Zoning, building permits and septic rules in St. Elmo, Illinois

St. Elmo’s own rules

• Local zoningPresent (with conditions)

  Land inside the municipal limits of the city of St. Elmo, Fayette County, IL. The minutes name the city as in Fayette County.

  • The city zoning ordinance (Chapter 19) divides all land within city limits into districts (A-1, R-1, R-2, B-1, B-2, I-1 per 19-1-5).
  • The ordinance's definition of district says the zoning district is a designated part of the city and surrounding one and one half miles of unincorporated area; the unincorporated extent is not answered here.
  • The zoning map is referenced as adopted in 19-1-5 but was not opened.

  “all land within the municipal limits of the city of st. elmo shall be divided into the following districts and shown on the st. elmo zoning map hereto attached. said zoning map is hereby approved and adopted and is hereby made a part of this ordinance.”

• Zoning districtsPublished (with conditions)

  Land inside St. Elmo city limits (zoning district list)

  • District list is in the text of 19-1-5; the district boundary map was not opened, so the map's availability is not confirmed.

  “a) agricultural, (a-1) b) single family residential, (r-1) c) general residential, (r-2) d) central business, (b-1) e) general commercial, (b-2) f) industrial, (i-1)”

• Minimum dwelling sizeSpecified

  Single family residential district R-1 inside St. Elmo city limits

  minimum ground floor area, single family: >= 1000 sq ft · minimum ground floor area, two families: >= 1400 sq ft

  “(6) minimum ground floor area: 1000 sq. ft. single family, 1400 sq. ft. two families”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — General residential district R-2 inside St. Elmo city limits

    “(6) minimum ground floor area: 780 sq. ft. single family, 600 sq. ft. multi-family”

• Minimum lot sizeDistrict specific (with conditions)

  Single family residential district R-1 inside St. Elmo city limits

  • Figures are from the R-1 lot and building specifications in 19-1-7(e); other uses in the district follow the ordinance's own terms.

  minimum lot area: 7100 sq ft · minimum lot width: 50 ft

  “(1) minimum lot area: 7100 sq. ft. (2) minimum lot width: 50 ft.”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • District specific (with conditions) — Agricultural district A-1 inside St. Elmo city limits

    “e) lot and building specifications (1) minimum lot area: 11,000 sq. ft.”

• SetbacksDistrict specific (with conditions)

  Agricultural district A-1 inside St. Elmo city limits

  • Figures are from 19-1-6(e); accessory structure figures are in parentheses in the same section.

  front yard setback: 30 ft · rear yard setback: 25 ft (10 ft for accessory structures) · minimum side yard total: 35 ft (minimum 15 ft on one side; 10 ft for accessory structures)

  “(2) front yard setback: 30 ft. (3) rear yard setback: 25 ft. (10 ft. for accessory structures (4) minimum side yard: 35 ft. total, with a minimum of 15 ft. on one side (10 ft. for accessory structures)”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • District specific (with conditions) — Single family residential district R-1 inside St. Elmo city limits

    “(3) front yard setback: 20 ft. (4) minimum side yard: 10 ft. (5 ft. for accessory structures) (5) rear yard setback: 10 ft. (6 ft. for accessory structures)”

• Lot coverageSpecified

  Single family residential district R-1 inside St. Elmo city limits

  • Figure is for single or double family residential use; other uses in the district have a different limit.

  maximum lot coverage, single or double family residential: <= 33 percent (70% for all others)

  “(8) maximum lot coverage: 33% single or double family residential; 70% all others”

• Building heightSpecified

  Single family residential district R-1 inside St. Elmo city limits

  maximum building height: <= 35 ft

  “(7) maximum building height: 35 ft. (8) maximum lot coverage: 33% single or double family residential; 70% all others”

• Manufactured homesLimited

  Manufactured homes in the single family residential district R-1 inside St. Elmo city limits

  • Manufactured homes are listed as a special use requiring Zoning Board of Appeals approval after notice, not a principal use.
  • The zoning definition of single-family dwelling says it includes modular homes, mobile homes and manufactured homes; the special-use list is the operative limit for placement in R-1.

  “b) special use - after due notice, consideration and appropriate safeguards, the board may permit special uses as follows: (1) duplexes (2) home occupations (3) libraries, museums (4) churches, temples (5) manufactured homes”

Still unanswered

We looked and could not find an official answer yet. Silence is not permission; ask St. Elmo or Fayette County directly.

• Building permit — Building permits for new homes inside St. Elmo city limits
• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder exemption inside St. Elmo city limits
• Building code adopted — Building code adoption inside St. Elmo city limits
• Inspections — Building inspections inside St. Elmo city limits
• Certificate of occupancy — Certificate of occupancy inside St. Elmo 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.