Building permits, zoning and septic in the Town of Bar Harbor, Maine

At a glance

Building permits

Required for new buildings and structures; town Code Enforcement issues them¹³

Zoning

Town land-use requirements; lot standards depend on district and sewer service³⁶

Septic

Submit site evaluator’s HHE-200 to Code Enforcement; local plumbing inspection required⁴

Tiny homes

State law allows qualifying tiny-home placement subject to applicable land-use requirements⁷

Manufactured homes

State law allows qualifying homes where single-family dwellings are allowed, with applicable requirements⁸

Floodplain

Town written approval required for construction, earthmoving and improvements in mapped flood hazard areas⁹

Who to call

Contact details are copied from each office’s official page and were checked against it on October 12, 2026.

Do you need a building permit in the Town of Bar Harbor, ME?

Bar Harbor requires a building permit for new buildings and structures, and the town’s guidance also lists moving or demolishing structures and changes of use as permit-triggering activities.¹ Bar Harbor’s Code Enforcement Officer issues building permits, and applications must be submitted in writing.³ The town enforces the Maine Uniform Building and Energy Code and inspects permitted construction for compliance.²¹⁰ Do not start an activity requiring town approval until the property owner has received the required building or land-use permit.¹¹

Who is the Town of Bar Harbor building department?

Town of Bar Harbor Code Enforcement is the starting office for residential construction, land-use, shoreland zoning, plumbing and subsurface wastewater questions.¹² Call 207-288-3329 or visit the office at 93 Cottage Street to discuss the parcel and proposed work.¹² Bar Harbor issues a building permit only to the owner of record or an authorized agent, and written authorization may be required.¹¹ Existing violations of the land-use chapter or a previously approved subdivision or site plan can prevent building-permit approval for the property.¹¹

Does the Town of Bar Harbor have zoning and minimum lot sizes?

Bar Harbor regulates land use through its town ordinance, with additional site-plan, subdivision, Design Review Board or conditional-use review possible depending on the activity and district.³ In Bar Harbor’s Village Residential District, minimum lot size is 10,000 square feet with sewers and 40,000 square feet without sewers.⁶ Maximum lot coverage in that district is 50% with sewers and 25% without sewers.¹³ Sewer service therefore changes both the lot-size and coverage standards in Village Residential; do not apply those district standards to another Bar Harbor district.⁶¹³ Ask Code Enforcement to identify the parcel’s district and applicable setbacks before choosing a house layout.¹²

How do septic permits work inside the Town of Bar Harbor?

Bar Harbor requires an approved and inspected septic system for buildings when public sewer is unavailable, and a registered site evaluator must submit an HHE-200 form to Code Enforcement for approval.⁴ Maine requires a disposal-system permit for new, expanded or replacement systems or components, except normal maintenance and repair; the Local Plumbing Inspector examines the application and issues the permit.⁵ Septic work cannot begin before that permit is issued.¹⁴ Bar Harbor requires inspection before underground portions are covered.⁴ Hancock County’s soils data rates only 6.4% of soils not limited for conventional drain fields; that countywide screening does not establish a Bar Harbor lot’s suitability or make septic impossible, so obtain a site evaluation.¹⁵⁵

Can you live in an RV or tiny home in the Town of Bar Harbor?

We could not confirm whether Bar Harbor allows residential RV occupancy or temporary camping on a private parcel; ask town Code Enforcement about the proposed use before buying an RV for the site.¹² Maine requires municipalities to allow a qualifying tiny home on an individual house lot where single-family dwellings are allowed, or as an accessory structure, subject to applicable land-use requirements.⁷ That placement rule does not waive building, safety, utility, septic or shoreland requirements in Bar Harbor.⁷ Maine also requires qualifying manufactured housing where single-family dwellings are allowed, with applicable standards and permitted municipal design criteria.⁸

What are the steps to build a home in the Town of Bar Harbor?

Start with Bar Harbor Code Enforcement to discuss the parcel’s land-use requirements and the proposed project.¹² Then establish sewer availability or arrange a site evaluator’s HHE-200 septic design for submission to Code Enforcement.⁴ Submit written building-permit applications and resolve any additional district-specific review before starting permitted work.³¹¹ For construction, earthmoving or other improvements in Bar Harbor’s mapped flood hazard areas, obtain the Code Enforcement Officer’s written floodplain approval.⁹ Arrange required construction inspections and obtain the required certificate of occupancy before regulated occupancy.¹⁰¹⁶ For land outside town limits, use the Hancock County guide to identify the relevant authority; Bar Harbor’s building and land-use process applies inside the town.³

Watch-outs

• We could not confirm a Bar Harbor owner-builder exemption from building permits; ask town Code Enforcement before treating self-built work as exempt.¹²
• We could not confirm Bar Harbor’s private-well permit requirements or minimum dwelling floor area; bring the proposed water supply and house plan to Code Enforcement.¹²
• Bar Harbor vacation-rental uses require registration and remain subject to district-specific land-use permissions.¹⁷

Sources

1. Town of Bar Harbor Building Permit Guidance (barharbormaine.gov)
2. Chapter 36 Building Construction (Town of Bar Harbor), quoted and re-checked
3. Chapter 36 Building Construction (Town of Bar Harbor), quoted and re-checked
4. Town of Bar Harbor Code Enforcement — Septic Applications (barharbormaine.gov)
5. Subsurface Wastewater System Permitting (Maine statewide rule), quoted and re-checked
6. ecode360.com (Town of Bar Harbor), quoted and re-checked
7. Title 30-A, §4363: Regulation of tiny homes (Maine statewide rule), quoted and re-checked
8. Title 30-A, §4358: Regulation of manufactured housing (Maine statewide rule), quoted and re-checked
9. Article VII Permits (Town of Bar Harbor), quoted and re-checked
10. Chapter 36 Building Construction (Town of Bar Harbor), quoted and re-checked
11. Town of Bar Harbor Building Permit Administration (barharbormaine.gov)
12. Town of Bar Harbor Code Enforcement (barharbormaine.gov)
13. ecode360.com (Town of Bar Harbor), quoted and re-checked
14. Maine CDC Subsurface Wastewater Program (maine.gov)
15. Share of soils USDA rates "not limited" for a conventional septic drain field (SSURGO). A strict rating: the median county is about 6% and a tenth of counties are 0%, so a low figure means most lots need a site evaluation or an engineered system, not that septic is impossible. Cite it only with that caveat: Bolthole Index county data
16. Chapter 36 Building Construction (Town of Bar Harbor), quoted and re-checked
17. Article III Land Use Activities and Standards (Town of Bar Harbor), quoted and re-checked

Written October 12, 2026 from the rules quoted below, each taken from an official source and re-checked by an independent reviewer. This is research, not legal advice: rules change, so confirm with the office before you buy or build.