Plan a new community’s water, power, roads, wastewater, and stormwater as one phased infrastructure program—not as separate designs that are reconciled after the site plan is fixed. Start with the development assumptions, confirm each provider’s capacity and connection conditions, compare feasible system options, and coordinate approvals, funding, construction, and long-term ownership. This is a US-oriented planning framework, not site-specific engineering or a universal permit checklist.
1. Define the development program and decision-makers
Infrastructure needs depend on what will be built, where, and when. Before seeking service commitments or laying out corridors, document the assumptions that providers and reviewing agencies will need to evaluate:
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- Proposed land uses, unit count, density, and expected occupancy.
- Construction phases, the anticipated build-out horizon, and when each phase needs service.
- Expected demand by phase and at build-out, prepared using criteria accepted by the relevant providers and authorities.
- Potential changes to the program that could alter demand, access, drainage, or the order of construction.
Do not substitute generic demand rates or a guessed project schedule for locally accepted criteria. The project team should obtain the applicable assumptions from the serving utilities and approval authorities.
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Identify who has authority over each decision. Depending on the location, that may include the local planning authority, road authority, water and wastewater providers, electric utility, stormwater or NPDES authority, fire authority, and environmental agencies. Record the contact, decision required, expected submittal, and dependencies for each. Involve utility staff, relevant municipal departments, residents, and community groups as goals and strategies develop; EPA’s community-planning guidance emphasizes continued engagement as plans are revised.
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2. Map existing systems and verify actual capacity
Build a shared constraints map before committing to a detailed site layout. It should show existing and planned infrastructure, site conditions, and likely points of connection, including:
- Water sources, treatment, distribution, and known system constraints.
- Wastewater collection and treatment, potential connection points, and possible disposal areas.
- Electric service, distribution facilities, and relevant easements.
- Road access, roadway jurisdiction, and known capacity or planned improvements.
- Drainage paths, receiving waters, grading constraints, easements, and environmental constraints.
- Public or utility capital improvements that could affect service, schedule, or cost.
A nearby pipe, road, or power line does not establish that it has capacity for a new development or that the provider will permit a connection. Ask each provider or authority to confirm in writing the available capacity, connection conditions, required extensions or upgrades, review sequence, cost responsibility, and who will own and operate the resulting assets. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s integrated-planning framework calls for describing the systems under consideration and summarizing their current performance; it does not supply capacity figures for a particular site.
3. Compare feasible infrastructure choices
Develop alternatives with the providers and authorities that would approve, serve, or operate them. A concept that cannot be permitted, maintained, or connected is not a feasible alternative, even if it appears convenient on a preliminary plan.
Water service
Ask the serving utility whether it can serve the proposed phases and build-out, and what connection, extension, or system upgrades would be required. Confirm the source and treatment arrangements, storage and distribution needs, pressure criteria, fire-flow expectations, ownership, and operating responsibility with the utility and fire authority. Those requirements are location- and provider-specific; the planning sources do not establish universal design values.
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Wastewater: public connection, septic, or package treatment
First determine whether a public wastewater system will accept the proposed flow and whether off-site or on-site upgrades are needed. If connection is unavailable or impractical, evaluate other approaches only where local rules, site conditions, and approvals allow them. HUD’s CPD handbooks describe connection to an existing system, individual septic systems where site conditions are suitable, and a package treatment plant as possible approaches. They are conditional alternatives, not interchangeable defaults.
| Approach | What to establish before choosing it |
|---|---|
| Connect to an existing public system | Whether the provider will accept the proposed flow; available capacity; connection conditions; required collection, treatment, or off-site upgrades; cost responsibility; and ownership and operating terms. |
| Individual septic systems | Whether site and soil conditions are suitable; whether the local authority allows the approach at the proposed scale; what disposal route and permits apply; and who is responsible for long-term inspection and maintenance. |
| Package treatment plant | Whether an authority will approve the facility and its discharge or disposal route; what environmental protections, permits, operating entity, and long-term maintenance arrangements are required. |
For any option, the system must be built and operated so wastewater does not cause pollution. HUD’s handbook discussion is general guidance, not a site determination or a substitute for current local requirements.
Electric power
Give the serving electric utility a phased load forecast and the schedule when each phase must be energized. Resolve the utility’s requirements for service location, distribution extensions, easements, transformer or substation needs, review and construction sequence, and responsibility for costs and assets. Treat resilience goals, local generation, or storage as project questions to evaluate with the utility and relevant authorities—not as assumed substitutes for utility service. Utility-specific electrical sizing and commitments must come from the serving provider.
Roads and access
Confirm the road authority, permitted access points, applicable roadway classification, right-of-way and easement needs, emergency access expectations, phasing, and who will maintain or accept roads after construction. Coordinate road alignment and grading with utility corridors and drainage while the layout can still change. There is no universal road-width or pavement prescription for every community; obtain the applicable criteria from the authority that will approve and maintain the roads.
Stormwater and green infrastructure
Determine which state and local standards and federal permit requirements apply, and identify receiving waters and drainage constraints. Coordinate grading, road drainage, stormwater facilities, and green infrastructure with the land-use plan and other utility corridors. EPA describes long-term stormwater planning as a way to help manage investment and regulatory obligations, but it does not remove Clean Water Act duties, change standards, or modify permit requirements.
4. Coordinate corridors, grading, and sequence before detailed design
Bring the water, wastewater, power, road, and stormwater concepts together on a common plan. Resolve conflicts among alignments, easements, access, drainage, and grading before moving into detailed design. A corridor reserved for one system can constrain another; a road or finished grade can also change how utilities connect or how stormwater moves across the site.
Use the phasing plan to identify enabling work, dependencies, and the point at which each service must be operational for homes to be occupied. For example, identify which utility extensions or road improvements must be completed before a housing phase can proceed, and whether an interim arrangement is both permitted and maintainable. Do not announce a service or delivery date until the relevant providers and authorities have confirmed the assumptions behind it.
5. Select a coordinated package, not just a preferred component
Compare whole-system alternatives transparently. EPA’s integrated-planning approach calls for evaluating and selecting alternatives, scheduling implementation, and evaluating performance so plans can be adapted as conditions change. For each feasible package, assess:
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- Capacity, reliability, and ability to serve the proposed phases and build-out.
- Public-health and environmental performance, including wastewater and stormwater effects.
- Capital and life-cycle costs, funding availability, and who pays for off-site work.
- Schedule, phasing dependencies, approval risk, and land or easement needs.
- Ownership, operating responsibility, maintenance capability, and long-term funding.
Record why the selected package is feasible, which assumptions it relies on, and who will own and operate each asset. That record helps the project team identify what must change if demand, provider capacity, approvals, or the construction sequence changes.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.6. Build a local approvals, agreements, and funding schedule
Create an approvals register for the specific jurisdiction and project. For each approval, identify the issuing authority, required submittals and studies, dependencies, review duration as stated by the authority, fees, inspections, and any renewal or follow-up requirements. The actual permits and standards depend on the state, municipality, site, system, and provider; this guide cannot provide a universal checklist or review timeline.
HUD’s 2026 State and Local Best Practices for Home Construction page recommends making inspection, permit, approval, and fee requirements transparent and improving review efficiency. That is federal policy guidance to state and local governments, not a binding project approval or local rule.
Before relying on a delivery date, secure applicable written utility capacity or will-serve confirmations, extension agreements, easements, road agreements, environmental approvals, and funding commitments. Confirm the terms and prerequisites with the parties responsible for issuing or signing them.
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7. Phase construction, commission systems, and monitor performance
Sequence enabling infrastructure with the housing phases and the approvals that govern each system. Follow the relevant authorities’ inspection, testing, and acceptance requirements. Keep as-built records and written asset-transfer or retention agreements, and identify who will fund operations and maintenance once each system is in service.
Track service availability, costs, schedule, and environmental performance against the goals established for the program. EPA’s integrated-planning framework treats performance evaluation and adaptation as continuing work, not a one-time master-plan task. Revisit the delivery plan when actual conditions differ from the assumptions used to select the infrastructure package.
What this planning framework cannot determine
Without a location, site, development program, and identified providers, no general guide can determine a project’s available capacity, required permits, design criteria, costs, or approval schedule. Water and sewer criteria, fire-flow expectations, electric-service rules, road standards, septic suitability, stormwater requirements, and treatment approvals vary by jurisdiction and provider. HUD’s Minimum Property Standards apply in the context of HUD housing programs; their existence does not make them universal standards for every private residential development.
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