Site Planning Surveys

What You Need to Know About Site Planning Surveys

What is a Site Planning Survey?

A Site Planning Survey can best be described as a combination of a Boundary Survey and a Topographic Survey. If you’re unsure whether a site plan is sufficient or a survey is required, your county building department will have the answer. In most cases, a site plan will do the job..  A Site Site Plan Survey will contain a level of detail typically prescribed by the government jurisdiction under which the site falls.  The product of the survey is a standard site plan.  The site plan shows the currently existing improvements to the land, as well as those that are proposed.  The site plan will also show tree locations, topographic details, and illustrate any proposed grading of the plot of land, and calculations of the “lot coverage.”  If you  are not sure if a site  survey is required, or if a site plan will be sufficient, check with your county building department. With many cases, a site plan should satisfy their requirements.

Why Do a Site Plan?

 The site plan survey is mostly requested by clients to help in obtaining permits for improvements to a property. This being said, there are other reasons why you need  this type of survey other than just for getting a permit. For instance, if your site is located within a flood plain, the engineer may want to look at a site plan so he knows how to grade the contours of the parcel.