Zoning, building permits and septic rules in Orion Township, Minnesota

Orion Township’s own rules

• Local zoningPresent (with conditions)

  Land inside Orion Township, Olmsted County, Minnesota, outside the City of Chatfield.

  • The cooperative agreement's zoning regulations remain in effect while Orion Township and Olmsted County remain parties to the agreement.
  • The County administers soil erosion, sedimentation, runoff, slope-stability, farmland-erosion, Rochester Airport Zoning Ordinance #3, and non-structural shoreland provisions under the agreement.

  “Zoning & Permit Information: For zoning administration and to obtain permits in Orion Township, outside the City of Chatfield, contact the Township Cooperative Planning Association (TCPA) at 507-529-0774. For residents in the City of Chatfield, contact the City Clerk at 507-867-3810”

• Who permits septicLocal (with conditions)

  Septic permitting for land inside Orion Township, Olmsted County, Minnesota, administered through the Township Cooperative Planning Association (TCPA).

  • Septic permit applications and septic designs are submitted to GGG Engineering in Chatfield.
  • GGG Engineering issues septic permits for TCPA-administered townships.
  • A new dwelling will likely require a septic permit.
  • A home remodel adding bedroom(s) requires a septic compliance check, and transfer or sale of a dwelling requires a septic compliance check.

  “Septic permit applications along with the septic design should be submitted to GGG Engineering in Chatfield. GGG Engineering issues all septic permits for the TCPA administered Townships.”

Rules another office applies inside Orion Township

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

• Building permitRequired

  State-Building-Code-regulated new residential construction and other regulated building work inside Orion Township, Olmsted County, Minnesota; the County directs Orion Township permit applicants to TCPA.

  • The requirement applies only to work regulated by the State Building Code.
  • The State Building Code does not apply to agricultural buildings except with respect to state inspections required or rulemaking authorized by Minnesota Statutes, sections 103F.141, 326B.36, and 326B.121, subdivision 1, paragraph (c), clause (2).
  • The County's Orion Township direction excludes land within the City of Chatfield, whose residents should contact the City Clerk.
  • Minnesota Rules 1300.0120 lists permit exemptions, including one-story detached accessory structures used as tool or storage sheds, playhouses, and similar uses when floor area does not exceed 200 square feet.

  “An owner or authorized agent who intends to construct, enlarge, alter, repair, move, demolish, or change the occupancy of a building or structure, or to erect, install, enlarge, alter, repair, remove, convert, or replace any gas, mechanical, electrical, plumbing system, or other equipment, the installation of which is regulated by the code; or cause any such work to be done, shall first make application to the building official and obtain the required permit.”

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.