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

Rules another office applies inside Jackson Township

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

• Building permitRequired

  Accessory structures on land inside Jackson township that is outside any city or town planning jurisdiction (unincorporated DeKalb County)

  • Permit is required before accessory-structure construction; construction proceeds only after the permit.
  • Accessory structure must comply with the development standards of its zoning district.
  • Permit requirement for the primary dwelling was not verified in this research.

  “permits are required for the construction of an accessory structure and the accessory structure shall comply with all development standards for the subject zoning district.”

• Minimum dwelling sizeSpecified

  Single-family dwelling in the R1 low density residential district on unincorporated land inside Jackson township

  • Applies to the R1 district only; the A1 conservation agricultural district dwelling size was not captured in the opened text.
  • This is a county UDO standard that applies only where Jackson township has not adopted its own zoning (not verified).

  minimum dwelling size: >= 1500 square feet

  “maximum impervious surface coverage: • 35% of the lot area minimum dwelling size: • 1,500 square feet”

• Minimum lot sizeSpecified

  Lots in the A1 conservation agricultural district on unincorporated land inside Jackson township

  • Applies to the A1 district; the lot size is 1 acre only where the lot connects to municipal sanitary sewer.
  • This is a county UDO standard that applies only where Jackson township has not adopted its own zoning (not verified).

  minimum lot area: >= 2 net acres (not including dedicated rights-of-way and recorded easements; 1 acre if connected to municipal sanitary sewer) · minimum lot width: >= 160 feet · minimum lot frontage: >= 120 feet (40 feet if the lot or lots are designed to conserve land used for agricultural crop production)

  “minimum lot area: • 2 net acres (not including any dedicated rights-of-way and recorded easements) • 1 acre if connected to municipal sanitary sewer minimum lot width: • 160 feet minimum lot frontage: • 120 feet or • 40 feet if the lot or lots are designed to conserve land used for agricultural crop production”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — Lots in the R1 low density residential district on unincorporated land inside Jackson township

    “minimum lot area: • 2 net acres (not including any dedicated rights-of-way and recorded easements) or 15,000 square feet with municipal sanitary sewer minimum lot width: • 200 feet or 100 feet with sanitary sewer minimum lot frontage: • 80 feet”

• SetbacksSpecified

  Structures in the A1 conservation agricultural district on unincorporated land inside Jackson township

  • Front yard setback applies to primary and accessory structures.
  • Side setback is 30 feet for primary structures and 10 feet for accessory structures.
  • The rear yard setback for the A1 district was cut off in the opened text and is not stated here.
  • This is a county UDO standard that applies only where Jackson township has not adopted its own zoning (not verified).

  minimum front yard setback: >= 50 feet (primary and accessory structures) · minimum side yard setback: >= 30 feet (primary structures; 10 feet for accessory structures)

  “minimum front yard setback: • 50 feet for primary and accessory structures minimum side yard setback: • 30 feet for primary structures • 10 feet for accessory structures minimum rear yard setback: • 30 feet for primary structures • 10 feet for accessory structures”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — Structures in the R1 low density residential district on unincorporated land inside Jackson township

    “minimum front yard setback: • 35 feet for primary and accessory structures minimum side yard setback: • 25 feet for primary structures • 10 for accessory structures minimum rear yard setback: • 25 feet for primary structures • 10 for accessory structures”

• Lot coverageSpecified

  Impervious surface coverage in the R1 low density residential district on unincorporated land inside Jackson township

  • Limit is a share of the lot area.
  • This is a county UDO standard that applies only where Jackson township has not adopted its own zoning (not verified).

  maximum impervious surface coverage: <= 35 percent of lot area

  “maximum impervious surface coverage: • 35% of the lot area minimum dwelling size: • 1,500 square feet”

• Living in an RVProhibited

  Recreational vehicles used as living quarters on land inside Jackson township outside any city or town planning jurisdiction

  • Stated in the UDO definition of recreational vehicle; the operative enforcement section was not separately located.
  • Applies to the county's zoning jurisdiction only, not to cities or towns.

  “a recreational vehicle shall not be used as living quarters.”

• Who permits septicCounty (with conditions)

  Septic systems on private land in DeKalb County, which applies inside Jackson township

  • Applies to septic work handled by the DeKalb County Health Department.
  • State septic rules were not opened in this research; the state rule is not cited here.

  “environmental information or requests food and septic information, inspections, permitting and complaints”

• Mandatory utility hookupConditional

  Developments (subdivisions and other development under UDO article 7) on unincorporated land inside Jackson township; a single new home on an existing lot was not verified

  • Where the zoning district requires municipal sanitary sewers, the development must collect all sanitary sewage and not use septic systems.
  • Where the district does not require sewer, the development must still collect sewage and avoid septic systems when the septic cost per buildable site is 1/2 or more of the sewer collection and municipal tie-in cost.
  • The UDO says the city, county or utility company may subsidize sewer installation to meet that threshold.

  cumulative septic installation cost compared with sewer collection and municipal tie-in cost: >= 0.5 ratio (Applies only to developments under UDO article 7 when the district does not require municipal sanitary sewers)

  “the cost of installing the septic system for each buildable site is cumulatively 1/2 or more than the total cost of installing a sewer collection system and tying it into a municipal utility.”

• Subdividing landRegulated (with conditions)

  Subdivision of land on unincorporated land inside Jackson township outside any city or town planning jurisdiction

  • Subdivision control is in UDO article 6; design standards are in article 7.
  • Plat and development approvals were not opened in this research.

  “articles 2, 3, 4, and 5 are exclusively zoning ordinance components. article 6 is exclusively a subdivision control ordinance component.”

Still unanswered

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

• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder exemption for residential construction inside Jackson township
• Building code adopted — Building code adopted for construction inside Jackson township
• Inspections — Building inspections for construction inside Jackson township
• Certificate of occupancy — Certificate of occupancy for new dwellings inside Jackson township
• Local zoning — Land inside Jackson township, DeKalb County, Indiana

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.