Zoning, building permits and septic rules in Town of Friendsville, Maryland

Town of Friendsville’s own rules

• Local zoningPresent (with conditions)

  All land inside the corporate limits of Friendsville town, Maryland

  • The Town of Friendsville Zoning Ordinance enacted June 29, 2026 repealed the 'Zoning Ordinance for Friendsville, Maryland (2018)' in its entirety.
  • The town's zoning page says the ordinance was originally enacted January 3, 1972.
  • Zoning approval does not authorize construction or occupancy until all required building permits and other county, state and federal permits are obtained.

  “this ordinance regulates, within the corporate limits of the town of friendsville:”

• Zoning districtsPublished (with conditions)

  All land inside Friendsville town limits

  • Districts: rd (rural development), sr (suburban residential), tr (town residential), tc (town center), gc (general commercial). The official zoning map is adopted as part of the ordinance.
  • The zoning map was not opened; only the district list in the ordinance text was read.

  “the town of friendsville is hereby divided into the following zoning districts: rd sr tr tc gc abbreviation district name rural development district suburban residential district town residential district town center district general commercial district”

• Minimum lot sizeSpecified

  Single-family detached dwelling in the rd (rural development) district inside Friendsville town

  • Table 5-1 text extraction is column-jumbled; row attribution to single-family detached dwelling is inferred from the row grouping and must be verified against the PDF table.
  • Lawful lots of record may be built on under section 5.04(b).

  minimum lot area: 1 acre · minimum lot width: 150 ft

  “rd 1 acre 1 acre 150 ft 40 ft 40 ft 20 ft sr 10,000 sq ft 10,000 sq ft 75 ft 15 ft 20 ft 8 ft”

  2 more reviewed findings on this topic

  • Specified — Single-family detached dwelling in the sr (suburban residential) district inside Friendsville town

    “rd 1 acre 1 acre 150 ft 40 ft 40 ft 20 ft sr 10,000 sq ft 10,000 sq ft 75 ft 15 ft 20 ft 8 ft”

  • Specified — Principal building proposed on land with natural slopes exceeding 30% inside Friendsville town (not tr or tc districts)

    “where a site plan proposes construction of a principal building on land with slopes exceeding thirty percent (30%), the following standards shall apply: (1) a minimum lot area of three (3) acres shall be required;”

• SetbacksSpecified

  Single-family detached dwelling in the rd (rural development) district inside Friendsville town

  • Table 5-1 text extraction is column-jumbled; setback attribution must be verified.
  • Accessory structures have their own setbacks.

  front setback: 40 ft · rear setback: 40 ft · side setback: 20 ft

  “rd 1 acre 1 acre 150 ft 40 ft 40 ft 20 ft sr 10,000 sq ft 10,000 sq ft 75 ft 15 ft 20 ft 8 ft”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — Single-family detached dwelling in the sr (suburban residential) district inside Friendsville town

    “rd 1 acre 1 acre 150 ft 40 ft 40 ft 20 ft sr 10,000 sq ft 10,000 sq ft 75 ft 15 ft 20 ft 8 ft”

• Lot coverageSpecified

  Principal building proposed on land with natural slopes exceeding 30% inside Friendsville town (not tr or tc districts)

  • Applies only to the steep-slope site-plan case; no general lot coverage percentage was found. Section 1.02(b)(2) lists maximum impervious coverage as a regulated subject without a number in the text opened.

  maximum lot area covered by buildings, paving or stone surfaces: <= 5 percent (steep-slope case only)

  “(2) a maximum of five percent (5%) of the total lot area may be covered by buildings, paving, or stone surfaces.”

• Living in an RVLimited

  Recreational vehicles on residential lots inside Friendsville town (rd, sr, tr, tc districts)

  • Accessory outdoor storage only: not more than one recreational vehicle, one recreational trailer or one watercraft per dwelling unit.
  • Stored only in side or rear yards, set back at least 6 ft from property lines, and not occupied while stored.
  • The ordinance does not state whether an RV may be lived in as a dwelling elsewhere; occupancy beyond these storage rules was not established.

  recreational vehicles stored per dwelling unit: <= 1 count · setback from property lines: >= 6 ft

  “set back at least six (6) feet from all property lines; iii. not occupied while stored;”

• Manufactured homesLimited

  Mobile/manufactured home parks inside Friendsville town (sr district by special exception; not rd, tr, tc or gc)

  • Table 3-1 lists mobile/manufactured home parks as n in rd, se in sr, and n in tr, tc and gc.
  • Special exception requires Board of Zoning Appeals approval; park dimensional standards in Table 5-1 apply.

  “mobile/manufactured home parks n se n n n mobile/manufactured homes p p p p n”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Allowed — Mobile/manufactured homes as single dwellings in rd, sr, tr and tc districts inside Friendsville town (not gc)

    “mobile/manufactured homes p p p p n modular homes p p p p n multi-family dwellings n n p p n”

• Mandatory utility hookupConditional

  New development inside Friendsville town

  • Development may occur only where adequate water and sewage disposal are available or will be provided under state, county and town requirements.
  • The ordinance does not itself state a mandatory connection rule for a new home when public water or sewer is available; that rule is not confirmed.

  “development shall occur only where adequate roads, utilities, emergency services, water, and sewage disposal are available, or will be provided in accordance with state, county, and town requirements.”

• Building in a floodplainRequired

  Development inside Friendsville town on floodplain land

  • The ordinance requires compliance with floodplain and wetland regulations by reference; the floodplain regulations themselves were not located or opened.

  “development shall comply with: (2) floodplain and wetland regulations”

• Short-term rentalsAllowed (with conditions)

  Transient vacation rental units (single-family dwelling rented to guests for 14 consecutive days or fewer) inside Friendsville town (rd, sr, tr, tc; not gc)

  • Table 3-1 lists transient vacation rental unit as p in rd, sr, tr, tc and n in gc.
  • Supplemental standards referenced in section 4.03 were not opened; hotels, motels and bed-and-breakfasts are excluded from this use.

  “transient vacation rental unit p p p p n twin dwelling (duplex) n n p p n”

• Permit feesPublished (with conditions)

  Zoning permit fees for land inside Friendsville town

  • Fee schedule is linked from the town zoning page; its amounts were not opened. Zoning fees are paid at Town Hall by cash or check. Building permit fees are set by the county and were not checked.

  “required zoning permit fees are paid at the friendsville town hall via cash or check. checks made payable to town of friendsville. click here for the current fee schedule.”

• Permit processPublished (with conditions)

  Zoning permit application for land inside Friendsville town

  • Application made at Friendsville Town Hall by the owner or authorized agent; town sends it to county planning and land management for final review and approval; building permit may be initiated at the same time.

  “after payment & application are received, the friendsville town hall will send the zoning permit application to the department of planning and land management at the courthouse for final review and approval.”

Rules another office applies inside Town of Friendsville

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

• Building permitRequired

  Erecting most structures inside Friendsville town: Garrett County building permit (Department of Permits & Inspection Services) in addition to the town zoning permit. Scope is the county permit authority; it reaches inside the town per the town zoning page.

  • The town page says a building permit is required 'in most cases', not for every structure; small structures such as fences, signs and small sheds need a site plan and zoning permit even where no building permit is required.
  • Construction may not begin until all required building and zoning permits are issued (town page).
  • The ordinance requires building permits and other applicable county, state and federal permits before construction or occupancy.

  “in most cases a building permit from the department of permits & inspection services will also be required.”

Still unanswered

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

• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder permit exemption inside Friendsville town
• Building code adopted — Building code edition applied inside Friendsville town
• Inspections — Building inspections for work inside Friendsville town
• Certificate of occupancy — Certificate of occupancy for a new home inside Friendsville town
• Minimum dwelling size — Minimum dwelling floor area inside Friendsville 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.