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

Rules another office applies inside Clay Township

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

• Minimum lot sizeDistrict specific (with conditions)

  New lot approved by subdivision or replat in a rural residential (RR) district under the Kokomo-Howard County Plan Commission; applies to land inside Clay township only if that jurisdiction reaches it (not confirmed)

  • Source is a plan commission subdivision submittal checklist (form dated 6/8/2011), not the zoning ordinance text.
  • The checklist also requires that the lot meet all other ordinance standards.
  • Access must be from the public street named in the checklist requirement.

  minimum lot area: >= 1 acre (rural residential district new lot approval) · minimum lot width: >= 120 feet (rural residential district new lot approval) · minimum public street frontage: >= 50 feet (rural residential district new lot approval)

  “approval of a new lot in rural residential districts requires: a. the lot contain 1 acre; 120 feet minimum lot width with 50 feet on a public street with access from said public street.”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • District specific (with conditions) — New lot approved by subdivision or replat in an agricultural (AG) district under the Kokomo-Howard County Plan Commission; applies to land inside Clay township only if that jurisdiction reaches it (not confirmed)

    “approval of a new lot in ag, agricultural districts requires: a. the lot contain at least 20 acres or b. the lot contain at least one acre and 19 acres of contiguous permanent conservation easement.”

• Who permits septicCounty (with conditions)

  Private individual absorption (septic) systems for residential development in Howard County, applied to land inside Clay township; the township itself does not appear as a septic authority in the pages opened

  • The county board of health considers private individual absorption systems only after the developer shows that collection sewers and central treatment are not feasible.
  • This text is in the county sewer regulations (§ 51.07(a)(2)) and governs proposed residential development; it is not a complete individual-permit process.
  • Whether the Kokomo city boundary or planning jurisdiction changes the health authority inside Clay township was not verified.

  “(2) the county board of health will only consider the use of private individual absorption systems for residential development after the developer has shown that the use of collection sewers and central treatment is not feasible.”

• Mandatory utility hookupConditional

  Proposed residential development (subdivision) in Howard County, applied to land inside Clay township only if the county sewer rule reaches it (not confirmed); this quoted rule does not address one new home on an existing lot

  • A direct connection to the sanitary sewer is required only when the sewer line needed to reach the project's nearest property line is under 300 feet per lot in the project.
  • Where the distance is 300 feet per lot or more, the county board of health considers private absorption systems (§ 51.07(a)(2)).
  • The developer must evaluate sewer extension feasibility before preliminary plat approval (§ 51.07(a)(1)).
  • No water-connection rule was found in the pages opened; water connection for a new home inside Clay township is unknown.

  distance from existing sanitary sewer to nearest property line of proposed project: < 300 feet per lot (direct connection required below this distance; at or above it the county board of health may consider private systems)

  “a direct connection shall be required when the total length of the sanitary sewer lines required from the existing sanitary sewer system to the nearest property line of the proposed project is less than 300 feet per lot in the total project”

• Subdividing landRegulated (with conditions)

  Residential subdivisions and preliminary plats in Howard County; applied to land inside Clay township only if the county subdivision rules reach it (not confirmed)

  • Preliminary plat approval is part of the subdivision process; the sewer feasibility evaluation must come before that approval.
  • Subdivision control regulations are county code chapter 152; only its title was seen in the code's contents, and its operative text was not opened.
  • Kokomo planning-jurisdiction overlap was not verified.

  “(1) prior to preliminary plat approval, the developer of any proposed residential development shall be required to evaluate the feasibility of extending an existing public or enclosed sanitary sewer system.”

Still unanswered

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

• Building permit — New residential construction on land inside Clay township, Howard County, Indiana
• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder construction of a home on land inside Clay township, Howard County, Indiana
• Building code adopted — Building code in force for new residential construction inside Clay township, Howard County, Indiana
• Inspections — Inspections of new residential construction on land inside Clay township, Howard County, Indiana
• Certificate of occupancy — Occupancy certificate for a new home on land inside Clay township, Howard 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.