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

Town of Sharptown’s own rules

• Building permitRequired

  Construction work inside Sharptown town limits; the town's own building permit application applies

  • Construction may not begin until permit fees are paid and the permit card is issued.
  • Permit expires if work has not begun within 120 days of issuance, or is not substantially complete within two years.
  • Electrical permit application from Wicomico County must also be posted at the site.
  • Plumbing needs a separate town plumbing permit.

  “work shall not be started until all permit fees are paid and the permit card has been issued”

• Building code adoptedAdopted

  Construction inside Sharptown town limits

  • Edition and text of Building Code Ordinance #66 were not opened; only its listing on the town site was confirmed.

  “sharptown building code ordinance #66 vehicle ordinance #70 sharptown subdivision ordinance #74 sharptown property maintenance ord #77”

• InspectionsRequired

  Permitted construction inside Sharptown town limits

  • Inspection stages listed on the form: footing, foundation/floor, framing, final.
  • Owner or contractor gives 24 hours' notice; no work concealed until approved.

  “i will notify the building inspector twenty-four (24) hours in advance, when i am ready for inspections. no work will be concealed until approved.”

• Certificate of occupancyRequired

  Buildings inside Sharptown town limits

  • Applies to the building permit process on the town form.

  “no building shall be occupied until a certificate of occupancy has been issued.”

• Local zoningPresent

  Land inside Sharptown town limits: the town administers its own Zoning Ordinance #19 (repeal and reenactment), not county zoning.

  • Ordinance adopted under Article 66B of the Maryland Annotated Code and the town charter.
  • Zoning map on the town site is listed as amended June 2017; amendments after that were not checked.
  • Critical Area rules under Ordinance #51 also apply in the Chesapeake Bay critical area.

  “sharptown zoning ordinance # 19 an ordinance to repeal and reenact ordinance #19 establishing comprehensive zoning regulations for the town of sharptown”

• Minimum lot sizeSpecified

  R-1 Prime Residential district inside Sharptown town (main single-family residential district)

  • Applies as provided in Sharptown Ordinance #51 critical area resource protection ordinance where applicable.
  • Lot width minimum 100 feet at building line with at least 35 feet frontage on a public street; lot depth minimum 125 feet (same district section).
  • Stated as a development standard for each lot.

  minimum lot area: >= 15000 square feet (Critical area rules in Ordinance #51 may add state criteria)

  “2. lot area: each lot shall contain at least fifteen thousand (15,000) square feet.”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — R-2 General Residential district inside Sharptown town, single-family dwelling lots

    “2. lot area: a. single family dwelling - each lot shall contain at least ten thousand (10,000) square feet.”

• SetbacksSpecified

  R-1 Prime Residential district inside Sharptown town (main single-family residential district)

  • Corner-lot side yards abutting a street must be not less than 25 feet wide.
  • Fence and corner-visibility rules also apply (2.5 ft height within 30 ft of intersection centerline).
  • Applies as provided in Ordinance #51 critical area rules where applicable.

  minimum front yard setback: 40 feet (measured from front property line to front of principal structure) · minimum side yard setback: 15 feet (each of two side yards; 25 ft where abutting a street) · minimum rear yard setback: 35 feet

  “6. front yard setback: each lot shall have a front yard of forty (40) feet from the front property line to the front of the principal structure.”

• Lot coverageSpecified

  R-1 Prime Residential district inside Sharptown town

  • Covers dwellings and accessory structures together.

  maximum lot coverage: <= 25 percent of lot area

  “5. percentage of lot coverage: dwellings and accessory structures shall not cover more than twenty (25) percent of the lot area.”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — R-2 General Residential district inside Sharptown town

    “5. percentage of lot coverage: dwellings and accessory structures shall not cover more than twenty-five (25) percent of the lot area.”

• Manufactured homesProhibited

  Mobile homes in the R-2 General Residential district inside Sharptown town

  • Ordinance uses the term 'mobile homes'; its definition was not checked against 'manufactured home'.
  • The R-1 use list also names mobile homes, but the sentence that makes that list an exclusion was not captured, so no R-1 claim is made here.

  “b. exclusions: the following uses/activities are not permitted in r-2. (general residential) 1. mobile homes 2. apartments.”

• Subdividing landRegulated (with conditions)

  Land divisions inside Sharptown town limits

  • Subdivision Ordinance #74 is listed on the town site; its text was not opened.
  • Critical Area subdivisions also require state approval per Ordinance #19.

  “sharptown building code ordinance #66 vehicle ordinance #70 sharptown subdivision ordinance #74 sharptown property maintenance ord #77”

• Permit feesPublished

  Sharptown town building permits

  • The form shows a fee schedule heading (up to 3,000 square feet; 3,001 square feet and above; all others including garage, accessory building, pools, fences) and a plan review fee line; dollar amounts were not captured.

  “sharptown building permit fee schedule up to 3,000 square feet 3,001 square feet and above all others”

• Permit processPartial

  Sharptown town building permit process

  • Permit application, plan, inspection and fee steps appear on the form; the ordinance procedure and plan-review timing were not retrieved.

  “caution: if the work described in any building permit has not begun within 120 days from the date of issuance, said permits shall expire.”

Still unanswered

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

• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder exemption for permits inside Sharptown town limits
• Minimum dwelling size — Minimum dwelling size inside Sharptown town limits
• Building height — Building height inside Sharptown town limits (R-1 and R-2)
• Living in an RV — Long-term RV occupancy inside Sharptown town limits
• Camping on your land — Temporary camping inside Sharptown 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.