Building permits, zoning and land rules in Blount County, Alabama

A general county building permit for an ordinary home in unincorporated Blount County could not be confirmed, and the county's department list has no building-permit or inspection office¹. Alabama's State Building Code covers state-owned or state-funded work, schools, hotels, motels and movie theaters, but the state construction office has no jurisdiction over ordinary residential property⁹. Authority to adopt a residential building code moved to the Alabama Home Builders Licensure Board in October 2024, and the state's page said a code was to be presented for adoption by October 2025; that adoption does not itself create a Blount County permit⁹. Alabama law also lets a county commission adopt building codes for unincorporated land, but the statute does not say whether Blount County has done so¹⁴. Where a local authority does issue residential permits, it must refuse one to a builder who needs a state home-builder license and cannot show a license or exemption¹⁵. Separate county approvals still apply: development in a designated floodplain needs the County Engineer's approval, and access into a county right-of-way needs County Commission approval^3,4. Inside a town, ask the town first: Oneonta requires written authorization from the city building inspector before construction, alteration or repair begins, except for minor repairs under $100 and painting or wallpapering⁶. Highland Lake inspects new construction and additions under its adopted code, and Blountsville's planning department has a building office^10,11.

Unincorporated Blount County has no listed general building-permit department, so the right contact depends on the work¹. The Blount County Engineering Department administers the subdivision regulations and is the county contact for subdivision, floodplain and county-road-access questions¹⁶. Reach Engineering at 6454 Second Ave. West, Oneonta, AL 35121, by phone at 205-274-2128 or by email at nalexander@blountcountyal.gov¹⁶. Blount County Health Department Environmental Services handles onsite-sewage applications and permits under Alabama's county-health-department program^8,17. Its contact is 1001 Lincoln Avenue, Oneonta, Alabama 35121, phone 205-947-1076¹⁸. Inside Blountsville, the town's planning department has its own building office¹¹. Inside Oneonta, the city building inspector issues the written authorization that building permits require⁶. Highland Lake documents its own building requirements¹⁰. Septic stays with the county health office even inside Oneonta, and inside Blountsville the town's code defers lot-area questions to it^12,19.

Unincorporated Blount County has no county zoning authority, so county zoning does not set dwelling size, lot coverage, building height or residential-use limits there². That does not leave every parcel free of regulation: subdivision standards can govern lots, setbacks, roads and plat approval, while floodplain, septic and driveway rules operate separately from zoning^3,4,12. Three towns do zone. Blountsville has an adopted zoning ordinance with residential districts⁵. Land inside Oneonta is zoned under the city's own ordinance, administered and enforced by the city building inspector⁶; the Planning Commission recommends changes and the Mayor and City Council decide²⁰. Highland Lake has a zoning ordinance and map requiring land uses and structures to follow district rules⁷. The county's subdivision regulations do not administer Oneonta's zoning²⁰. Check whether the parcel sits inside town limits or a town's planning jurisdiction before relying on the unincorporated-county answer³.

Blount County Health Department handles local onsite-sewage applications and permits as part of Alabama's county-health-department program, which the state's Soil and Onsite Sewage Branch coordinates, and that holds for addresses inside Oneonta and Blountsville too^8,12,17,19. Where public sanitary sewer is unavailable, submit a complete application and plans to the Health Department and wait for the Permit to Install before construction begins; the installer must be licensed by the Alabama Onsite Wastewater Board¹². Inspection depends on the work: the local Health Department may inspect a qualifying tank or non-perforated-component repair if time allows, while a signed repair waiver means no inspection or Approval for Use²¹. The Health Department performs no site visit or installation inspection for an engineered small-flow system submitted on the applicable professional-engineer form²². Site suitability deserves attention before purchase because only 6.9% of Blount County soils are rated without severe limitations for a conventional septic drain field²³. For residential lots in a major subdivision that lack public water or sewer, septic tanks and wells need Blount County Health Department approval on the proposed plat, and the lot size follows Health Department rules with a floor of 7,500 square feet³. The available information does not establish a general permit rule for every individual private well, so ask Environmental Services about the particular site^3,18.

County zoning does not restrict RV occupancy, tiny-home occupancy or temporary camping on unincorporated land in Blount County². That answer is only about county zoning: ask the County Engineer about subdivision, floodplain and road-access requirements, and ask the Health Department how wastewater must be approved before using either structure as a residence^12,16,18. Inside Blountsville, Oneonta or Highland Lake, town zoning can change the answer; Blountsville's code, for example, allows a temporary mobile home or travel trailer only as business or industrial quarters in a business or industrial zone, on a 120-day permit^6,7,11. Alabama's manufactured-housing rule treats a park model, a recreational trailer of 400 square feet or less, as a recreational or seasonal unit rather than a permanent dwelling²⁴. A manufactured home is a distinct regulated category: Alabama requires installation by a certified Alabama Manufactured Housing Commission installer and requires qualifying homes to carry the federal label and data plate²⁵. We could not confirm a short-term-rental rule for unincorporated Blount County; ask Engineering about the proposed use¹⁶.

1. Confirm whether the parcel is unincorporated or inside a municipality, because Blountsville, Oneonta and Highland Lake have zoning, and Oneonta requires building-inspector authorization^5,6,7,10.

1. Ask the Engineering Department whether subdivision approval, a Flood Plain Development Permit or a county-road Driveway Access Permit applies^3,4,16.

1. If access is from a state highway, submit the state driveway application to the ALDOT District Administrator²⁶.

1. Confirm sewer availability; if an onsite system is needed, obtain the Health Department's Permit to Install before septic construction^12,18.

1. Decide who will build. A qualifying owner may act as contractor for an owner-occupied one- or two-family residence by personally supervising the work, but the state licensing exemption does not erase any local permit requirement¹³. The exemption is nontransferable, requires the owner to supervise personally, and presumes the home was built for sale if it is offered within 1 year of completion; subcontractors must be licensed when their portion costs more than $10,000¹³.

1. Before starting, confirm any municipal permit, inspection and occupancy requirements; where a municipality issues a certificate of occupancy, the builder must provide an updated subcontractor list first¹⁵.

Start with legal access and development status. A driveway into a county right-of-way requires approval, while access to a state highway uses ALDOT's permit process^4,26. Confirm that a newly created subdivision lot has a recorded final plat before planning construction³. Major subdivisions carry a $250 proposed-plat review fee plus $25 per lot, site or unit, while minor and rural subdivisions have no submittal fee; other inspection, testing, postage and filing costs may still apply³. Qualifying agricultural roads and buildings can be exempt from subdivision review, and a qualifying division into parcels of at least 20 acres can also be exempt, but both routes require an Exempt Subdivision Letter from the County Engineer and do not waive health, state, highway-setback or applicable municipal rules³. Check septic feasibility early because only 6.9% of county soils are rated without severe limitations for conventional drain fields²³. Land disturbance of one acre or more generally needs Alabama Department of Environmental Management construction stormwater coverage, which carries a $1,385 application fee²⁷. Finally, confirm floodplain status, town boundaries and road classification before closing because each can change the approvals, setbacks and costs^3,5,6,7.