Zoning, building permits and septic rules in Village of Freeville, New York

Village of Freeville’s own rules

• Local zoningPresent

  All land inside Freeville village (Tompkins County, NY)

  • Source is the 2022 revised Article 3 posted on the village website; later amendments (e.g., Local Law 10 of 2025) were not reviewed and may change text.

  “general regulations, found in sections 307 through 329, apply throughout the village of freeville. zone regulations, found in sections 330 through 369, apply only in the specified zone.”

• Zoning districtsPublished

  Zones inside Freeville village

  • Basic zones include R (residential) and AG (agricultural), plus FH/CC and C and PUD zones referenced in the use tables.

  “the village of freeville is divided into zones; within each zone, the regulations are uniform, but the regulations may differ from one zone to another.”

• Minimum lot sizeSpecified

  Residential zone (R) inside Freeville village

  • Depends on whether lot has public sewer or private sewage disposal.

  min lot area, private sewage disposal: >= 40000 sq ft (or 20,000 sq ft per dwelling) · min lot area, public sewer: >= 15000 sq ft (or 10,000 sq ft per dwelling)

  “361.01 minimum lot area: (including residential with approved home occupations): with private sewage disposal: 40,000 sq ft or per dwelling: 20,000 sq ft residential with public sewer: 15,000 sq ft or per dwelling: 10,000 sq ft”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — Agricultural zone (AG) inside Freeville village

    “362.01 minimum lot area: non-residential or partly non-residential (including residential w/approved home occupation) with private sewage disposal: or per dwelling: residential with public sewer: or per dwelling 43,560 sq ft 21,780 sq ft 20,000 sq ft 13,333 sq ft”

• SetbacksSpecified

  Agricultural zone (AG) inside Freeville village

  • Agricultural structure must be 100 ft from any boundary with the R zone.

  front yard from highway centerline: >= 75 ft · side yard: >= 0 ft · rear yard: >= 0 ft

  “362.03 minimum yard depth: front yard (from centerline of highway): 75 ft side yard: 0 ft rear yard: 0 ft agricultural structure must be 100 ft. from any boundary with the r zone.”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — Residential zone (R) inside Freeville village

    “361.03 minimum yard depth: front yard: (from front lot line) buildings: open parking facility: side yard: principal facility: open parking facility: detached accessory facility: rear yard: principal facility: open parking facility: detached accessory facility: 50 ft 25 ft 25 ft 5 ft 15 ft 25 ft 5 ft 15 ft”

• Lot coverageSpecified

  Residential zone (R) inside Freeville village

  • Table flattened in source: buildings 20% (one-unit residential) and 25% (other residential); additional 15% by impervious material.

  building coverage one-unit residential: <= 20 percent · building coverage other residential: <= 25 percent · additional impervious coverage: <= 15 percent

  “361.05 maximum lot coverage: buildings: one unit residential: other residential: additional lot coverage by impervious material 20% 25% 15%”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — Agricultural zone (AG) inside Freeville village

    “362.05 maximum lot coverage: non-residential residential: 40% 30%”

• Building heightSpecified

  Residential zone (R) inside Freeville village

  • Section 309 lists facilities exempt from height regulations.

  principal facility max height: <= 35 ft · detached accessory facility max height: <= 25 ft

  “361.04 maximum height*: principal facility: 35 ft detached accessory facility: 25 ft”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — Agricultural zone (AG) inside Freeville village

    “362.04 maximum height: principal facility: 3 stories or 35 ft (whichever is less) detached accessory facility: 15 to 25 ft greater with site plan review.”

• Manufactured homesLimited

  Mobile home residential buildings inside Freeville village

  • Per the use table columns (r, ag, fh/cc, c), mobile homes read as not allowed in R, special (site plan review) in AG, not allowed in FH/CC and C; mobile home parks only by PUD in R and AG. Column mapping inferred from the flattened table header.

  “353.05 mobile home residential building: a factory-produced residential building transported to the site as a trailer or trailers, and containing one dwelling unit. no s no no”

• Subdividing landRegulated (with conditions)

  Subdivisions inside Freeville village

  • Governed by Article 6, land subdivision regulations (not opened).

  “these minimum lot dimension requirements govern the approval of subdivisions according to article 6, land subdivision regulations.”

Still unanswered

We looked and could not find an official answer yet. Silence is not permission; ask Village of Freeville or Tompkins County directly.

• Building permit — Building permits inside Freeville village
• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder inside Freeville village
• Building code adopted — Building code inside Freeville village
• Inspections — Inspections inside Freeville village
• Certificate of occupancy — Certificates of occupancy inside Freeville 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.