Zoning, building permits and septic rules in Trimont, Minnesota

Trimont’s own rules

• Building permitRequired

  Construction, alteration, land-use, and related work inside Trimont city limits.

  • A permit is not required for shingling, siding, window replacement, or repair of an existing structure.
  • The zoning code exempts an alteration costing less than $300 if no structural alteration is involved.
  • The zoning administrator issues a permit only after determining the plans and application comply with the ordinance.

  minor-alteration exemption threshold: < 300 USD (No structural alteration involved.)

  “Hereafter no person shall erect, alter, wreck, or move any building or part thereof without first securing a building permit therefore. No permit shall be required for an alteration costing less than three hundred dollars ($300.00) if no structural alteration of the building is involved.”

• InspectionsRequired

  Construction-related permits issued inside Trimont city limits.

  • The department describes its responsibility as conducting inspections of all construction-related permits.

  “They are responsible for permitting all construction and conducting inspections of all construction-related permits as well as issuance of Certificates of Occupancy, Fire Prevention, and Special Events.”

• Local zoningPresent (with conditions)

  Land inside Trimont city limits.

  • The official city code divides the City into Agricultural, Residential, Commercial, and Industrial districts.

  “For the purposes of this Ordinance, the City of Trimont is hereby divided into classes of zoning districts which shall be designated as follows: AGRICULTURAL DISTRICT (A) RESIDENTIAL DISTRICT (R) COMMERCIAL DISTRICT (C) INDUSTRIAL DISTRICT (I)”

• Zoning districtsPublished (with conditions)

  Zoning districts inside Trimont city limits.

  • The zoning map is incorporated into the ordinance and is maintained by the zoning administrator at City Hall.

  “The location and boundaries of the districts established by this Ordinance are set forth on the Zoning Map and said map is hereby made a part of this Ordinance, which map shall be known as the City of Trimont Zoning Map.”

• Off-grid sanitationLimited

  Private sewage disposal for buildings inside Trimont city limits where public sanitary sewer is unavailable.

  • The private system must comply with City rules and the cited state rule.
  • This provision is conditioned on public sanitary sewer not being available.

  “Where a public sanitary sewer is not available under the provisions of Subd. 2, the building sewer shall be connected to a private sewage disposal system complying with the rules and regulations of the City and State Rule 6 MCAR 4.8040 entitled, “Individual”

• Subdividing landRegulated (with conditions)

  Proposed subdivisions inside Trimont city limits.

  • The Planning Commission applies the standards in evaluating subdivision plans.
  • The Council may modify or adjust a standard where literal compliance is clearly impractical.
  • The proposed subdivision must conform to the Comprehensive Development Plan.

  “The following land subdivision principles, standards and requirements will be applied by the Commission in evaluation plans for proposed subdivision:”

• Driveway accessRequired

  Sidewalks or driveways inside Trimont city limits.

  • The City permit form lists sidewalks or driveways among work for which a permit is required.

  “Permit is required for: * Altering the outside dimensions of an existing building * Sidewalks or driveways”

• Permit feesVariable (with conditions)

  Building permits inside Trimont city limits.

  • The City Council determines the building-permit fee.

  “The fee for a building permit shall be determined by the City Council.”

• Permit processPublished (with conditions)

  Building-permit applications inside Trimont city limits.

  • Each construction or alteration application must include a scaled plan showing lot dimensions and size and location of the building and accessory buildings.
  • The application may need other information necessary for enforcement.
  • The permit issues only after compliance review.

  “Application for a building permit shall be made to the Zoning Administrator on blank forms to be furnished by the City. Each application for a permit to construct or alter a building shall be accompanied by a plan drawn to scale showing the dimensions of the lot to be built upon and the size and location of the building and accessory buildings to be erected.”

Rules another office applies inside Trimont

Trimont does not set these itself; the county, a health district or the state does, and they apply to every address inside its limits.

• Building code adoptedAdopted (with conditions)

  Buildings inside Trimont city limits that are governed by the Minnesota State Building Code.

  • The State Building Code does not apply to agricultural buildings except for stated statutory exceptions.

  “The State Building Code is the standard that applies statewide for the construction, reconstruction, alteration, repair, and use of buildings and other structures of the type governed by the code.”

• Minimum dwelling sizeSpecified

  Single-family manufactured homes placed on individual lots in Trimont R Residential districts.

  • The standard applies to manufactured housing on individual lots in R districts, not to all dwelling types.

  minimum habitable floor area: >= 800 square feet (Single-family manufactured housing on individual lots in R districts.)

  “Such manufactured housing shall have a minimum habitable floor area of eight hundred (800) square feet. No such home shall have a width of less than twenty (20) feet.”

• Minimum lot sizeDistrict specific (with conditions)

  One-family dwellings in Trimont R Residential districts.

  • Minimum lot area changes with municipal water and sewer availability.
  • The lot must have at least 75 feet of width at the building setback line.

  lot area with municipal sewer and water: >= 9000 square feet · lot area with municipal water only: >= 15000 square feet · lot area with municipal sewer only: >= 15000 square feet · lot area with on-lot water and sewer: >= 20000 square feet

  “Every lot or plat of land on which a one family dwelling is erected shall have a minimum width at the building set back line of seventy-five (75) feet and shall contain an area of not less than: (1) Nine thousand (9,000) square feet with municipal sewer and water. (2) Fifteen thousand (15,000) square feet with municipal water only. (3) Fifteen thousand (15,000) square feet with municipal sewer only. (4) Twenty thousand (20,000) square feet with on-lot”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — Single-family dwellings in Trimont A Agricultural District.

    “Every lot or tract of land upon which a single-family dwelling is erected shall have an area of not less than twenty-two thousand, five-hundred (22,500) square feet and an average width of not less than one hundred fifty (150) feet, except that if a lot or tract has less area or width than herein required and was legally platted and was of record at the time of the passage of this Ordinance, that lot may be used for any of the uses permitted in this Section.”

• SetbacksDistrict specific (with conditions)

  Buildings in Trimont R Residential districts.

  • The usual 30-foot front yard is modified where 30 percent or more of same-side street frontage is improved with buildings observing a different front-yard depth.
  • Corner-lot front-yard requirements apply on each street side.

  front yard: >= 30 feet (Established frontage-depth rule.) · side yard: >= 10 feet (Multiple dwellings have the stated alternative rule.) · rear yard: >= 20 percent of lot depth

  “There shall be a front yard having a depth of not less than thirty (30) feet unless thirty (30) percent or more of the frontage on the same side of the street between two intersecting streets is improved with buildings that have observed a greater or less depth of front yard”

• Lot coverageDistrict specific (with conditions)

  New multiple-family dwellings in Trimont R Residential districts.

  • The cited maximum coverage applies to multiple-family dwellings and is coupled with stated lot-area and parking requirements.

  maximum building lot coverage: <= 35 percent (New multiple-family dwellings in R districts.)

  “A lot on which there is erected a new multiple family dwelling shall contain an area of not less than twenty thousand (20,000) square feet for the first two units plus two thousand (2,000) square feet for each additional dwelling unit except the parking requirements in Section 7.08 must be provided and not more than thirty-five (35) percent of a lot or a plot shall be occupied by buildings.”

• Building heightDistrict specific (with conditions)

  Buildings in Trimont A Agricultural District.

  • Agricultural buildings have no height regulation.
  • Other buildings are subject to the stated height limit and general-regulation exceptions.

  maximum height for nonagricultural buildings: <= 35 feet (Agricultural buildings have no height regulation.) · maximum stories for nonagricultural buildings: <= 2.5 stories (Agricultural buildings have no height regulation.)

  “No height regulation shall be required for agricultural buildings. No building, other than agricultural buildings, hereafter erected or altered, shall exceed two and one-half stories or thirty-five (35) feet in height, except as provided in Section 7.08, General Regulations.”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — Buildings in Trimont R Residential districts.

    “No building hereafter erected or altered shall exceed two and one-half stories or thirty feet (30) in height.”

• Septic permitRequired

  New or replacement SSTS inside Trimont city limits, administered by the conforming city program or county program as applicable.

  • The rule requires permits for all new construction and replacement.
  • A local government may require permits for all or certain repair types.
  • The local government must approve or deny the application before issuing a construction permit, and construction must not start until the permit is granted.

  “Permits must be required for all new construction and replacement. A local unit of government is authorized to require permits for all or certain types of SSTS repairs.”

• Agricultural exemptionAvailable (with conditions)

  Agricultural buildings inside Trimont city limits, with respect to the Minnesota State Building Code.

  • The stated exemption has statutory exceptions for specified state inspections and skylight load-bearing capacity.

  “The State Building Code does not apply to agricultural buildings except: (1) with respect to state inspections required or rulemaking authorized by sections 103F.141; 216C.19, subdivision 9; and 326B.36; and (2) translucent panels or other skylights without raised curbs shall be supported to have equivalent load-bearing capacity as the surrounding roof.”

Still unanswered

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

• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-built construction inside Trimont city limits.
• Certificate of occupancy — Occupancy of buildings inside Trimont city limits.
• Living in an RV — Long-term RV occupancy on private land inside Trimont city limits.
• Camping on your land — Temporary camping on private land inside Trimont city limits.
• Tiny homes — Tiny-home occupancy inside Trimont city 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.