Zoning, building permits and septic rules in Marion, Illinois

Marion’s own rules

• Local zoningPresent (with conditions)

  Land inside Marion city limits (Marion, IL): the city's own Title 11 Zoning Regulations

  • Code is marked 'ORDINANCES PENDING REVIEW FOR CODIFICATION' on the American Legal page and carries the publisher disclaimer that it may not reflect the most current legislation.
  • The captured code pages do not name the county. Williamson County is inferred from section 9-1-4's reference to the Franklin-Williamson Bi-County Health Department; confirm with an official city page that names the county.

  “11-6-4: site and structure requirements: a. minimum lot area: one acre.”

• Zoning districtsPartial

  Zoning districts established by Title 11 of the Marion city code

  • Districts identified in the captured text: R-A rural-agricultural (chapter 6), the Article A residential district (chapter 7), R-2 general residential (article B) and M-H mobile home (article C).
  • The official zoning map and the district boundaries in section 11-5-2 were not opened.

  “article b. r-2 general residential district section: 11-7b-1: permitted uses”

• Minimum lot sizeSpecified

  Article A residential district (Title 11, Chapter 7, section 11-7A-5) inside Marion city; the first residential district in Chapter 7 (the R-1 single-family district per third-party mirrors)

  • The captured text does not state the district's name or its permitted uses (section 11-7A-1 was not captured).

  minimum lot area: >= 7000 square feet · minimum lot width: >= 70 feet

  “11-7a-5: site and structure requirements: a. minimum lot area: seven thousand (7,000) square feet.”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — R-A Rural-Agricultural district (Title 11, Chapter 6) inside Marion city

    “11-6-4: site and structure requirements: a. minimum lot area: one acre.”

• SetbacksSpecified

  Article A residential district (Title 11, Chapter 7, section 11-7A-5) inside Marion city

  • Front setback is measured from any property line adjoining a public street.
  • Section 11-7A-5 states no pre-1950 platted-lot side-yard exception (that exception appears in the R-2 district, section 11-7B-4).

  front yard setback: >= 20 feet (from any property line adjoining any public street) · side yard setback: >= 10 feet · rear yard setback: >= 20 feet

  “c. minimum yard setbacks: 1. front: twenty feet (20') from any property line adjoining any public street. 2. side: ten feet (10'). 3. rear: twenty feet (20').”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — R-A Rural-Agricultural district (Title 11, Chapter 6) inside Marion city

    “c. minimum yard setbacks: 1. front: twenty feet (20') from any property line adjoining any public street. 2. side: ten feet (10'). 3. rear: twenty feet (20').”

• Lot coverageSpecified

  Article A residential district (Title 11, Chapter 7, section 11-7A-5) inside Marion city

  maximum lot coverage: <= 25 percent

  “d. minimum lot width: seventy feet (70'). e. maximum lot coverage: twenty five percent (25%).”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • None — R-A Rural-Agricultural district (Title 11, Chapter 6) inside Marion city

    “d. minimum lot width: one hundred fifty feet (150'). e. maximum lot coverage: none.”

• Building heightSpecified

  R-A Rural-Agricultural district (Title 11, Chapter 6) inside Marion city, main building

  • Nonresidential farm structures are excepted from the 25-foot limit by the same sentence.
  • The 35-foot increase requires a reciprocal front and rear yard setback of at least 25 feet each.

  maximum height of main building: <= 25 feet (except nonresidential farm structures) · maximum height with increased setbacks: <= 35 feet (requires reciprocal front and rear yard setback of at least 25 feet each)

  “b. height of main building: twenty five feet (25') except nonresidential farm structures; may be increased to a maximum of thirty five feet (35') with a reciprocal front and rear yard setback of at least twenty five feet (25') each.”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — Article A residential district (Title 11, Chapter 7, section 11-7A-5) inside Marion city, main building

    “b. height of main building: twenty five feet (25'); may be increased to thirty five feet (35') with a reciprocal front and rear yard setback of twenty five feet (25') each.”

• Manufactured homesProhibited

  Mobile homes on lots in the Article A residential district (Title 11, Chapter 7, section 11-7A-4) inside Marion city

  • The code term is 'mobile homes'; the code's definition of manufactured home was not captured.
  • Applies only to the Article A district; mobile homes are permitted in the M-H district (section 11-7C-1).

  “11-7a-4: prohibited uses: mobile homes. (ord. 1148, 4-27-1987, eff. 6-1-1987)”

• Mandatory utility hookupConditional

  Dwellings and buildings occupied inside Marion city (water and sewer)

  • Section 9-1-4 requires either connection to the city sewer or a sewage disposal system approved by the Franklin-Williamson Bi-County Health Department; it does not state a mandatory city-sewer hookup distance or availability rule.
  • Section 9-1-3 requires private connections to public sewers and water mains only for owners along a proposed street or alley improvement; no distance rule was found in the captured text.
  • Section 10-1-8 denies connection to any city service for development without the city sign-off form.

  “toilet facilities connected to the city sewer or a sewage disposal system approved by the franklin-williamson bi county health department.”

• Permit processPartial

  Development and site improvement inside Marion city, including subdivision development

  • Sign-off form approved by designated city representatives is required before development; the form itself is not in the captured text.
  • Development without the sign-off is denied connection to any city service and each day is a separate violation (section 10-1-8 b.-c.).

  “a. no owner of real estate and no developer, corporate or individual, of real estate shall undertake development or site improvement of any tract of real estate including, but not limited to, subdivision development, without first obtaining sign off by and approval of designated city representatives.”

Rules another office applies inside Marion

Marion 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 septicMixed (with conditions)

  Sewage disposal for buildings inside Marion city that are not connected to the city sewer

  • The city sewer is the alternative; where a building is not on city sewer, the disposal system must be approved by the Franklin-Williamson Bi-County Health Department.
  • The captured text names the health department as approver but does not describe its permit or inspection steps.

  “connected to the city sewer or a sewage disposal system approved by the franklin-williamson bi county health department.”

Still unanswered

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

• Building permit — New construction inside Marion city
• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder construction inside Marion city
• Inspections — Building inspections inside Marion city
• Certificate of occupancy — Certificates of occupancy inside Marion city
• Minimum dwelling size — Minimum dwelling floor area inside Marion 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.