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

Rules another office applies inside Riley Township

Riley 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

  Zoning districts of the Vigo County Unified Zoning Ordinance as applied to unincorporated land in Riley township, Vigo County

  • Covers unincorporated areas of Vigo County only; the Town of Riley is an incorporated town inside Riley township and is covered by the same joint ordinance only as adopted by the Riley town board.
  • Source dated October 21, 1996; later amendments were not reviewed.

  “symbol district name a-1 agriculture and rural residential district c-1 c-2 c-3 c-4 c-5 c-6 c-7 c-8 m-1 m-2 r-s r-1 r-2 r-2m r-3 r-3h r-t”

• Minimum dwelling sizeDistrict specific (with conditions)

  Multifamily residential district (R-3), unincorporated Riley township; not a single-family district

  • Minimum floor area excludes garage, carports and open porches.
  • Single-family district minimum floor area was not captured (see followups).

  minimum floor area: >= 550 sq ft (exclusive of garage, carports and open porches)

  “l. minimum floor area (exclusive of garage, carports and open porches): - 550 sq. ft.”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • District specific (with conditions) — High density residential district (R-3H), unincorporated Riley township; not a single-family district

    “l. minimum floor area (exclusive of garage, carports and open porches): - 450 sq. ft.”

• Minimum lot sizeSpecified

  Single-family residential suburban district (R-S), unincorporated Riley township, Vigo County

  • Lot area may be increased depending on soil conditions and requirements of the Vigo County Health Department.
  • Same 20,000 sq. ft. minimum applies with or without public sewers.
  • Source is the 1996 ordinance text; later amendments not reviewed.

  minimum lot area, with sewers: >= 20000 sq ft (may be increased depending on soil conditions and Vigo County Health Department requirements) · minimum lot area, without sewers: >= 20000 sq ft (may be increased depending on soil conditions and Vigo County Health Department requirements)

  “c. minimum lot area 1.with sewers - 20,000 sq. ft. 2.without sewers - 20,000 sq. ft., provided, however, minimum lot area may be increased depending on soil conditions and requirements of the vigo county health department.”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — Single-family residential district with 5,500 sq. ft. minimum lot area in unincorporated Riley township (the R-1 district by district order in section 11; the district heading was not captured in the opened text)

    “c. minimum lot area - 5,500 sq. ft., provided, however, for the development of any single-family subdivision for which a plat is recorded after the effective date of this ordinance, attachment to a public or semipublic sanitary sewer system and water supply shall be mandatory.”

• SetbacksSpecified

  Single-family residential suburban district (R-S), unincorporated Riley township, Vigo County: front setback from street right-of-way

  • Front setback depends on street classification; rear principal building setback is 25 ft from the property line.
  • Source text is from the 1996 ordinance; later amendments not reviewed.

  front setback, minor or local street: 25 ft · front setback, sub collector street: 30 ft · front setback, collector street: 40 ft · front setback, arterial street: 60 ft · rear setback, principal use building: 25 ft

  “1. along a minor or local street - 25’ 2. along a sub collector street - 30’ 3. along a collector - 40’ 4. along a arterial - 60’”

• Lot coverageSpecified

  Multifamily residential district (R-3), unincorporated Riley township; not a single-family district

  • Minimum vegetative cover of 25% is also required in this district.
  • Single-family district lot coverage was not captured (see followups).

  maximum lot coverage by principal building: <= 45 %

  “m. lot coverage 1.maximum coverage by principal building – 45% 2.minimum vegetative cover – 25%”

• Manufactured homesLimited

  Mobile homes (which the ordinance's dwelling definition includes as mobile, modular and manufactured dwellings) in the R-S district, unincorporated Riley township, only as a special exception

  • Mobile home is listed as a special exception use, subject to the provisions of section 18 (special exception regulations).
  • Not a permitted-by-right use in R-S; the special exception approval process was not reviewed.

  “special exception uses (subject to the provisions of section 18). bed & breakfast child care home that is not used as the primary residence of the person who operates the child care home golfcourse group home mobile home public pool utility substation”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Limited — Mobile home parks in the mobile home park residential district (R-T), unincorporated Riley township

    “the purpose of this district is to provide for mobile home park communities at appropriate locations where they can be closely associated with community facilities such as schools, parks, shopping areas, etc.”

• Mandatory utility hookupConditional

  New single-family home in the R-S district, unincorporated Riley township: connection to public water and sewer when available

  • Public water and sewer should be present under most circumstances.
  • Connection is not mandatory if the facilities are more than 300 feet from the property line.
  • The 300-foot distance is taken from the district purpose statement; this is a guidance clause, not a separate connection mandate.

  distance from property line beyond which connection is not mandatory: > 300 ft (public water and sewer facilities)

  “under most circumstances, public water and sewer facilities should be present but are not mandatory if the facilities are more than threehundred (300) feet from the property line.”

  2 more reviewed findings on this topic

  • Water and sewer (with conditions) — Single-family subdivisions platted after the ordinance effective date in the 5,500 sq. ft. single-family district (inferred R-1), unincorporated Riley township

    “attachment to a public or semipublic sanitary sewer system and water supply shall be mandatory.”

  • Conditional — Mobile home park development in the mobile home park residential district (R-T), unincorporated Riley township

    “development within this district requires the provision of sanitary sewer and/or public water facilities.”

• Permit processPartial

  Land-use permit for building or land use in unincorporated Riley township under the Vigo County Unified Zoning Ordinance

  • Only the permit's definition was captured; application steps, fees and issuing office were not located in the opened text.
  • Area Plan Commission of Vigo County is the planning commission for unincorporated areas under the ordinance.

  “improvement location permit: a permit stating that the proposed erection, construction, enlargement, or moving of a building and land use referred to therein complies with the provisions of this ordinance.”

Still unanswered

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

• Building permit — Building permit for new home construction in unincorporated Riley township
• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder exemption for a home built in unincorporated Riley township
• Building code adopted — Building code in unincorporated Riley township
• Inspections — Building inspection for new homes in unincorporated Riley township
• Certificate of occupancy — Certificate of occupancy for new homes in unincorporated Riley 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.