If you’ve heard that “Fairhope isn’t issuing any building permits”—that’s not exactly true. There’s been a lot of chatter (and honestly, some misunderstandings) about the City of Fairhope’s recent ordinance hitting the pause button on certain types of new developments. Since I get asked about this regularly, I wanted to break it down in plain English.
What Did the City Actually Do?
On February 10, 2025, the Fairhope City Council passed Ordinance No. 1823, which temporarily suspends the acceptance and consideration of:
- Multiple Occupancy Project (MOP) applications with 3 or more residential units, and
- Subdivision applications with 3 or more residential lots smaller than 10,500 square feet per lot.
The pause is set for nine months from the effective date.
What’s NOT Affected?
✅ Single-family home permits on individual lots (if not part of a qualifying subdivision)
✅ Subdivisions with lots larger than 10,500 square feet
✅ Projects with fewer than 3 units or 3 lots
✅ Any applications that were already submitted and paid for before the ordinance took effect
Why the Pause?
The city isn’t trying to shut down growth altogether—they’re simply hitting “pause” on certain higher-density developments so they can:
- Study the impact on roads, utilities, and sewer capacity
- Update infrastructure plans
- Review traffic and parking issues
- Consider changes to the Comprehensive Plan, Zoning Ordinance, and Subdivision Regulations
The Bottom Line:
This is a temporary, targeted pause meant to help the city catch its breath and make sure we’re growing responsibly—not a blanket shutdown on all building permits.
If you’ve got questions about how this might affect your plans or projects, I’m always here to help break it down.