Buying a metal building in Gastonia, NC
Gastonia gave up building inspections to the county in 2022 but kept zoning. For a buyer that means two applications, two offices and one order to do them in.
Who you deal with
Official record
City of Gastonia zoning permit (first step)
Garland Municipal Business Center, 150 S. York St., Gastonia, NC 28052
(704) 866-6729, option 3
Official page
Then the construction permit from Gaston County Building and Development Services through the county portal. Hours 8 am to 5 pm, Monday through Friday.
Checked against the town’s and county’s own sites on November 1, 2026. Confirm before relying on a phone number.
Zoning permit first
The city’s own page says it plainly: construction permits are issued by Gaston County, and you first need a zoning permit from the City of Gastonia, which serves as the city’s approval. Zoning is where lot coverage, setbacks and whether an accessory building is allowed on your lot get decided. A metal building seller cannot answer those questions for you; the city can, from your parcel.
No certificate of occupancy without the city’s sign-off
Under the consolidation, the county will not issue a certificate of occupancy on a permit unless the city has issued a certificate of completion where one applies. So the city stays involved from the first form to the last. If a contract puts the permit and the inspections on you, as mine did, you are the one walking between the two offices.
The under-$30,000 owner statement
Gastonia’s building services forms include a notarized owner’s statement for permits under $30,000. That is the scale at which the owner-applicant route is designed to work. A certified metal building with a slab is several times that. Before you sign an affidavit as the owner on a project that size, call the county and ask what it expects.
Before you sign with any metal building company in Gastonia
I am a customer, not a contractor. My $98,750 L&G Building & Concrete project, a county over, is a cracked slab and half a frame as of the last update. The county guide for Gaston County has the full picture for your area.
Sources: City of Gastonia permits and inspections · City of Gastonia: consolidation with Gaston County. General information, not legal advice.