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

Town of Manchester’s own rules

• Building permitRequired

  Work inside Manchester town that must conform to the Uniform Code or Energy Code, including new residential construction.

  • Exemptions include specified small detached one-story accessory structures of 144 square feet or less, certain temporary sets, specified awnings and partitions, finish work, listed portable equipment, qualifying replacements, and repairs without fire/life-safety impact.
  • No work requiring a permit may begin before the Town issues it.

  accessory-structure exemption threshold: <= 144 square feet (One-story detached structures associated with one- or two-family dwellings or townhouses and used for tool/storage sheds, playhouses, or similar uses.)

  “a building permit shall be required for any work which must conform to the Uniform Code and/or the Energy Code”

• Building code adoptedAdopted (with conditions)

  Buildings, structures, and premises inside the Town of Manchester.

  • Except as otherwise provided in the Uniform Code, Energy Code, other state law, or Chapter 123.

  “This chapter provides for the administration and enforcement of the New York State Uniform Fire Prevention and Building Code”

• InspectionsRequired

  Permitted construction inside Manchester town.

  • Inspections apply where applicable; remote inspection may be used only when it can provide the same level and quality as an in-person inspection.
  • Work must remain accessible and exposed until inspected and accepted.

  “Work shall remain accessible and exposed until inspected and accepted by the Code Enforcement Officer”

• Certificate of occupancyRequired

  Work subject to a building permit and changes of use or occupancy classification inside Manchester town.

  • A certificate of occupancy or compliance is required; a temporary certificate may be issued subject to safety and other stated conditions.
  • The building, structure, or work must be inspected before issuance.

  “A certificate of occupancy or certificate of compliance shall be required for any work which is the subject of a building permit”

• Manufactured homesLimited

  New manufactured homes inside Manchester town.

  • New manufactured homes are limited to an M-H manufactured-home park unless they meet the code definition of a single-family dwelling.
  • Existing manufactured homes outside M-H may continue as pre-existing nonconforming uses; replacements must meet Federal HUD requirements and current district setbacks.

  minimum manufactured-home living area: >= 720 square feet (Double-wide manufactured homes require at least 1,100 square feet.)

  “The siting of any new manufactured home(s) shall only be permitted as part of a manufactured home park”

• Who permits septicLocal (with conditions)

  Onsite wastewater systems inside Manchester town.

  • The Town Board serves as the Board of Health for this article; applications are filed with the Town Sanitation Officer and Zoning Officer.

  “The Town Board of the Town of Manchester convened as a "Board of Health."”

• Septic permitRequired

  Installation, construction, alteration, enlargement, or extension of a system, receptacle, privy, or device for human excreta, sewage, or commercial-waste disposal inside Manchester town.

  • A valid Town disposal permit must be obtained before the listed work.
  • New household wastewater systems must be designed under NYS Department of Health Appendix 75A.

  minimum septic-tank capacity: >= 1000 gallons

  “unless such person has applied for and obtained a valid disposal permit.”

• Septic inspectionRequired

  Disposal-permit systems inside Manchester town.

  • A final inspection is required when the Board of Health conditions the permit on final construction approval; the system may not be covered or buried before notice of completion and that inspection.
  • The Town may periodically inspect and test systems.

  “the Sanitation Officer has made his final inspection.”

• Off-grid sanitationLimited

  Nonwaterborne sanitation systems inside Manchester town.

  • For an occasionally inhabited site, such as a hunting camp or cottage, with no pressurized water or wastewater discharge, the regulatory officer may allow a sanitary privy or other nonwaterborne Appendix 75A system.
  • A disposal permit is otherwise required for a privy or other human-waste disposal device.

  “the regulatory officer may allow a sanitary privy, other nonwaterborne systems as described in Appendix 75A”

• Subdividing landRegulated (with conditions)

  Subdivision of land inside Manchester town.

  • Chapter 275 includes sketch-plan, preliminary-plan, final-plan, resubdivision, minor-subdivision, design-standard, improvement, surety, and waiver provisions.

  “Chapter 275 Subdivision of Land [HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Board of the Town of Manchester as Ch. 31 of the 1975 Code (originally adopted by the Planning Board 12-8-1970) (Ch. 158 of the 1989 Code); amended in its entirety at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I). Subsequent amendments noted where applicable.]”

• Permit feesPublished (with conditions)

  Zoning/code-enforcement permits inside Manchester town.

  • The Town's current fee amounts are in the linked Zoning Fee Schedule; Chapter 123 provides that the Town Board sets fees.

  “Listed below are commonly requested forms from the Zoning/Code Enforcement Office Zoning Fee Schedule (pdf) Download Town of Manchester Building Permit (pdf) Download”

• Permit processPublished (with conditions)

  Building-permit applications inside Manchester town.

  • Application must be written on an acceptable form and signed by the owner or authorized agent.
  • Required contents include location/nature/scope, tax map number and street address, occupancy classification, and applicable construction documents.

  “Applications for a building permit shall be made in writing on a form provided by or otherwise acceptable to the Code Enforcement Officer.”

Rules another office applies inside Town of Manchester

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

• Minimum dwelling sizeSpecified

  Single-family dwellings in the Agricultural (AG) district inside Manchester town.

  minimum ground-floor area: >= 1000 square feet (Single-family dwelling.)

  “No single-family dwelling shall be smaller than 1,000 square feet in ground floor area.”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — Single-family dwellings in the Rural Residential (RR) and Hamlet Residential (HR) districts inside Manchester town.

    “No single-family dwelling shall be smaller than 1,000 square feet in ground floor area.”

• Minimum lot sizeDistrict specific (with conditions)

  Residential uses in RR and HR districts inside Manchester town.

  • RR without water service requires two acres; HR without water service requires 20,000 square feet.
  • HR lots along the Erie Canal require 4,000 square feet.

  RR residential minimum lot size: >= 30000 square feet (Without water service: two acres.) · HR residential minimum lot size: >= 15000 square feet (Along Erie Canal: 4,000 square feet; without water service: 20,000 square feet.)

  “Residential use | 30,000 square feet | 15,000 square feet”

• Lot coverageDistrict specific (with conditions)

  RR and HR districts inside Manchester town.

  • Applies to gross impervious surface and structures.

  RR maximum lot coverage: <= 25 percent · HR maximum lot coverage: <= 35 percent

  “Gross impervious surface and structures | 25% | 35%”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — AG district inside Manchester town.

    “Gross impervious surface and structures | 25%”

• Building heightDistrict specific (with conditions)

  RR and HR districts inside Manchester town.

  • Accessory-structure height limits differ by district.

  principal maximum height: 35 feet; 2.5 stories (RR and HR.) · RR accessory maximum height: <= 18 feet · HR accessory maximum height: <= 16 feet

  “Principal structure | 35 feet 2.5 stories | 35 feet 2.5 stories”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — AG district inside Manchester town.

    “Principal structure | 35 feet 2.5 stories”

• Building in a floodplainRequired

  Development within areas of special flood hazard inside Manchester town.

  • The development permit must be obtained before construction or other development starts.
  • The flood chapter applies only to areas of special flood hazard within Town jurisdiction; the Zoning Officer administers permits.

  “A development permit shall be obtained before the start of construction or any other development within the area of special flood hazard”

Still unanswered

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

• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-performed residential construction inside Manchester town.
• Living in an RV — Residential occupancy of a recreational vehicle on private land inside Manchester town.
• Camping on your land — Temporary camping on private land inside Manchester town.
• Tiny homes — Tiny-home occupancy inside Manchester town.
• Accessory dwellings — Accessory dwelling units inside Manchester 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.