Gastonia, North Carolina - City Development Fees
City of Gastonia | Gaston County (county seat) | Charlotte metro west | I-85 / US-321 corridor
Gastonia is the county seat of Gaston County and the largest city west of Charlotte in the Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC metro, on the I-85 / US-321 corridor. The dominant development charge in Gastonia is the water and sewer System Development Fee. Gastonia owns and operates its own water and wastewater systems under the Two Rivers Utilities brand (City of Gastonia Public Utilities), so it levies these System Development Fees directly under NCGS Chapter 162A, Article 8, along with the physical water and sewer tap fees, rather than through a county or regional authority. The City also administers a schedule of rezoning, Conditional District, special use permit, variance, and engineering / land-development review fees through its Planning Department and Engineering Division. North Carolina does not authorize local impact fees (the System Development Fee replaces them) or Virginia-style cash proffers. All amounts below are drawn from the City of Gastonia FY 2026 Fee Schedule (all departments), effective January 1, 2026. Verify current amounts with the City of Gastonia before relying on them.
On this page
Fee Summary
| Fee Type | Status | Top-Line Figure | Effective Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Utility Tap Fees (Two Rivers Utilities NCGS 162A System Development Fees + tap fees, by meter size) | Confirmed | Standard 3/4-inch connection $7,100 combined System Development Fee (water $2,120 + sewer $4,980, Southeast Service Area); scales by meter size to $106,000 water / $249,000 sewer at 6-inch; plus 3/4-inch water tap $2,706 and 3/4-inch sewer tap $2,441 | 2026-01-01 (FY 2026); NCGS 162A System Development Fees |
| Zoning and Development Review Fees | Confirmed | General Rezoning $800 + $35/acre; Conditional District Level 1 $1,000 + $25/acre / Level 2 $2,000 + $50/acre; Special Use Permit $800 + $40/acre; Variance Residential $800 / Commercial $1,200; Text Amendment $500; plus Engineering / Land Development review fees and a 5% technology charge | 2026-01-01 (FY 2026 Adopted) |
| Impact Fees | Not administered | North Carolina repealed local impact-fee authority; S.L. 2017-138 replaced water and sewer impact fees with the meter-based System Development Fees shown above (NCGS Ch. 162A Art. 8), captured under utility tap fees | - |
| Special District Fees | Not administered | North Carolina municipal service districts (NCGS 160A Art. 23) are funded by a district property-tax levy, not a developer application fee; Gastonia is a full-service own-utility city and publishes no special-district developer fee | - |
| Proffers | Not applicable | North Carolina does not use Virginia-style cash proffers; NC conditional zoning is governed by NCGS 160D-703 | - |
Water and Sewer System Development Fees
Source: City of Gastonia FY 2026 Fee Schedule, Public Utilities "System Development Fees, Assessment Rates and Tap Fees" section (pp. 16-17), effective January 1, 2026. This is the highest-value block on the page for a developer. Gastonia owns and operates its water and wastewater systems as Two Rivers Utilities (City of Gastonia Public Utilities), so it recovers water and sewer capacity through North Carolina General Statutes Section 162A-205 System Development Fees charged by meter size, not through an impact fee, and it also charges the physical tap (connection) fees directly. Water and sewer are charged separately. The System Development Fee development incentive was discontinued as of July 1, 2024, so the full System Development Fee applies.
System Development Fees by meter size (water and sewer charged separately)
| Meter Size | Water SDF | Sewer SDF (Southeast Service Area) | Combined SDF |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3/4 inch | $2,120.00 | $4,980.00 | $7,100.00 |
| 1 inch | $5,300.00 | $12,450.00 | $17,750.00 |
| 1 1/2 inch | $10,600.00 | $24,900.00 | $35,500.00 |
| 2 inch | $16,960.00 | $39,840.00 | $56,800.00 |
| 3 inch | $33,920.00 | $79,680.00 | $113,600.00 |
| 4 inch | $53,000.00 | $124,500.00 | $177,500.00 |
| 6 inch | $106,000.00 | $249,000.00 | $355,000.00 |
| 8 inch | $169,600.00 | $398,400.00 | $568,000.00 |
A standard single-family connection uses a 3/4-inch meter: water $2,120 plus sewer $4,980, a combined $7,100 System Development Fee. Sewer System Development Fees are stated for the Southeast Service Area on the captured schedule; confirm the applicable sewer service area for a specific parcel with the City. The combined column is the arithmetic sum of the per-column Water and Sewer System Development Fees.
Water and sewer tap fees by meter size
| Meter Size | Water Tap | Sewer Tap |
|---|---|---|
| 3/4 inch | $2,706.00 | $2,441.00 |
| 1 inch | $2,990.00 | $2,441.00 |
| 1 1/2 inch | $5,351.00 | Installed by developer's contractor |
| 2 inch | $5,574.00 | Installed by developer's contractor |
| 3 inch and larger | Installed by developer's contractor | Installed by developer's contractor |
Fee authority: City of Gastonia Public Utilities (Two Rivers Utilities). System Development Fees are governed by NCGS Chapter 162A, Article 8 (the Public Water and Sewer System Development Fee Act). Taps larger than 2 inches are installed by the developer's contractor upon City approval. Gastonia also owns an electric utility; electric rate schedules are outside ZoneFee's development-fee scope.
Zoning and Development Review Fees
Source: City of Gastonia FY 2026 Fee Schedule, Planning section (pp. 10-11) and Engineering / Land Development section (pp. 1-2), FY 2026 Adopted column, effective January 1, 2026. A 5% technology charge applies to development fees.
Zoning and rezoning
| Application Type | Fee |
|---|---|
| General Rezoning (map amendment) | $800.00 + $35.00/acre |
| Conditional District Rezoning - Level 1 (existing structure, under 10 acres, no subdivision) | $1,000.00 + $25.00/acre |
| Conditional District Rezoning - Level 2 (all other projects) | $2,000.00 + $50.00/acre |
| Amendment to Conditional District | $800.00 |
| Conditional District - Administrative Approval | $500.00 |
| Ordinance Text Amendment | $500.00 |
| Vested Rights Determination | $500.00 |
Quasi-judicial and land use petitions
| Application Type | Fee |
|---|---|
| Special Use Permit | $800.00 + $40.00/acre |
| Variance - Residential | $800.00 |
| Variance - Commercial / Non-Residential | $1,200.00 |
Zoning permits and miscellaneous
| Item | Fee |
|---|---|
| Temporary Uses (Section 5.8) | $100.00 |
| Wall Sign (non-illuminated) | $35.00 |
| Zoning Re-inspection (after 2nd failure) | $50.00 |
| Planning & Zoning Plan Review (Urban Forestry) | $605.00 per plan |
| Traffic Impact Analysis (TIA) Scoping Fee | $3,000.00 |
| Technology charge (applied to development fees) | 5% |
Engineering and land-development review
| Item | Fee |
|---|---|
| Right-of-Way Utilization Permit (utilities) | $127.50 |
| Right-of-Way Easement Encroachment | $85.00 |
| Right-of-Way Work Permit | $45.00 |
| Driveway Permit - Residential | $67.50 |
| Driveway Permit - Commercial | $90.00 |
| Sidewalk Permit | $35.00 |
| Street / Easement Closing | $60.00 |
| Street Name Change | $100.00 |
Fee authority: City of Gastonia Planning Department and Engineering Division. The Traffic Impact Analysis scoping fee is a review fee, not an impact fee.
Coverage Notes - What This Page Does Not Cover
Per ZoneFee's Partial-Verified Publication Standard, the items below were either closed by official-source review as not administered, or deferred to the cited source rather than estimated or omitted silently. These items remain under limited-coverage review until these gaps are closed.
Impact Fees
North Carolina municipalities lack general development-impact-fee authority. After Quality Built Homes v. Town of Carthage (368 N.C. 909, 2016) struck municipal water and sewer impact fees, the General Assembly enacted the System Development Fee statute (NCGS 162A-200 et seq., S.L. 2017-138) as the exclusive water and sewer growth-cost mechanism. Gastonia recovers growth capacity cost through its NCGS 162A System Development Fees, captured above under utility tap fees; it levies no transportation, recreation, parks, or school impact fee. Closed-search outcome: this fee family is not administered by this jurisdiction as a distinct impact fee.
Special District Fees
Gastonia is a full-service, own-utility North Carolina city and publishes no per-application special-district developer fee. North Carolina municipal service districts (NCGS Chapter 160A, Article 23) are established by council resolution and funded by a district property-tax levy, not a developer application fee, and the Colorado Title 32 metropolitan-district model does not exist in North Carolina. No special-district developer fee appears in the consolidated fee schedule. Closed-search outcome: this fee family is not administered by this jurisdiction.
Proffers
North Carolina does not use Virginia-style cash proffers. Cash proffers are a Virginia and Maryland conditional-zoning instrument (Virginia Code Section 15.2-2303.4) with no North Carolina counterpart; NC conditional zoning is governed by NCGS Section 160D-703 and does not support that kind of monetary exaction. Closed-search outcome: this fee family does not apply to this jurisdiction.
Fee Authorities
| Authority | Fee Types | Official Website |
|---|---|---|
| City of Gastonia - Planning Department and Engineering Division | Rezoning, Conditional District rezoning, text amendment, vested rights, special use permit, variance, zoning permits, Planning & Zoning plan review, Traffic Impact Analysis scoping, and engineering / land-development review fees | gastonianc.gov |
| City of Gastonia Public Utilities - Two Rivers Utilities | Water and sewer System Development Fees (NCGS 162A) and water and sewer tap (connection) fees by meter size | gastonianc.gov |
Sources
| Document | Agency | Accessed |
|---|---|---|
| City of Gastonia FY 2026 Fee Schedule (all departments; Planning, Engineering / Land Development, and Public Utilities System Development and tap fees, 18 pp) | City of Gastonia Finance | 2026-08-04 |
Last verified by ZoneFee: 2026-08-04. Fee schedules are subject to change. Verify current rates directly with the City of Gastonia Planning Department, Engineering Division, or Public Utilities (Two Rivers Utilities) before relying on this data for any financial decision.
This page reflects fee data sourced from the City of Gastonia FY 2026 Fee Schedule (all departments), effective January 1, 2026, as of the last-verified date above. ZoneFee does not guarantee that fee amounts are current at the time you read this page. Fee schedules change. Water and sewer System Development Fees and tap fees are charged separately and vary by meter size, so the totals shown apply only to the stated meter configurations, and the standard 3/4-inch connection combines to a $7,100 System Development Fee. Sewer System Development Fees are stated for the Southeast Service Area. North Carolina charges no local impact fee and no Virginia-style cash proffer, and Gastonia publishes no per-application special-district fee. Verify all current rates directly with the City of Gastonia before relying on this data for land acquisition, project budgeting, or any financial decision. This page is for research and due-diligence reference only - it is not legal or financial advice.