Zoning, building permits and septic rules in Town of Ledyard, New York

Town of Ledyard’s own rules

• Certificate of occupancyRequired

  Structures or uses in Ledyard town where the zoning law requires a permit.

  • The certificate must state that the site or structure was inspected by the Zoning Officer and complies with the zoning law.

  “no structure shall be occupied or use undertaken without issuance of a certificate of occupancy”

• Local zoningPresent (with conditions)

  Land in the Town of Ledyard outside the Village of Aurora; the zoning law identifies the town's two zones for that area.

  • The zoning law expressly excludes the Village of Aurora from the described town zoning area.

  “This law shall be known and cited as the "Town of Ledyard Zoning Law".”

• Zoning districtsPublished (with conditions)

  Portion of Ledyard town outside the Village of Aurora.

  • The Town Board may establish specially designated Special Development Districts from time to time.

  “1. Agricultural-Residential District (AR Zone) 2. Lakeshore Residential District (LR Zone)”

• Permit feesPublished (with conditions)

  Building permits and related town permits in Ledyard town.

  • The posted schedule is dated March 2018; it states the permit fee increases five times if a permit is not obtained before work begins.

  base permit fee: 40 USD (Except where noted; type fee is additional.) · new-house area fee: per 0.1 USD per square foot (Added to set fee.)

  “ALL PERMITS: SET FEE $40.00 + Type, except where noted”

• Permit processPublished (with conditions)

  Ordinary permits under Ledyard's zoning law.

  • The Town Board approves ordinary-permit forms and required information; construction authorization lasts two years, after which renewal or Planning Board extension is required.

  ordinary permit processing period: <= 15 days (From date of receipt.)

  “Application for ordinary permits shall be processed and acted upon by the Zoning Officer within 15 days from the date of receipt.”

Rules another office applies inside Town of Ledyard

Town of Ledyard 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)

  Building construction inside Ledyard town, New York.

  • New York City's separately authorized code is the exception identified by the State; it does not apply in Ledyard.

  “The Uniform Code is applicable in every part of the State (except the City of New York, which was permitted to retain its own code).”

• InspectionsRequired

  Construction work subject to New York's Uniform Code inside Ledyard town.

  • Permit holders must notify the authority when work is ready and keep it accessible and exposed until inspection and acceptance.

  “Inspections of certain specified elements of the construction process must be required.”

• Minimum lot sizeSpecified

  Building lots in the Agricultural-Residential District.

  • Unless otherwise allowed by the zoning law, construction, relocation, or footprint-enlargement requires conformance with the stated dimensional regulations.

  minimum building lot size: >= 40000 square feet · minimum building lot width: >= 150 feet

  “Minimum building lot size - 40,000 square feet”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — Conforming building lots in the Lakeshore Residential District.

    “Minimum building lot size, excluding area on lake side of 386.6 foot shoreline - 30,000 sq. ft.”

• SetbacksSpecified

  Buildings in the Agricultural-Residential District.

  • Farm stands are excluded from the general building setback provision; commercial setbacks, including solar, are set through Planning Board site-plan review.

  road-line setback except state roads: >= 50 feet · road-line setback along state roads: >= 75 feet · building-lot-boundary setback: >= 20 feet (School-bus-stop shelter road-line setback is 10 feet.)

  “from road line, except along state roads - 50 feet”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — Conforming building lots in the Lakeshore Residential District.

    “Minimum setbacks for any building: (1) from side boundary of lot 10 feet; distance of 5 feet between structures on same property (NYS Fire Code; IRC R302T(1)) (2) from 386.6 foot shoreline 10 feet (3) from base of cliff, as spec. in 2.d.(3) below 10 feet (4) from road line 50 feet”

• Building heightSpecified

  Buildings in the Agricultural-Residential District.

  • The height standard does not apply to farm buildings, amateur-radio antennas, church spires, chimneys, or other structures above the roof not devoted to human occupancy.

  maximum building height: <= 35 feet

  “5. Maximum building height - 35 feet 6. Clear sight triangles:”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — Conforming building lots in the Lakeshore Residential District.

    “Maximum building height is 35 feet (421.6 feet above sea level)”

• Accessory dwellingsAllowed (with conditions)

  Accessory apartments in Ledyard's Agricultural-Residential District.

  • No rent; one dwelling owner occupied; occupancy limited to family members or family guest; 400–800 square feet; one per lot; potable water and sanitation as directed by Cayuga County Department of Health; zoning and building codes must be met.

  floor area: 400-800 square feet · accessory apartments per lot: <= 1

  “Floor area between 400 and 800 sq ft • No more than one per lot”

• Who permits septicCounty (with conditions)

  Private sanitation facilities serving accessory apartments and new septic systems inside Ledyard town.

  • The town's accessory-apartment rule directs potable-water and sanitation facilities to the Cayuga County Department of Health.

  “Anyone who wishes to install a new septic system to serve a new homesite or business in Cayuga County must obtain Health Department approval”

• Septic permitRequired

  New septic systems serving a new homesite or business inside Ledyard town.

  • Health Department approval of the proposed system is required before installation.

  “must obtain Health Department approval of the proposed septic system prior to it being installed.”

• Septic inspectionLimited

  New septic systems inside Ledyard town.

  • The design professional must verify construction before backfilling and send a certification letter; the Health Department states that it does not inspect before backfilling.

  “The Cayuga County Health Department does not inspect the system before backfilling.”

• Agricultural exemptionAvailable (with conditions)

  Agriculture, horticulture, silviculture, and certain accessory noncommercial uses in the Agricultural-Residential District.

  • Activities must not violate any provision of the zoning law; noncommercial accessory structures must be under 100 square feet and accessory to a principal use or structure on the same or nearby lot under the same ownership.

  accessory structure footprint: < 100 square feet (Must be noncommercial and accessory to a principal use or structure.)

  “may be undertaken without the need of a zoning permit”

• Driveway accessLimited

  Private accessways intersecting a road in the Agricultural-Residential District.

  • Visual obstructions in the specified triangle are limited to no more than three feet above road level.

  clear-sight-triangle measurement: 10 feet (Measured from the road-line/private-accessway intersection along both lines.)

  “Where a private accessway intersects a road, visual obstructions shall be limited to a height of not more than three (3) feet above road level”

Still unanswered

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

• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder construction in Ledyard town.
• Minimum dwelling size — Principal dwellings inside Ledyard town.
• Lot coverage — Lots inside Ledyard town.
• Camping on your land — Temporary camping on private land inside Ledyard town.
• Tiny homes — Tiny-home occupancy inside Ledyard 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.