
(c) The recipient must post the required sign within 3 days after the Department releases the permit to the recipient, and must maintain the sign until 30 days after the permit was released.
(d) If the recipient of a permit does not post a sign as required by this Section, the permit is automatically suspended until the recipient has posted the proper sign. If the recipient begins work under the permit without having posted the sign as required, the Director must immediately issue a stop work order. During the 30-day period after the sign is properly posted, any person may appeal the issuance of the permit as if the permit had been released to the recipient on the day the sign was posted. (1998 L.M.C., ch. 17, § 1; 2005 L.M.C., ch. 13, § 1.)
(a) Generally. A permit to begin work for new construction, alteration, removal, demolition, or other building operation must not be issued until the fees authorized in this Section are paid to the Department. An amendment to a permit that requires an additional fee because of an increase in the estimated cost of the work involved must not be approved until the additional fee is paid. The Department must not issue any building permit for a residence, except a building designed to be used as a residence for the person's own or immediate family use, under Section 31C-1, to any person except a licensed building contractor or an authorized agent of the licensed building contractor.
(b) Compliance with code. The permit shall be a license to proceed with the work and shall not be construed as authority to violate, cancel or set aside any of the provisions of this chapter except as specifically stipulated by legally granted waivers or modifications as described in the application. The issuance of a permit shall not prevent the department from thereafter requiring a correction of errors in plans or in construction or of violations of this chapter and all other applicable laws or ordinances specifically referring thereto. Certification by a certified engineer that the plans and specifications are in compliance with this chapter shall be accepted by the director as prima facie evidence that all the requirements of this chapter have been met unless he discovers otherwise.
(c) Compliance with permit. All work must conform to the approved application and plans for which the permit has been issued and any approved amendments to the permit.
(d) Compliance with plot plan. All new work shall be located strictly in accordance with the approved plot plan.
(e) Change in plot plan. No lot or plot shall be changed, increased or diminished in area from that shown on the official plot plan, unless a revised diagram showing such changes accompanied by the necessary affidavit of owner or applicant shall have been filed and approved; except, that such revised plot plan will not be required if the change is caused by reason of an official street opening, street widening or other public improvement.
(f) Compliance with plumbing and gas fitting regulations. Permits for the erection, enlargement or alteration of buildings will not be issued until evidence has been presented that the plans of the proposed building comply with all applicable regulations relating to water supply, sewerage, drainage, plumbing and gas fitting.
(g) Compliance with zoning regulations. The building or structure must comply with all applicable zoning regulations, including all conditions and development standards attached to a site plan approved under Chapter 59. The issuance of a permit by the Department for the building or structure does not affect an otherwise applicable zoning regulation.
(h) Compliance with location certificate. Before any first floor construction of a building or structure is placed upon the foundation walls thereof, the owner of such building or structure shall provide the department with two (2) copies of a location plat, certified by a land surveyor entitled by law to practice property line surveying in the state; except, that a professional engineer entitled by law to practice in this state may provide such certification only where property lines and corners are already existing and determined on the ground. This plat shall be drawn accurately to an appropriate scale and shall show the actual location of the building or structure walls with respect to property lines and existing buildings or structures on the same lot, parcel or tract.
(i) Compliance with excavation, grading and sediment control regulations.
(1) Unless the construction is exempted by Chapter 19, an applicant for a building permit must obtain a sediment control permit before the building permit is issued.
(2) If a sediment control permit is suspended or revoked, the building permit for construction within the area subject to the sediment control permit may be suspended or revoked.
(3) All work shall conform to plans approved and/or permits issued in accordance with Chapter 19 of this Code.
(j) Compliance with performance bond for construction of streets before issuance of permit. As used in this subsection, the phrase “such streets” means streets abutting the building site and those extensions of streets necessary to meet the minimum requirements of Chapter 49.
(1) A permit must not be issued for the erection of any building or structure unless the applicant delivers to the County a performance bond for the construction of streets in all rights-of-way abutting the property on which the building or structure will be erected and those extensions of streets necessary to meet the minimum requirements of Chapter 49. However, a performance bond for the construction of streets is not required when:
(A) all streets are paved with a hard surface and have been accepted for maintenance or are being maintained by the County; or
(B) the County Council authorized construction of each street on a front foot assessment basis.
(2) The performance bond to be delivered shall be that bond required by Section 49-40 of this Code, and such bond shall be in an amount to cover the entire cost of construction of such streets.
(3) If the applicant owns, or is obligated by contract to develop, all or substantially all of the property abutting the streets, a bond in an amount to cover the cost of grading of the streets is sufficient to obtain a building permit. When the applicant does not own, and is not obligated by contract to develop, all or substantially all of the property abutting the streets, the applicant may demand that the Director of Transportation present to the County Council the applicant's proposal to construct the streets on a front-foot-assessment basis. If the County Council refuses to authorize the construction of the streets on a front-foot- assessment basis, the Department must not require the applicant to post a performance bond.
(4) Whenever the applicant must post a performance bond to cover the entire cost of construction, the applicant simultaneously must apply to the Department of Permitting Services for a permit to construct the streets. If the bond covers only grading, the applicant simultaneously must apply for a permit to grade the streets.
(5) If the construction or grading guaranteed by such bond is not begun and completed within a period of one (1) year after the delivery of such bond, the County may proceed to cause such work to be done, in accordance with the provisions of Chapter 49 of this Code and hold the principal or surety on such bond or both liable for the cost thereof.
(k) Location of underground utilities. On all work calling for excavation exceeding twelve (12) inches in depth, the applicant shall provide evidence of the location of all utility lines within the area of the proposed excavation.
(l) Compliance with stop work orders. The issuance of a permit shall be expressly conditioned upon the applicant's prompt compliance with all stop work orders issued by the Director.
(m) County line. Every building or other structure for which a permit is issued must be located completely in the County.
(n) Tree protection. If any clearing, construction, or development allowed by any permit issued under this Chapter would result in the trimming, cutting, removal, or injury of any roadside tree (as defined in Section 49-35) or any tree located in a State right-of-way in the County, the Director must not issue that permit until:
(1) the applicant obtains a roadside tree care permit as necessary from the State Department of Natural Resources; and
(2) the applicant has submitted, in connection with the permit applied for under this Chapter, and the Director has approved, a site-specific tree protection plan that meets the requirements of Section 49-36A(d).
The Department must approve or reject each proposed plan within 30 days after receiving it. If the Department does not act on a proposed plan within 30 days, the plan is approved by default. The Department may require further information after a proposed plan is submitted, and may extend this deadline once for an additional 15 days to receive any needed information. The Department also may extend this deadline at the request of the applicant.
(o) Regulations. The Director may recommend, and the Executive may adopt, regulations under Method (2) to specify standards and practices needed to protect and maintain roadside trees, including construction practices needed to prevent or minimize damage to roadside trees, under subsection (n) These regulations must be at least as stringent as applicable state roadside tree care standards and requirements. (1975 L.M.C., ch. 1, § 3; 1986 L.M.C., ch. 46, § 1; 1986 L.M.C., ch. 49, § 3; 1987 L.M.C., ch. 11, § 1; 1996 L.M.C., ch. 4, § 1; 1996 L.M.C., ch. 20, § 1; 1998 L.M.C., ch. 12, § 1; 1998 L.M.C., ch. 17, § 1; 2001 L.M.C., ch. 14, § 1; 2002 L.M.C., ch. 16, § 2; 2005 L.M.C., ch. 17, § 1; 2006 L.M.C., ch. 44, § 1; 2008 L.M.C., ch. 5, § 1; 2010 L.M.C., ch. 49, § 1; 2013 L.M.C., ch. 22, § 1; 2017 L.M.C., ch. 24, § 1.)
Editor's note—Section 8-26 is cited in Remes v. Montgomery County, 387 Md. 52, 874 A.2d 470 (2005). In Board of Appeals of Montgomery County v. The Mariana Apartments, Inc., 272 Md. 691, 326 A.2d 734 (1974), it was held that the County (and the board of appeals) cannot deny a building permit on grounds of inadequate sewage disposal in the area, as that determination is made by the Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission, which either issues or denies a sewer permit.
See County Attorney Opinion dated 9/24/08 regarding enforcement of the forest conservation law.
2013 L.M.C., ch. 22, § 2, states: Effective Date. This Act takes effect on March 1, 2014, and applies to any permit applied for under Chapter 8, Chapter 19, or Section 49-35 on or after that date.
2008 L.M.C., ch. 5, § 3, states: Sec. 3. Any regulation in effect when this Act takes effect that implements a function transferred to another Department or Office under Section 1 of this Act continues in effect, but any reference in any regulation to the Department from which the function was transferred must be treated as referring to the Department to which the function is transferred. The transfer of a function under this Act does not affect any right of a party to any legal proceeding begun before this Act took effect.
1987 L.M.C., ch. 11, § 2, which amended subsection (g), gave an expiration date of March 1, 1987, for the act, with any permit issued before that date remaining in effect until the expiration date in the permit. The provisions allowed a six-month waiver of the provisions of the subsection in case of emergency.
(a) Notice. The Director must mail written notice, at least 10 days before the Director issues a permit to remove or demolish a building or structure, to the owner of each adjacent and confronting lot. The applicant must give the Department the name and address of the owner of each adjacent and confronting lot. The notice must identify the building or structure to be demolished or removed, specify the process for issuing the permit and the time limit to appeal the issuance of a permit to the Board of Appeals, and include any other information the Director finds useful. The Director need not deliver this notice if unsafe conditions require immediate demolition or removal of the building or structure.
(b) Signage. The Director need not deliver the notice required by subsection (a) if, at least 10 days before the Director issues a permit to remove or demolish a building or structure, the applicant posts at a conspicuous location on the lot a sign describing the proposed demolition or removal, specifying the process for issuing the permit and the time limit to appeal the issuance of a permit to the Board of Appeals, and including any other information the Director requires. The sign must conform to design, content, size, and location requirements set by regulation under Section 8-13(a).
(c) Special notice for older buildings. At least 30 days before the Director issues a permit to demolish or remove a building, other than a single-family dwelling, that will be more than 25 years old when it is demolished or removed, the Director must list the address of the property on a properly designated website or other widely available form of electronic notice.
(d) Notice to utilities. Before the Director may issue a demolition or removal permit, the applicant must notify each connected public utility and obtain a written release confirming that all service connections and appurtenant equipment, such as meters and regulators, have been safely disconnected and sealed.
(e) Permit requirement; conditions. A person must not demolish or remove a building or structure unless the Director has issued a permit to do so under this Section. Each demolition or removal permit must require the applicant to:
(1) before demolishing or removing a building or structure, exterminate any rodents or other pests in it;
(2) after demolition or removal, clear all construction and demolition debris;
(3) restore the established grade of the surrounding land, unless a sediment control permit is otherwise required; and
(4) at all times keep the site free from any unsafe condition.
(f) Bond or surety. Each applicant for a demolition or removal permit must file a performance bond, cash, certificate of guarantee, or surety with the Department, in an amount equal to the cost of demolition or removal, to assure the safe and expedient demolition or removal of the building or structure and clearing of the site. If the building or structure is not demolished or removed and the site is not cleared of all debris within the time specified in the permit, but not sooner than 60 days after the permit is issued, the Director may enter the property, demolish or remove the building or structure, clear the site of debris, and take action to forfeit the performance bond, enforce the guarantee, or otherwise reimburse the Department for its cost.
(g) Definitions. As used in this Section:
(1) Demolish means to tear down or destroy an entire building or structure, or sixty-seven (67) percent or more of first story exterior walls of a one-family or two-family dwelling unit. Demolish includes the conversion of an exterior wall into an interior wall. Basement and cellar walls are not considered exterior walls; and
(2) Remove means to move a building or structure substantially intact from or within a site. (1975 L.M.C., ch. 1, § 3; 2002 L.M.C., ch. 24, § 1; 2023 L.M.C., ch. 16.)
(a) Applicability.
(1) A use-and-occupancy permit is required before any building, structure, or land can be used or can be converted, wholly or in part, from one use to another.
(2) Exemptions from use-and-occupancy permit requirement:
(A) land or buildings used exclusively for agricultural purposes;
(B) a use for which a valid occupancy permit was issued and not revoked before June 1, 1958; and
(C) a Transitory Use.
(b) Application Requirements. Each application for a use-and-occupancy permit must be accompanied by 2 copies of a plan drawn to scale showing:
(1) the lot on which a use is proposed, lot dimensions, lot and block numbers and subdivision name, if any;
(2) the location, extent, and layout for the proposed use and any other pertinent information; and
(3) north point, date and scale of plan.
(c) New buildings. It is unlawful for any person to use or occupy a building hereafter erected in whole or in part until the certificate of use and occupancy is issued by the Director in satisfaction of this Chapter.
(d) Buildings hereafter altered. It is unlawful for any person to use or occupy a building hereafter enlarged, extended or altered to change from one use group to another, in whole or in part until a certificate of use and occupancy is issued by the director certifying that the work was completed in satisfaction of the approved permit. Any use or occupancy that was continued during the work of alteration, must be discontinued within 30 days after the completion of the alteration unless the required certificate is secured from the Director.
(e) Existing buildings. Upon written request from the owner of an existing building, the Director must issue a certificate of use and occupancy if there are no violations of law or orders of the Director pending. In addition, the Director must establish that the alleged use of the building has heretofore existed. Nothing in this Chapter requires the removal, alteration, or abandonment of the use and occupancy of a lawfully existing building, unless such use is deemed to endanger public safety and welfare.
(f) Changes in use and occupancy. After a change of use is made in a building, a person is prohibited from reestablishing a prior use that is not lawful for a new building of the same type of construction unless the owner complies with all the applicable provisions of this Chapter.
(g) Temporary occupancy. Upon the request of the holder of a permit, the Director may issue a temporary certificate of occupancy for a building or structure or part thereof before the entire work covered by the permit shall have been completed if that such portion or portions may be occupied safely before full completion of the building without endangering life or public welfare.
(h) Necessary Findings.
(1) The Department must find the building complies with Chapter 59.
(2) Any building, structure, or land on a site with any previous development approval must satisfy the requirements, representations, plans, and conditions contained in the decision or resolution of the deciding body.
(3) The Department must inspect construction or alteration for completion under the applicable decision or resolution.
(i) Contents of certificate. When a building or structure is entitled to a certificate of use and occupancy, the Director must issue a certificate 10 days after written applications. The certificate certifies compliance with this Chapter and the purpose for which the building or structure may be used. The certificate of use and occupancy must specify the use group, the fire grading, the allowable live load on all floors, the occupancy load in the building and all parts of the building and any special stipulations and conditions of the building permit. (1975 L.M.C., ch. 1, §3; 2016 L.M.C., ch. 35, § 1.)
Editor's note-In National Institutes of Health Federal Credit Union v. Hawk, 47 Md. App. 180, 422 A.2d 55 (1980), the court rules there broad review of all factors exist when making a determination as to the issuance of a certificate of occupancy. In Ross v. Montgomery County, 252 Md. 497, 250 A.2d 635 (1969), it was held that the issuance of a building permit does not confer a vested right which cannot be eliminated by subsequent legislative action.
(a) A building permit must not be issued for any structure or any alteration of an existing structure:
(1) On land which lies within the floodplain covered by the 100-year flood, as defined in Section 19-36, of any stream or drainage course, or on land which the Director finds to be unsafe for development use because it is subject to flooding, erosion, unstabilized slope or fill within the danger reach of a high hazard dam, or otherwise located in a situation that causes unsafe building conditions; or
(2) In violation of a residential building restriction line placed on a recorded subdivision plat under the subdivision law, except that a building permit may be issued for fences, public utilities, recreation and agricultural uses, and for reconstruction, repair, or improvement of single family dwellings located within any floodplain covered by the 100-year flood as defined in Section 19-36.
(b) No part of any on-site sewage disposal system may be located within the floodplain covered by the 100-year flood as defined in section 19-36. (1975 L.M.C., ch. 1, § 3; 1989 L.M.C., ch. 39, § 1; 1992 L.M.C., ch. 33, § 1.)
Editor's note-Res. No. 9-280, introduced and adopted on June 19, 1979, recognized the authority of the Maryland Department of Natural Resources to regulate construction within the 100-year floodplain.
(a) In this Section, fire sprinkler system means equipment that includes 1 or more devices that:
1. open automatically by operation of a heat-responsive releasing mechanism;
2. discharge water in a specific pattern over a designated area to extinguish or control fire;
3. use the same service water supply pipe to the building that the domestic water system uses;
4. meet the requirements of current National Fire Protection Association standards as modified by the Director of Fire and Rescue Services; and
5. are approved by the Director of Fire and Rescue Services.
(b) The County must not issue a building permit for the construction or reconstruction of any residential building unless the plans include the installation in each dwelling unit and any attached accessory structure of a fire sprinkler system.
(c) The County Executive must issue regulations to implement this Section. The regulations may authorize the Director to approve the use of specific construction alternatives that provide equivalent or greater protection of the public in residential buildings in which fire sprinkler systems will be installed.
(d) After inspection and final approval of a fire sprinkler system required under this Section, the inspector must provide to the initial occupant of the dwelling unit written information approved by the Fire Administrator about the proper care and maintenance of a residential fire sprinkler system. If the dwelling unit has never been occupied, the builder or other current owner must not accept payment or rent for the unit until the inspector has transmitted this fire sprinkler information to the initial occupant. The Fire Administrator must make the information widely available to residents who purchase or lease a previously occupied unit with an installed fire sprinkler system, and other County residents. (1987 L.M.C., ch. 8, § 1; 1990 L.M.C., ch. 24, § 1; 2003 L.M.C., ch. 23, § 1.)
Editor's note—2003 L.M.C., ch. 23, § 2, states: Transition. The amendments to Section 8-29A of the Code made by this Act apply to residential building permits issued on or after January 1, 2004.
Section 8-29A was repealed by 1980 L.M.C., ch. 45, § 1. Subsequently, 1987 L.M.C., ch. 8, § 1, added a new § 8-29A. Section 2 of 1990 L.M.C., ch. 24, reads as follows:
(a) § 8-29A(d), as added by Section 1, applies to any detached single-family dwelling unit for which an application for a building permit is filed on or after July 1, 1990.
(b) § 8-29A(b), as amended by Section 1, applies to any group home for which an application for a building permit is filed on or after July 1, 1990.
(c) The builder must install a fire sprinkler system that complies with § 8-29A(e), as added by Section 1, in any primary sales model detached single-family dwelling unit which is shown to prospective buyers for sales purposes on or after July 1, 1990.
(a) The Director must not issue a building permit for any detached one- or two-family residential building located on a recorded lot smaller than 15,000 square feet, or a permit for any addition to such a residential building that would increase the building lot coverage by more than 400 square feet, unless the plans provide for safe conveyance or control of any increased water runoff, resulting from additional impervious area or any other topographic alteration, that would drain onto any adjacent or nearly private property.
(b) In this Section, approved drainage system means any method of safe conveyance from the property or storage on the property of on-site water runoff at the design rate specified in subsection (c), using one or more of the following methods or devices or any other method or device approved by the Director that would provide equivalent or greater protection of adjacent and nearby properties:
(1) on-site absorption or drainage device, such as rain barrel, cistern with slow release or controlled pump discharge, underground percolation and storage system, rain garden, rooftop garden or detention device, bioretention filter, or vegetation buffer;
(2) existing or new drainage facility, such as drainage interceptor, inlet, trench, permeable paved area, or similar feature;
(3) drainage line, inlet or pipe, or other engineered feature such as a swale or ditch; or
(4) natural topography or buffer area that successfully absorbs water drainage.
(c) Each approved drainage system must be designed to convey or control at least 1.5 inches of rainfall during a 24-hour period.
(d) After the approved drainage system is installed, the permittee must certify to the Director that the system:
(1) has been installed as provided in the plans approved by the Director; and
(2) will convey or control the water runoff specified in subsection (c) without impacting adjacent or nearby private properties.
(e) The permittee and the permittee’s successors in interest must preserve and maintain each approved drainage system to the extent necessary to provide the same level of protection for adjacent and nearby properties. The permittee and the permittee’s successors in interest must obtain the Director’s approval before materially modifying any element of an approved drainage system. The Director may require a permittee to record an easement in the County land records for any approved drainage system to assure the continued preservation and maintenance of that system. (2006 L.M.C., ch. 37, § 1.)
Editor’s note—2006 L.M.C., ch. 37, § 2, states, in part: County Code Section 8-29B, inserted by Section 1 of this Act, applies to any building for which an application for a building permit is filed on or after that date.
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