Bastrop County, TX. County seat Bastrop
Outside the cities in Bastrop County the office is Development Services at 211 Jackson Street, and what it issues is a development permit, not a building permit.
A post-frame barn among loblolly pines on sandy soil in Bastrop County, Texas. Illustrative photograph, not a project record.
The county issues no building permits and no certificates of occupancy, and its building code reaches single-family homes and duplexes only, with none for commercial use. That does not leave the lot unregulated.
The permit covers any external development outside the cities, the floodplain order sits on top of it, septic and the driveway are separate, and an emergency services district letter has to be in the file before the county issues.
Inside Bastrop
City building permit after site development plan approval
The City of Bastrop requires a commercial permit under the International Building Code for any non-residential or lodging structure or a residential structure with three or more dwellings, approved by the Building Official, and the city's Development Process page states that building permits are not issued before site development plan approval.
The city has adopted the 2018 International Building Code family, the 2023 National Electrical Code and the 2018 International Fire Code with appendices.
Source City of Bastrop Development Services, 1311 Chestnut Street, read 2026-09-20.
Unincorporated Bastrop County
County development permit for any external development; no building permit or CO
Bastrop County requires a development permit for any external development in the unincorporated area, issued by Development Services in three classes: Class A outside the floodplain, Conditional Class A, and Class B inside it.
The county says it does not issue building permits or certificates of occupancy, that its building code applies only to single-family homes and duplexes, and that there is no county building code for any other use, including commercial.
Source Bastrop County Development Services, and the Development Services application fees, read 2026-09-20.
Which office has your lot decides everything below.
Development Services, in three classes: Class A outside the floodplain, Conditional Class A, and Class B inside it. A commercial project files the Non-Single Family Application for Development Permit with a civil plan set stamped by a Texas-licensed professional engineer, a drainage report held to the county policy of zero net increase in runoff, and an emergency services district letter the county requires before it issues. The fee schedule adopted June 20, 2025 prices a commercial development permit at a $500 base plus $0.05 per building square foot plus $0.03 per square foot of impervious paving, capped at $25,000.
No county office reads the building for code. Local Government Code Chapter 233, read in full, gives a county no building code, permit or inspection authority over a commercial building, and Bastrop County lists no fire marshal and no fire code. Travis County and Caldwell County answer differently, as metal building permits in Austin and Travis County shows.
An accessory building of 25 square feet or less, on no foundation and outside the floodplain, needs no permit.
From each county record, read 2026-09-20.
On a phone this table scrolls sideways.
| County | Permit outside the cities | Sealed drawings | Fire code permit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bastrop | Development permit, three classes by floodplain status; no building permit, no certificate of occupancy | Engineer-stamped civil plan set | None listed |
| Travis | Development (Non-Residential) permit from Transportation and Natural Resources | Engineer-sealed site plan | Fire Marshal permit before construction |
| Caldwell | Commercial Site Construction Permit before land clearing | Engineer-certified drawings | Yes, from August 13, 2026 |
SourcesThe statute was read in full and grants no such authority.Texas Legislature Online, Local Government Code Chapter 233, county regulation of housing and other structures, read 2026-09-20; Bastrop County Development Services, and the Development Services application fees, read 2026-09-20; Travis County TNR Development Services, Commercial Site Plan, read 2026-09-20; Travis County Fire Marshal, permits and plan reviews, and Travis County Code Chapter 201, read 2026-09-20; Caldwell County Development Ordinance, revised February 14, 2023, and the subdivision and development fee schedule, read 2026-09-20; Caldwell County Fire Code adopted August 13, 2026, and the order adopting it, read 2026-09-20.
The floodplain page says a development permit is required for all development in the unincorporated county, before you build or place a structure, and the order revised July 14, 2025 makes a violation a misdemeanor fined up to $500 per violation. The named Floodplain Administrator is Marlene Flores, CFM, at (512) 581-7159.
Septic is the Environmental and Sanitation division, and TCEQ lists the county as authorized agent everywhere except the City of Bastrop, which covers its own limits. Where no public wastewater is available the septic application goes in with the development permit; a standard commercial system is $1,000. A driveway onto a county road is $50, or $75 if built without a permit. County by county: the septic and utilities guide.
SourcesTexas Commission on Environmental Quality, getting a permit for an OSSF such as a septic system, read 2026-09-20; Bastrop County Development Services, floodplain management, read 2026-09-20; Bastrop County Development Services, environmental and sanitation, and the application fees, read 2026-09-20; Bastrop County Development Services, application fees and residential driveway requirements, read 2026-09-20.
With the city, on its own adopted codes. The City of Bastrop requires a commercial permit under the International Building Code for any non-residential structure and issues no building permit before site development plan approval. Elgin requires a permit to construct, enlarge, alter, repair, move or demolish a building inside the city limits and names storage units on its list. Smithville names storage buildings and garages and allows up to ten workdays for plan review. The City of Bastrop Development Services, the Elgin Building Division and the City of Smithville were read 2026-09-20, and a commercial metal building or a metal shop there is a city file.
The 1979 USDA Soil Survey of Bastrop County puts about 38,000 acres of the Lost Pines loblolly pine area here and makes the Patilo-Demona-Silstid association, sandy uplands, about 32 percent of the county; Patilo soils run roughly 52 inches of loose fine sand over sandy clay loam, with a perched water table at 48 to 72 inches after heavy rain. There the question is water under the slab.
West and north it puts Axtell-Tabor at about 29 percent, sandy loam over mottled clay, naming shrink-swell and corrosivity among its urban limitations. There the question is movement. Both land on concrete slab and foundation for a metal building.
SourcesUSDA Soil Conservation Service, Soil Survey of Bastrop County, Texas (1979), woodland, general soil map and the Patilo series, read 2026-09-20; USDA Soil Conservation Service, Soil Survey of Bastrop County, Texas (1979), general soil map associations 2 to 4 and engineering uses of the soils, read 2026-09-20.
Three rules apply across Bastrop County either way. TDLR says a project under $50,000 in total estimated cost is not submitted for registration or plan review, and one at $50,000 or more submits a full set of construction documents. A local permit official may not accept a permit application for a building over that line unless registration is verified.
TCEQ sorts construction stormwater by acreage: five or more acres disturbed is a large construction activity, and one to under five a small one. The engineer exemption in Occupations Code 1001.056 runs out at one story, 5,000 square feet and a 24-foot clear span. In order: building a metal building in the Austin area.
SourcesTexas Department of Licensing and Regulation, Architectural Barriers frequently asked questions, read 2026-09-20; Texas Legislature Online, Government Code Chapter 469, elimination of architectural barriers, read 2026-09-20; Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, stormwater general permit for construction activities (TXR150000), read 2026-09-20; Texas Legislature Online, Occupations Code Chapter 1001, engineers, read 2026-09-20.
Bluebonnet Electric Cooperative runs a retail center in Bastrop, and starts new construction with a line design appointment at (800) 842-7708. Pedernales Electric Cooperative lists the counties it may serve in a tariff effective June 1, 2026, and Bastrop is not among them.
A new or modified access driveway on a state highway takes TxDOT Form 1058, and no work starts until the permit is executed, with 24 hours notice to TxDOT. The Austin District covers Bastrop County and keeps an area engineer office in Bastrop.
SourcesBluebonnet Electric Cooperative, line extensions, line design appointment, and the commercial developers package (revised June 4, 2024), read 2026-09-20; Pedernales Electric Cooperative, service for individual residential or commercial locations, and the tariff and business rules, read 2026-09-20; Texas Department of Transportation, Access Management Manual, chapter 2 section 4, permits, and the Use of Right of Way by Others Manual, access driveways, read 2026-09-20; Texas Department of Transportation, Austin District, and Austin District contacts and offices, read 2026-09-20.
Every permit and rule this county publishes for work outside its cities, with the office to call, the number, where it was read and when.
| Authority | What the county's site says | Office | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Building permit outside city limits | Bastrop County requires a development permit for any external development in the unincorporated area, issued by Development Services in three classes: Class A outside the floodplain, Conditional Class A, and Class B inside it. The county says it does not issue building permits or certificates of occupancy, that its building code applies only to single-family homes and duplexes, and that there is no county building code for any other use, including commercial. A commercial or other non-single-family development files the Non-Single Family Application for Development Permit with a civil construction plan set stamped by a Texas-licensed professional engineer, a drainage report meeting the county's zero net increase in runoff policy, and a letter from the applicable emergency services district, which is required for issuance. The fee schedule adopted June 20, 2025 sets a commercial development permit at a $500 base plus $0.05 per building square foot plus $0.03 per square foot of impervious paving, capped at $25,000; an accessory building of 25 square feet or less on no foundation and outside the floodplain needs no permit, and the same fee schedule prices larger accessory buildings at $50 under 200 square feet, $100 from 200 to 1,000 and $500 above. A development permit expires if construction is not complete three years after issuance. The county lists no fire marshal, no fire code and no fire code permit; its ordinances page carries no fire code or building code order. | Bastrop County Development Services, 211 Jackson Street, Bastrop, (512) 581-7176 | Bastrop County Development Services, and the Development Services application fees, read 2026-09-20 |
| Floodplain development permit | The county's floodplain page says a development permit is required for all development in unincorporated Bastrop County and must be applied for before building or placing a structure, and the Flood Damage Prevention Order revised July 14, 2025 requires the development permit for the unincorporated area, with violations a misdemeanor fined up to $500 per violation and each day a separate offense. The page names Marlene Flores, CFM, Floodplain Manager, as the county Floodplain Administrator, who reviews, approves or denies development permits, at (512) 581-7159, with a Floodplain Technician at (512) 581-4098. | Bastrop County Development Services, Floodplain Administrator, (512) 581-7159 | Bastrop County Development Services, floodplain management, read 2026-09-20 |
| On-site sewage facility (septic) permit | Septic permits are issued by the Environmental and Sanitation division of Development Services at 211 Jackson Street; TCEQ's directory lists Bastrop County as authorized agent for the entire county except the City of Bastrop, which covers its own city limits. Where no public wastewater is available the development permit and the septic application are submitted together, and the application form lists accessory building, single-unit commercial and multi-unit commercial as development classifications. Fees: a standard commercial system $1,000, a non-standard commercial design by an engineer or designer $1,200, a standard residential system $600, design resubmission $250 and re-inspection $200. | Bastrop County Development Services, Environmental and Sanitation, 211 Jackson Street, (512) 581-4042 | Bastrop County Development Services, environmental and sanitation, and the application fees, read 2026-09-20 |
| Driveway permit onto a county road | Driveway permits are handled by Development Services with a $50 fee, or $75 if the driveway is built without a permit; the Temporary Driveway Application form states a permit is valid 180 days from issuance, and a one-time 180-day extension of a driveway or development permit may be granted if requested 30 days before expiration. The residential driveway standards set a throat width of 12 to 24 feet, an all-weather surface, and a culvert of corrugated metal or reinforced concrete pipe with a 15-inch minimum diameter. No separate road and bridge driveway office is named. | Bastrop County Development Services, (512) 581-7176 | Bastrop County Development Services, application fees and residential driveway requirements, read 2026-09-20 |
| Zoning and signs | Bastrop County has no general zoning in the unincorporated area, only airport zoning near Austin Executive Airport, and does not regulate signs on private property; zoning exists inside the cities of Bastrop, Elgin and Smithville. | Bastrop County Development Services, (512) 581-7176 | Bastrop County Development Services, frequently asked questions, read 2026-09-20 |
Bastrop County keeps all four permits at 211 Jackson Street; the other five counties split those jobs differently. All six counties on one sheet: the Central Texas metal building permit directory.
| City | What the city's site says | Department | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bastrop | The City of Bastrop requires a commercial permit under the International Building Code for any non-residential or lodging structure or a residential structure with three or more dwellings, approved by the Building Official, and the city's Development Process page states that building permits are not issued before site development plan approval. The city has adopted the 2018 International Building Code family, the 2023 National Electrical Code and the 2018 International Fire Code with appendices. | City of Bastrop Development Services, 1311 Chestnut Street, (512) 332-8840 | City of Bastrop Development Services, 1311 Chestnut Street, read 2026-09-20 |
| Elgin | Elgin's Building Division requires a permit for any owner or agent who constructs, enlarges, alters, repairs, moves, demolishes or changes the occupancy of a building or structure inside the city limits, and its list of permit-required work names storage units. The city has adopted the 2021 International codes, including the 2021 International Building Code and Fire Code with appendices, and the 2020 National Electrical Code; permits go through My Government Online. | City of Elgin Building Division, (512) 281-0119 | City of Elgin Building Division, read 2026-09-20 |
| Smithville | Smithville's permitting guide lists storage buildings, external garages, carports, decks and new homes as needing a building permit, says commercial and industrial construction follows a similar process and may need additional consultation, and gives the Building Official up to ten workdays for plan review. The fee schedule effective March 9, 2026 charges a commercial plan review fee of one-half percent of total construction, a $50 certificate of occupancy and a penalty of three times the fee for work without a permit. No page read states which code edition the city has adopted. | City of Smithville, City Hall, 317 Main Street, (512) 237-3282 | City of Smithville, City Hall, 317 Main Street, read 2026-09-20 |
The 1979 soil survey says about 38,000 acres of the Lost Pines loblolly pine area is in Bastrop County, about 100 miles west of the East Texas pine belt. The Patilo-Demona-Silstid association, sandy surface layers on uplands, is about 32 percent of the county, and the survey names the sandy surface layer, permeability and a high water table as its urban limitations; Patilo soils are about 52 inches of loose fine sand over sandy clay loam with a perched water table at 48 to 72 inches after heavy rain. Source: USDA Soil Conservation Service, Soil Survey of Bastrop County, Texas (1979), woodland, general soil map and the Patilo series, read 2026-09-20.
The Axtell-Tabor association is about 29 percent of the county, deep loamy soils with a thin fine sandy loam surface over mottled clay and very slow permeability, with shrink-swell potential, corrosivity and permeability named as urban limitations; the Crockett-Wilson association, about 18 percent, and the Behring-Crockett-Heiden association, about 11 percent, carry the same three limitations. The survey says group A-7 clay soils have low strength when wet and are the poorest subgrade. Source: USDA Soil Conservation Service, Soil Survey of Bastrop County, Texas (1979), general soil map associations 2 to 4 and engineering uses of the soils, read 2026-09-20.
The Wilcox Group crops out across the western county in a belt nine to 15 miles wide and is the most important water-bearing unit, supplying all water for Bastrop and Elgin; the Patilo, Silstid and Demona soils formed in the Carrizo, Queen City and Sparta sands in the eastern county, and Heiden and Houston Black dominate the Kemp Clay outcrop. Source: USDA Soil Conservation Service, Soil Survey of Bastrop County, Texas (1979), parent material, read 2026-09-20.
A development permit, required for any external development in the unincorporated area and issued by Development Services in three classes. The county issues no building permits and no certificates of occupancy, and it has no county building code for any use other than single-family homes and duplexes. On a commercial development the plan set is stamped by a Texas-licensed professional engineer. Inside the cities the city permits it.
From the Environmental and Sanitation division of Bastrop County Development Services at 211 Jackson Street. TCEQ lists the county as authorized agent everywhere except the City of Bastrop. The septic application goes in with the development permit where no public wastewater is available, and a standard commercial system is $1,000.
Under the fee schedule adopted June 20, 2025 it is a $500 base plus $0.05 per building square foot plus $0.03 per square foot of impervious paving, capped at $25,000. A driveway permit is $50, or $75 if built without one.
Yes, it is a state program and follows no city line. TDLR says a project under $50,000 in total estimated cost is not submitted for registration or plan review, though the Texas Accessibility Standards still apply to it. One at $50,000 or more submits a full set of construction documents.
Free estimate, six questions
The county tells a contractor which permit office your lot answers to. The building and the timing tell them what to look at first. Pricing it is free, and you owe nothing either way.
Your request goes to an independent local metal building contractor serving Central Texas, not a national lead list. Pricing it is free, and you owe nothing either way.
Last reviewed 2026-09-20.
