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

Rules another office applies inside Metamora Township

Metamora 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

  Barns and agricultural buildings in unincorporated Franklin County including Metamora township; general residential building permit rules were not read

  • Agricultural buildings need an improvement location permit from the county even though they are exempt from the building code.

  “barns and agriculture buildings shall still require and improvement location permit to ensure that the structure is actually for purely agriculture use”

• Zoning districtsPublished

  Territory in Franklin County under the plan commission zoning code, which includes land inside Metamora township if it is unincorporated; the county, not Metamora township, publishes these districts

  • Metamora township is not on the list of incorporated towns exempt from the county code (Brookville, Oldenburg, Mt. Carmel, Cedar Grove), but the Metamora zoning district map was not opened, so which district applies to a given parcel in Metamora township is not established here.
  • Fifteen districts are named in section 80.03 including A-1 prime agriculture, A-2 secondary agriculture, R-1 single-family residence, R-2 single-family and two-family residence, and R-3 multi-family residence.

  district count: 15 districts

  “for zoning purposes, the territory within the jurisdiction of the franklin county plan commission is hereby classified and divided into fifteen (15) districts with the following names and designations:”

• Minimum dwelling sizeDistrict specific (with conditions)

  Single-family homes in the A-1 prime agriculture district in the county's zoning jurisdiction, including unincorporated Metamora township parcels in A-1

  • Printed as minimum ground floor area: one story 900 sq. ft.; two story 800 sq. ft. (1440 total).

  single-family minimum ground floor area, one story: >= 900 sq. ft. · single-family minimum ground floor area, two story: >= 800 sq. ft. (1440 total)

  “single-family homes: ​ one story:​ 900 sq. ft. (ordinance # 2014-19, passed on 11/24/2014).​ two story:​ 800 sq. ft. (1440 total)”

• Minimum lot sizeDistrict specific (with conditions)

  R-1 single-family residence district parcels in the county's zoning jurisdiction, which applies inside Metamora township if the parcel is in unincorporated territory and in R-1

  • Where sewer is utilized the printed minimum is 10,000 sq. ft.; where no sewer is utilized it is 1 acre or larger if needed for septic fields.
  • Figure is as printed in the code, with the ordinance cite #2023-21 passed 11/1/2023 not treated as an effective date.

  minimum lot area where no sewer is utilized: >= 1 acre (or larger if needed for septic fields) · minimum lot area where sewer is utilized: >= 10000 sq. ft.

  “where no sewer is utilized: ​1 acre, or larger if needed for 1 2 septic fields (ordinance #2023-21 passed 11/1/2023) where sewer is utilized: ​ 10,000 sq. ft.”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • District specific (with conditions) — A-1 prime agriculture district parcels in the county's zoning jurisdiction, which applies inside Metamora township if the parcel is in unincorporated territory and in A-1

    “1 acre, or larger if needed for 1 2 septic fields where no sewer is utilized.”

• SetbacksDistrict specific (with conditions)

  A-1 prime agriculture district parcels in the county's zoning jurisdiction, including unincorporated Metamora township parcels in A-1

  • Side yard is 10% of minimum lot width; rear yard 15 feet; additional yard and setback exceptions are in section 80.08.03, not read here.

  minimum front yard depth: >= 50 feet · minimum side yard width: >= 10 % of minimum lot width · minimum rear yard depth: >= 15 feet

  “5. minimum depth of front yard: ​ 50 feet 11 section 80.01.01 a-i agriculture district 6. minimum width of side yard:​ 10% of minimum lot width 7. minimum depth of rear yard:​ 15 feet”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • District specific (with conditions) — R-1 single-family residence district parcels in the county's zoning jurisdiction, including unincorporated Metamora township parcels in R-1

    “minimum depth of front yard: ​ 35 feet minimum width of side yard:​ 10% of minimum lot width minimum depth of rear yard:​ 15 feet see section 80.08.03 for additional yard specifications and exceptions.”

• Lot coverageDistrict specific (with conditions)

  A-1 prime agriculture district parcels in the county's zoning jurisdiction, including unincorporated Metamora township parcels in A-1

  maximum lot coverage: <= 20 % of lot

  “maximum lot coverage: ​ 20% of lot 5. minimum depth of front yard: ​ 50 feet”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • District specific (with conditions) — R-1 single-family residence district parcels in the county's zoning jurisdiction, including unincorporated Metamora township parcels in R-1

    “maximum lot coverage: ​ 25% of lot 5. required yards: minimum depth of front yard”

• Building heightDistrict specific (with conditions)

  A-1 prime agriculture district parcels in the county's zoning jurisdiction, including unincorporated Metamora township parcels in A-1

  • Additional height restrictions are in section 80.08.04, not read here.

  maximum building height: <= 35 feet

  “maximum building height:​ 35 feet 9. see section 80.08 additional requirements, including yard and setback, height, parking, and fences.”

• Manufactured homesAllowed

  Manufactured or mobile homes as a permitted use in the A-1 prime agriculture district of the county's zoning jurisdiction, including unincorporated Metamora township parcels in A-1

  • Permitted use subject to the code's mobile/manufactured home and RV standards in section 80.08.07 (not read here), setbacks, lot and floodplain rules, and an improvement location permit.

  “1. agricultural use 2. single-family dwelling 3. manufactured or mobile home”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Allowed — Manufactured homes as a permitted use in the R-1 single-family residence district of the county's zoning jurisdiction, including unincorporated Metamora township parcels in R-1

    “2. single family dwelling. 3. manufactured home. 4. additional uses set forth in section 80.05”

• Agricultural exemptionAvailable (with conditions)

  Barns and agricultural buildings in unincorporated Franklin County including Metamora township

  • Exempt from the building code under Indiana law, but still need an improvement location permit and must meet zoning, setback and flood plain requirements.

  “barns and other agricultural buildings are still subject zoning and flood plain requirements, but are exempt from the building code pursuant to indiana law.”

• Subdividing landRegulated (with conditions)

  Division of land and subdivisions in the county's zoning jurisdiction, including unincorporated Metamora township

  • Subdivision procedure and standards are in section 80.09 and 80.10, not read here.

  “80.10.02: subdivisions must have approval by the apc a. no plat or replat of a division of land resulting in a subdivision shall be filed with the county auditor and recorded by the county recorder unless it has first been granted final approval by the franklin county area plan commission”

• Permit processPartial

  Improvement location permits in unincorporated Franklin County including Metamora township

  • The procedure is in section 80.11.04, which was not read; only the cross-reference was confirmed.

  “no structure may be erected, altered or placed, or no use of land may be changed, unless an improvement location permit has been obtained from the executive director by the owner(s) of the property or by his agent.”

Still unanswered

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

• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder exemption for homes inside Metamora township
• Inspections — Building inspections for homes inside Metamora township
• Certificate of occupancy — Certificates of occupancy for homes inside Metamora township
• Local zoning — Land inside Metamora township, Franklin County, Indiana: whether the township itself adopts and administers a zoning ordinance
• Living in an RV — Occupancy of recreational vehicles on private land in unincorporated Metamora 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.