Zoning, building permits and septic rules in Town of Alto, Georgia

Town of Alto’s own rules

• Local zoningPresent

  Land inside Alto town limits

  • Zoning Ordinance 2016-0712 (Appendix A of the Alto code) with named districts and Special Use Permits

  “No tract or parcel of land shall be considered for a Special Use Permit that has an area, width or road frontage less than the minimum required area, width or road frontage for the Zoning District of the property.”

• Zoning districtsPublished

  Alto town zoning districts (R-I to R-IV, MHP, NS, HB, CB, CBD, O-P, M-1, M-2, A, PDD)

  • District schedule published in Sec. 2202 of Zoning Ordinance 2016-0712

  “MAXIMUM DENSITY (UNITS PER ACRE) MINIMUM HEATED FLOOR AREA PER UNIT (SQ. FT.) R-I 12,000/.275 100 35 30 1.3 1,600”

• Minimum dwelling sizeDistrict specific (with conditions)

  R-I Single Family Residential district inside Alto town

  • Table column is minimum heated floor area per unit

  minimum heated floor area per unit: >= 1600 sq ft

  “MAXIMUM DENSITY (UNITS PER ACRE) MINIMUM HEATED FLOOR AREA PER UNIT (SQ. FT.) R-I 12,000/.275 100 35 30 1.3 1,600”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • District specific (with conditions) — R-IV Estate Residential district inside Alto town

    “R-III 6,000 50 50 35 4 1,200 R-IV 25,000 100 35 40 1 2,200”

• Minimum lot sizeDistrict specific (with conditions)

  R-I Single Family Residential district inside Alto town

  • Separate code Sec. 26-23 requires single-family residences on an approved lot of not less than one acre town-wide, with exceptions for pre-existing lots; the two provisions differ and should be reconciled

  minimum lot size: 12,000/.275 sq ft / acres · minimum lot width: >= 100 feet

  “MAXIMUM DENSITY (UNITS PER ACRE) MINIMUM HEATED FLOOR AREA PER UNIT (SQ. FT.) R-I 12,000/.275 100 35 30 1.3 1,600”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • District specific (with conditions) — R-IV Estate Residential district inside Alto town

    “R-III 6,000 50 50 35 4 1,200 R-IV 25,000 100 35 40 1 2,200”

• SetbacksSpecified

  Accessory buildings and uses inside Alto town (all districts); principal-building yard setbacks by district not found

  • Accessory buildings only in side or rear yards
  • Detached accessory buildings at least 10 feet from the principal building

  accessory setback from any lot line: >= 5 feet

  “1. accessory buildings and uses shall be set back a minimum of five (5) feet from any lot line.”

• Lot coverageDistrict specific (with conditions)

  R-I Single Family Residential district inside Alto town

  maximum lot coverage: <= 30 percent

  “MAXIMUM DENSITY (UNITS PER ACRE) MINIMUM HEATED FLOOR AREA PER UNIT (SQ. FT.) R-I 12,000/.275 100 35 30 1.3 1,600”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • District specific (with conditions) — R-IV Estate Residential district inside Alto town

    “R-III 6,000 50 50 35 4 1,200 R-IV 25,000 100 35 40 1 2,200”

• Building heightDistrict specific (with conditions)

  R-I Single Family Residential district inside Alto town

  maximum height: <= 35 feet

  “MAXIMUM DENSITY (UNITS PER ACRE) MINIMUM HEATED FLOOR AREA PER UNIT (SQ. FT.) R-I 12,000/.275 100 35 30 1.3 1,600”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • District specific (with conditions) — R-IV Estate Residential district inside Alto town

    “R-III 6,000 50 50 35 4 1,200 R-IV 25,000 100 35 40 1 2,200”

• Living in an RVTemporary only (with conditions)

  RV use as a private residence on residential premises inside Alto town

  • Limited to one recreational vehicle
  • Connection to Town sewer system is prohibited
  • RVs otherwise parked or stored only in side yards, rear yards, carports or enclosed buildings

  maximum RV residence duration: <= 21 days

  “the temporary use of recreational vehicles such as motor homes, travel trailers and tent trailers as private residences shall be permitted but limited to a maximum duration in time of twenty-one (21) days.”

• Manufactured homesLimited

  Manufactured/mobile homes inside Alto town

  • Excluded from R-IV Estate Residential single-family dwellings
  • Parks are governed by the MHP district (min. 2 contiguous acres, 4 units/acre, public water and sewer)
  • Each home must meet the Building Code Ordinance of Alto

  MHP minimum space size: >= 10000 sq ft

  “1. mobile homes and manufactured homes within manufactured or mobile home parks, but not including manufactured or mobile homes on individual lots under separate ownership.”

• Accessory dwellingsLimited

  Accessory apartments in the R-I district inside Alto town

  • R-I permitted accessory uses include guest houses expressly 'not accessory apartments'; accessory apartments are not listed as permitted in R-I
  • Other districts not reviewed

  “including guest houses (not accessory apartments) home gardens, non-commercial greenhouses, land shelters or enclosures for household pets.”

• Mandatory utility hookupWater and sewer (with conditions)

  Manufactured or mobile home parks in the MHP district inside Alto town

  • Applies to MHP parks only; a general connection rule for single-family homes was not found

  “all manufactured or mobile home parks shall be served by approved public water and public sanitary sewer systems.”

• Subdividing landRegulated (with conditions)

  Subdivision of land inside Alto town

  • The code refers to Town of Alto Subdivision Regulations; the regulations themselves were not opened

  “3. street requirements: interior roads serving the development shall be constructed to town standards as specified in the town of alto subdivision regulations”

• Building in a floodplainRequired

  Development in areas of special flood hazard inside Alto town

  • Applies only in areas of special flood hazard
  • Where base flood elevation data are available, lowest floor must be at least one foot above base flood elevation
  • RVs must be on site fewer than 180 consecutive days, be road-ready, or meet new-construction standards

  freeboard above base flood elevation: >= 1 foot

  “new construction and/or substantial improvements - where base flood elevation data are available, new construction and/or substantial improvement of any structure or manufactured home shall have the lowest floor, including basement, elevated no lower than one foot above the base flood elevation.”

Still unanswered

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

• Building permit — Building permits inside Alto town
• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder inside Alto town
• Inspections — Inspections of new construction inside Alto town
• Certificate of occupancy — Certificates of occupancy inside Alto town
• Camping on your land — Camping inside Alto town

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.