Gastonia, NC Environmental Rules: Stormwater Management (2026)

Under Sec. 14-731(c), the ordinance applies to all development, including site plan, subdivision, and grading applications, once a project crosses the low-density threshold defined at Sec. 14-730: more than two dwelling units per acre, 24 percent built-upon area, or 20,000 square feet of new impervious surface. Cross any one of those numbers and the project is reclassified high-density and must meet the stricter water-quality standards in Sec. 14-738(c), including capturing the first inch of rain, a 48-to-96-hour drawdown time, and 85 percent average annual removal of total suspended solids. Farming and forestry activities exempt under Section 404 of the federal Clean Water Act, 40 CFR 232, fall outside the ordinance entirely.

Applicants file with the stormwater administrator under Sec. 14-734, paying the fee set by the city's fee schedule; an incomplete application does not stop the review clock, and a revised application not resubmitted within 60 days is deemed withdrawn, forcing a new submittal and fee. Approved plans expire if the applicant fails to show substantial progress, such as grading or foundation work, within one year, though the administrator may grant a single one-year extension for good cause. Decisions can be appealed to the seven-member Stormwater Commission within 30 days under Sec. 14-737, and commission rulings are reviewable by Gaston County Superior Court through a certiorari petition filed within 30 days.

Every structural best-management-practice device an owner installs must be maintained under an operation and maintenance agreement, with an annual inspection report from a licensed engineer, surveyor, landscape architect, or NC State-certified inspector filed with the stormwater administrator under Sec. 14-740. Refusing to allow that inspection can bring an administrative search warrant under G.S. 15-27.2.