Zoning, building permits and septic rules in Moorland, Kentucky

Moorland’s own rules

• Building permitRequired

  Erecting, constructing, enlarging, altering or moving a building inside Moorland city

  • The city issues its approval; the Jefferson County building office then issues the building permit and conducts inspections (see building_inspection claim).
  • Ordinary upkeep, maintenance and minor repairs are exempt from the application and permit requirement if they do not violate the code.

  “no persons shall erect, construct, enlarge, alter, or move a building or make, install, or alter, improvements thereto within the city without first making application and obtaining a permit therefor from the legislative body.”

• Building code adoptedAdopted (with conditions)

  Construction inside Moorland city

  • The city adopts the 1970 edition of the Building Officials and Code Administrators (BOCA) code plus all later supplements, as adopted by unincorporated Jefferson County.
  • Current state-adopted building codes were not checked in this research pass.

  “the present building code as adopted for the unincorporated territory of jefferson county, kentucky, by the jefferson county fiscal court, namely the building officials and code administrators, international, inc. code 1970 edition plus all subsequent supplements thereto, is adopted and to be used as the building codes for the city.”

• Local zoningPresent (with conditions)

  Land inside Moorland city limits: the city changes zoning classifications by its own ordinance.

  • Ordinance 1960-1, cited by the city as the source of its single-family residential classification, was not located or opened; the zoning text and map are unverified.
  • Whether Louisville/Jefferson County Metro planning rules also apply inside Moorland city was not verified.

  “we, the board of moorland, a sixth class city, do hereby ordain a change in zoning of lots 1 through 6 of moorland subdivision, section 2”

• Zoning districtsPartial

  Moorland city zoning classifications as referenced in ordinance 920.1 (single-family residential and apartment/multiple-family).

  • Only two classifications are named in the source: single-family residential (ordinance 1960-1) and apartment or multiple-family buildings created by rezoning.
  • No published district map or full district schedule was found.

  “from single family residential classification, as provided in ordinance 1960-1, to apartment or multiple family buildings subject to the following terms and conditions”

• Minimum dwelling sizeSpecified

  Single-family residence lots covered by ordinance 930.1 in Moorland subdivision inside Moorland city

  • Floor-area minimums exclude open porches and attached garages or carports.
  • Set by the subdivision ordinance for named lots; not shown to apply citywide.

  minimum ground floor area, one-story house: >= 1000 square feet (open porches and attached garages are not included in computing floor area) · minimum ground floor area, one and one-half story house: >= 850 square feet (open porches and attached garages are not included in computing floor area)

  “the ground floor area of one-story house shall be a minimum of 1000 square feet and the ground floor area of each one and one-half story house shall be a minimum of 850 square feet.”

• SetbacksDistrict specific (with conditions)

  Lots in the Moorland subdivision covered by ordinance 930.1 (single-family residential), inside Moorland city

  • Setbacks are the building setback lines on the recorded plat; no numeric setback found in the ordinance text.
  • Plat setback lines are a minimum.

  “building setback lines on the recorded plat shall be observed as a minimum.”

• Accessory dwellingsProhibited

  Garages and outbuildings on lots described in ordinance 930.1 inside Moorland city

  • Limited to the named subdivision lots; no accessory dwelling rule found for other city lots.

  “no trailer, basement, tent, shack, garage or other outbuilding erected on any lot described above at any time shall be used as a residence, temporarily or permanently.”

• Driveway accessRequired

  Driveway entrance to the street for houses and garages on lots covered by ordinance 930.1 inside Moorland city

  • Written approval of the driveway entrance is required before work begins.
  • Applies to the subdivision lots named in ordinance 930.1; not shown to apply citywide.

  “the driveway entrance to the street shall be approved in writing before the work is begun by the [party of the first part] [building inspector]”

• Permit feesPublished (with conditions)

  Building permit for structure additions or changes inside Moorland city

  • The city fee is stated only for additions or changes; the fee for new construction is not stated in the ordinance text opened.
  • Fee is payable to the city treasurer; the county building office may charge its own fees (not verified).

  permit fee for structure additions or changes: 5 USD (applies only to additions or changes; new-construction fee not stated)

  “no permit shall be issued for structure additions or changes until the applicant shall have paid to the city treasurer a permit fee of $5.00.”

• Permit processPublished (with conditions)

  Building permit application process inside Moorland city

  • Process: city director review and board approval, then a preliminary certificate of compliance, then the Jefferson County building office issues the permit.
  • Plans must be submitted to the director in duplicate, with a lot plan and dimensions.

  “the procedure for obtaining a building permit shall be as follows: (1) the plans, containing a drawing. plat or sketch in duplicate, showing the lot plan”

Rules another office applies inside Moorland

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

• InspectionsRequired

  Permitted construction inside Moorland city; the Jefferson County building office conducts the inspections under the city procedure.

  • Scope is recorded as countywide because the county-kind scope does not accept municipality-specific geography; the rule applies inside Moorland city only through the city's ordinance 950.2 procedure.
  • Inspections follow approval by the city and other county and state agencies as required.

  “the jefferson county building office shall review said plans and specifications and shall issue a building permit and conduct the necessary inspections based upon the approval by the city and all other county and state agencies' approvals as may be required.”

• Who permits septicState (with conditions)

  Septic tanks on the apartment or multiple-family lots rezoned by ordinance 920.1 (lots 1 and 2 and 101 through 105 in section 1, and lots 1 through 6 in section 2, of Moorland subdivision) inside Moorland city.

  • Condition applies only to lots rezoned to multiple-family under ordinance 920.1; septic authority for single-family lots was not found.
  • Approval is by the state board of health, per the ordinance.

  “the owner or developer shall obtain approval from the state board of health for septic tanks, making such percolation tests as are required by the state board of health.”

Still unanswered

We looked and could not find an official answer yet. Silence is not permission; ask Moorland or Jefferson County directly.

• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder exemption inside Moorland city
• Certificate of occupancy — Certificate of occupancy inside Moorland city
• Minimum lot size — Minimum lot size, single-family district inside Moorland city
• Lot coverage — Lot coverage inside Moorland city
• Building height — Building height inside Moorland city

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.