Barndominium Builders in Pickens, SC

Barndominium builders who work near Pickens are building in the shadow of the mountains. Pickens is the county seat of Pickens County, a small city of 3,388 people in 2020 at about 1,053 feet. Glassy Mountain rises to the east and Table Rock State Park lies to the north, home to Pinnacle Mountain, described as the highest mountain entirely within South Carolina. Further north, Sassafras Mountain reaches 3,560 feet, the highest natural point in the state. Land around Pickens runs from rolling pasture to steep wooded ridges, and that range shapes every barndominium plan.

The county process, step by step

Because Pickens is the county seat, the county's Building Codes, Planning and Stormwater offices are right in town at 222 McDaniel Avenue. Pickens County lays out its residential permit process in a set order:

1. Septic permit. Apply to the state with a current recorded plat. Pickens County's packet tells applicants to allow 4 to 5 weeks. 2. 911 address. Once the septic permit is approved, the Pickens County E-911 Department assigns an address. 3. Building permit. With the address assigned, the application goes to Building Codes. A permit is needed for any structure of 200 square feet or more, or of any size with plumbing or electrical. Owner-builders file an affidavit and must occupy the home for at least two years. 4. Fees and issuance. The permit issues when fees are paid, and construction must start within 6 months or the permit becomes void. 5. Encroachment permit for a driveway onto a county road, with the driveway location clearly marked. 6. Grading permits from Stormwater when disturbance reaches a quarter acre, or a full land disturbance permit at one acre.

Building Codes accepts applications in person or online through the EnerGov Citizen Self Service portal, and its stated goal is inspection service within 24 hours of a request.

Inside city limits

The City of Pickens issues its own permits through the City of Pickens Permit Portal, and permits are picked up and paid for at City Hall, 219 Pendleton Street. The city has a zoning map, a Planning Commission, a Board of Zoning Appeals and a Board of Architectural Review. On a lot inside the city, we check the zoning map first and ask the city about any design review before drawing elevations.

Inspections on a Pickens County barndo

The county lists the inspection sequence as footing or slab, rough-in (framing, electrical, HVAC and plumbing), foundation drainage before backfill if there is a basement, permanent power, and final. The final inspection requires the driveway to be complete, and a Certificate of Occupancy is required before anyone moves in. We schedule the work around those stops so the building is not held up waiting on an inspection.

Wet, cold and steep

Pickens gets more rain than much of the Upstate. Climate normals for 1991 to 2020 show 56.67 inches of average annual precipitation, about 1 inch of snow, and recorded extremes from 106 degrees down to minus 6. For a barndominium here we plan:

• Large gutters and downspouts that carry roof water well away from the slab
• Slab-edge insulation and freeze-protected plumbing for the occasional deep cold
• Driveways graded and surfaced to handle heavy rain on a slope

Rivers and the ground

The Twelve Mile River feeds Lake Hartwell, and the county lies across the Savannah, Saluda and French Broad river basins. Low land along creeks needs a check against the floodplain maps; Pickens County's planning department keeps a floodplain development permit application and the flood damage prevention standards in its Unified Development Standards Ordinance. Upland sites are generally deep weathered clay; the USDA Pacolet series, common on Piedmont slopes of 15 to 25 percent, has a clay subsoil and medium to rapid runoff, which is why erosion control matters on a cleared pad here.

A courthouse town since 1868

In 1868 Pickens District was split into Pickens and Oconee counties, and the courthouse town moved to its present site and took the name Pickens, after Revolutionary War soldier Andrew Pickens. Hagood Mill, a historic site three miles north of downtown on US 178, still stands. A barndominium fits that working-country setting well: a shop and a home under one roof.

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. If you already have a recorded plat, the septic application can start right away.