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

Town of Beddington’s own rules

• Building permitRequired

  Land use and structure activities in Beddington town that require a permit under the ordinance (new structures, expansions, changes of use)

  • Requirement applies to activities that need a permit under the ordinance; the ordinance does not list every building type in the excerpt reviewed.
  • Some minor activities are permit-required without fee, per the fee schedule.

  “after the effective date of this ordinance no person shall, without first obtaining a permit, engage in any activity or use of land or structure requiring a permit in the district in which such activity or use would occur”

• Local zoningPresent (with conditions)

  All land areas within the town limits of Beddington town, Maine

  • Ordinance is titled Land Use and Shoreland Zoning Ordinance of the Town of Beddington, Maine; amended 14 July 2014, maps updated 22 December 2014.
  • Ordinance also covers the shoreland zone: land within 250 feet of great ponds, rivers and freshwater wetlands and within 75 feet of streams.
  • Shoreland-zone standards take effect only after approval by the Maine DEP commissioner (section 4).

  “this ordinance applies to all land areas within the town limits of beddington, maine”

• Zoning districtsPartial

  Land use districts inside Beddington town

  • Ordinance text lists seven districts: resource protection (RP), stream protection (SP), lakeside limited residential (LLR), headwaters limited residential (HLR), rural agricultural residential (RAR), public/civic services (PCS) and conservation (C).
  • District boundaries are shown on the official land use district and shoreland zoning map dated 22 December 2014, certified and kept at the Beddington town office; that map was not opened.

  “the areas to which this ordinance applies are hereby divided into the following districts”

• Minimum lot sizeDistrict specific (with conditions)

  Minimum lot size by land use district in Beddington town (Table 2)

  • Table 2 gives a minimum lot size/density row for the seven districts; the text extraction does not map each value cleanly to a district, so no single district figure is stated here.
  • Footnote 6 states publicly owned and privately owned lot minimums (80,000 and 160,000 sq. ft.); the district it belongs to was not confirmed.
  • Multi-family and duplex lots follow state minimum lot size law (12 M.R.S.A. 4807 et seq.).

  “minimum lot size for publicly owned lots is 80,000 sq. ft. and for privately owned lots is 160,000 sq. ft.”

• SetbacksDistrict specific (with conditions)

  Front, side and rear setbacks by district in Beddington town (Table 2)

  • Table 2 setback rows do not extract in a reliable column order; district values are not stated here.
  • Accessory buildings up to 100 sq. ft. may sit in side or rear setbacks but no closer than 6 feet to a side or rear lot line (section 16(r)).
  • Shoreland zone setbacks from water bodies apply in addition.

  accessory building side/rear setback: >= 6 ft (accessory buildings no larger than 100 sq. ft. located to the rear or side of the principal building)

  “accessory buildings no larger than 100 sq.ft. in floor area may be located within the required side or rear setbacks provided that no such structure shall be located less than 6 feet from a side or rear lot line”

• Building heightSpecified

  Structures in the rural agricultural residential (RAR) district, which is outside the shoreland zone, in Beddington town

  • Exempt: transmission towers, windmills, antennas and similar structures having no floor area.
  • Shoreland-zone limit is separate (see the shoreland height claim).

  maximum structure height outside shoreland zone: <= 35 ft (transmission towers, windmills, antennas and similar structures having no floor area)

  “maximum structure height outside of the shoreland zone is 35 feet.”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — Structures inside Beddington's shoreland zone (LLR, HLR, SP and RP districts and land within the shoreland zone)

    “maximum structure height within the shoreland zone is 22 feet above the foundation, not to exceed 30 feet as height of a structure is defined in section 21.”

• Living in an RVLimited

  Recreational vehicles inhabited on individual private campsites in Beddington town

  • Limit is 120 days per year on-site unless all residential requirements are met, including lot size and a state-compliant subsurface system (unless public sewer served).
  • Applies to individual private campsites under section 16(c).

  maximum days inhabited on-site: <= 120 days per year (unless all residential requirements are met)

  “no recreational vehicle, tent or similar shelter shall be inhabited on-site for more than one hundred and twenty (120) days per year”

• Camping on your landLimited

  Camping on town-owned land and on private land in Beddington town

  • Camping on town-owned land is prohibited.
  • Private-land camping shelters limited to 120 days per year on-site unless residential requirements are met.

  maximum days inhabited on-site (private land): <= 120 days per year (unless all residential requirements are met)

  “camping on town lands, within the town of beddington, maine is hereby prohibited.”

• Accessory dwellingsLimited

  Conversion of an existing residence to a second dwelling unit outside the shoreland zone in Beddington town

  • Requires a permit from the code enforcement officer.
  • Conversion cannot create more than two dwelling units in a structure; the building must look like a single-family dwelling; adequate off-street parking; subsurface system must meet state rules.
  • Shoreland-zone conversions are governed by section 12(d), 15 and 16.

  maximum dwelling units per structure after conversion: <= 2 units (outside the shoreland zone)

  “such conversion shall not create more than two dwelling units in a structure.”

• Who permits septicMixed (with conditions)

  Subsurface wastewater (septic) systems on land inside Beddington town

  • Systems must follow the state of Maine subsurface wastewater disposal rules, incorporated by reference in the town ordinance (state rule).
  • Town local plumbing inspector issues permits for uses marked lpi in the land use table (local role).
  • No county or health-district septic role was found in the ordinance excerpts reviewed.

  “all subsurface sewage disposal systems shall be installed in conformance with the state of maine subsurface wastewater disposal rules (rules)”

• Mandatory utility hookupConditional

  New structures inside Beddington's shoreland zone; no general connection rule found for other land

  • Utility may not install service to new structures in the shoreland zone without written municipal authorization that local permits are valid and current.
  • No general requirement to connect to public water or sewer was found in the ordinance excerpts reviewed.

  “a public utility, water district, sanitary district or any utility company of any kind may not install services to any new structure located in the shoreland zone unless written authorization”

• Subdividing landRegulated (with conditions)

  Land subdivisions inside Beddington town

  • Ordinance applies existing state subdivision statutes and local subdivision standards in the Beddington subdivision ordinance (interim plan).
  • Mobile home park lots require planning board subdivision approval (section 16(q)).

  “existing state statutes for land subdivision and local subdivision standards as set forth in the subdivision ordinance for the town of beddington interim plan shall apply to all subdivisions within the town of beddington.”

• Driveway accessLimited

  Roads and driveways near water bodies and wetlands in Beddington town

  • Driveways must be set back 100 feet from great ponds classified GPA (and rivers flowing to them), and 75 feet from other water bodies, streams or wetlands, unless the planning board finds no reasonable alternative.
  • Reduced setback fallback text was not fully read.

  driveway setback from great pond GPA: >= 100 ft (planning board may allow less where no reasonable alternative exists)

  “roads and driveways shall be set back at least one-hundred (100) feet, horizontal distance, from the normal high-water line of a great pond classified gpa”

• Permit feesPublished (with conditions)

  Permits issued under Beddington town's land use and shoreland zoning ordinance

  • Fee schedule is Section 22 of the ordinance, a table; the text extraction garbles the table, so only the sentence-form fees are quoted here.
  • Checks are payable to the Town of Beddington.
  • Fee schedule carries the ordinance date (amended 14 July 2014); no later fee schedule was found.

  land use permit fee (accompanies other permits): 10 USD (other permit fees are set in the schedule of fees table) · late filing fee: 2 times permit fee (applies to activity started without first filing for required permits)

  “the fee to accompany all other permits required pursuant to this ordinance, shall be $10.00.”

• Permit processPublished (with conditions)

  Permit administration in Beddington town

  • Code enforcement officer administers permits; planning board issues permits for uses marked pb; local plumbing inspector issues permits for uses marked lpi; board of appeals hears appeals.
  • Ordinance section 17 describes application, procedure, special exceptions, expiration and appeals.

  “a code enforcement officer shall be appointed or reappointed annually by july 1st.”

Still unanswered

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

• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder exemption in Beddington town
• Building code adopted — Building code adoption in Beddington town
• Inspections — Building inspections in Beddington town
• Certificate of occupancy — Certificates of occupancy in Beddington town
• Minimum dwelling size — Minimum dwelling floor area in Beddington 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.