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

Town of Mattapoisett’s own rules

• Local zoningPresent (with conditions)

  Land inside Mattapoisett town limits, under the Town's own Zoning By-Laws (October 2021 compilation)

  • The bylaw compilation is dated October 2021; no separate effective date is stated, so effective_at is null.
  • Section 4.2 places the zoning map dated November 1, 1967, as revised, on file in the Town Clerk's office; the current map was not opened.

  “for the purposes of this by-law, the town of mattapoisett is hereby divided into thirteen (13) classes of districts and three (3) overlay districts”

• Zoning districtsPublished (with conditions)

  Zoning districts of Mattapoisett town

  • The bylaw lists thirteen district classes and three overlay districts, including R 40, RR 40 and R 30; the zoning map was not opened.

  “the town of mattapoisett is hereby divided into thirteen (13) classes of districts and three (3) overlay districts”

• Minimum lot sizeSpecified

  Residence 40 (R 40), the main single-family residential district, inside Mattapoisett town

  • Figure read from the flattened district table in section 6.5; the lot-size column aligns with the R 40 position in the district header order.
  • Frontage shown in the same table is 150 feet.
  • Section 6.5 applies to lots in all districts listed; one dwelling per lot except a guest house, and existing lots may not be changed to violate the table.
  • Any dwelling existing on April 3, 1973 may be added to without increasing dwelling units.

  minimum lot area: >= 40000 sq ft · minimum frontage: >= 150 ft

  “district r 80 rr 80 rr 45 r 40 rr 40 r 30 rr 30 w 30 mr 30 r 20 vr 10 gb li lot sq.ft.feet frontage set-back set-back set-back street* rear side 80,000 80,000 45,000 40,000 40,000 30,000”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — Rural Residence 40 (RR 40) district inside Mattapoisett town

    “district r 80 rr 80 rr 45 r 40 rr 40 r 30 rr 30 w 30 mr 30 r 20 vr 10 gb li lot sq.ft.feet frontage set-back set-back set-back street* rear side 80,000 80,000 45,000 40,000 40,000 30,000”

• SetbacksSpecified

  Residence 40 (R 40) district inside Mattapoisett town

  • Front set-back is measured from the street right-of-way line, per the table footnote.
  • The flattened PDF lists three set-back rows in header order (street, rear, side); the mapping of each row to front, rear and side should be confirmed against the printed table.
  • Front 50 ft, rear 40 ft and side 30 ft are the values read from those rows for R 40.

  front set-back (from street right-of-way): 50 ft · rear set-back: 40 ft · side set-back: 30 ft

  “set-back set-back set-back street* rear side [...] 50 50 50 50 50 50 50 35 35 35 25 65 75 40 40 40 40 40 40 40 30 30 30 30 30 50 30 30 30 30 30 30 30 20 20 20 10 20 50 [...] *measured from the street right-of-way line”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — Rural Residence 40 (RR 40) district inside Mattapoisett town

    “set-back set-back set-back street* rear side [...] 50 50 50 50 50 50 50 35 35 35 25 65 75 40 40 40 40 40 40 40 30 30 30 30 30 50 30 30 30 30 30 30 30 20 20 20 10 20 50 [...] *measured from the street right-of-way line”

• Lot coverageSpecified

  Conventional single-family developments within a cluster subdivision under section 3.8 in Mattapoisett town; not a general district rule

  • Applies only to cluster subdivisions with a tract of at least eight acres.
  • General lot coverage limits for the Residence and Rural Residence districts were not located in the opened text.

  maximum lot coverage: <= 25 percent (cluster subdivision conventional single-family lots only)

  “maximum lot coverage maximum building height 25 ft. 10 ft. 25% 35 ft.”

• Building heightSpecified

  Conventional single-family developments within a cluster subdivision under section 3.8 in Mattapoisett town; not a general district rule

  • Applies only to cluster subdivisions with a tract of at least eight acres.
  • General height limits for the Residence and Rural Residence districts were not located in the opened text.

  maximum building height: <= 35 ft (cluster subdivision conventional single-family lots only)

  “maximum lot coverage maximum building height 25 ft. 10 ft. 25% 35 ft.”

• Living in an RVTemporary only (with conditions)

  Occupying a trailer or house trailer (RV-type unit) as living quarters on private land inside Mattapoisett town

  • Guest occupancy is limited to two weeks in a calendar year and needs a Board of Selectmen permit.
  • Emergency occupancy permitted by the Board of Selectmen is up to two months, renewable to a total of eight months.
  • Trailer camps are not prohibited when established under G.L. c.140 (per the bylaw's own reference).

  guest occupancy period: <= 2 weeks per calendar year (non-paying guest; permit required from Board of Selectmen) · emergency occupancy period: <= 2 months (extreme emergency or calamity; renewable to 8 months aggregate)

  “no house trailer may be used as living quarters while so located, except that the owner or occupant of a parcel of land may permit occupancy of such land by a nonpaying guest, using a trailer or mobile home for living purposes for a period not exceeding two (2) weeks in any calendar year.”

• Camping on your landLimited

  Temporary living in trailers or mobile homes on private land inside Mattapoisett town

  • Trailer camps are not prohibited by the bylaw when established under G.L. c.140; the camp licensing standard itself was not opened.
  • Tent or general camping rules were not located in the zoning bylaw.

  “provided, however, that the foregoing shall not prohibit the establishment of a trailer camp under the provisions of chapter 140 of the general laws.”

• Manufactured homesLimited

  Mobile home occupancy on a lot where a residence was destroyed by fire or other natural holocaust, inside Mattapoisett town

  • Occupancy is allowed for up to twelve months while the residence is rebuilt.
  • Subject to the state sanitary code and any board of health rule, regulation, or order.
  • General mobile home occupancy outside this rebuilding exception was not located in the opened text.

  occupancy period during rebuild: <= 12 months (while the destroyed residence is being rebuilt)

  “place a mobile home on the site of such residence and reside in such mobile home for a period not to exceed twelve (12) months, while the residence is being rebuilt.”

• Who permits septicLocal (with conditions)

  On-site septic systems for building lots inside Mattapoisett town, as stated for cluster subdivision lots

  • Quoted text is in the cluster subdivision section (3.8.5.1), so it confirms board of health approval for septic suitability in cluster developments; it does not by itself establish the general lot rule.
  • State Title 5 (310 CMR 15) administration was not verified from an official page within the research budget.

  “each building lot shall contain a site which, subject to the approval of the board of health, may be suitable for an on-site septic disposal system, or will be served by a public sewer.”

• Subdividing landLimited

  Cluster subdivisions under section 3.8 of the Mattapoisett zoning bylaw

  • The general subdivision approval process under the Subdivision Control Law was not opened.
  • Cluster subdivision requires a tract of at least eight acres.

  minimum tract area for cluster subdivision: >= 8 acres

  “the total area of the tract to be developed shall not be less than eight (8) acres.”

• Driveway accessLimited

  Common driveways serving more than one and not more than five residential lots inside Mattapoisett town

  • A common driveway is not a street for legal frontage purposes under the zoning bylaw.
  • General driveway permit requirements were not located.

  residential lots served by common driveway: <= 5 lots (more than one lot served)

  “serves as a common vehicular access to more than one (1) but not more than five (5) residential lots is hereinafter referred to as a “cd” for the purposes of this by-law.”

Still unanswered

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

• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder permit exemption for work inside Mattapoisett town
• Building code adopted — Building construction inside Mattapoisett town
• Inspections — Building inspections inside Mattapoisett town
• Certificate of occupancy — Certificates of occupancy for new dwellings inside Mattapoisett town
• Minimum dwelling size — Minimum floor area for a dwelling inside Mattapoisett town

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 Mattapoisett 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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