Quick answer: In Forsyth County, no excavation, grading, filling, clearing or grubbing may begin without a Land Disturbance Permit issued under the Unified Development Code and Soil Erosion Ordinance 73. Plans are submitted to Planning and Community Development by 5:00 p.m. on Mondays, a plan review meeting with every reviewing department follows nine business days later, and the permit must be approved and issued within 12 months of the first submittal. Expect a sketch plat with a Board of Commissioners hearing for tracts or disturbance of two acres or more, a $3,000-per-acre performance bond, 50-foot undisturbed stream buffers with a 75-foot impervious setback, a Department of Engineering stormwater report approval before plan sign-off, and the Forsyth $40-per-acre NPDES fee. The permit itself is issued at the pre-construction conference.
Forsyth is a schedule-driven county
Most metro counties review plans on a rolling basis. Forsyth does not. The UDC sets a fixed weekly intake, a fixed review meeting and a hard expiration on the application, and the Department of Engineering holds stormwater approval as a separate gate. Developers who treat Forsyth like Cherokee or Fulton lose weeks on the calendar for reasons that have nothing to do with design quality. As the civil engineer in Cumming and Forsyth County for a growing share of land development engineering work there, we plan submittals around the County’s clock from day one.
When an LDP is required
UDC Chapter 7 prohibits any excavation, grading, filling, cutting, stripping, clearing or grubbing until a valid land disturbance permit has been issued under Ordinance 73 by the Planning and Community Development Department, unless the activity is expressly excepted. Clearing-and-grubbing and grading plans must be prepared by a licensed land surveyor, landscape architect or engineer, and the Engineering checklists require the seal and signature of a registered professional engineer or land surveyor on all sheets.
Step zero: the sketch plat
All major subdivisions, and any other land development requiring an LDP on a tract of two acres or more or with two acres or more of disturbance (five acres in M1 industrial zoning), must submit a sketch plat to the Director. The Board of Commissioners holds a public hearing and must approve the sketch plat before any LDP can be issued. This is a separate calendar from plan review and should be started first. The full subdivision sequence and typical durations are in Forsyth County subdivision approval timeline and costs.
The 2026 residential moratorium
On October 15, 2026, the Board of Commissioners extended the County’s moratorium on accepting residential rezoning applications for another 180 days, to April 2027, with exceptions for the Res1, Mixed Residential (MRD) and Mixed-Use Commercial (MCD) districts; the resolution states it does not affect properties where density under a prior residential zoning has vested. A separate moratorium on sketch plat and LDP applications for residentially zoned properties rezoned before April 13, 2017 ran through June 2, 2026. Before contracting on residential land in Forsyth, have your engineer confirm in writing with Planning and Community Development which moratorium, if any, applies to that parcel’s zoning history on the day you plan to file.
What the plan set must contain
Forsyth’s checklists are specific about the cover sheet and the drawing standards. The items below apply to commercial, industrial, amenity and road construction plans; subdivision plans add the preliminary plat items.
| Requirement | Forsyth County standard |
|---|---|
| Title | “Site Development Plans” (or “Road Construction Plans” for subdivision roads) |
| Parties on the cover | Primary permittee (owner or developer) with address and phone; engineer or surveyor with address and phone; stamp and original signature; 24-hour erosion and sediment control contact |
| Acreage and narrative | Site acreage, disturbed acreage, project narrative, proposed uses, outside storage areas with lot percentage where applicable |
| Scale and sheet size | Engineer’s scale of 1 inch = 100 feet minimum; sheets no larger than 24 by 36 inches |
| Topography | Two-foot contour interval referenced to mean sea level, with all finished contours |
| Floodplain note | Disposition of the property relative to the floodplain with FIRM panel number and date or flood study; elevations and boundaries shown where applicable |
| Waters and buffers | State waters and jurisdictional waters labeled; 50-foot undisturbed vegetative stream buffer; 75-foot impervious stream setback; buffers measured from top of bank; wetlands note referencing the Section 404 permit |
| Limits of disturbance | Delineated and labeled on the plans |
| Slopes | Continuous fill slopes 10 feet or less may be 2:1; fill slopes over 10 feet must be 3:1 unless a mechanically stabilized slope is approved by the Director of Engineering or the slope is certified by a geotechnical engineer licensed in Georgia |
| Retaining walls | Modular wall design submitted to the Department of Engineering for approval before construction plan approval; site-specific details, sealed by a Georgia PE |
| Entrances | Entrance and construction exit locations on state routes approved by GDOT Gainesville District before the LDP is issued |
| Utilities | Provisions for water supply and sewage disposal indicated |
The stormwater report is a separate gate
In Forsyth, the Stormwater Management Report must be approved by the Department of Engineering before a plan sign-off can be scheduled, and the County asks engineers to schedule a meeting with the stormwater reviewer after the first round of hydrology comments. Design follows the Georgia Stormwater Management Manual with the County’s own addendum and runoff reduction requirements, which we cover in Forsyth County stormwater requirements. Because the report is reviewed in parallel but approved separately, a site plan can be “clean” and still be unable to sign off. Pond and water-quality sizing drivers are in detention pond design and GSMM sizing.
The review cycle, week by week
- Monday, 5:00 p.m.: plans and supporting documents are submitted to Planning and Community Development (holiday Mondays roll forward).
- Nine business days after the deadline: a plan review meeting is held with one member of each reviewing department present to distribute comments.
- Comments go back to the developer’s engineer or surveyor for correction; corrected plans re-enter on a subsequent Monday.
- When all plans and supporting documents are correct, the Director or designee approves and signs.
- The LDP must be approved and issued within 12 months of the initial submittal date; otherwise a new application and new plan review fees are required.
Each missed Monday is a week; each incomplete item is a cycle. The checklist items that most often cost a cycle are the floodplain note, buffer labeling, the wall design and the bond paperwork. General causes of LDP delay across Georgia are in how to avoid land disturbance permit delays.
Bond, NPDES fees and final approval
- Performance bond for land disturbance under Ordinance 73, Section V.B.7(b): $3,000 per acre or fraction thereof of proposed disturbance. Bond approval is required before the pre-construction meeting can be scheduled.
- Copy of the Notice of Intent filed with Georgia EPD and proof of the EPD NPDES fee, where applicable.
- Forsyth County’s portion of the NPDES fee: $40 per disturbed acre.
- Signed route sheet and application; stamped and signed plan sets as the department specifies.
Land disturbance permits are issued after all reviewing departments have approved, at a pre-construction conference with the department responsible for inspecting the site. County fee schedules change; current ranges are summarized in land disturbance permit costs by county.
Phasing limits on larger residential sites
For residential developments on 25 acres or more, no LDP may allow more than 20 acres of disturbance in any single contiguous area, and no more than two non-contiguous areas may be disturbed at one time. When two areas are open, no new disturbance may start until the Department of Engineering determines one of them is stabilized. Phasing has to be drawn, bonded and sequenced on the plans from the first submittal.
Floodplain and Lake Lanier
Any site with a special flood hazard area must include a floodplain management plan signed and stamped by a Georgia PE, and any disturbance in the future-conditions floodplain requires an engineering study approved by the Engineering Department before the permit. Lakefront work near Lake Lanier adds U.S. Army Corps of Engineers shoreline permitting on top of the County LDP; see Lake Lanier dredging permits and erosion control.
Closing out: what the final plat needs from the engineer
For subdivisions, Forsyth’s final plat checklist requires a signed and sealed statement from a professional engineer certifying that the as-built storm drainage system functions as designed, and a second certifying that the as-built detention and water quality pond provides the storage volumes and outflow rates in the approved plans and hydrology study. Budget for the as-built survey and the engineer’s re-analysis at the start, not at the end.
Frequently asked questions
By 5:00 p.m. each Monday to the Department of Planning and Community Development. A plan review meeting is held nine business days after the submittal deadline.
The LDP must be approved and issued within 12 months of the initial plan submittal date. After that, a new application and new plan review fees are required.
Yes for all major subdivisions and for any land development needing an LDP on a tract or disturbance of two acres or more (five acres in M1). The Board of Commissioners must approve it at a public hearing before an LDP is issued.
A performance bond of $3,000 per acre or fraction thereof of proposed disturbance under Ordinance 73, approved before the pre-construction meeting.
A 50-foot undisturbed vegetative buffer and a 75-foot impervious setback, measured from the top of bank, in addition to the state 25-foot buffer.
The County extended its moratorium on residential rezoning applications on October 15, 2026, with exceptions for Res1, MRD and MCD. It does not apply to vested prior zoning. Confirm the current status for your specific parcel before filing.
Working on land in Cumming or anywhere in Forsyth County? We build the submittal around the County’s Monday clock and the Engineering stormwater gate. Contact Mack Engineering or call (770) 715-7295.
Related reading
- Forsyth County stormwater requirements
- Forsyth County subdivision approval timeline and cost
- Civil engineering in Cumming, GA
- Detention pond design in Metro Atlanta
- Land development services
- Land disturbance permit costs in Metro Atlanta by county
- Lake Lanier dredging permits, site plans and erosion control
- How to avoid land disturbance permit delays
Sources
- Forsyth County UDC Chapter 7, Permits, Certificates, Fees (LDP required; Monday 5 p.m. submittal; 9-business-day review meeting; 12-month limit)
- Forsyth County UDC, Chapter 7 LDP amendment (permit issued at pre-construction conference; plan preparer qualifications)
- Forsyth County, Unified Development Code (current version page)
- Forsyth County, Commercial Site Development Plan Review Checklist (cover requirements; scale; buffers; NPDES fee $40/acre)
- Forsyth County Engineering, Commercial Site Plan Checklist ($3,000/acre bond; GDOT approval; stormwater report before sign-off; wall design)
- Forsyth County Engineering, Preliminary Subdivision Checklist (fill slope limits; 2-ft contours; seal on all sheets)
- Forsyth County, Ordinance 73 amendment Nov 2023 (20-acre open disturbance limit for 25+ acre residential)
- Forsyth County UDC, sketch plat requirement (2-acre tract or disturbance; 5 acres in M1)
- Forsyth County Code Chapter 46, Floodplain (PE-sealed floodplain plan; future-conditions study)
- Forsyth County, Final Plat Checklist (PE as-built certifications)
- Forsyth County BOC, Residential rezoning moratorium extension resolution (April 28, 2026)
- Atlanta News First, Forsyth County extends housing moratorium for third time (Oct. 15, 2026)
- Forsyth County News release, sketch plat/LDP moratorium for pre-April 13, 2017 rezonings extended to June 2, 2026
This article is general information, not a site-specific engineering opinion. Code requirements and local ordinances change; confirm current requirements with the authority having jurisdiction for your property.