COVID-19 Updates

While City Hall is now partially open to the public, we still ask the public to move to electronic submissions for their Building Safety and Permitting needs. Download the Permitting During COVID-19 Closures flyer for more details. 

See the latest status of City Hall and other City programs and operations on the City's COVID-19 Closures and Cancellations page. 

Latest News

1/14/21, 5:30 PM: The Development Services Counter, like the rest of City Hall, will be closed to the public Monday, January 18 through Wednesday, January 20. Monday is the Martin Luther King Holiday, so we will not be answering phones or responding to e-mail. On Tuesday and Wednesday, we will be operating through e-mail only. We will not be able to answer the phone. Tuesday inspections will be scheduled and carried out as usual. As the note just below says, we are not scheduling Wednesday inspections at all.

12/22/2020, 3:00 PM: Continuing from the last four months, inspection appointments will not be available on Wednesdays through the end of January. This will allow staff to devote the time to plan review.

9/30/20 2:00 PM: There are new requirements for installing yard hydrants in the City of Falls Church. All yard hydrants must be sanitary type with atmospheric hose connection vacuum breaker backflow preventers.Please see this flyer for more details.

Operating Status: The counter is open daily 8:00-12:00 and 2:00-4:00. In keeping with the goal of limiting on-site personnel, only one person is staffing the counter. This means there may be some unscheduled closures. Please try to limit counter visits only to those things absolutely requiring them. Use e-mail whenever possible. For the duration of the disruption, we are asking everyone to move to electronic submissions. 

  • Avoid coming to City Hall on Wednesdays. Court sessions have resumed, and City Hall will be much more crowded.
  • If you’re coming from any distance, call or e-mail first to ensure we are open.
  • If you pay for a permit in person, plans will still be returned electronically.
  • Applications and plans are not accepted at the counter.
  • All submissions should be made in PDF form to the permits e-mail. Plans should be in a single PDF, or at most two if there are separate drawings and submittals.
  • To request an inspection, please use the web form. Most inspections are conducted with Google Duo.
  • For more complete details, please see this handout.

Welcome

Welcome to the Building Safety Division of the City of Falls Church. We enforce the codes and regulations established by the Commonwealth of Virginia and the City governing the construction, alteration, and maintenance of buildings and structures within the City for the protection of residents and property.

Useful Links

Codes and Fees

Building Code Associations

Related City Divisions