Roofing in Lawrence Park Township, 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, Lawrence Park Township's Uniform Construction Code page says the Township "has joined with Harborcreek, Millcreek and Fairview Townships and employed Building Inspection Underwriters, Inc. (BIU)" to administer and enforce the code, that "The Township will continue to issue Zoning Permits and Building Inspection Underwriters will issue UCC permits and inspect construction," and its Zoning FAQs say "Permit applications are available at the Township office," 4230 Iroquois Avenue, Erie. Chapter 1428 of the Township's Codified Ordinances adopts the codes listed at 34 Pa. Code 403.21 "as may in the future be amended," sets a roof snow load of 40 psf and a 48-inch frost depth, and changes nothing in the code's roofing provisions; neither the chapter nor the Township's pages name a code edition.

Lawrence Park Township's pages and Codified Ordinances read for this record do not say whether a house reroof needs a permit. Chapter 1428 of the Township's Codified Ordinances adopts the Pennsylvania Construction Code Act and the codes listed at 34 Pa. Code 403.21, "as may in the future be amended"; Section 1428.05 says the chapter applies to the construction, alteration and repair of every building and that "Exceptions to application of the UCC as set forth in the Act and/or administrative regulations shall apply and are incorporated herein by reference," and Section 1428.08(b) says "Except as expressly authorized in the UCC or in the administrative regulations governing its implementation, no construction or other activity regulated by the UCC shall be conducted or commenced without a permit therefor first being issued." Chapter 1428 names no roof work, and Section 1428.09 leaves UCC review and inspection fees to the Township's contract with its firm. The Township's Zoning FAQs, under "What permits am I required to obtain?", list projects needing a zoning permit only, a UCC permit only, both, or neither; roofing is in none of the lists, though projects needing both include "altering any framing (dormers, roof pitch changes, skylights, moving walls, etc.)". The page says "Only the Zoning Administrator and the Code Official can make the determination what permit is required." 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 permit is required for a house reroof; ask the Township office (814-899-2305) before starting. Section 1428.06 says no UCC permit application is accepted until a Township zoning permit is issued, except for matters the Zoning Administrator certifies in writing need none. Read for this answer: the Township's Uniform Construction Code, Zoning and Code Enforcement, and Zoning FAQs pages; Chapter 1428 (Uniform Construction Code) and the Part Fourteen index of the Codified Ordinances, which the Township posts as current through 2013; and Chapter 1262 (zoning administration), whose permit section names no roof work. No UCC permit fee schedule was found published.