Announcing the New Development Services Homepage! 

PWD has launched a new site for Development Services at water.phila.gov/development/. The site outlines the steps for acquiring Water and Sewer Connections Permits, as well as information on the Utility Plan Review, Water Transport Records, and Sewer Facilities Planning programs and their respective roles in the development process. In addition to this newly available information, the site also links to the Industrial Waste, Stormwater Billing & Incentives and Stormwater Plan Review webpages.    

3-inch Water Connections Discontinued 

PWD has been notified by our suppliers that they will soon discontinue manufacturing 3” ductile pipe.

  • PWD is no longer approving Utility Plans with 3” water connections.
  • Effective November 18, 2022, PWD will no longer issue 3” connection permits for domestic and fire services. 
  • Applicants with approved 3” connections on their Utility Plans who are not able to obtain a connection permit by November 18, 2022, will need to submit a Utility Plan Field Change for a different pipe size. PWD will expedite review of these Field Change submissions.

Fire Flow Test Requests

Effective September 1, 2022, the process for requesting a Fire Flow Test from PWD has been updated. The current Flow Test Resource can be found on the Water Transport Records subpage of the Development Services site.

View the Fire Flow Test Procedure

Water Connection Installation Backlog 

Due to an influx of submissions, there is a delay of approximately 90-business days from the date that a New Water Connection is requested to the date it is installed. For services 3” and larger, ongoing supply chain issues may add significant time to this estimate. PWD recommends scheduling your installation immediately upon receipt of the Water Connection Permit. Please refer to the following instructions regarding how to schedule a Water Connection installation: Schedule your New Water Connection (3″ or Larger).

Please contact PWD_Water_Connections@phila.gov to schedule a New Water Connection or request any additional information. 

Philadelphia C-PACE: Resiliency Projects, including Stormwater Management, Now Eligible for Funding

Since 2019, Commercial Property-Assessed Clean Energy (C-PACE) financing has assisted Philadelphia commercial property owners in funding clean energy and water efficiency projects.

The program was recently revised to include multifamily buildings, indoor air quality, and resiliency projects as eligible for financing. Property owners and developers can now work with the Program Administrator, the Philadelphia Energy Authority (PEA), as well as capital providers and mortgage holders to implement resilient stormwater management projects, as well as water efficiency, energy efficiency, and air quality upgrades to their properties. The Philadelphia Water Department is working with PEA to review innovative stormwater management projects that go above and beyond the Stormwater Regulations.  

More information on the C-PACE update

Stormwater ‘Fee In Lieu’ (FIL) Amount Increasing 

Effective September 1, 2022, the stormwater management Fee in Lieu (FIL) for exemptions to the Water Quality Requirement increased to $31.00 per square foot. As a reminder, payment of FIL is not meant for routine use and all applications for FIL must follow the procedure set out in 600.3(e) of PWD’s Stormwater Regulations. There were no other changes to fees associated with stormwater reviews.

View this and other fee amounts

L&I and PWD Plumbing Inspection Jurisdiction Plan

PWD and the Department of Licenses and Inspections (L&I) each conduct inspections of plumbing features associated with private development construction. A new resource depicting the inspection jurisdiction and department contact information can be found in the Resource Guide. Questions about this resource may be directed to PWD_DevServices@phila.gov. If you have questions about plumbing connections or scheduling inspections, please contact the appropriate group listed in the jurisdiction resource.