Zoning, building permits and septic rules in Town of Madawaska, Maine

Town of Madawaska’s own rules

• Building permitRequired

  Erection, moving, addition or external enlargement of buildings and structures inside Madawaska town limits, issued by the town Code Enforcement Officer

  • Code enforcement officer must approve or deny a building permit application within fourteen (14) working days of receiving it.
  • A permit for which work has not commenced within one year shall expire.
  • Renovations, remodeling and internal plumbing also require permits from the code enforcement office per the town code page.

  “no building or other structure shall be erected, moved, added to, or externally enlarged without a pe1mit therefor, issued by the code enforcement officer”

• Building code adoptedNot adopted

  Local adoption and enforcement of MUBEC by the town of Madawaska

  • The town's building code page also lists 2021 IRC, IBC and tiny home codes as general information; no local adoption ordinance for those was found.
  • Statewide MUBEC still applies (see state claim).

  “madawaska population is under 4000 and does not enforce mubec, but builders in the state of maine still have to build to mubec standards, no matter where, in maine.”

• Certificate of occupancyRequired

  Use or occupancy of buildings or premises created, changed or enlarged inside Madawaska town limits

  • Certificate must be issued by the code enforcement office and endorsed that the use conforms with the land use ordinance.
  • No building permit is issued until an application for a certificate of occupancy has been made.

  “it shall be unlawful to use or occupy or permit the use of occupancy of, any building and/or premise, or both or pmt thereof hereafter created, erected, changed, converted, or wholly or partly altered or enlarged in its use or structure until a certificate of occupancy shall have been issued therefor by the code enforcement office”

• Local zoningPresent

  Land inside Madawaska town limits (Aroostook County, Maine), under the town's own Land Use Ordinance and shoreland zoning ordinance

  • The 2021 Land Use Ordinance PDF is the version located on the town site; the town's building code page lists a 'land use ordinance, 6.2025' that was not located or checked, so current district standards may differ.
  • Shoreland zoning is a separate town ordinance administered by the same office.

  “the town of madawa ska is hereby divided into the following type of zoning districts. rural farm and forest low density reside ntial medium density residential high density residential resource protection commercial industr ial”

• Zoning districtsPublished

  Land inside Madawaska town limits: zoning districts named in the town's Land Use Ordinance

  • Districts named: rural farm and forest (RF), low density residential (LDR), medium density residential (MDR), high density residential (HDR), resource protection (RP), commercial (C), industrial (I).
  • The zoning map is referenced in the ordinance but its date is blank in the 2021 text; the map itself was not opened.

  “the town of madawa ska is hereby divided into the following type of zoning districts. rural farm and forest low density reside ntial medium density residential high density residential resource protection commercial industr ial”

• Minimum dwelling sizeSpecified

  Mobile homes only, inside Madawaska town limits

  • Minimum applies to mobile homes; no general minimum size for site-built dwellings was found in the opened text.

  minimum floor area, mobile home: >= 650 square feet

  “a mobile home shall contain not less than 650 square feet of floor area.”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — Accessory dwelling units inside Madawaska town limits

    “207-d: the accessory dwelling unit shall contain a minimum total floor area of 190 square feet and contain a maximum total floor area of 800 square feet.”

• SetbacksDistrict specific (with conditions)

  Residential districts other than RF (two space-standards blocks; district names not reliably legible)

  • Both blocks set a 30 ft front yard and 5 ft rear and side yards; the 10,000 sq ft block sets 100 ft setback from streams, water bodies and wetlands.

  minimum front yard, both blocks: >= 30 feet · minimum rear and side yard, both blocks: >= 5 feet

  “minimum street frontage 50 ft. minimum front yard 30ft. maximum building coverage 25% minimum rear and side yard, all buildings 5ft.”

• Lot coverageSpecified

  Residential districts other than RF (both space-standards blocks; district names not reliably legible)

  • Maximum building coverage applies to the residential blocks; district assignment unverified.

  maximum building coverage: <= 25 percent

  “maximum building coverage 25% minimum rear and side yard, all buildings 5ft.”

• Building heightSpecified

  Residential district block with 7,000 sq ft minimum lot (district name not reliably legible)

  • Buildings higher than 30 feet must have side and rear yards not less than 50% of the building height.

  maximum building height: <= 35 feet (see side and rear yard rule for buildings over 30 ft)

  “maximum building height 35 ft.* *building higher than 30 feet shall have side and rear yards not less than 50% of building height.”

• Camping on your landLimited

  Trailer parks and campgrounds licensed under the town Land Use Ordinance (section VI.A), inside Madawaska town limits; not private-land tent or RV camping

  • A campground may not be constructed on less than 5 acres of land.
  • A license from the town is required to establish or maintain a mobile home park, seasonal trailer park or campground.
  • Campgrounds must provide water and sewerage systems in accordance with the state plumbing code and state health rules.

  occupancy time limit at a camping space, May 15 to September 15: 12 weeks · occupancy time limit at a camping space, all other times: 2 weeks

  “twelve weeks for the period may 15 to septembe r 15 of each year, and two weeks for all other time.”

• Manufactured homesLimited

  Residential districts whose permitted-use lists in the 2021 Land Use Ordinance exclude mobile homes; mobile homes are allowed in licensed mobile home parks

  • Mobile home parks require a town license and planning board review as a subdivision.
  • A mobile home must be certified by the Maine State Housing Authority or a state-approved agent if manufactured after September 1, 1974.

  “b. permitt ed uses i. dwellings, exclusive of mobile homes 2. public -owned open space residential uses”

• Accessory dwellingsLimited

  Accessory dwelling units on a lot with a single-family dwelling inside Madawaska town limits

  • The single-family dwelling and the accessory dwelling unit must be owned by the same person and may not be sold separately.
  • The owner must occupy either the single-family dwelling or the accessory dwelling unit as their primary or legal residence.
  • The unit must comply with all applicable zoning, building, plumbing, electrical and fire safety codes in effect at permit application.
  • Accessory dwelling units under this section are not counted toward net residential density.

  accessory dwelling units per lot: 1 unit

  “207-e: only one (1) accessory dwelling unit is allowed per lot.”

• Who permits septicLocal

  Subsurface (septic) wastewater systems on land inside Madawaska town limits, administered by the town Code Enforcement Office and licensed plumbing inspector under state wastewater codes

  • Underlying rules are the state's internal plumbing and wastewater codes; the town office administers them.

  “the code enforcement office is responsible for the administration of madawaska's land use and shoreland zoning ordinances the state's internal plumbing and wastewater codes.”

• Septic permitRequired

  Subsurface (septic) wastewater systems and internal plumbing for work inside Madawaska town limits

  • Permit must be obtained from the Code Enforcement Office; the town page points to a subsurface wastewater system permitting page for details.
  • Scheduling: contact the CEO a few days before the appointment.

  “all renovations, additions, remodeling, internal plumbing and subsurface wastewater (septic systems), land use activities, etc., whether residential or commercial, must follow town and state codes, statutes, and ordinances and be permitted by the madawaska code enforcement office.”

• Subdividing landRegulated (with conditions)

  Developments and subdivisions inside Madawaska town limits reviewed by the town planning board

  • Planning board final approval required for any development whose total contiguous area is at least three times the district minimum lot size, or 60,000 sq ft or more in a business or industrial zone (excluding a single dwelling on an oversized lot).
  • Final planning board approval required before any subdivision into three or more lots is recorded, and before a building permit is issued in the development.

  “the developer or his authorized agent shall also obtain final planning board approval before:”

• Building in a floodplainLimited

  Land in designated flood plain areas (100-year frequency flood plain) inside Madawaska town limits

  • The code enforcement officer maintains a map of known flood plain areas.
  • No building or structure may be erected in an area subject to periodic flooding, and no alteration of natural contours by grading or filling is permitted there.

  “the code enforcement officer shall maintain a map showing known flood plain areas, and no building shall be constrncted therein.”

• Permit processPublished

  Land use, building and plumbing permit applications for land inside Madawaska town limits

  • Download forms from the town's permit applications page, then email, mail or drop off at the office.
  • Applications are under review for 14 business days.
  • Permits are good for 1 year.

  application review period: 14 business days

  “please download the forms from our permit applications forms page and email, mail or drop off at our office. all applications will be under review for 14 business days, so apply early.”

Still unanswered

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

• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder exemption for residential construction inside Madawaska town limits
• Inspections — Building inspections for new construction inside Madawaska town limits
• Living in an RV — Long-term RV occupancy on private land inside Madawaska town limits
• Tiny homes — Tiny home occupancy inside Madawaska town limits
• Septic inspection — Septic system inspections inside Madawaska 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.