Zoning, building permits and septic rules in Tennant, Iowa

Rules another office applies inside Tennant

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

• Who permits septicCounty (with conditions)

  On-site wastewater (septic) systems on private land in Shelby County, Iowa, including any land inside Tennant city that is not served by a public sewer. The county page does not state a city-limits carve-out for septic.

  • No Tennant city sewer rule was found, so the county is the only authority located for septic in the city.
  • Whether Tennant city has public sewer service that would replace septic is not established here (see utility_connection).

  “we are responsible for permitting and inspecting all on-site wastewater treatment systems installed in shelby county.”

• Septic permitRequired

  Construction or reconstruction of an on-site wastewater (septic) system in Shelby County, Iowa, including land inside Tennant city that is not served by public sewer. The source does not carve out city limits.

  • All systems must receive prior approval before the system is installed.
  • A percolation (soil) test is needed to determine drainfield length.
  • System size is set by state code based on soil type and bedroom count; tank size by bedroom count.

  “on-site wastewater systems prior to the construction or reconstruction of an on-site wastewater treatment and disposal system (septics), the owner is required to obtain a permit from the environmental health office.”

• Well permitRequired

  Drilling or constructing a new private water well (domestic, irrigation, heat pump, monitoring and similar) on land in Tennant city, Shelby County, Iowa. Permits are issued by the Iowa DNR or by Shelby County under delegation.

  • Permit issued by the DNR or by the county board of supervisors' designee; Shelby County's environmental health office states it permits and inspects all new private water wells, heat pump wells, and monitoring wells.
  • Replacement wells and changes to physical dimensions (such as deepening) also require a permit; repair or maintenance that does not change dimensions does not.
  • Each well must be built by a certified well contractor; permits expire one calendar year after issuance and are not transferable.
  • Rule chapter shows rescission date 1/1/28 under Iowa Code 17a.7; current text cited as of the 2/5/25 supplement.

  “a landowner or landowner's agent shall not drill or construct a new private water well without first obtaining a well construction permit issued by the department or by a county board of supervisors or the board's designee”

Still unanswered

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

• Building permit — Whether a building permit is required for new residential construction inside Tennant city
• Owner-builder exemption — Whether an owner-builder exemption applies to construction inside Tennant city
• Building code adopted — Which residential building code, if any, Tennant city has adopted
• Inspections — Whether building inspections are required for construction inside Tennant city
• Certificate of occupancy — Whether a certificate of occupancy is required for a new home inside Tennant 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.