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

Town of Groton’s own rules

• InspectionsRequired

  Permitted building projects inside the Town of Groton.

  • The required number of inspections varies by project.
  • Inspections are by request and the owner/landowner must ensure they occur.

  “The homeowner/landowner is responsible for ensuring these inspections are done.”

• Certificate of occupancyRequired

  Habitable structures, additions to habitable space, and conversion of non-habitable space into habitable space inside the Town of Groton.

  • The Code Enforcement Officer issues the certificate when satisfied that the use complies with the Code and the structure and site conform to submitted plans.

  “No habitable structure shall be occupied until a Certificate of Occupancy is issued by the Code Enforcement Officer.”

• Local zoningPresent (with conditions)

  Land inside the Town of Groton, Tompkins County, New York.

  • The town's Land Use and Development Code governs zoning and land use.

  “The Town of Groton engages in Zoning and Land Use described in the Town of Groton Land Use and Development Code 2011.”

• Zoning districtsPublished (with conditions)

  Town of Groton zoning districts shown in the officially published Land Use Table.

  • The table was amended January 9, 2018.
  • Parcel-level district designation must be verified against the zoning map.

  published districts: RA Rural Ag; L Low Intensity; M1 Med Intensity 1; M2 Med Intensity 2; H Highway Commercial/Industrial; I1 Industrial 1; I2 Industrial 2

  “RA Rural Ag L Low Intensity M1 Med Intensity 1 M2 Med Intensity 2 H Highway Commercial/ Industrial I 1 Industrial 1 I 2 Industrial”

• Off-grid sanitationLimited

  New, replacement, or additions to living-space occupancy inside the Town of Groton that rely on non-municipal sanitation.

  • The applicant must provide a sewage-system construction permit or Health Department proof that the changes comply with discharge regulations.

  “Apply for a Sewage System Construction Permit or Proof from the Health Department that changes comply with discharge regulations.”

• Subdividing landRegulated (with conditions)

  Subdivision proposals inside the Town of Groton.

  • Published fees distinguish exempt, minor, and major subdivision review, including preliminary and final review for major subdivisions.

  “Subdivision - Exempt $50 Subdivision - Minor $30 + $20 per lot Subdivision - Major Level One & Major Level Two Preliminary Review - $100 + $20 per lot Final Review - $100 + $20 per lot”

• Building in a floodplainRequired

  Development in areas of special flood hazard within Town of Groton jurisdiction.

  • A floodplain development permit is an addition to a Town building permit.
  • The law identifies the Town jurisdiction excluding the incorporated Village on its FEMA-map adoption page.
  • The application must be accompanied by the Town Board's annually updated fee and may require reimbursement of review, inspection, and approval costs.

  “It shall be unlawful to undertake any development in an area of special flood hazard [...] without a valid floodplain development permit.”

• Permit processPublished (with conditions)

  Building-permit applications inside the Town of Groton.

  • Original applications may not be emailed.
  • Incomplete applications are returned.
  • Review may take up to seven working days.

  stated permit-review period: <= 7 working days (The page states that review may take up to this period.)

  “Applications that are missing items will not be accepted and will be returned.”

Rules another office applies inside Town of Groton

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

• Septic inspectionLimited

  Town of Groton building projects for which a septic inspection appears on the project-specific inspection checklist.

  • The checklist says it may include but is not exclusive of listed required inspections.

  “___Septic permit and Final Inspect, by Tompkins County Health Department”

Still unanswered

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

• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builders seeking an exemption from Town of Groton building-permit or code requirements.
• Minimum dwelling size — Dwellings inside the Town of Groton.
• Setbacks — Structures inside the Town of Groton.
• Lot coverage — Lots inside the Town of Groton.
• Building height — Buildings inside the Town of Groton.

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.