Building permits, zoning and septic rules in Shepherdsville, Kentucky

At a glance

Building permits

Required for qualifying construction and alterations; mobile and modular home placement also requires a permit¹

Zoning

City zoning regulations adopted by reference²

Septic permits

Bullitt County Health Department; site evaluation before the construction permit⁴⁵

Owner-installed septic

Homeowner may apply when personally installing the system; approval is still required⁶

Private wells

Kentucky requires a certified driller, but no owner permitting application or fee for construction or abandonment⁷

Who to call

Contact details are copied from each office’s official page and were checked against it on October 12, 2026.

Do you need a building permit in Shepherdsville, KY?

Shepherdsville requires a building permit for construction or alteration costing more than $1,000, and for work that enlarges capacity or affects bearing walls or the roof, with fences excepted.¹ A low project price therefore does not settle the permit question when structural work is involved.¹ Placement or replacement of mobile and modular homes also requires a Shepherdsville building permit.¹ Applications require duplicate plans and specifications signed by the owner, architect or contractor.¹ A Shepherdsville building permit is valid for 1 year.¹ Ask City Administration to identify the building official and confirm the current building-permit fee before submitting plans.⁸

Who handles building permits and zoning questions in Shepherdsville?

Start with Shepherdsville City Administration for the city building-permit contact; the department lists permit issuance and floodplain management among its responsibilities.⁸ Call 502-543-2923 or visit 634 Conestoga Pkwy Shepherdsville, KY 40165.⁸ Shepherdsville’s municipal Planning and Zoning page links to Bullitt County Planning and Development, so ask City Hall which counter processes the specific city zoning application.⁹ That referral does not replace Shepherdsville’s adopted city zoning regulations.² Septic site evaluations, septic permits and system inspections remain with Bullitt County Health Department, including for an address inside Shepherdsville.³¹⁰

Does Shepherdsville have zoning, and what about setbacks and lot size?

Shepherdsville has zoning: the city adopts its zoning regulations and amendments by reference rather than reproducing the detailed regulations in the adoption section.² Before buying, ask the city planning contact for the parcel’s district, the current use table and the dimensional schedule that applies to that district.⁹ We could not confirm Shepherdsville’s district-specific minimum lot size, minimum dwelling size, setbacks, lot coverage or height limits; request those details through City Hall’s planning contact.⁹ For a property outside city limits, use the Bullitt County guide, where county zoning applies to unincorporated land.¹¹

How do septic permits work inside Shepherdsville?

Where public sanitary sewer is unavailable, Shepherdsville requires a private wastewater disposal system complying with Bullitt County Health Department provisions and applicable local and state rules until public sewer is available.³ Obtain a site evaluation and then a septic construction permit before constructing any portion of the system.⁴ Bullitt County’s published fees are $250 for a site evaluation, $350 for a farm evaluation and $275 for a sewage permit.¹² After the evaluation establishes system requirements, a homeowner may apply if personally installing the system; otherwise a Certified Installer must apply.⁶ The installer calls for inspection after installation.¹³ Coordinate the proposed home footprint with sewage approval before committing to a layout.⁴⁶

Can you live in an RV or tiny home on land in Shepherdsville?

We could not confirm a general Shepherdsville rule for residential RV occupancy, temporary camping, tiny-home occupancy or accessory dwellings; ask the city planning contact about the proposed use before relying on it as a place to live.⁹ Ask separately about permanent occupancy and an RV used during home construction, and request the applicable zoning provision for the parcel.⁹ Shepherdsville’s mobile and modular home placement permit requirement does not establish permission for every tiny-home design or RV use.¹ City zoning and sewage approval need separate attention: an approved septic system does not answer whether the intended dwelling use meets Shepherdsville zoning.²³

Building a home in Shepherdsville: what steps come first?

1. Ask Shepherdsville’s planning contact for the parcel’s city zoning district and the requirements for the proposed home.⁹²
2. Establish sewer availability; where sewer is unavailable, arrange Bullitt County Health Department’s site evaluation and septic permit before septic construction.³⁴
3. Prepare the signed duplicate plans and specifications required for the Shepherdsville building-permit application, and ask City Administration for the building official’s submission instructions.¹⁸
4. Discuss development plans and road encroachments with Shepherdsville Engineering, and floodplain management with City Administration.¹⁴⁸
5. If planning a private well, use a Kentucky Certified Water Well Driller; Kentucky requires no property-owner permitting application or fee for constructing or abandoning the well.⁷

Watch-outs

• A homeowner’s ability to apply for an owner-installed septic system is not confirmation of a general Shepherdsville owner-builder exemption for home construction; ask the city building official.⁶⁸
• Ask City Administration about local floodplain review; Kentucky also requires a Division of Water floodplain permit for development in, along or across a stream.⁸¹⁵

Sources

1. § 151.21 Building Permits; Required; Application (Shepherdsville), quoted and re-checked
2. § 157.01 Zoning Regulations Adopted by Reference (Shepherdsville), quoted and re-checked
3. § 52.035 Public Sewer Not Available (Shepherdsville), quoted and re-checked
4. Environmental Compliance FAQs (Shepherdsville), quoted and re-checked
5. Sewage, quoted and re-checked
6. Sewage, quoted and re-checked
7. Water Well Information for Home Owners (Kentucky statewide rule), quoted and re-checked
8. Shepherdsville City Administration / City Clerk (shepherdsvilleky.gov)
9. Shepherdsville Planning and Zoning / City Hall (shepherdsvilleky.gov)
10. Bullitt County Health Department – Onsite Sewage (bullitthealth.org)
11. Buildings & Safety / Planning and Zoning, quoted and re-checked
12. Sewage, quoted and re-checked
13. Sewage, quoted and re-checked
14. Shepherdsville Engineering Department (shepherdsvilleky.gov)
15. Permits, Certifications, and Approvals — Division of Water, quoted and re-checked

Written October 12, 2026 from the rules quoted below, each taken from an official source and re-checked by an independent reviewer. This is research, not legal advice: rules change, so confirm with the office before you buy or build.