Zoning, building permits and septic rules in Glidden, Iowa

Glidden’s own rules

• Building permitRequired

  Erecting, moving, or adding to any building or structure inside Glidden city limits

  • Construction may proceed after the zoning/building permit is issued.
  • Permit must conform to Chapter 160 unless issued after a written order from the board of adjustment.

  “no building or other structure shall be erected, moved, or added to, without a permit therefor issued by the zoning/building administrator.”

• Local zoningPresent (with conditions)

  Land inside Glidden city limits (Chapter 160 also reaches unincorporated lands on the official zoning maps; that part is not answered here)

  • Zoning is administered by the zoning/building administrator under Chapter 160.
  • Reviewed text is the 2018 PDF codification; later amendments were not checked.

  “160.01 purpose. the purpose of this chapter is to provide adequate light and air, to prevent the overcrowding of land”

• Zoning districtsPublished

  Zoning districts established by Glidden Chapter 160 (AG, AG2, RS, MH, AC, BC, LI, HI) inside Glidden city

  • Districts listed in the Chapter 160 table of contents; text of the AG2 and RS districts was read, the others were not.

  “160.19 districts established 160.20 ag – agricultural district 160.21 ag2 – agricultural-rural residential district 160.22 rs – residential district 160.23 mh – mobile home district 160.24 ac – arterial commercial district 160.25 bc – central business commercial district 160.26 li – light industrial district 160.27 hi – heavy industrial district”

• Minimum dwelling sizeSpecified

  All single-dwelling units inside Glidden city

  • Dwelling must also be at least 22 feet wide at the exterior dimension and placed on a permanent frost-free foundation.

  minimum floor space: >= 700 square feet

  “3. all dwelling units shall provide for a minimum of 700 square feet of floor space.”

• Minimum lot sizeDistrict specific (with conditions)

  RS residential district, second bulk row (40,000 sq ft lot), inside Glidden city

  • Row is identified in the code table only by the zoning symbol '40'; the code text does not spell out the row label.

  minimum lot area: >= 40000 square feet

  “40 rs 40,000 square feet 200 feet 50 feet 20 feet 50 feet 2½ stories or 35 feet”

  2 more reviewed findings on this topic

  • District specific (with conditions) — RS residential district, first bulk row (6,000 sq ft lot), inside Glidden city

    “6 rs 6,000 square feet 50 feet 30 feet 7 feet 30 feet 2½ stories or 35 feet”

  • District specific (with conditions) — AG2 agricultural-rural residential district inside Glidden city

    “minimum lot area minimum lot width minimum front yard minimum side yard minimum rear yard 1 acre 100 feet 50 feet 30 feet 50 feet maximum height (lesser of) 2½ stories or 35 feet (excluding farm buildings)”

• SetbacksDistrict specific (with conditions)

  RS residential district (6,000 sq ft row) inside Glidden city: front, side and rear yards

  • Front yard depth on a residential-district lot must be at least 15 feet and need not exceed 60 feet (section 160.22 item 5 provision on averaging front yards).

  minimum front yard: >= 30 feet (averaging rule in section 160.22) · minimum side yard: >= 7 feet · minimum rear yard: >= 30 feet

  “6 rs 6,000 square feet 50 feet 30 feet 7 feet 30 feet 2½ stories or 35 feet”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • District specific (with conditions) — AG2 agricultural-rural residential district inside Glidden city: front, side and rear yards

    “minimum lot area minimum lot width minimum front yard minimum side yard minimum rear yard 1 acre 100 feet 50 feet 30 feet 50 feet maximum height (lesser of) 2½ stories or 35 feet (excluding farm buildings)”

• Building heightDistrict specific (with conditions)

  AG2 agricultural-rural residential district inside Glidden city

  • Farm buildings are excluded from the height limit.

  maximum height (lesser of): <= 35 feet (or 2½ stories, whichever is less; excluding farm buildings)

  “maximum height (lesser of) 2½ stories or 35 feet (excluding farm buildings)”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • District specific (with conditions) — RS residential district inside Glidden city

    “6 rs 6,000 square feet 50 feet 30 feet 7 feet 30 feet 2½ stories or 35 feet”

• Manufactured homesLimited

  Mobile or manufactured homes located outside a manufactured home community or mobile home park inside Glidden city

  • Home must be placed on a permanent frost-free foundation meeting support and anchorage requirements.
  • Foundation must be visually compatible with surrounding residential foundations.
  • Home must be installed per the state building code.
  • Manufactured homes in a mobile home park are governed separately and are not answered here.

  “a mobile home or manufactured home located outside of a manufactured home community or mobile home park shall be placed on a permanent frost-free foundation system that meets the support and anchorage requirements as recommended by the manufacturer or required by the state building code.”

• Mandatory utility hookupWater and sewer (with conditions)

  New subdivisions in Glidden city (subdivider duty); the code text reviewed does not state a separate rule for an individual home on an existing lot

  • Applies where a public main or sanitary sewer is reasonably accessible.
  • Individual-home connection requirement not established; see followups.

  “where a public sanitary sewer is reasonably accessible, the subdivider shall connect or provide for the connection with such sanitary sewer and shall provide within the subdivision a sanitary sewer system”

• Subdividing landRegulated (with conditions)

  Subdividing land inside Glidden city (Chapter 161 Subdivision Regulations)

  • Improvement and utility duties are imposed on the subdivider.

  “where a public water main is reasonably accessible the subdivider shall connect such water main and provide a water connection for each line with service pipe installed to the property line”

• Permit processPartial

  Building/zoning permit application procedure inside Glidden city

  • Permit expires one year after issuance if work begins within 180 days, or after 180 days if no substantial beginning of construction has occurred; extensions may be granted in writing.
  • Fee schedule is set by city resolution and is not in the code text reviewed.

  “building/zoning permits shall be applied for with the zoning/building administrator and shall expire one year after the date of issuance if work is begun within 180 days of issuance or after 180 days if no substantial beginning of construction has occurred.”

Still unanswered

We looked and could not find an official answer yet. Silence is not permission; ask Glidden or Carroll County directly.

• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder permit exemption inside Glidden city
• Building code adopted — Building code adoption inside Glidden city
• Inspections — Building inspections inside Glidden city
• Certificate of occupancy — Certificates of occupancy inside Glidden city
• Lot coverage — Lot coverage inside Glidden city

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.