Bolthole Index

Crowley County, Colorado

Building permits, zoning and sewer rules in the Town of Ordway, Colorado

The Town of Ordway, Colorado requires a town building permit before constructing any structure or making a substantial improvement.1 Ordway also administers zoning, with district uses by right requiring a zoning permit.2 In Crowley County, Otero County Health Department handles septic permitting, but Ordway’s sewer rules prohibit septic facilities subject to exceptions that need town confirmation.34

At a glance

Building permit
Required from the town building permit agent before construction or substantial improvements1
Zoning
Town zoning applies; uses by right require a zoning permit2
Sewer connection
For qualifying properties, required within 90 days after notice when public sewer is within 400 feet of the property line5
Septic
Town prohibition has exceptions to confirm; Otero County Health Department is the county-area septic authority43
Residential lot coverage
In R-1, all buildings together may cover no more than 50% of the parcel’s ground area6
Floodplain inspections
Development in Special Flood Hazard Areas is inspected during construction for floodplain compliance7

Who to call

Building permits

Town of Ordway — Town Hall

Starting contact for the town building permit agent, zoning administrator, and water and sewer applications

(719) 267-3134

311 Main Street Ordway, Colorado 81063

Septic permits

Otero County Health Department — Ordway office

Health department serving Crowley County; contact for referral to environmental health about any town-approved septic proposal

719-267-5245

603 Main, Ordway CO 81063

Contact details are copied from each office’s official page and were checked against it on October 10, 2026.

Off-grid gear

Going off-grid in Town of Ordway means bringing your own water and power. The kit we’d start with:

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Do you need a building permit in the Town of Ordway, CO?

Yes: Ordway requires a permit from the town building permit agent before constructing any structure or making a substantial improvement to an existing structure, including residential, commercial and industrial projects.1 Start with the town building permit agent for a home inside town limits rather than treating the county building-permit packet as the town application.1 For a parcel outside Ordway, use the Crowley County guide for the county building-permit requirements covering new stick-built construction, manufactured homes and remodeling.8

Who issues building permits in the Town of Ordway, and where do you apply?

Ordway’s code names the town building permit agent as the issuer of building permits.1 The town’s forms page lists a Building Permit alongside Sewer Application and Water Service forms.9 Call Town Hall at (719) 267-3134 or visit 311 Main Street Ordway, Colorado 81063 to ask for the building permit agent and the current application instructions.9 Ask the agent to identify the applicable code edition, building permit fees, required drawings, inspection schedule and approval needed before occupying the completed home; we could not confirm the town’s certificate-of-occupancy rule.9

Does the Town of Ordway have zoning, lot coverage rules and setbacks?

Ordway has town zoning, and the residential district provisions require a zoning permit from the zoning administrator for uses by right.2 In Ordway’s R-1 single-family residential district, all buildings together may cover no more than 50% of the parcel’s ground area; that is a lot-coverage limit, not a minimum home size.6 Before choosing a house footprint or adding an outbuilding, ask the zoning administrator through Town Hall to confirm the parcel’s district, permitted use, setbacks and zoning approval.29 We could not confirm a minimum dwelling size or a town rule specifically authorizing an accessory dwelling unit; ask the zoning administrator about the proposed layout and use.9

How do sewer connections and septic permits work inside the Town of Ordway?

For occupied or otherwise used properties inside Ordway that abut a street, alley or right-of-way containing town public sanitary sewer, the owner must connect at the owner’s expense within 90 days after official notice when the sewer is within 400 feet of the property line.5 Ordway’s code prohibits privies, septic tanks, cesspools and other wastewater-disposal facilities, but expressly makes that prohibition subject to later exceptions.4 Ask Town Hall whether an exception applies to the specific parcel before planning a septic system.49 Otero County Health Department administers septic permits for Crowley County sites, and its Ordway office is a contact for environmental-health questions; a health department septic permit should not be treated as confirmation of an Ordway town exception.3104

Can you live in an RV or tiny home in the Town of Ordway?

We could not confirm permission for full-time RV occupancy, a general private-land camping allowance or a rule specifically allowing tiny-home occupancy in Ordway; ask the town zoning administrator about the proposed dwelling and use before buying it.9 Describe whether the unit will have wheels, a permanent foundation, utility connections or temporary occupancy during construction so the administrator can address the actual proposal.9 A proposed tiny-home structure still needs to be discussed with the town building permit agent under Ordway’s requirement for construction of any structure.1 Sewer and wastewater restrictions also need resolving independently of the dwelling’s size.54

What are the steps to building a home in the Town of Ordway?

  1. Ask the town zoning administrator to confirm the district and proposed residential use, then obtain the applicable zoning permit.2
  2. Resolve sewer service with Town Hall using the town’s Sewer Application; if proposing septic, confirm the town exception before approaching Otero County Health Department about septic permitting.943
  3. Obtain the town building permit before beginning construction or substantial improvements.1
  4. Ask the town building permit agent about required inspections and completion approvals; development in Ordway’s Special Flood Hazard Areas is inspected during construction for floodplain compliance, including proper structure elevation.97
  5. Before moving in, ask the town to confirm occupancy approval and any outstanding sewer-connection requirement.95

Watch-outs

  • Ordway’s septic prohibition includes an exception cross-reference whose applicability we could not confirm; ask Town Hall before committing to an off-grid wastewater plan.49
  • We could not confirm an Ordway exemption for owner-built new homes or agricultural construction; ask the town building permit agent before assuming either avoids a building permit.91
  • We could not confirm the well-permit or driveway-access approval requirements for a parcel inside Ordway; ask Town Hall to identify the appropriate water and access authorities before buying.9

Sources

  1. Ordway Code Chapter 15.12—Building Permits (Town of Ordway), quoted and re-checked
  2. Ordway Code § 17.12.020—Single-family residential district (R-1) (Town of Ordway), quoted and re-checked
  3. Requirements for a Crowley County Building Permit, quoted and re-checked
  4. Ordway Code § 13.04.020—Use of public sewers required (Town of Ordway), quoted and re-checked
  5. Ordway Code § 13.04.020—Use of public sewers required (Town of Ordway), quoted and re-checked
  6. Ordway Code § 17.12.020—Single-family residential district (R-1) (Town of Ordway), quoted and re-checked
  7. Ordway Code §§ 15.16.100–15.16.120—Flood Damage Prevention (Town of Ordway), quoted and re-checked
  8. Requirements for a Crowley County Building Permit, quoted and re-checked
  9. Town of Ordway — Town Hall (townofordway.colorado.gov)
  10. Otero County Health Department — Ordway office (oterocounty.colorado.gov)

Written October 10, 2026 from the rules quoted below, each taken from an official source and re-checked by an independent reviewer. This is research, not legal advice: rules change, so confirm with the office before you buy or build.

Answers from the rulebook for Town of Ordway

Town of Ordway’s own rules

  • Building permitRequired

    Any structure or substantial improvement, residential, industrial, commercial, or otherwise, inside Ordway town.

    • Permit must be obtained from the town building permit agent before construction.
    “No person, firm, corporation, partnership, association or any other legal entity shall construct or cause to be constructed any structure or substantial improvement to any structure (residential, industrial, commercial or otherwise) without first obtaining a permit to construct the same from the town building permit agent of the town of Ordway”
  • InspectionsRequired

    Development inside Ordway Special Flood Hazard Areas.

    • Inspection occurs at appropriate times during construction to ensure floodplain-ordinance compliance.
    “Inspect all development at appropriate times during the period of construction to ensure compliance with all provisions of this ordinance, including proper elevation of the structure.”
  • Local zoningPresent (with conditions)

    Land inside Ordway town limits.

    • District uses by right require a zoning permit from the zoning administrator.
    “A use by right is any of the following uses, which are permitted upon issuance of a zoning permit by the zoning administrator:”
  • Off-grid sanitationProhibited

    Privies, septic tanks, cesspools, and other wastewater-disposal facilities inside areas under Ordway town jurisdiction.

    • The code states an exception cross-reference: 'Except as hereinafter provided.'
    “Except as hereinafter provided, it is unlawful to construct or maintain any privy, privy vault, septic tank, cesspool, or other facility intended or used for the disposal of wastewater in any area under the jurisdiction of the town.”
  • Mandatory utility hookupSewer (with conditions)

    Houses, buildings, or properties for human occupancy, employment, recreation, or other purposes inside Ordway town that abut a street, alley, or right-of-way containing a town public sanitary sewer.

    • Connection is required within 90 days after official notice.
    • The public sewer must be within 400 feet of the property line.
    • Owner pays the expense.

    public sewer distance: <= 400 feet (Measured from the property line.) · connection deadline after official notice: <= 90 days

    “The owner(s) of all houses, buildings or properties used for human occupancy, employment, recreation, or other purposes, situated within the town and abutting on any street, alley or right-of-way in which there is now located or may in the future be located a public sanitary sewer of the town, is required at the owner(s) expense to install suitable toilet facilities therein, and to connect such facilities directly with the proper public sewer in accordance with the provisions of this chapter, within ninety (90) days after date of official notice to do so, provided that said public sewer is within four hundred (400) feet of the property line.”

Rules another office applies inside Town of Ordway

Town of Ordway does not set these itself; the county, a health district or the state does, and they apply to every address inside its limits.

  • Lot coverageSpecified

    R-1 single-family residential district inside Ordway town.

    maximum building coverage: <= 50 percent of parcel ground area

    “The total ground area covered by all buildings on the parcel shall not exceed fifty (50) percent of the total ground area of the parcel.”

Still unanswered

We looked and could not find an official answer yet. Silence is not permission; ask Town of Ordway or Crowley County directly.

  • Owner-builder exemption — Owner-built residential construction inside Ordway town.
  • Certificate of occupancy — Occupancy of buildings inside Ordway town.
  • Minimum dwelling size — Dwelling units in Ordway residential and agricultural districts.
  • Camping on your land — Temporary camping on private land inside Ordway town.
  • Tiny homes — Tiny-home occupancy inside Ordway town.
7 more unanswered
  • Accessory dwellings
  • Septic permit
  • Septic inspection
  • Well permit
  • Agricultural exemption
  • Driveway access
  • Short-term rentals

Each answer was extracted from an official source and independently re-checked against that source by a second reviewer. That is an evidence check, not legal advice. Rules change; confirm with the authority before you buy or build.

Unanswered questions are usually a sign that Town of Ordway publishes no rule on the point, not that none exists. Crowley County’s page lists the county offices to call.

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