Zoning, building permits and septic rules in Chatfield, Minnesota

Chatfield’s own rules

• Local zoningPresent

  Land inside Chatfield city limits

  “for the purposes of this chapter, the city is hereby divided into the following zoning districts:”

• Zoning districtsPublished

  Chatfield city zoning districts: RR, R-1, R-2, B-1, B-2, I-1, I-2, FP

  • FP floodplain district is an overlay governed by chapter 105

  “rr rural residential district r-1 single-family residential district r-2 multifamily residential district b-1 general commercial district b-2 neighborhood commercial district i-1 light industrial district i-2 general industrial district fp floodplain district (see chapter 105)”

• Minimum lot sizeSpecified

  R-1 Single-family residential district, Chatfield city

  • Lot width 75 ft at building line and 45 ft at street line for detached; lots platted at 60 ft before adoption qualify

  minimum lot area: >= 9000 sq ft

  “the minimum lot area shall be 9,000 square feet for single-family attached and single-family detached structures.”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — RR Rural residential district, Chatfield city

    “the minimum lot size shall be 30,000 square feet.”

• SetbacksSpecified

  R-1 Single-family residential district, Chatfield city

  • Corner lots: 25 ft front and 15 ft on the other side
  • Decks no closer than 20 ft from rear line
  • Accessory buildings follow article VI division 2

  front yard: >= 25 ft · minimum side yard: >= 6 ft (total side yards at least 16 ft) · rear yard: >= 25 ft

  “the minimum side yard shall be six feet and the total width of side yards shall not be less than 16 feet.”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — RR Rural residential district, Chatfield city

    “the minimum side yard shall be 25 feet, except that the side yard setback between two single family uses can be eight feet. the total side yard setbacks must be 33 feet.”

• Lot coverageSpecified

  R-1 Single-family residential district, Chatfield city

  • Accessory buildings: each max 10% of lot, cumulative max 15% (Sec. 113-291)

  maximum lot coverage: <= 40 percent

  “the maximum lot coverage of all buildings, including accessory buildings, shall not exceed 40 percent.”

• Building heightSpecified

  R-1 Single-family residential district, Chatfield city

  • Accessory buildings limited to 16 ft in residential districts (Sec. 113-291)

  maximum building height: <= 35 ft

  “the maximum height of all buildings shall not exceed 35 feet.”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — RR Rural residential district, Chatfield city

    “the maximum height of all buildings and structures shall not exceed 35 feet.”

• Living in an RVLimited

  RVs on residential lots inside Chatfield city

  • One vehicle per lot parked in rear yard
  • No permanent living quarters whose occupancy exceeds ten days
  • No parking on public street over 48 hours
  • RV parks/camping areas only as conditional use in RR and I-1
  • Floodplain exemption criteria in chapter 105

  maximum occupancy: <= 10 days

  “the parking of one such vehicle in any district is allowed, provided that said vehicle, boat, or camper per lot is parked in the rear yard, and no permanent living quarters, the occupancy of which exceeds ten days, shall be maintained or business practiced in the vehicle.”

• Camping on your landLimited

  Camping in a recreational vehicle on residential lots inside Chatfield city

  • Occupancy of living quarters in a vehicle limited to ten days
  • Recreational camping areas are conditional uses in RR and I-1 districts

  “no permanent living quarters, the occupancy of which exceeds ten days, shall be maintained or business practiced in the vehicle.”

• Accessory dwellingsLimited

  Dwelling use of accessory buildings inside Chatfield city

  • Accessory building may not be a permanent dwelling; no ADU provision found in supplied sections

  “No basement, garage, tent, trailer, recreational vehicle or accessory building shall be used as a permanent dwelling.”

• Off-grid sanitationLimited

  Cesspools, holding tanks and similar systems inside Chatfield city

  • Requires city council permission and conditions
  • Where public sewer is unavailable, a private system must meet MPCA Minn. Rule 7080.1050 et seq. (Sec. 30-75)

  “Cesspools, seepage pits, holding tanks, dry wells, and leaching pits shall not be installed, unless permission is granted by the city council and only upon such conditions as the city council may require to ensure its safety.”

• Mandatory utility hookupConditional

  New dwellings in the R-1 district inside Chatfield city

  • Applies where city sewer is available
  • No distance threshold stated in this section
  • Manufactured home parks must connect to city water and sewer (Sec. 113-357)

  “where available, all dwelling units in an r-1 district shall be required to connect to city sewers.”

• Building in a floodplainLimited

  Floodplain overlay districts (floodway, flood fringe, general floodplain) inside Chatfield city

  • Structures and manufactured home placement allowed only in the flood fringe, subject to sec. 105-44 development standards and sec. 105-45 evaluation criteria
  • Floodplain districts overlay all zoning districts; the more restrictive standard applies

  “any use of land involving the construction of new structures, the placement or replacement of manufactured homes, the addition to the outside dimensions of an existing structure or obstructions such as fill or storage of materials or equipment, provided these activities are located in the flood fringe portion of the floodplain. these uses shall be subject to the development standards in section 105-44 and the floodplain evaluation criteria in section 105-45 for determining floodway and floodfringe boundaries.”

Still unanswered

We looked and could not find an official answer yet. Silence is not permission; ask Chatfield or Fillmore County directly.

• Building permit — Building permits inside Chatfield city
• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder exemption inside Chatfield city
• Building code adopted — Building code inside Chatfield city
• Inspections — Building inspection inside Chatfield city
• Certificate of occupancy — Certificate of occupancy inside Chatfield city

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.