Bolthole Index

Union Parish, Louisiana

Building permits, zoning and septic in Town of Farmerville, Louisiana

Town of Farmerville, Louisiana requires a building permit before constructing, extending or altering a residential, business, commercial or utility structure.1 Farmerville has residential zoning districts with minimum lot sizes; Union Parish’s unincorporated-land answers do not replace these town rules.23 Septic systems require approval from the state health officer, with local help through the Union Parish Health Unit.45

At a glance

Building permit
Required; issued by the general manager of public services1
Zoning
Residential district rules apply; confirm the parcel’s district with the town23
Minimum lot area
R-1 and R-1A: 6,000 square feet; R-2: 7,000 square feet, with 4,000 square feet per family23
Septic permits
State health officer approval required before installation, alteration or operation6
Owner-builder
Conditional contractor-licensing exemption; building permits and safety codes still apply71
Private wells
Licensed drilling contractor and state registration required; domestic wells use post-installation notification rules8

Who to call

Building permits

Town of Farmerville — Town Hall

Town contact for reaching the general manager of public services about building permits and asking about the parcel’s zoning district.

(318) 368-9242

[email protected]

1024 Sterlington Hwy Farmerville , LA 71241

Septic permits

Union Parish Health Unit

Local health-unit contact; ask for the sanitarian for onsite wastewater permitting.

318. 368.3156

1002 Marion Hwy., Farmerville, LA 71241

Septic permits

Louisiana Department of Health — Onsite Wastewater Program

State onsite wastewater program; parish health-unit sanitarians administer onsite sewage permitting.

Contact details are copied from each office’s official page and were checked against it on October 11, 2026.

Off-grid gear

Going off-grid in Town of Farmerville means bringing your own water and power. The kit we’d start with:

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Do you need a building permit in Town of Farmerville, LA?

Farmerville requires a building permit before a building, house or other residential, business, commercial or utility structure is built, established, extended or altered.1 The general manager of public services issues the building permit after a satisfactory showing of compliance with the town’s building chapter and payment of the applicable fee.9 Farmerville’s construction-code adoption excludes farm structures and recreational camps, but that exclusion does not establish an exemption from the separate building-permit requirement.101 Ask the general manager to classify a proposed barn or camp before starting work.9

Who issues building permits in Town of Farmerville?

Farmerville’s ordinance assigns building permits to the general manager of public services.1 Reach the town through Town Hall at (318) 368-9242 or [email protected]; the physical address is 1024 Sterlington Hwy Farmerville , LA 71241.11 Ask Town Hall to connect you with the general manager for the current application, building-permit fee and parcel-specific zoning questions.11 Septic approval remains under the state health officer’s authority, with parish health-unit sanitarians operating the onsite sewage permitting system.412

Does Town of Farmerville have zoning, lot-size and setback rules?

Farmerville’s residential zoning provisions set minimum lot areas by district.23 In R-1 and R-1A Residence Districts, both the minimum lot area and the minimum lot area per family are 6,000 square feet.2 In the R-2 Residence District, the minimum lot area is 7,000 square feet, while the minimum area per family is 4,000 square feet.3 Those figures describe land area, not minimum house floor area.23 Before choosing a house footprint, ask Town Hall to confirm the parcel’s district and applicable setbacks; we could not confirm Farmerville’s setback dimensions or minimum dwelling size.11

How do septic permits work inside Town of Farmerville?

An individual sewerage system in Farmerville needs a state-health-officer permit before installation, alteration or operation, with approved plans and specifications.6 Individual-system approval depends on community sewer connection being infeasible and on suitable soil, drainage and lot conditions.6 Contact the Union Parish Health Unit and ask for the sanitarian before committing to a septic layout.1312 Across Union Parish, only 1.4% of soils are rated “not limited” for a conventional drain field; that parish-wide rating calls for a site evaluation and possibly an engineered system, rather than showing that septic is impossible on a Farmerville lot.14

Can you live in an RV or tiny home in Town of Farmerville?

We could not confirm whether Farmerville allows residential RV occupancy, temporary camping on private land, tiny-home occupancy or an accessory dwelling; ask Town Hall about the proposed use and the parcel’s district before buying a unit.11 A structure proposed as a small permanent house still falls within Farmerville’s building-permit requirement for houses and residential structures.1 Choosing an off-grid setup also does not remove Louisiana’s requirement for approved, permitted individual sanitation where community sewer is unavailable or connection is infeasible.15

Building a home in Town of Farmerville: what are the steps?

  1. Ask Town Hall to confirm the parcel’s residential district and check the proposed lot area against that district’s requirements.1123
  2. Resolve sewer feasibility and, if an individual system is needed, obtain state health approval for its plans before installation.6
  3. Apply to the general manager of public services, demonstrate building-chapter compliance and pay the applicable building-permit fee before construction.91
  4. Ask the town for the inspection schedule; Louisiana requires code-enforcement inspections by a building code enforcement officer or certified third-party provider, although we could not confirm Farmerville’s local scheduling procedure.1611

Louisiana’s owner-builder provision is a conditional contractor-licensing exemption for a personal residence, requiring an exemption affidavit; it leaves health and life-safety requirements in force.7

What should you check before buying in Town of Farmerville?

For a Farmerville parcel needing septic, establish community sewer feasibility and onsite suitability before treating the zoning minimum lot area as sufficient room for a sewage system.623 For a private well, Louisiana requires a licensed drilling contractor and registration within 30 days after completion; domestic wells follow post-installation notification rules rather than the ordinary advance-notification process.8 Ask Town Hall who administers floodplain review for the specific address and whether occupancy approval is required; we could not confirm those town procedures.11 For land outside Farmerville town limits, use the Union Parish guide for the parish building-permit answer.17

Watch-outs

  • Farmerville’s minimum lot areas vary by residential district; do not apply the R-1 figure to an R-2 parcel.23
  • Farmerville’s farm-structure construction-code exclusion does not establish a building-permit exemption.101
  • We could not confirm Farmerville’s RV or tiny-home occupancy rules; ask Town Hall about the specific unit and intended use.11

Sources

  1. Sec. 5-3. Building permits required; fees (Town of Farmerville), quoted and re-checked
  2. Appendix A Zoning, Sec. 5.03. Area regulations (Town of Farmerville), quoted and re-checked
  3. Appendix A Zoning, Sec. 6.03. Area regulations (Town of Farmerville), quoted and re-checked
  4. Louisiana Administrative Code Title 51, Part XIII, Public Health—Sanitary Code (Louisiana statewide rule), quoted and re-checked
  5. Louisiana Department of Health Onsite Wastewater Program (2026 county census)
  6. Louisiana Administrative Code Title 51, Part XIII, Public Health—Sanitary Code (Louisiana statewide rule), quoted and re-checked
  7. Louisiana Revised Statutes § 37:2157 — Exemptions (Louisiana statewide rule), quoted and re-checked
  8. Louisiana Administrative Code, Title 43, Part VI, §701 (Louisiana statewide rule), quoted and re-checked
  9. Sec. 5-3. Building permits required; fees (Town of Farmerville), quoted and re-checked
  10. Sec. 5-1. Uniform construction code adopted (Town of Farmerville), quoted and re-checked
  11. Town of Farmerville — Town Hall (farmerville.org)
  12. Louisiana Department of Health — Onsite Wastewater Program (ldh.la.gov)
  13. Union Parish Health Unit (ldh.la.gov)
  14. Share of soils USDA rates "not limited" for a conventional septic drain field (SSURGO). A strict rating: the median county is about 6% and a tenth of counties are 0%, so a low figure means most lots need a site evaluation or an engineered system, not that septic is impossible. Cite it only with that caveat: Bolthole Index county data
  15. Louisiana Administrative Code Title 51, Part XIII, Public Health—Sanitary Code (Louisiana statewide rule), quoted and re-checked
  16. R.S. 40:1730.23 — Enforcement of building codes by municipalities, parishes, and the fire marshal (Louisiana statewide rule), quoted and re-checked
  17. Steps for receiving a Building Permit in Union Parish, quoted and re-checked

Written October 11, 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.

Answers from the rulebook for Town of Farmerville

Town of Farmerville’s own rules

  • Building permitRequired

    Any building, house, or residential, business, commercial, or utility structure built, erected, established, extended, or altered inside Farmerville town limits.

    • The permit is issued by the general manager of public services as provided in section 2-23.
    • The permit is issued only upon satisfactory compliance with Chapter 5 and payment of the applicable fee.
    “Before any building, house, or other residential, business, commercial or utility structure is built, erected, established, extended or altered, the owner or person undertaking such work shall obtain a permit therefore from the general manager of public services as provided in section 2-23.”
  • Building code adoptedAdopted

    Buildings and structures inside Farmerville town limits, excluding farm structures and recreational camps.

    • The ordinance states the adoption was effective January 1, 2007.
    • The adopted code includes the listed editions and state plumbing code described in Sec. 5-1.

    effective date: 2007-01-01

    “Effective January 1, 2007, pursuant to R.S. 40:1730.21, et seq., there is hereby adopted, for the purpose of regulating the construction, alterations, repair, equipment, use and occupancy and maintenance of every building or structure or any appurtenance connected or attached to such buildings or structures, excluding farm structures and recreational camps, the Louisiana State Uniform Construction Code.”
  • Agricultural exemptionAvailable (with conditions)

    Farm structures inside Farmerville town limits.

    • The exclusion is from the municipal adoption of the Louisiana State Uniform Construction Code in Sec. 5-1; other applicable rules may still apply.
    • Recreational camps are also excluded.
    “excluding farm structures and recreational camps, the Louisiana State Uniform Construction Code.”
  • Permit processPublished (with conditions)

    Building-permit process inside Farmerville town limits.

    • Application is made to the general manager of public services as provided in section 2-23.
    • Issuance requires satisfactory showing that the proposed structure complies with Chapter 5 and payment of the applicable permit fee.
    “Such permit shall be issued only upon a satisfactory showing that the proposed structure will comply with all requirements of this chapter and upon payment of a permit fee to be determined as follows:”

Rules another office applies inside Town of Farmerville

Town of Farmerville 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 sizeSpecified

    Farmerville Appendix A R-1 and R-1A Residence Districts.

    • The section states both minimum required lot area and minimum required lot area per family.

    minimum required lot area: 6000 square feet · minimum required lot area per family: 6000 square feet

    “Minimum required lot area [...].. 6,000 sq. ft. Minimum required lot area per family [...].. 6,000 sq. ft.”
    One more reviewed finding on this topic

Still unanswered

We looked and could not find an official answer yet. Silence is not permission; ask Town of Farmerville or Union Parish directly.

  • Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder construction inside Farmerville town limits.
  • Inspections — Building inspections for construction inside Farmerville town limits.
  • Certificate of occupancy — Certificates of occupancy for buildings inside Farmerville town limits.
  • Minimum dwelling size — Minimum dwelling size inside Farmerville town limits.
  • Lot coverage — Lot coverage inside Farmerville town limits.
10 more unanswered
  • Building height
  • Camping on your land
  • Tiny homes
  • Accessory dwellings
  • Who permits septic
  • Septic permit
  • Septic inspection
  • Off-grid sanitation
  • Well permit
  • Short-term rentals

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.

Unanswered questions are usually a sign that Town of Farmerville publishes no rule on the point, not that none exists. Union Parish’s page lists the county offices to call.

← All of Union Parish: county rules, score and offices