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

Town of North Collins’s own rules

• Local zoningPresent

  Land inside the Town of North Collins outside the incorporated Village of North Collins (the village has its own code and is not covered here)

  • Chapter 251 states RV parks outside the village are governed by chapter 265, zoning, of the Town code, so the Town's own zoning chapter applies.

  “except as permitted and allowed by chapter 265, zoning, of the code of town of north collins, as amended.”

• Zoning districtsPublished

  Zoning districts of the Town of North Collins code, chapter 265 (inside the town outside the village)

  • Article V covers R-1, R-2, R-M, R-A and R-C; business and industrial districts are in other articles (Article VI onward) that were not opened for this record.

  “§ 265-14 r-1 single-family residence district. § 265-15 r-2 general residence district. § 265-16 r-m residence-mobile home court district. § 265-17 r-a residence-agricultural district. § 265-18 r-c residence-restricted business district.”

• Minimum lot sizeDistrict specific (with conditions)

  R-1 single-family residence district (§ 265-14) inside the Town of North Collins outside the village

  • Lot area and width depend on whether the lot is served by a public sewer.
  • Applies unless otherwise provided in the chapter (text: 'unless otherwise provided, the minimum lot size shall be as specified in this subsection').
  • The excerpt does not state when a lot must connect to a public sewer.

  minimum lot area, served by public sewer: >= 8500 square feet (unless otherwise provided (§ 265-14 c)) · minimum lot area, not served by public sewer: >= 20000 square feet (unless otherwise provided (§ 265-14 c)) · minimum lot width at building line, served by public sewer: >= 85 feet (unless otherwise provided (§ 265-14 c)) · minimum lot width at building line, not served by public sewer: >= 100 feet (unless otherwise provided (§ 265-14 c))

  “c. minimum lot size. unless otherwise provided, the minimum lot size shall be as specified in this subsection: (1) the lot area shall be as follows: (a) eight thousand five hundred square feet where the lot is served by a public sewer. (b) twenty thousand square feet where the lot is not served by a public sewer. (2) the lot width at the building line shall be as follows: (a) eighty-five feet where a lot is served by a public sewer. (b) one hundred feet where a lot is not served by a public sewer.”

• SetbacksDistrict specific (with conditions)

  R-1 single-family residence district (§ 265-14) inside the Town of North Collins outside the village

  • Side yard for a single-family dwelling is 10% of lot width, capped at 10 feet; total of both side yards is 25% of lot width, capped at 25 feet.
  • The rear yard figure was cut off in the captured text and is not stated here.
  • Other principal buildings have a different side yard rule (30 feet or height of building) and are not covered by this claim.

  front yard: 40 feet (unless otherwise provided) · single-family side yard width: 10% of lot width, not to exceed 10 feet (unless otherwise provided) · total of both single-family side yards: 25% of lot width, not to exceed 25 feet (unless otherwise provided)

  “(1) front yard: 40 feet. (2) side yards (two required): (a) single-family dwellings. the minimum width of any side yard shall equal 10% of the lot width but need not exceed 10 feet. the total width of both side yards shall equal 25% of the lot width, but the total width of side yards need not exceed 25 feet.”

• Building heightDistrict specific (with conditions)

  R-1 single-family residence district (§ 265-14) inside the Town of North Collins outside the village

  • Accessory buildings are limited to one story and 12 feet.
  • Other principal buildings are governed by yard requirements, not this height limit.

  single-family dwelling maximum height: <= 30 feet (also limited to 2 1/2 stories; unless otherwise provided) · single-family dwelling maximum stories: <= 2.5 stories (unless otherwise provided) · accessory building maximum height: <= 12 feet (one story; unless otherwise provided)

  “(1) single-family dwelling: 2 1/2 stories, not to exceed 30 feet. (2) other principal buildings: as regulated by yard requirements. (3) accessory buildings: one story, not to exceed 12 feet.”

• Camping on your landLimited

  Camping in recreational vehicles in a recreational vehicle park inside the Town of North Collins outside the village; private-land camping not covered

  • RV parks may be located only as permitted and allowed by the zoning chapter (chapter 265).
  • Every RV park outside the village must be licensed under chapter 251.
  • The licensing rule applies to parks, not to a single RV on private land.

  “all recreational vehicle parks hereafter located in the town of north collins, outside the incorporated limits of the village of north collins, shall be duly licensed as hereinafter provided.”

Still unanswered

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

• Building permit — Building permit requirement for new homes inside the Town of North Collins outside the village
• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder exemption inside the Town of North Collins outside the village
• Building code adopted — Building code adoption for the Town of North Collins outside the village
• Inspections — Building inspections for new homes inside the Town of North Collins outside the village
• Certificate of occupancy — Certificate of occupancy or zoning compliance certificate for a new home inside the Town of North Collins outside the village

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 North Collins 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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