Zoning, building permits and septic rules in Washington Township, Indiana

Rules another office applies inside Washington Township

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

• Zoning districtsPublished (with conditions)

  Land inside Washington township, which the Cass County zoning ordinance covers as unincorporated county land (no township zoning ordinance was located)

  • The county ordinance applies only where land is not under the jurisdiction of a city or town plan commission, per the jurisdictional-area clause.
  • Whether Washington township has its own plan commission or zoning ordinance was not verified on an official township page; see the local_zoning unknown claim.
  • The district zone maps are kept in the zoning administrator's office; the map itself was not opened.

  “this ordinance shall apply to all unincorporated land within cass county, except for those land areas under the jurisdiction of a city or town plan commission”

• Minimum lot sizeDistrict specific (with conditions)

  AG agricultural district lots inside Washington township, under the Cass County zoning ordinance

  • Applies only where the district zone map places the land in the AG district.
  • Table B column alignment was inferred from the extracted table text; verify against the printed table before relying on it.
  • Public sewage and water facilities are not provided in the AG district, and density should not exceed one dwelling unit per acre.

  minimum lot area, no central sewage (AG): >= 43560 sq ft (without central sewage) · minimum lot area, with central sewage (AG): >= 24000 sq ft (with central sewage) · minimum lot width, no central sewage (AG): >= 150 ft (without central sewage) · minimum lot width, with central sewage (AG): >= 100 ft (with central sewage)

  “1. minimum lot area (a) no central sewage with central sewage 43,560 24,000 43,560 20,000 36,000 14,000 24,000 6,000 34,000 10,000 34,000 10,000 34,000 10,000 40,000 24,000 130,680 130,680”

  2 more reviewed findings on this topic

  • District specific (with conditions) — R-1 suburban residential district lots inside Washington township, under the Cass County zoning ordinance

    “1. minimum lot area (a) no central sewage with central sewage 43,560 24,000 43,560 20,000 36,000 14,000 24,000 6,000 34,000 10,000 34,000 10,000 34,000 10,000 40,000 24,000 130,680 130,680”

  • District specific (with conditions) — RR rural residential district lots inside Washington township, under the Cass County zoning ordinance

    “1. minimum lot area (a) no central sewage with central sewage 43,560 24,000 43,560 20,000 36,000 14,000 24,000 6,000 34,000 10,000 34,000 10,000 34,000 10,000 40,000 24,000 130,680 130,680”

• SetbacksDistrict specific (with conditions)

  AG agricultural district structures inside Washington township, under the Cass County zoning ordinance

  • Minimum yards are measured per Table B; footnote (b) of Table B was not read in full.
  • Section 306 supplemental yard rule also applies to projections into these yards.

  minimum front yard (AG): >= 50 ft · minimum side yard (AG): >= 20 ft · minimum rear yard (AG): >= 25 ft

  “5. minimum front yard (b) 50 50 45 25 25 40 40 40 40”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • District specific (with conditions) — RR rural residential district structures inside Washington township, under the Cass County zoning ordinance

    “6. minimum side yard (b) 20 20 15 15 15 20 20 20 20”

• Lot coverageDistrict specific (with conditions)

  R-1 suburban residential district lots inside Washington township, under the Cass County zoning ordinance

  • Footnote (c) of Table B was not read in full.

  maximum lot coverage (R-1): <= 40 percent

  “4. maximum lot coverage (c) 10 or 30* 30 40 80 80 50 50 50 50”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • District specific (with conditions) — RR rural residential district lots inside Washington township, under the Cass County zoning ordinance

    “4. maximum lot coverage (c) 10 or 30* 30 40 80 80 50 50 50 50”

• Building heightSpecified

  Principal and accessory structures in any district of the Cass County zoning ordinance, on land inside Washington township

  • Section 307 exceptions include structures such as barns, silos, tanks, bins, and windmills located in the agricultural district, plus communication towers, industrial structures, architectural projections, and special structures.
  • Accessory structures: one-story primary structures may not have accessory structures over 16 feet; two-story or taller primary structures may not have accessory structures over 24 feet.

  maximum height, principal structure: <= 35 ft (measured above average ground level; section 307 exceptions apply) · maximum height, accessory structure, one-story primary structure: <= 16 ft · maximum height, accessory structure, two-story or taller primary structure: <= 24 ft

  “no principal structure in any district may be constructed, reconstructed, altered, or enlarged which exceeds 35 feet in height above average ground level.”

• Who permits septicMixed (with conditions)

  Onsite sewage systems inside Washington township: state residential rules (410 IAC 6-8.3) with permits issued by local health departments

  • The specific local health department for Washington township was not verified.
  • Only the state program page was opened; the rule text of 410 IAC 6-8.3 was not read.

  “local health departments issue more than 15,000 permits per year for new systems”

• Subdividing landRegulated (with conditions)

  Land divisions inside Washington township under the Cass County subdivision control ordinance

  • The Cass County Subdivision Control Ordinance itself was not opened; its existence is shown in the zoning ordinance's lot-of-record definition.
  • Lots of record are defined by reference to recording under that subdivision control ordinance or recording before the ordinance's effective date.
  • Pipestem lots require an exclusive private access easement of at least 20 feet to a road (section 305.03).

  “subdivision of land may occur in any zoning district provided that all applicable standards of this ordinance and the cass county subdivision control ordinance are met.”

Still unanswered

We looked and could not find an official answer yet. Silence is not permission; ask Washington Township or Cass County directly.

• Building permit — Building permit requirement for new residential construction inside Washington township
• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder exemption from permits or licensing inside Washington township
• Building code adopted — Building code adopted for new homes inside Washington township
• Inspections — Building inspection requirement for new homes inside Washington township
• Certificate of occupancy — Certificate of occupancy requirement for new homes inside Washington township

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.