Walton County, GA Swimming Pools & Spas: Pool Permits (2026)

Section 6-1-920 governs home swimming pools in every district where they are a permitted use, and Subsection D makes Walton County Health Department approval a precondition to the building permit itself for any in-ground pool: the ordinance states plainly that this approval must be obtained prior to obtaining a building permit, so the Health Department review happens before, not alongside, the Planning and Development Department's permit review. That sequencing matters because the same section imposes dimensional standards a homeowner needs to satisfy before applying: the pool must sit at least fifteen feet from any property line under Subsection A, the pool and deck must be enclosed by a wall or fence at least four feet high under Subsection B once the pool exceeds twenty-four inches of depth or one hundred square feet of surface area, and the deck itself must stay at least five feet from any property line under Subsection C.

A homeowner planning an in-ground pool should expect the permit process to run through two county offices in sequence, the Health Department confirming the installation meets its standards first, then Planning and Development or Building Inspections issuing the building permit once that approval and the setback and fencing plans are in hand. The ordinance does not carve out an exception for small or temporary in-ground installations; the Health Department approval step in Subsection D applies to any in-ground swimming pool built in unincorporated Walton County.