Roofing in Big Beaver, Pennsylvania

Required

The 2021 International Residential Code, as adopted by the State in the Pennsylvania Uniform Construction Code (UCC). 34 Pa. Code 403.21(a)(7) adopts "The 'International Residential Code of 2021,' except that:" followed by the State's list of exclusions and modifications, effective January 1, 2026 (55 Pa.B. 7701). None of the State's changes touches Chapter 9, Roof Assemblies, or Section R803, Roof Sheathing, so those apply as the International Code Council publishes them. Work on existing buildings is also pointed to the State's existing-building code: "The repair, alteration, change of occupancy, addition and relocation of existing buildings must comply with Chapter 34 of the 'International Building Code of 2021' or with the 'International Existing Building Code of 2021'" (34 Pa. Code 403.21(f)). The UCC is the minimum everywhere in the state: "no municipality may propose or enact any ordinance which is less than the minimum requirement of the Uniform Construction Code" (Pennsylvania Construction Code Act, Act 45 of 1999, section 503(b)). The Act also lists work it "shall not apply to", including "Alterations to residential buildings which do not make structural changes or changes to means of egress" or to "Repairs to residential buildings," in each case "except as might be required by ordinances" kept in force under section 303(b)(1) or adopted under section 503 (Act 45 section 104(b)(5) and (6); 34 Pa. Code 403.1(b)(8) and (9)). The Act defines a repair as "The reconstruction or renewal of any part of an existing building for the purpose of its maintenance." So whether the code's roofing rules reach a given house reroof depends on the municipality's own ordinances. Everything above is Pennsylvania state law, the same in every municipality. Locally, Big Beaver Borough takes building permit applications at its own office: its Forms and Applications page, read October 12, 2026, posts a "Building Permit Application" for 2026 and a 2026 fee schedule, the application says "a Certificate of Occupancy is issued by Big Beaver Borough" and refers to "the Borough Building Code Official," and the 2026 "Zoning and Building Permit and Inspection Fee Schedule" says "Inspection fees are determined by Big Beaver Borough's Uniform Construction Code (UCC) Plan Administrator" and that additional inspections are billed at "the actual rate charged by the third-party inspector." The Borough office is at 114 Forest Drive, Darlington (724-827-8962). The Borough's Zoning Ordinance (Ordinance 245, 2025, a scanned document read from its rendered pages on October 12, 2026) says in its Zoning Permits section "A zoning permit shall be required prior to" "The erection, addition, or alteration of any building and/ or structure or portion thereof," and "A Zoning Permit shall not be required for the following" are "Normal maintenance activities and alterations which do not structurally change a building." Neither clause names roof work, and this record does not decide whether a house reroof is an alteration or normal maintenance within them. The Borough's Ordinances page lists no ordinance adopting the Uniform Construction Code, and none was found published on the Borough's website or in the online code libraries of General Code (eCode360), American Legal Publishing, Municode or Code Publishing; none was read for this record. Its Ordinance 248 (International Property Maintenance Code, a scanned document) was not read. The Borough's pages, application and fee schedule read name no residential code edition.

Big Beaver Borough's pages do not say whether a house reroof needs a permit. The Borough's Application for Building/Zoning Permit lists "Repair/Replace" among its Type of Improvement boxes alongside Addition, New Building and Alteration and has no roofing box, and the fee schedule's residential lines name only new construction, additions, accessory structures, zoning use permits, pool and demolition permits, with its only roofing entry, "Commercial Roof" replacement, under its commercial lines. None of these says whether a house reroof needs a permit. The Borough's Zoning Ordinance (Ordinance 245, 2025, a scanned document read from its rendered pages on October 12, 2026) says in its Zoning Permits section "A zoning permit shall be required prior to" "The erection, addition, or alteration of any building and/ or structure or portion thereof," and "A Zoning Permit shall not be required for the following" are "Normal maintenance activities and alterations which do not structurally change a building." Neither clause names roof work, and this record does not decide whether a house reroof is an alteration or normal maintenance within them. The Borough's Ordinances page lists no ordinance adopting the Uniform Construction Code, and none was found published on the Borough's website or in the online code libraries of General Code (eCode360), American Legal Publishing, Municode or Code Publishing; none was read for this record. Its Ordinance 248 (International Property Maintenance Code, a scanned document) was not read. Under state law, Act 45 section 104(b)(5) and (6) list "Alterations to residential buildings which do not make structural changes or changes to means of egress" and "Repairs to residential buildings" among work the Act does not apply to, "except as might be required by ordinances in effect pursuant to section 303(b)(1) or adopted pursuant to section 503," and 34 Pa. Code 403.62(c) says "A permit is not required for the exceptions listed in § 403.1(b) (relating to scope) and the following, if the work does not violate a law or ordinance." This record does not state whether a house reroof needs a permit; ask the Borough office (724-827-8962) before starting. The fee schedule says "Please call Big Beaver Borough Office" for questions on permitting not listed. Read for this answer: the Borough's Forms and Applications, Ordinances and Planning and Zoning pages; its 2026 Application for Building/Zoning Permit; its 2026 fee schedule (a scanned document read from its rendered pages); and its Zoning Ordinance (all pages, as scanned, searched for roof and permit words).