Grading and Drainage Clearance Certificate

When a Pre-Building Approval application is received, the application will be scheduled for a review at our weekly pre-screen meeting, where Subject Matter Experts from Engineering Services, Zoning and Forestry will review each application for completeness.

Prior to submitting any Pre-Building Approval application, please review the following information from Engineering Services:

• Review the Grading and Drainage Checklist and Frequently Asked Questions for more information, including a list of application submission requirements.
• If a Grading and Drainage Plan is required, then it must include:
  • P.Eng. or O.L.S. stamp
  • Metric scale
  • North arrow
  • COB benchmark & vertical control
  • Property lines with lot line dimensions
  • Existing buildings/structures (5m beyond property lines)
  • Proposed buildings/structures
  • Existing window wells with dimensions
  • Proposed window wells with dimensions
  • Existing driveway locations with dimensions and slopes
  • Proposed driveway locations with dimensions and slopes
  • Existing other hard surfaces
  • Proposed hard surfaces
  • Existing ground elevations with location markers, including:
    • Lot corners
    • Property lines (including frontages)
    • 5m beyond property lines
    • Swales and ditches
    • Culverts
    • Drainage infrastructure (including inverts)
  • Proposed ground and swale elevations (with location markers)
  • Existing downspouts with locations and discharge directions
  • Proposed downspouts with locations and discharge directions
  • Proposed sump pumps with locations and discharge directions
  • Existing services on public road allowance (i.e. storm sewer, sanitary sewer, watermain)
  • Existing service laterals with sizes
  • Proposed service laterals with sizes
  • Proposed retaining walls located no closer than 0.3m to property lines
  • Erosion and sediments control measure locations and details
  • Existing public tree locations
  • Existing private tree locations

Prior to submitting any Pre-Building Approval application, please consider the following design criteria for proposed hard surface lot coverage:

• Proposed hard surface lot coverage includes the combined area of any hard surface, including but not limited to any building or structure, driveway, patio, shed, or walkway.
• The allowable hard surface lot coverage is:
  • For lots with a frontage less than 9.14 m (or 30 ft), 50% of total lot area;
  • For lots with a frontage between 9.14 m and 15.24 m (or 30 ft to 50 ft, 55% of total lot area; and
  • For lots with a frontage greater than 15.24 m (or 50 feet), 60% of total lot area.
• If the application’s proposed hard surface lot coverage exceeds the allowable percentage of the total lot area, the following shall apply:
  • For lots with back-to-front drainage patterns and with acceptably designed swales, the installation of a catchbasin/area drain or low impact development is not required.
  • For lots with split drainage patterns, the installation of drainage infrastructure may be necessary, including accommodation for the 100-year storm runoff.

E-Transfers are the preferred method of payment. The City is set up to accept E-transfers which can be sent to Financial Services at accounting@burlington.ca.

All E-transfers MUST INCLUDE the following payment details in the Message section with every email money transfer forwarded to the City of Burlington:

• Site address
• Applicant/Owner
• Application #

PLEASE BE ADVISED: E-transfers must be sent from a bank that recognizes auto-deposit, as the City cannot receive funds if a password is required.

EFT/Wire Payments are also an acceptable method of payment. Please advise Engineering Services staff by email of the person/business completing the transfer and include the site address in the details. This will ensure timely recognition of your payment. The following information is needed for EFT/Wire Payments:

City Address

Corporation of the City of Burlington
426 Brant Street, PO Box 5013,
Burlington, ON L7R 3Z6

• Bank – 0003
• Branch – 00662
• Account – 0000018

Bank Address

Royal Bank of Canada
360 Pearl Street, Units 1-4
Burlington, ON L7R 1E1

In-person payments for Grading and Drainage Clearance Certificate applications will NOT be accepted at City Hall.