Zoning, building permits and septic rules in Village of Rapids City, Illinois

Village of Rapids City’s own rules

• Local zoningPresent

  Land inside Rapids City village limits, under the village's own zoning ordinance (Title IX, Chapter 1)

  • The code text read does not itself name Rock Island County; the same-name check rests on the village's own domain (rapidscity.us) and the code's references to Rapids City, Illinois.

  “for purposes of this chapter, the village is divided into the following districts:”

• Zoning districtsPublished

  Land inside Rapids City village limits

  • Districts named in the code include R-1, R-2, AR agricultural-residential and C-1; only R-1, R-2 and AR were read in full.

  “for purposes of this chapter, the village is divided into the following districts:”

• Minimum lot sizeDistrict specific (with conditions)

  Agricultural-residential (AR) district inside Rapids City village

  • Lots used for R-1 uses need 15,000 sq ft; all other permitted uses (such as commercial raising of livestock and poultry) need at least five acres.

  minimum lot area, R-1 uses in AR: >= 15000 square feet · minimum lot area, all other permitted uses in AR: >= 5 acres

  “c. lot area. each lot in this district shall have an area of not less than 15,000 square feet for all uses permitted under r-1 above, and not less than five (5) acres for all other uses permitted.”

  2 more reviewed findings on this topic

  • District specific (with conditions) — Single-family dwelling lot in the R-1 residential district inside Rapids City village

    “each lot used for a dwelling shall have an area of not less than 15,000 square feet”

  • District specific (with conditions) — R-2 residential district inside Rapids City village

    “each lot used for a one-family dwelling shall have an area of not less than 15,000 square feet. each lot used for a two-family dwelling shall have an area of not less than 20,000 square feet.”

• SetbacksDistrict specific (with conditions)

  R-1 residential district inside Rapids City village

  • Front setback depends on whether the lot fronts a major thoroughfare. Side yard rule uses the lesser of the stated values; each side yard is at least 5 feet.

  front yard, major thoroughfare: >= 50 feet · front yard, any other street: >= 40 feet · combined side yards, percent of lot width at front setback line: >= 30 percent (or 30 feet, whichever is the lesser) · each side yard: >= 5 feet · rear yard: >= 25 feet

  “on every lot there shall be provided two side yards, the combined width of which shall be not less than thirty percent (30%) of the width of the lot measured at the front yard setback line, or thirty feet (30'), whichever is the lesser, provided, however, that neither side yard in any event shall have a width of less than five feet (5')”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • District specific (with conditions) — AR agricultural-residential district inside Rapids City village

    “each lot in this district shall have a front yard of not less than forty feet (40').”

• Building heightSpecified

  Structures in the AR agricultural-residential district inside Rapids City village

  • Same height as the R-1 district.

  maximum structure height: <= 35 feet (same as R-1; see article 3, section 13 exception)

  “the height of structures in this district shall be the same as in an r-1 district.”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — Structures in the R-1 residential district inside Rapids City village

    “except as provided for in article 3, section 13 of this ordinance, no structure shall have a height in excess of thirty-five feet (35').”

• Living in an RVLimited

  Living or sleeping in a camp car, trailer or other portable building inside Rapids City village limits

  • Allowed only on a licensed campground, or if the unit meets the listed construction, consent and sanitation provisions (owner consent and adjacent owners within 75 feet filed with the clerk).

  adjacent owner consent distance: 75 feet (each side of the lot)

  “it is declared and shall be unlawful for any person to use or occupy, for living or sleeping purposes, any camp car, trailer, or other portable building within the corporate limits of the village unless located upon a licensed campground”

• Camping on your landLimited

  Camping with a camp car, trailer or portable building inside Rapids City village limits

  • Same camp car rule: unlawful outside a licensed campground unless the unit meets the listed conditions.

  “it is declared and shall be unlawful for any person to use or occupy, for living or sleeping purposes, any camp car, trailer, or other portable building within the corporate limits of the village unless located upon a licensed campground”

• Manufactured homesLimited

  Trailer coaches or mobile homes occupied inside Rapids City village limits

  • The code declares occupied trailer coaches and mobile homes a public health nuisance because they lack adequate sewage facilities; the licensed-park exception and full nuisance text were not read in full.

  “trailer coaches or mobile homes when used or intended to be occupied by one or more persons within the village limits of the municipal corporation are a menace to the public health”

• Off-grid sanitationLimited

  Camp cars, trailers and portable buildings used for living inside Rapids City village limits

  • Toilet facilities must connect directly to a cesspool, septic tank or similar sanitary facility; this applies to camp-car units only, not to conventional homes.

  “2.1 the camp car, trailer or other portable building must have adequate toilet facilities, which connect directly to a cesspool or septic tank or similar sanitary facility.”

• Subdividing landRegulated (with conditions)

  Land subdivided inside Rapids City village limits (Title IX, Chapter 2)

  • Lots must meet the minimum lot area and dimension of the zoning district; land unsuitable for development may not be subdivided without solutions.

  “all lots in a subdivision shall conform to the minimum lot area and dimension requirements of the zoning district in which said subdivision is located”

Still unanswered

We looked and could not find an official answer yet. Silence is not permission; ask Village of Rapids City or Rock Island County directly.

• Building permit — Building permit for new construction inside Rapids City village limits
• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder exemption from village building permits or inspections
• Building code adopted — Building code adopted by Rapids City village
• Inspections — Building inspections inside Rapids City village limits
• Certificate of occupancy — Certificate of occupancy for a new home inside Rapids City village 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.