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

Town of Horseheads’s own rules

• Building permitRequired

  Work inside Horseheads town that must conform to the Uniform Code or Energy Code, including construction, alteration, relocation or demolition and installation of a solid-fuel-burning heating appliance, chimney or flue in a dwelling unit

  • Subsection b of § 83-4 lists exemptions from the permit requirement; those exemptions were not reviewed and must be checked before relying on this claim.
  • Construction may not begin without a building permit from the Town (§ 83-4a, second sentence).

  “a building permit shall be required for any work which must conform to the uniform code and/or the energy code, including, but not limited to, the construction, enlargement, alteration, improvement, removal, relocation, or demolition of any building or structure or any portion thereof, and the installation of a solid-fuel-burning heating appliance, chimney, or flue in any dwelling unit.”

• Building code adoptedAdopted (with conditions)

  Construction inside Horseheads town's limits, administered by the Town under Chapter 83 (Building Code Administration)

  • Chapter 83 history: adopted by the town board 10-11-2006 by L.L. No. 1-2006; amended in its entirety 6-12-2024 by L.L. No. 1-2024. The amendment date is not used as an effective date here.
  • 'Uniform code' is defined as the New York State uniform fire prevention and building code, adopted pursuant to article 18 of the executive law; 'energy code' is the New York State energy conservation construction code adopted pursuant to article 11 of the energy law.
  • Definitions also reference the 2020 Residential Code of New York State (RCNYS).

  “this chapter provides for the administration and enforcement of the new york state uniform fire prevention and building code”

• InspectionsRequired

  Permitted work inside Horseheads town, before a certificate of occupancy or certificate of compliance is issued

  • Inspection is tied to the certificate step in § 83-7b; construction-stage inspections under § 83-5 were not opened.

  “the code enforcement officer or an inspector authorized by the code enforcement officer shall inspect the building, structure, or work prior to the issuance of a certificate of occupancy or certificate of compliance.”

• Certificate of occupancyRequired

  Work that is the subject of a building permit, and conversions of use or occupancy classification, inside Horseheads town

  • Permission to use or occupy a building for which a building permit was issued is granted only by issuance of a certificate of occupancy or certificate of compliance (§ 83-7a).
  • A temporary certificate of occupancy is issued under § 83-7d (not opened).

  “a certificate of occupancy or certificate of compliance shall be required for any work which is the subject of a building permit and for all structures, buildings, or portions thereof, which are converted from one use or occupancy classification or subclassification to another.”

• Local zoningPresent (with conditions)

  Land inside Horseheads town's limits, under the Town's own Chapter 204 Zoning ordinance

  • Zoning districts are set out in Chapter 204 Articles V through XI, per the chapter table of contents.
  • Chapter 204 cross-references Chapter 83 (building code administration), Chapter 111 (flood damage prevention), Chapter 132 (manufactured/mobile home parks), Chapter 152 (signs), Chapter 166 (stormwater) and Chapter 175 (subdivision of land).

  “[history: adopted by the town board of the town of horseheads 7-14-1982. amendments noted where applicable.]”

• Zoning districtsPublished (with conditions)

  Zoning districts inside Horseheads town's limits

  • Districts named in the Chapter 204 table of contents: Residence AA, Residence A, Residence B, Neighborhood Service, Business, Industrial and Manufacturing, Agricultural and Hill; plus the Highway Corridor Overlay District (Article XIIA).
  • Zoning map is posted at townofhorseheads.org/post/_docs/zoningmap.pdf (per eCode360 metadata; not opened).

  “article iii district boundaries; zoning map § 204-5 enumeration of districts. § 204-6 official zoning map.”

• Minimum lot sizeSpecified

  Agricultural and Hill Zone (Article XI) land inside Horseheads town's limits

  • The county health department may require three acres per lot in soils with percolation rates of more than one minute.
  • Road frontage minimum applies alongside the lot area minimum.

  minimum lot area: >= 1 acre (county health department may require three acres per lot in poor-percolation soils) · minimum road frontage: >= 200 feet

  “the lot area shall be not less than one acre, with a minimum road frontage of 200 feet.”

Still unanswered

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

• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder permit exemption for a home inside Horseheads town
• Minimum dwelling size — Minimum dwelling size in Residence AA, Residence A, Residence B and Agricultural and Hill zones inside Horseheads town
• Setbacks — Yard setbacks in Horseheads town zones, including Residence AA, A, B and Agricultural and Hill
• Lot coverage — Lot coverage limits inside Horseheads town
• Building height — Building height limits in Residence AA, A, B and Agricultural and Hill zones inside Horseheads 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.

Off-grid gear

Going off-grid in Town of Horseheads means bringing your own water and power. The kit we’d start with:

• Water Crystal Quest Filter any source — well, rain, or creek — to drinking-clean.
• Power Bluetti Solar generators and home battery backup for living off the grid.
• Septic Soil percolation test kit Run your own perc test before paying an engineer — the first thing a septic office asks about.
• Water Well water test kit Bacteria, nitrates, hardness — know what the well on a parcel is really pumping.

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