Building permits, zoning and land rules in Edwards County, Illinois

We could not confirm an Edwards County building-permit requirement or application for unincorporated land². Illinois does not issue building permits, conduct building-code inspections or issue occupancy certificates for privately funded projects; any such requirements are handled by the applicable local government². A building code applies either way: Illinois requires statewide building codes effective 1/1/2025, with local codes and amendments where a local government adopted them⁶. Before buying materials or breaking ground, call the Edwards County Clerk and ask which authority has jurisdiction over the parcel and whether a permit, inspection or occupancy approval is required³. Septic and well approvals are separate from any building permit and come from the health authorities^4,7.

No Edwards County building department or county permit office was confirmed. The practical first contact is the Edwards County Clerk at the courthouse, 50 E. Main St. in Albion, by phone at 618-445-2115³. Ask the Clerk to identify the authority having jurisdiction for the parcel, especially if the property is near Albion, Browns, Bone Gap, Grayville or West Salem. Illinois allows a county or municipality to adopt and enforce a code, while a government that does not adopt one is treated as a non-building-code jurisdiction under the state framework². The state itself does not process a private project's building permit, plan review or inspection². Whoever issues building permits, septic plan approval is a different office: the Edwards County Health Department or the Illinois Department of Public Health^4,8.

Unincorporated Edwards County has no county zoning ordinance, so the county sets no rule on minimum house size, minimum lot size, setbacks, building height, lot coverage, accessory dwellings, RVs, tiny homes, manufactured homes or temporary camping¹. Zoning can still apply inside towns: a county hazard-mitigation plan lists zoning for Grayville but none for Albion, Bone Gap, Browns or West Salem, and that plan is several years old, so confirm current status with the town clerk¹. Absence of zoning does not remove building-code, septic, well or floodplain rules, which apply on every parcel. Ask the Edwards County Clerk whether anything has changed since the county's last ordinance inventory³.

Illinois requires plan approval from the Illinois Department of Public Health or a local health agency before a new private sewage system is built⁴. Edwards County's health department appears to review and issue these permits as an agent of the state, but the arrangement was not confirmed on an official page, so call the Edwards County Health Department at (618) 445-2615 and ask whether it accepts the application or sends it to IDPH^5,8. The same approval rule covers replacing a septic tank, adding or removing a major component, or changing at least 25% of an absorption field⁴. The person doing the work must give the department or local authority at least 48 hours' notice before starting⁴. Only 3.7% of county soils rate without severe limitations for a conventional drain field, so make the site evaluation an early feasibility step⁹.

Unincorporated Edwards County has no county zoning, so no county zoning rule restricts living in an RV, camping on private land or placing a tiny home there¹. Other rules still apply. A home you live in needs wastewater handled through a private sewage system approved by the health authorities, although Illinois recognizes alternative toilets such as privies and incinerating toilets for human waste, with other domestic wastewater still going to a conventional system¹⁰. A tiny home also falls under the statewide building-code baseline, and local occupancy approvals were not confirmed^2,6. Illinois campground law regulates qualifying campgrounds and does not answer whether one household may occupy an RV on private land¹¹. Inside Grayville or another town, ask the town first, since town rules differ from the county's¹.

1. Ask the Edwards County Clerk which government has building-permit jurisdiction over the parcel, and request its current permit, inspection and occupancy requirements^2,3.

1. If the parcel is inside Grayville or another town, ask that town about zoning; unincorporated land has no county zoning¹.

1. Arrange septic plan review before construction; call the Edwards County Health Department to learn whether the local office or IDPH will process it^4,8.

1. Obtain a permit before constructing, modifying or sealing a private water well⁷.

1. If the driveway enters a state-maintained highway, get an IDOT permit before work begins¹².

1. Check floodway status; regulated construction may need an IDNR permit¹³.

1. Complete any locally required inspections and occupancy approval identified in the first step².

Start with wastewater: only 3.7% of Edwards County soils rate without severe limitations for a conventional septic drain field, so obtain a site evaluation before assuming a standard system will work⁹. Confirm legal road access, and remember that a new driveway entering a state-maintained highway requires an IDOT permit before work begins¹². Check flood maps and project location because construction in regulated Illinois floodways may need state authorization¹³. For a private well, a permit from IDPH or an approved local health department is required before construction, modification or sealing begins⁷. Edwards County's effective property-tax rate is about 1.5%, and the median annual property-tax bill is about $1,429⁹. Finally, get a written building-permit answer for the specific parcel, and a zoning answer if it lies inside a town^1,2.