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

Village of Cambridge’s own rules

• Certificate of occupancyRequired

  Buildings inside Cambridge village; the village zoning law says the certificate comes from Washington County

  • Zoning permit expires if no certificate of occupancy within 18 months of issuance or when the building permit expires, whichever is shorter

  “d. certificate of occupancy - no building may be occupied until a certificate of occupancy has been received from washington county.”

• Local zoningPresent

  All land inside Cambridge village (Washington County), NY

  • Administered by the zoning enforcement officer, planning board and zoning board of appeals
  • Document is dated 3 June 2015; later amendments were not checked

  “no development may commence within the village without a basic zoning permit issued by the zoning enforcement officer.”

• Zoning districtsPublished

  Zoning districts inside Cambridge village: MU, GC, RT, VR, RR, I (per Appendix B)

  • Use chart: P = permitted, SP = special permit required, X = prohibited
  • Official zoning map is kept by the village (not verified here)

  “p = permitted, sp = special permit required, x = prohibited appendix b village dimension table mu gc rt vr rr i”

• SetbacksDistrict specific (with conditions)

  VR district: front 10 ft, side 10 ft, rear 25 ft minimum; RR district: front 10 ft, side 40 ft, rear 40 ft minimum, inside Cambridge village

  • Maximum front yard setback VR 30 ft, RR 40 ft
  • Sheds are exempt from rear/side setbacks but must be at least 5 ft from any property line and not in a front yard (Section 6.01)

  VR side yard: >= 10 ft · VR rear yard: >= 25 ft · RR side yard: >= 40 ft · RR rear yard: >= 40 ft

  “minimum front yard setback (feet) 0 20 10 10 10 20 maximum front yard setback (feet) 5 40 30 30 40 30 minimum side yard setback (feet) 0 10 10 10 40 20 maximum side yard setback (feet) 30 - - - - - minimum rear yard setback (feet) 15 25 25 25 40 20”

• Lot coverageDistrict specific (with conditions)

  Maximum impervious surface: VR district 30%, RR district 15%, inside Cambridge village

  • Column order mu, gc, rt, vr, rr, i = 100%, 50%, 50%, 30%, 15%, 30%

  VR max impervious: <= 30 % · RR max impervious: <= 15 %

  “maximum impervious surface (%) 100% 50% 50% 30% 15% 30%”

• Building heightSpecified

  All districts in Cambridge village including VR and RR: maximum 40 ft

  • Exempt: church steeples, water towers, fixed radio antennas, and public monuments

  maximum building height: <= 40 ft (church steeples, water towers, fixed radio antennas, public monuments)

  “maximum building height (feet) * 40 40 40 40 40 40”

Still unanswered

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

• Building permit — Cambridge village
• Owner-builder exemption — Cambridge village
• Building code adopted — Cambridge village
• Inspections — Cambridge village
• Minimum dwelling size — Cambridge 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.