Lexington County Community Development Department, Land Development Division

Commercial Land Development Plan Review and County Land Disturbance Permit (Lexington County Land Development Division)

The county's Commercial Plan Review page states: "Plans for commercial development in the unincorporated areas of Lexington County are submitted to the Community Development Department." Every plan must include each item on the Checklist for Commercial Development in the Lexington County Land Development Manual, and the NPDES General Permit for Stormwater Discharges from Large & Small Construction Activities (NOI) application is turned in with the plans "along with appropriate County and DHEC fees. Plans will not be reviewed until appropriate fees are paid in full." Revisions go directly to the Land Development Division, which forwards the approved documentation to DES; the page states that work cannot begin until the site is covered under the NPDES General Permit, and that once the Division receives notice of that coverage "a County Land Disturbance Permit can be issued." Per the Lexington County Land Development "Plan Review and Inspection Fees Effective 7-1-2026" schedule, linked under "Fee Structure" on the Community Development Fees & Ordinances page, commercial plan review is $2,520 plus $220 per acre and environmental inspection is $2,520 plus $220 per acre (the schedule's line reads "per acre or portion of" and is cut off there), with a $615 re-inspection fee for final approval. The state NPDES permit fee is separate; the schedule notes that its figures do not include it. Smaller sites may qualify for the Public Works Stormwater Division's Small Commercial Land Disturbance Permit instead.