The short answer
A site plan for a permit is a scaled drawing of one lot or site that goes in with the application and shows what exists and what is proposed. Which plan you need depends on the permit, and the two kinds go to different offices. A homeowner's building permit for a deck, pool, shed, garage, addition, fence, driveway or ground-mounted solar array takes a residential permit site plan drawn to the building department's checklist; Metro Nashville, for one, does not require a licensed professional to draw it, only an accurately dimensioned drawing to scale [1]. A development approval takes a site plan or plat that planning staff or a commission reviews: Houston requires a development plat for development within the city or its extraterritorial jurisdiction (Sec. 42-22), and its Planning Commission acts on development plats under Sec. 42-75 [2]. Florida's statute writes the same division into its definitions, since the development permits and orders that cities and counties issue do not include building permits (F.S. 166.033(6)) [3].
The routing follows from that. A homeowner with a building permit starts at permit site plans. A developer with a site plan review, a plat or a development order starts at preliminary site plans.
Two permits, two plans
| Residential permit site plan | Development site plan | |
|---|---|---|
| The permit it goes with | A building permit for work on one lot; Metro Nashville's residential permits cover garages, carports, patio covers, decks, porches and storage buildings of 100 square feet or more [5] | A site plan, plat or development order; in Florida, the development permits and orders that counties issue under F.S. 125.022 and cities under F.S. 166.033 [3] |
| Who reviews it | The building department; Nassau County, Florida issues its pool checklist from its Building Department [6], and Davie from its building division [7] | Planning staff or a planning commission; Arizona cities must authorize staff to approve site plans and plats without a public hearing, from and after December 31, 2025 (A.R.S. 9-500.49) [8] |
| Who may draw it | Often the owner; Wendell, North Carolina says a residential site plan does not have to be professionally drawn [9] | A concept plan may go unsealed where the rule allows; Arizona's Board rule lets a document go to a review body unsealed when it is marked preliminary, draft or not for construction (A.A.C. R4-30-304(D)) [4] |
| The review clock | Arizona's SB 1353 (Laws 2025, Ch. 187) applies when a municipality does not act on a single-family residential building permit within fifteen working days, and requires the municipality to keep a list of at least three third-party reviewers [10] | Florida decides a development permit within 120 days of a complete application, or 180 days with a hearing (F.S. 166.033) [3]; a Texas city acts on a plat within 30 days after filing (LGC 212.009(a)) [11] |
Where Florida, Texas and Arizona draw the line
Florida. Counties issue development permits and orders under F.S. 125.022 and cities under F.S. 166.033, and both terms carry their F.S. 163.3164 meanings and exclude building permits [3]. The decision clocks that SB 1080 rewrote in 2025 are written for those development permits and orders, and an applicant change of 15% or more in density, intensity or square footage restarts the clock [3]. A city may not make a state or federal permit a condition of processing a development permit unless the agency has issued a final denial (166.033(7)) [3]. A Florida pool or deck goes to the county or city building department instead, under that department's own checklist; the Florida pool permit survey guide covers the pool checklists, and the Florida page sets out the development clocks.
Texas. A Texas city acts on a plat within 30 days after filing, and the plat is approved unless it is disapproved (LGC 212.009(a)) [11]. The applicant may extend that period in writing, for one or more periods of not more than 30 days each [11]. Under HB 3699 (2023), a city publishes a completeness checklist, and an application that contains every listed item is considered complete (LGC 212.0081) [12]. Houston, which has no zoning, controls development through Chapter 42 and its development plats [2]. A Houston homeowner adding to a house works from a different document, the Houston Permitting Center's Residential Permitting 101, which takes a survey by a Texas registered surveyor or a complete site plan with dimensions [13]. The Houston and Texas pages cover the development side.
Arizona. Cities must authorize staff approval of site plans and plats without a public hearing (A.R.S. 9-500.49, as amended by HB 2447) [8]. Municipalities post their licensing time frames, make one comprehensive written or electronic request for corrections during substantive review, and refund the fee in full if the overall time frame is missed (A.R.S. 9-835) [14]. On the residential side, SB 1353 sets the fifteen-working-day trigger for single-family building permits [10], and A.R.S. 32-144(A) lets a person who is not a registrant design a detached single-family dwelling [15]. The same section reaches small commercial work: a nonregistrant may design a one or two story building of up to 3,000 sq ft, for not more than 20 persons, with spans of 20 ft or less unless engineered trusses are used [15]. The Phoenix and Arizona pages cover the development rules.
Where ADUs and lot splits sit
An accessory dwelling unit is built on a homeowner's lot, but state statutes shape its review, so it sits in the residential line with pages of its own. California's ADU law requires ministerial approval of ADUs on lots with a single-family or multifamily dwelling, as the ABAG state law checklist of 7.1.25 summarizes it [16], and under AB 1332 (Gov. Code 65852.27) a detached ADU application that uses a preapproved plan is decided within 30 days [17]. Arizona requires municipalities over 75,000 to allow one attached and one detached ADU as a permitted use (A.R.S. 9-461.18) [18]. The lot still needs its plan: Phoenix requires a plot or site plan with site planning approval before an ADU's residential submittal [19]. The line's pages for these are ADU site plan requirements, site plans for pre-approved ADUs and California ADU site fit. Middle housing land divisions under Oregon's ORS 92.031 are in Oregon middle housing land division.
What each plan shows, and who seals what
The residential plan answers the building department's checklist. Wake County's list for a deck starts with the parcel identification number, the address, a north arrow, the scale, a bar scale and the date the map was prepared [20], and Miami Beach's pool checklist of 5.23.2024 asks for setbacks, existing and proposed structures, property lines, lot dimensions and grade elevation as per survey [21]. The item-by-item list for each project is on the permit site plans hub. The development plan answers the planning submittal list, which Florida requires the jurisdiction to put in writing (F.S. 166.033(1)) [3] and which a Texas city publishes for plats (LGC 212.0081) [12]; what that plan carries, the site data table included, is set out in what is a site plan.
On the residential side, the seal attaches to the survey where a department asks for one. Davie wants a signed and sealed survey with a pool permit [7], and Cobb County, Georgia wants a current plan and survey sealed by a registered land surveyor before a building permit [22]. Florida pool permits also need engineer-sealed pool drawings [23, 24]. On the development side, the seal attaches to the engineering and the final set, and Florida's statute limits a city to three requests for more information on an application certified by a professional listed in s. 403.0877 (166.033(3)) [3]. Plans are preliminary, and engineering is by your engineer of record; where a jurisdiction requires a seal, the preliminary plan is what the engineer of record builds on. The rules by state and stage are in where unsealed site plans are accepted and who prepares a site plan, and the stage names are in preliminary vs final site plan.
Which line fits your project
| Project | Line | Start here | Project type on the Start a Project form |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deck, pool, shed, detached garage or carport, home addition, fence, driveway or ground-mount solar | Residential permit site plans | Permit site plans and its project pages | The matching Residential type, such as Residential: deck or Residential: pool (in-ground or above-ground) |
| Accessory dwelling unit | Residential permit site plans | ADU site plan requirements | Residential: ADU (accessory dwelling unit) |
| Lot split or middle housing division | Residential permit site plans | Oregon middle housing land division | Residential: lot split or middle housing division |
| Subdivision of land for homes or townhomes | Preliminary site plans | Single-family and townhome site plans | Preliminary site plan |
| Apartments or affordable housing | Preliminary site plans | Multifamily site plans | Preliminary site plan |
| RV park, campground or glamping resort | Preliminary site plans | RV park, campground and glamping site plans | Preliminary site plan |
| Car wash, gas station or truck stop | Preliminary site plans | Car wash, gas station and truck stop site plans | Preliminary site plan |
| Self storage, industrial or outdoor storage yard | Preliminary site plans | Self storage, industrial and industrial outdoor storage site plans | Preliminary site plan |
| Hotel, retail center or office | Preliminary site plans | Hotel, retail and office site plans | Preliminary site plan |
| Office or retail to restaurant conversion | Commercial interiors and conversions | Commercial interiors and conversions | Commercial interior or conversion |
| Renderings of a planned project | 3D rendering | 3D rendering services | Site plan and 3D renderings, or 3D renderings only |
The studio's development work is summarized on site plan services, and a homeowner who has not yet found the department's checklist can start with how to get a site plan of my property.
To order, start a project and choose the project type from the last column: the matching Residential type for a homeowner's permit, or Preliminary site plan for a development.
Frequently asked questions
What is a site plan for a permit?
A scaled drawing of the lot or site filed with the permit application. For a homeowner's building permit, Metro Nashville asks for an accurately dimensioned drawing to scale and does not require a licensed professional to draw it [1]. For development, Houston requires a development plat within the city and its extraterritorial jurisdiction (Sec. 42-22) [2].
Who reviews a site plan for a permit?
It depends on the permit. A residential plan goes to the building department, which writes the checklist: Nassau County, Florida issues its pool checklist from its Building Department [6], and Davie from its building division [7]. A development plat goes to planning, as in Houston, where the Planning Commission acts on development plats [2].
Is a building permit the same as a development permit?
Not under Florida's statute: the development permits and orders that cities and counties issue carry their F.S. 163.3164 meanings and do not include building permits (F.S. 166.033(6)) [3]. Houston keeps the two apart as well, with development plats under Chapter 42 [2] and residential permits through the Houston Permitting Center [13].
Can a homeowner draw the site plan for a building permit?
In many places. Metro Nashville does not require a licensed professional [1], Wendell, North Carolina says a residential site plan need not be professionally drawn [9], and Arizona lets a person who is not a registrant design a detached single-family dwelling (A.R.S. 32-144(A)) [15]. Where a department asks for a sealed survey, as Davie does for a pool permit [7], a licensed surveyor prepares the survey.
Can a developer submit an unsealed site plan?
Where the rule allows it. Arizona's Board rule lets a document go to a regulatory or review body unsealed when it is marked preliminary, draft or not for construction (A.A.C. R4-30-304(D)) [4]. The sealed set comes later, from the engineer and architect of record.
How long does a permit review take?
Each state sets its own clock for each kind of permit. Florida decides a development permit within 120 days of a complete application, or 180 days with a hearing [3]; a Texas city acts on a plat within 30 days after filing [11]; and Arizona's SB 1353 applies when a municipality does not act on a single-family residential building permit within fifteen working days [10].
Does an ADU take a residential or a development site plan?
Sources
- 1)Residential Permit Procedures (brochure), Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County, Codes Administration. Accessed 2026-10-10.
- 2)Chapter 42, Subdivisions, Developments and Platting (ordinance redline), Sec. 42-22 and 42-75, City of Houston, Planning and Development Department. Accessed 2026-10-10.
- 3)Chapter 166 Section 033, 2025 Florida Statutes, The Florida Senate. Accessed 2026-10-10.
- 4)A.A.C. R4-30-304, Use of Seals, Arizona State Board of Technical Registration. Accessed 2026-10-10.
- 5)Residential Building Permit Procedures, Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County, Codes Administration. Accessed 2026-10-10.
- 6)Residential Swimming Pool Plan Review Checklist, Nassau County, Florida, Building Department. Accessed 2026-10-10.
- 7)Residential Pool Checklist, Town of Davie, Florida, Building Division. Accessed 2026-10-10.
- 8)Laws 2025, Chapter 31 (HB 2447), amending A.R.S. 9-500.49, administrative review of site plans and plats (chaptered text, azleg.gov), Arizona State Legislature. Accessed 2026-10-10.
- 9)Building Permits, Town of Wendell, North Carolina, Planning Department. Accessed 2026-10-10.
- 10)Laws 2025, Chapter 187 (SB 1353), single-family residential building permits (chaptered text and House summary, azleg.gov), Arizona State Legislature. Accessed 2026-10-10.
- 11)Texas Local Government Code 212.009, approval procedure (via FindLaw), Texas Legislature. Accessed 2026-10-10.
- 12)House Bill 3699, Senate Amendments Section-by-Section Analysis, Texas Legislature. Accessed 2026-10-10.
- 13)Residential Permitting 101, City of Houston, Houston Permitting Center. Accessed 2026-10-10.
- 14)A.R.S. 9-835, licensing time frames, Arizona State Legislature. Accessed 2026-10-10.
- 15)A.R.S. 32-144, exemptions and limitations; definition, Arizona State Legislature. Accessed 2026-10-10.
- 16)ADU State Laws Summary and Checklist (7.1.25), Association of Bay Area Governments. Accessed 2026-10-10.
- 17)AB 1332, Accessory dwelling units: preapproved plans (Gov. Code 65852.27), California Legislative Information. Accessed 2026-10-10.
- 18)Laws 2024, Chapter 196 (HB 2720), accessory dwelling units, A.R.S. 9-461.18, Arizona State Legislature. Accessed 2026-10-10.
- 19)Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) Residential Process (TRT/DOC/00192), City of Phoenix, Planning and Development Department. Accessed 2026-10-10.
- 20)Build a Deck or Porch, Wake County, North Carolina, Permits and Inspections. Accessed 2026-10-10.
- 21)Permit Checklist for Pool, Residential New (5.23.2024), City of Miami Beach, Florida, Building Department. Accessed 2026-10-10.
- 22)2026 Variance Application and Schedule, citing Development Standards s.103.19.1, Cobb County, Georgia. Accessed 2026-10-10.
- 23)Residential Pool Requirements, Hillsborough County, Florida. Accessed 2026-10-10.
- 24)Residential Swimming Pool Permit, Orange County, Florida. Accessed 2026-10-10.
- 25)Accessory Dwelling Units (ADU), City of Phoenix, Planning and Development Department. Accessed 2026-10-10.
How these sources were chosen and when the page is reviewed: how we research.