Aerial view looking straight down on three adjoining single-story houses, with walls and a tall hedge along the shared lot lines, a lawn, gravel landscaping and a pool in one rear yard.

Civil Engineering & Site Design

Plot plans and site plans for a residential building permit

Dimensioned plot plans for house, ADU, shop, addition, and well or septic permits, drawn to your city or county checklist. Based in Chico, working in Butte County and the northern Sacramento Valley first, Sacramento and Placer counties for project work, and elsewhere in California by arrangement.

Start your request Call (530) 682-7679 See what it must show

What is a plot plan?

A plot plan is a scaled drawing of a lot, submitted with a building permit application, that shows the property lines and their dimensions, every existing and proposed structure with its distance to those lines, and features such as easements, the driveway, a well, and a septic system or sewer line.

Many agencies call it a site plan; the California Residential Code titles its requirement "Site Plan or Plot Plan" (§R106.2). Plan checkers use it to confirm that new work meets the setbacks and stays clear of easements, wells and septic systems.

This page covers plot plans for houses, ADUs, shops, garages, additions, and well or septic permits; commercial and multifamily site plans are on our site layout page.

We draw the plan from your recorded map, an existing survey, or a new boundary survey by our licensed land surveyor, and we seal it where your agency requires.

What it shows

What a plot plan for a house, ADU, shop or addition must show

The California Residential Code sets the baseline: the size and location of new and existing structures and their distances from lot lines (§R106.2). City and county checklists add the rest. A complete plot plan typically shows:

  • Property lines

    The parcel outline with the length of each line, the street frontage, and the parcel number.

  • Existing & proposed structures

    Every structure with its use and outline dimensions, including garages, decks and pools.

  • Setback distances

    Distances from each structure to every property line and between buildings, against the required setbacks.

  • Easements

    Recorded access, utility and drainage easements, located from the deed or a title report you provide.

  • Driveway & parking

    Driveways, off-street parking, and any work in the street right-of-way, such as a drive apron.

  • Well, septic or sewer

    Wells, the septic tank and leach field, or the sewer line, placed so reviewers can check separations.

  • Lot coverage

    The percentage of the lot covered by buildings, where the checklist asks for it.

  • Scale & north arrow

    An engineer's scale and a north arrow; the Town of Paradise, for example, prefers 1 inch = 20 feet.

Local checklists

What your county or city asks for

Requirements vary; we work from your agency's current list. Three local examples, and what tends to differ:

City of Chico

The City's Form 30, its plan submission list for single-family homes and ADUs (dated October 21, 2020), asks for a plot plan showing:

  • The outline of the Assessor's tax parcel, with the parcel dimensions
  • The location and use of all existing and proposed buildings
  • Building setbacks from all property lines, and the distance between buildings
  • Off-street parking and driveways
  • Sewer lines, or the septic tank and leach field locations
  • The percentage of the lot covered by buildings
  • The drawing scale and a north arrow, with the owner's name, site address and parcel number

Town of Paradise

The Town's residential building permit checklist asks for the items below. For the full fire-rebuild sequence, see Paradise & the Ridge.

  • A survey (certification of corners) by a land surveyor or civil engineer licensed in land surveying
  • All property lines, easements and lot dimensions, and streets or alleys with dimensions
  • The septic tank and leach field, drawn from the as-built on file
  • Outlines and dimensions of all existing and proposed structures, including garages, decks and pools
  • Required and proposed setbacks and yard dimensions
  • An engineer's scale, with 1 inch = 20 feet preferred, and a north arrow
  • A separate grading and drainage plan if grading exceeds 50 cubic yards

Butte County, unincorporated areas

Outside city and town limits, building permits go through county Development Services, and county Environmental Health permits wells and septic systems. The county's site plan handout (DBP-02) and residential submittal checklist (DBP-31) ask, in summary, for:

  • The lot and the location of each building
  • Distances from new construction to each property line and to existing buildings
  • Easements and utilities
  • Wells, septic tanks and leach fields or the sewer connection, with the 100-foot well setback shown
  • A north arrow, with the property lines and boundary monuments exposed for the inspector

What varies from one agency to the next

Every agency sets its own application checklist (Gov. Code §65940), and the lists change. Before drafting, we get your agency's current list and draw to it. Expect differences in:

  • Sheet size and format: Chico asks for sheets from 18 by 24 to 24 by 36 inches, and some agencies take applications online
  • Whether a survey is required, as it is in Paradise for site-built homes, manufactured homes and metal buildings
  • Related permits, such as sewer, grading, encroachment and stormwater, which Chico's Form 30 notes may also apply
  • Drawing standards: Sacramento County's residential submittal list, for example, wants each sheet scaled and completely dimensioned

When you need a surveyed base, and when owner measurements are enough

The code that applies, the agency's checklist, and how close you build to a line decide it.

  • Houses and most ADUs: the agency decides

    The residential code's site plan section has no survey requirement (CRC §R106.2), so your building department decides whether an existing survey, the recorded map, or owner measurements will do.

  • When the checklist requires a survey

    The Town of Paradise's residential checklist, for example, asks for a survey (certification of corners) for site-built homes, manufactured homes and metal buildings, by a land surveyor or civil engineer licensed in land surveying.

  • Buildings under the California Building Code

    Where the CBC applies instead of the residential code, the site plan must be drawn in accordance with an accurate boundary line survey (§107.2.6).

  • Building close to a line

    State law caps required side and rear setbacks for a new ADU at 4 feet (Gov. Code §66314). An ADU set 4 feet from a fence that is not on the line may not be 4 feet from the line.

  • Missing or disturbed corners

    Without the corner monuments, owner measurements have nothing reliable to start from. A licensed land surveyor finds the corners, or resets them from other monuments and the recorded map, in a boundary survey.

  • Plans traced from aerial imagery

    Assessor's parcel maps and online parcel layers are not surveys, and plans traced from aerial imagery rather than measured lines often draw plan-check comments.

  • A shed or pool far from the lines

    Work well away from every line may need only an owner-drawn plan, if your agency accepts one. Ask the building department before you order a survey.

Wells & septic

Wells and septic decide where things go

On a rural lot, the well and the septic system often fix where a house, ADU or shop can go. Your local agency sets the distances; these are the reference points the plot plan has to show.

  • OWTS Policy · Tier 1

    Septic tank and leach field setbacks

    Under the statewide Tier 1 standards, septic tanks and dispersal fields must be at least 5 feet from property lines and structures and 100 feet from wells, springs and flowing streams. Butte County Environmental Health runs its own local program (LAMP), approved by the Central Valley Water Board in 2016, so its distances, not Tier 1, apply where the county issues septic permits.

  • Sacramento County · example

    Well to sewer line and septic system

    Local agencies set the distances from a well. Sacramento County's well setback sheet, for example, requires 50 feet from any sewer line, main or lateral, and 100 feet from a watertight septic tank or leach lines; lesser distances may be approved case by case. The distances run to the tank and leach lines themselves, which may sit on a neighbor's lot.

  • Town of Paradise

    A well radius that stays inside your lines

    For a well clearance, the Town asks for a plot plan at 1 inch = 20 feet showing the proposed well with a 100-foot setback radius clear of existing septic and the future replacement area. The radius must also stay within the property lines, so no part of a neighboring parcel becomes unusable for septic. The well construction permit then comes from Butte County.

  • Butte County Environmental Health

    A well permit needs its own site plan

    County Environmental Health permits well construction in Butte County. Its application includes a site plan placing the new well among existing wells, septic tanks and leach fields, property lines and other site features.

These are the distances a plot plan has to show, not septic design: tank and leach field sizing, soil testing and replacement areas are septic system design. Tank, leach field and sewer locations come from the as-built on file, the septic design or visible features. We do not locate buried lines; USA North 811 marks utility-owned lines before you dig.

Shops, garages and metal buildings

A detached shop, garage or steel building needs the same plot plan, plus room to build it and to drive to it.

  • Setbacks and spacing

    Zoning sets how close a building may sit to each line and to other buildings (Gov. Code §65850), and the plot plan dimensions both.

  • Pad, truck access and room to build

    Placing a steel building means planning the pad grade, truck access for delivery, and room for footings and erection equipment.

  • When a grading plan is needed

    Each city and county sets its own grading permit triggers, such as cubic yards of cut or fill, cut or fill depth, or fill that supports a structure. A pad on a slope often needs one; see grading plans.

  • Foundation design comes separately

    A metal building kit usually comes with an anchor rod plan and column reactions, not a foundation design. See metal building foundation design.

For pool, solar, ADU and metal building contractors: send the site address or parcel number, your layout and the agency's checklist. We return a dimensioned plot plan as PDF and CAD for your customer's submittal, signed and sealed where the agency requires it.

Process

How a plot plan comes together

Five steps from your agency's checklist to plan-check comments.

  1. Confirm the checklist and zoning

    We get your city or county's current submittal list and check zoning setbacks, easements, and overlays such as flood or fire hazard zones.

  2. Assemble the base

    Property lines and easements come from an existing survey, the recorded map, or a new boundary survey; a topographic survey is added where grades matter.

  3. Draft and dimension

    Existing and proposed structures, the driveway, the well, and the septic system or sewer line are drawn to scale and dimensioned to the lines and to each other.

  4. Submit

    The plot plan goes in with your permit application, submitted by you, your contractor, or us.

  5. Respond to plan-check comments

    We answer the agency's comments on the plot plan and revise the sheet as needed. The agency decides whether to accept it.

California rules

California requirements for plot plans

State codes set the baseline; your city or county sets the checklist.

  • Cal. Residential Code §R106.2

    A site plan or plot plan for houses

    House permits need a site plan showing the size and location of new and existing structures and their distances from lot lines. The section is titled "Site Plan or Plot Plan" and has no survey requirement, so the agency decides what base it accepts.

  • Cal. Building Code §107.2.6

    A surveyed base under the CBC

    For buildings under the California Building Code, the site plan must be drawn to scale, show established street grades, proposed finished grades and any flood hazard areas, and be drawn in accordance with an accurate boundary line survey.

  • Gov. Code §66314

    ADU setbacks and septic approval

    Required side and rear setbacks for a new ADU are capped at 4 feet. An ADU on a septic system needs the local health officer's approval where required (§66314(d)(9)).

  • Bus. & Prof. Code §8731, §6735

    Who locates lines and seals plans

    Locating property lines on the ground is boundary surveying, limited to licensed land surveyors and civil engineers licensed before 1982 (§8731). Civil engineering plans must be signed and sealed by a licensed civil engineer (§6735); some agencies accept owner-drawn plot plans for small residential work.

Sources & references
  1. California Building Standards Code (Title 24), 2025 edition, including the California Residential Code (Part 2.5, §R106.2 Site plan or plot plan) (California Building Standards Commission)
  2. 2025 California Building Code, Chapter 1: Administration (§107.2.6 Site plan) (ICC Digital Codes, public viewer)
  3. Government Code §66314, accessory dwelling unit ordinances (California Legislative Information)
  4. Government Code §65850, zoning regulations (California Legislative Information)
  5. Business and Professions Code §8731, civil engineers and the 1982 land surveying rule (California Legislative Information)
  6. Business and Professions Code §6731, civil engineering (includes grading) (California Legislative Information)
  7. Business and Professions Code §6735, civil engineering plans and calculations (California Legislative Information)
  8. Form 30, Plan Submission Requirements for SFD/ADU, dated October 21, 2020 (PDF) (City of Chico)
  9. Residential Building Permit checklist (PDF) (Town of Paradise, Building Resiliency Center)
  10. Well Clearance (Town of Paradise)
  11. Form DBP-02, Site Plan Requirements (PDF) (Butte County Development Services)
  12. Form DBP-31, Residential New Dwellings, Additions and Alterations Submittal Checklist (PDF) (Butte County Development Services)
  13. Well Application Packet (PDF) (Butte County Environmental Health)
  14. Onsite Wastewater Treatment Systems (OWTS) Policy, as amended April 18, 2023 (State Water Resources Control Board)
  15. Resolution R5-2016-0044, approving the Local Agency Management Program for Butte County Environmental Health Division (Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board)
  16. CO-06, Residential New Building or Addition Submittal Requirements (PDF) (Sacramento County Building Permits & Inspection)
  17. Well Setbacks (PDF) (Sacramento County Environmental Management Department)
  18. USA North 811: which lines are marked (USA North, the 811 one-call center)

Last reviewed .

Plot plan FAQs

Can I draw my own plot plan?

You can, if your agency accepts owner-drawn plans, and some do for small residential work. The California Residential Code asks for a site plan showing the size and location of new and existing structures and their distances from lot lines, not a survey (§R106.2). The drawing still has to be to scale and cover everything on your agency's checklist. Owner drawings suit work that sits well away from the lines; plans traced from aerial imagery or online parcel maps, rather than measured lines, often draw plan-check comments.

Does a plot plan include a topographic survey?

A plot plan does not include a topographic survey unless the project needs one. It shows property lines, structures and site features; it does not map existing ground elevations. Sloped lots, grading and drainage plans, and septic layouts that depend on slope need measured contours, so we add a topographic survey on the same survey control when the agency or the design calls for one.

Do I need a civil engineer or a land surveyor?

It depends on what the plot plan rests on. Locating property lines or setting corners on the ground is boundary surveying, limited to licensed land surveyors and civil engineers licensed before 1982 (Bus. & Prof. Code §8731). Civil engineering plans, such as a grading and drainage plan, must be signed and sealed by a licensed civil engineer (§6735). If your agency accepts a plot plan drawn from the recorded map, you may need neither. Our team includes licensed civil engineers and a licensed land surveyor.

What if my ADU will be on septic?

An ADU on a septic system needs the local health officer's approval where required (Gov. Code §66314(d)(9)), and adding one depends on whether the tank and leach field can take the added flow. The plot plan shows the existing tank and leach field, and any replacement area, so setbacks can be checked. If the system must be expanded or replaced, that is septic system design.

Can you do the grading and drainage plan too?

Yes. A grading and drainage plan is civil engineering, prepared and sealed by a licensed civil engineer (Bus. & Prof. Code §6731, §6735), and we draw it from the same survey base as the plot plan. Each city and county sets its own triggers for requiring one, such as cubic yards of cut or fill, so we confirm your agency's before design starts.

Is a plot plan the same as a site plan?

Usually, for a house permit: the California Residential Code titles its requirement "Site Plan or Plot Plan" (§R106.2). Some agencies reserve "site plan" or "civil site plan" for commercial, multifamily or multi-building sites, where parking, circulation, utilities and drainage need more detail; those are covered on our site layout page.

Further reading

  • Land Surveying

    Boundary Surveying

    Property lines and corners located and marked, the base for building near a setback.

  • Land Surveying

    Topographic Surveying

    Contours and elevations for sloped lots, building pads and drainage.

  • Civil Engineering

    Septic System Design

    Tank and leach field sized to your soils and placed for county review.

  • Civil Engineering

    Grading Plans

    Pads, slopes, drainage and earthwork designed for a grading permit.

Explore all Civil Engineering & Site Design services

Plot Plans for Building Permits

Need a plot plan for a building permit?

Send the property address or parcel number, what you plan to build, and your agency's checklist if you have it. We'll confirm what the plan needs before work starts.

Start your request Call (530) 682-7679