Zoning, building permits and septic rules in New Sharon, Iowa

New Sharon’s own rules

• Building permitRequired

  Uses permitted by right inside New Sharon city limits, which are subject to a building permit issued by the zoning administrator.

  • Permit applies to by-right uses; conditional uses need board of adjustment approval first.
  • Section 158.05 says these uses are subject to a building permit issued by the zoning administrator. The amended building-permit provisions (Ordinance 2026-002 per the city page) were not reviewed, so their content is unverified.

  “these uses are permitted subject to the issuance of a building permit by the zoning administrator, subject only to compliance with all regulations of this title.”

• Local zoningPresent (with conditions)

  Land inside New Sharon city limits: the city adopts and administers its own zoning ordinance (Code Chapter 158, Ordinance No. 2024-006).

  • Zoning applies by district; uses are permitted by right or by conditional use under the district and land-use matrix rules.
  • Effective date of Ordinance No. 2024-006 is not stated in the portion of the PDF reviewed, so effective_at is null.
  • The city's amended-ordinances list shows a 2026 amendment relating to building permits; its text was not reviewed.

  “the code of ordinances of the city of new sharon, iowa, is amended by adding a new chapter 158 sections 158.01-158.37, entitled zoning, which is hereby adopted to read as follows:”

• Zoning districtsPublished (with conditions)

  Zoning districts inside New Sharon city limits.

  • Districts are a-1, r-1, r-2, mun, c-1, c-2, m-1, m-2 and muc (Section 158.04); the land-use matrix is in Section 158.15.
  • No official zoning map was opened; the district list is published in the ordinance text.

  “said districts shall be known as (1) a-1 agriculture (2) r-1 low density residential (3) r-2 high density residential”

• Minimum lot sizeSpecified

  Main single-family residential district r-1 (low density residential) inside New Sharon city limits.

  • Lots of record that are substandard may hold one single-family dwelling regardless of size (Section 158.17(b)).
  • Lots unserved by public water and sewer require at least 20,000 square feet (Section 158.17(c)).

  minimum lot area: >= 8712 square feet (see conditions for lots of record and unserved lots) · minimum frontage: >= 80 feet

  “(2) minimum lot area is 8,712 square feet (3) minimum frontage is 80 feet”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — Agriculture district a-1 inside New Sharon city limits.

    “(2) minimum lot area is 43,560 square feet (3) minimum frontage is 150 feet”

• SetbacksSpecified

  Main single-family residential district r-1 inside New Sharon city limits.

  • Accessory buildings may not be in a front or side yard and must be at least five feet from main buildings (Section 158.17).
  • Fences and hedges are limited to 4 feet in a required front yard (Section 158.27).

  minimum front yard setback: >= 25 feet · minimum rear yard setback: >= 20 feet · minimum side yard setback: >= 10 feet

  “(2) minimum rear yard setback is 20 feet (3) minimum side yard setback is 10 feet”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — Agriculture district a-1 inside New Sharon city limits.

    “minimum front yard = setback 25 feet (2) minimum rear yard = setback 20 feet (3) minimum side yard = setback 15 feet”

• Building heightSpecified

  Main single-family residential district r-1 inside New Sharon city limits.

  • Height exceptions for spires, chimneys, antennas, water tanks and similar structures (Section 158.25).
  • Detached accessory buildings may not exceed 15 feet (Section 158.17(3)).

  maximum building height: <= 35 feet (or 2.5 stories)

  “(1) maximum height is 35 ft or 2.5 stories (2) minimum lot area is 8,712 square feet”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — Agriculture district a-1 inside New Sharon city limits.

    “(1) maximum height is 35 ft or 2.5 stories (2) minimum lot area is 43,560 square feet”

• Living in an RVTemporary only (with conditions)

  Occupancy of a recreational vehicle inside New Sharon city limits.

  • Occupancy is limited to not more than fourteen days, with a 30-day gap before the same or a different RV is occupied on the same or contiguous lots.
  • Any other use of an RV, mobile home, or other vehicle as a residence is barred (Section 158.33(1)-(2)). Violations can carry criminal or nuisance remedies (Section 158.33(3)).

  maximum RV occupancy period: <= 14 days

  “recreational vehicles may be temporarily occupied for not more than fourteen days, but any such use of a recreational vehicle shall not be repeated by the use of the same or a different recreational vehicle on the same lot or contiguous lots unless not less than thirty days has expired”

• Camping on your landLimited

  Short-term stays in recreational vehicles inside New Sharon city limits.

  • Stays are for persons traveling through or stopping temporarily, up to 14 days, with a 30-day gap before the next occupancy (Section 158.33(1)).
  • Separately, a temporary use exception of ten days or less may be granted by the board of adjustment for carnivals, circuses and festivals (Section 158.31-158.32).

  maximum stay: <= 14 days

  “it is the intention of this section to permit occupation of recreational vehicles for periods of up to fourteen days by persons traveling through the area and visiting or stopping within the city on a temporary basis, but for not more than fourteen days”

• Manufactured homesAllowed

  Manufactured housing as a principal use in the r-1 low density residential district inside New Sharon city limits.

  • Permitted use in r-1 only; the bulk and yard rules of Section 158.07 also apply.
  • Mobile home occupancy outside a mobile home park is restricted by the separate rule below.

  “property and buildings in an r-1 district shall be used only for the following purposes: (a) low-density residential detached dwellings; (b) manufactured housing;”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Limited — Mobile homes parked or stored inside New Sharon city limits, outside a mobile home park.

    “a mobile home shall not be occupied whether temporarily or permanently while it is parked or stored in any area within the incorporated limits except in a mobile home park authorized under the ordinances of the city of new sharon.”

• Off-grid sanitationLimited

  One single-family detached dwelling on a residential lot where neither public water nor public sanitary sewer is reasonably available inside New Sharon city limits.

  • Allowed only on a lot of at least 20,000 square feet (Section 158.17(c)).
  • Any on-site sewage system remains subject to the statewide 567 IAC 69 permit and inspection rules.

  “(c) lots unserved by sewer and/or water. in any residential district where neither public water supply nor public sanitary sewer are reasonably available, one single-family detached dwelling may be constructed, provided the otherwise specified lot area and width requirements shall be a minimum of twenty thousand square feet.”

• Subdividing landLimited

  Creating new lots inside New Sharon city limits.

  • Lots created after adoption must abut at least thirty feet on a public street (Section 158.17(a)).
  • Annexed land needs prior zoning committee approval with assurance of water and utility service (Section 158.34). No separate subdivision ordinance was located.

  minimum street frontage for new lot: >= 30 feet

  “no lot shall be created after the adoption of the ordinance codified in this title unless it abuts at least thirty feet on a public street.”

• Permit processPartial

  Permit path for land uses inside New Sharon city limits.

  • By-right uses: building permit from the zoning administrator (Section 158.05(1)).
  • Conditional uses: board of adjustment approval (Section 158.05(2)). The building permit procedure, forms and fees were not found in the reviewed text, so the process is only partly published.

  “these uses are subject to the approval of a conditional use permit by the board of adjustment.”

Rules another office applies inside New Sharon

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

• Septic permitRequired

  Private sewage disposal systems installed or altered inside New Sharon city limits, under the statewide Iowa rule (567 IAC 69). The city's own sewer rules were not found.

  • Construction permit must be obtained before installation or alteration of a PSDS, subject to the 69.1(3) activities.
  • The administrative authority that issues the permit was not confirmed in the chapter text reviewed.

  “69.1(4) construction permit required. no psds shall be installed or altered as described in 69.1(3) “b” unless a construction permit issued by the administrative authority is obtained prior to construction.”

• Septic inspectionRequired

  Newly constructed private sewage disposal systems inside New Sharon city limits, under 567 IAC 69.

  • Inspection is by the administrative authority before backfilling; an as-built drawing is kept with the construction permit.

  “the administrative authority shall conduct an at-location inspection of all newly constructed psdss before the system is backfilled.”

Still unanswered

We looked and could not find an official answer yet. Silence is not permission; ask New Sharon or Mahaska County directly.

• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder rules for building in New Sharon city limits.
• Building code adopted — Building construction standards for land inside New Sharon city limits.
• Inspections — Building inspections for construction inside New Sharon city limits.
• Certificate of occupancy — Certificates of occupancy for new buildings inside New Sharon city limits.
• Minimum dwelling size — Minimum floor area of a dwelling inside New Sharon city limits.

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.