Zoning, building permits and septic rules in Town of Halifax, Massachusetts

Town of Halifax’s own rules

• Building permitRequired

  Construction, reconstruction, and commencement or change of a building or land use in connection with a building inside Halifax town limits.

  • The Building Inspector must issue the permit.
  • The proposed construction, alteration, or use must comply with Chapter 167 or a Board of Appeals decision.
  • The application must include the specified plan and information.

  “No building shall be constructed or reconstructed and no use of a building or land in connection with building shall be begun or changed without a permit having been issued by the Building Inspector. No permit shall be issued until such construction, alteration or use as proposed complies in all respects with the provisions of this chapter or with a decision rendered by the Board of Appeals.”

• InspectionsLimited

  Construction undertaken pursuant to a Halifax zoning special permit.

  • Inspection is by the Board's engineer under direction of the Board.
  • Developer pays fees specified in § 235-35.
  • Performance must be guaranteed under §§ 235-35 through 235-41 of the Subdivision Rules.

  “To ensure conformance to these certified plans, construction shall be inspected by the Board's engineer under the direction of the Board, with fees paid by the developer as specified in § 235-35 of said Subdivision Rules and with performance to be guaranteed as specified under § 235-35 through § 235-41 of the Subdivision Rules.”

• Certificate of occupancyRequired

  Buildings erected, altered, or changed as to construction or use inside Halifax town limits.

  • An occupancy permit signed by the Building Inspector is required before occupancy or use.
  • The building, its uses, and incidental uses must comply with Chapter 167.

  “No building erected, altered or in any way changed as to construction or use, under a permit or otherwise, shall be occupied or used without an occupancy permit signed by the Building Inspector, which permit shall not be issued until the building and its uses and the uses incident thereto comply in all respects with this chapter.”

• Local zoningPresent (with conditions)

  Land inside Halifax town limits.

  • Buildings, structures, and land uses must conform to the zoning chapter and applicable district.

  “The purpose of this Zoning Chapter is to promote the health, safety, convenience, morals and welfare of the inhabitants of Halifax, to lessen the danger from fire and congestion, to encourage the most appropriate use of the land and to improve the town under the provisions of MGL c. 40A, §§ 1 through 22. For this purpose, the use, construction, repair, alteration, height, area, location of buildings and structures and use of premises in the Town of Halifax are regulated as hereinafter provided.”

• Who permits septicLocal (with conditions)

  Sanitary conditions and local subsurface-disposal regulation inside Halifax town limits.

  • The Board of Health may make regulations it judges necessary for public health and safety.
  • The zoning bylaw refers to Board of Health rules supplemental to 310 CMR 15.00 for individual sewage disposal systems.

  “It shall be the duty of the Board of Health to look after the sanitary conditions of the town. It shall make such regulations as it judges necessary for the public health and safety with respect to nuisances, sources of filth, causes of sickness within the town and articles that are capable of containing infection and contagion that might be brought into or conveyed from the town.”

• Agricultural exemptionConditional

  Agricultural purposes on land inside Halifax town limits.

  • The zoning chapter does not prohibit or limit agricultural use beyond the degree of regulation allowed under MGL c. 40A.

  “All buildings or structures hereinafter erected, reconstructed, altered, enlarged or moved or use of premises in the Town of Halifax shall be in conformity with the provisions of this chapter. Any building, structure or land may not be used for any purpose or in any manner other than is permitted within the district in which such building, structure or land is located. Any use not specifically enumerated in a district herein shall be deemed prohibited. In accordance with MGL c. 40A and notwithstanding any provisions to the contrary, this chapter shall not prohibit or limit the use of land for any church or other religious purpose, for any educational purpose which is religious, sectarian, denominational or public, for any municipal purpose or for any agricultural purpose beyond the degree of regulation allowed under said chapter.”

• Subdividing landRegulated (with conditions)

  Subdivision proposals and subdivision-related special-permitted uses inside Halifax town limits.

  • Special-permit internal circulation and utility systems require Planning Board certification to achieve the intent of Halifax Subdivision Rules.
  • Construction is inspected and performance guaranteed as provided in the cited Subdivision Rules sections.

  “There shall be a Planning Board with all of the powers and duties provided for said Board in MGL c. 41, § 81A, and any acts in amendment thereof or in addition thereto.”

• Driveway accessLimited

  Lot access and common driveways inside Halifax town limits.

  • Access must be through or across the lot's legal frontage.
  • Common driveways are prohibited unless otherwise provided in Chapter 167.

  “Access to all lots shall only be through or across its legal frontage. No common driveways are allowed unless otherwise provided for within this chapter.”

• Permit feesVariable (with conditions)

  Building or use permits under Halifax Zoning Chapter 167.

  • The Board of Selectmen establishes the issuance fee.

  “Any application for such a permit shall be accompanied by a plan, accurately drawn, showing the actual shape and dimensions of the lot to be built upon, the exact location and size of all buildings or structures already on the lot, the location of new buildings to be constructed, together with the lines within which all buildings and structures are to be erected, the existing and intended use of each building or structure and such other information as may be necessary to provide for the plans, and permits shall be kept on file by the Building Inspector. The fee for the issuance of such permits shall be established by the Board of Selectmen.”

• Permit processPublished (with conditions)

  Building or use permit applications under Halifax Zoning Chapter 167.

  • Application needs the specified accurate plan and site/use information.
  • The Building Inspector keeps plans and permits on file.

  “No building shall be constructed or reconstructed and no use of a building or land in connection with building shall be begun or changed without a permit having been issued by the Building Inspector. No permit shall be issued until such construction, alteration or use as proposed complies in all respects with the provisions of this chapter or with a decision rendered by the Board of Appeals. Any application for such a permit shall be accompanied by a plan, accurately drawn, showing the actual shape and dimensions of the lot to be built upon, the exact location and size of all buildings or structures already on the lot, the location of new buildings to be constructed, together with the lines within which all buildings and structures are to be erected, the existing and intended use of each building or structure and such other information as may be necessary to provide for the plans, and permits shall be kept on file by the Building Inspector.”

Rules another office applies inside Town of Halifax

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

• Building in a floodplainRequired

  All structural and non-structural development in Halifax Floodplain District.

  • Applies whether development is permitted by right or special permit.
  • Must comply with MGL c. 131, § 40, listed state building/wetlands requirements, and Title 5.
  • State-regulation variances may only be granted under required state variance procedures.

  “The Floodplain District is established as an overlay district to all other districts. All development in the district, including structural and non-structural activities, whether permitted by right or by special permit must be in compliance with Chapter 131, Section 40 of the Massachusetts General Laws and with the following: Sections of the Massachusetts State Building Code (780 CMR); Wetlands Protection Regulations, Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) (currently 310 CMR 10.00); Inland Wetlands Restriction, DEP (currently 310 CMR 13.00); Minimum Requirements for the Subsurface Disposal of Sanitary Sewage, DEP (currently 310 CMR 15, Title 5); Any variances from the provisions and requirements of the above-referenced state regulations may only be granted in accordance with the required variance procedures of these state regulations.”

Still unanswered

We looked and could not find an official answer yet. Silence is not permission; ask Town of Halifax or Plymouth County directly.

• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builders of residential construction inside Halifax town limits.
• Building code adopted — Building construction inside Halifax town limits.
• Minimum dwelling size — Single-family dwellings in Halifax Agricultural-Residential District.
• Living in an RV — RV occupancy on private land inside Halifax town limits.
• Camping on your land — Temporary camping on private land inside Halifax town limits.

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.

Off-grid gear

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

• Water Crystal Quest Filter any source — well, rain, or creek — to drinking-clean.
• Power Bluetti Solar generators and home battery backup for living off the grid.
• Septic Soil percolation test kit Run your own perc test before paying an engineer — the first thing a septic office asks about.
• Water Well water test kit Bacteria, nitrates, hardness — know what the well on a parcel is really pumping.

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