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

Town of Pittsford’s own rules

• Local zoningPresent

  All land inside the territorial limits of Pittsford town, New York, outside the Village of Pittsford, under the Town of Pittsford zoning law (Chapter 185).

  • Section 185-2.a applies the chapter only outside the Village of Pittsford; village land is not covered by this town ordinance.
  • Chapter 185 was adopted March 27, 2025 (L.L. No. 1-2025); the Town's own code controls land-use questions inside the town.

  “adopted march 27, 2025 town of pittsford chapter 185. zoning adopted by the town board of the town of pittsford 3-27-2025 as chapter 185 of the town code by l.l. no. 1-2025.”

• Zoning districtsPublished

  Zoning districts inside Pittsford town (outside the Village of Pittsford).

  • The official zoning map is the final authority on district status (185-5.b); amendments require a town board resolution (185-5.c).
  • District-by-district use and dimensional tables were not extracted in this pass; see followups.

  “the town is hereby divided into the zoning districts provided in articles iii through xiv of this chapter and as shown on the map entitled”

Rules another office applies inside Town of Pittsford

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

• Who permits septicCounty

  Land inside Pittsford town that is not served by public sanitary sewer (roughly the remaining 30% of the town); septic systems there fall under the Monroe County Health Department.

  • Sanitary sewer covers about 70% of the town per the Town Sewer Department; other parcels use private septic systems.
  • Septic design, permit and inspection rules were not located on an official county page in this pass.

  “sanitary sewer service is available to about 70% of the town. those not serviced by public sewers utilize privately owned septic systems that fall under the jurisdiction of the monroe county health department.”

Still unanswered

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

• Building permit — Building permits for new construction inside Pittsford town
• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder construction inside Pittsford town
• Building code adopted — Building construction inside Pittsford town
• Inspections — Building inspections inside Pittsford town
• Certificate of occupancy — Certificates of occupancy inside Pittsford 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 Pittsford 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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