Orange County
What it takes to put a carport, garage, barn or RV cover on your property in Orange County, Texas. Permit authority, wind speed, and who to call.
outline + city dots
slot, not yet drawn
Orange County states it directly: a development permit must be issued for any building constructed or moved onto a property, or for any improvement over fifty percent of the value of the building. A carport or garage that arrives on a trailer is a building moved onto a property, so it is the delivery itself that triggers the permit. The county's own permitting guide lists garages, shops and carports among the work it permits, and asks for plans or drawings and documentation of value. The permit is issued by Environmental Health and Code Compliance on FM 1442, which also runs septic permitting and the National Flood Insurance Program for the county.
Fee: Set from the work, not a flat fee: "Permit fees based on square footage of living area" for a new home and "based on the total value" for other development, per the county's General Permitting Requirements. No dollar figure published.
The county did not publish a size threshold or an exemption for a small accessory building, and it does not cite Chapter 233 as its authority. Fees are set from the total value of the work rather than a flat amount, so the number is not knowable before the office prices it. Nothing here applies inside the City of Orange, Bridge City, Vidor, Pinehurst or any other city limit.
Orange County requires that a Development Permit be issued for any building constructed or moved onto a property or for any improvement over 50% of the value of the building.
additions, garages, shops, demolition, carports, remodeling, roofing, pools, etc.
Permit fees based on square footage of living area
help protect the citizens and visitors of Orange County through permitting, inspection and enforcement of Retail Food Service Establishments, On-Site Sewage Facilities, the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) and Game Room operations.
Regional band for south and central texas. Wind speed follows your address, not the county line, so this is context and not a site figure.
ASCE 7, Risk Category II. Look up your exact address →
Cities and communities in Orange County
Inside city limits the city's rules apply on top of the county's, and cities do zone. We have not yet read each city's ordinance, so every row below is marked unverified.
Orange County Environmental Health and Code Compliance Department
11475 FM 1442, Orange, TX 77630 Call (409) 745-1463 County permit page ↗Opens ATC Hazards by Location, the source we use for wind, snow and seismic values.