Building permits, zoning and septic rules in Lane County, Oregon

Yes. In unincorporated Lane County, an owner or authorized agent must obtain the required permit before constructing, enlarging, altering, repairing, moving or demolishing a regulated building, changing its occupancy, or doing regulated electrical, gas, mechanical or plumbing work¹. Lane County adopts the Oregon State Building Code with county modifications and exemptions^2,8. The Oregon Residential Specialty Code applies to the construction of one- and two-family dwellings and townhouses⁹. A Planning Department-approved agricultural building or equine facility is exempt from the structural permit requirement, but that exemption does not answer separate land-use or sanitation questions². Eugene administers building regulations on urbanizable land within the Eugene Urban Growth Boundary, while Springfield does the same within its urban growth boundary².

For county-administered work, Lane County's Land Management Division Building Program is at 3050 North Delta Hwy in Eugene, and the Building Permit Information Line is 541-682-4651¹⁰. Homeowners use ePASS, while contractors use ePermitting for residential mechanical, electrical and plumbing permits; a residential or commercial combination-permit review may take up to 8 weeks depending on the project¹¹. Lane County publishes updated Land Management Division fee schedules, so price the actual scope before budgeting¹². A dwelling requires at least 11 inspections, with electrical and septic approvals completed before the final building inspection¹³. The county building office is not the administrator for urbanizable land inside the Eugene or Springfield urban growth boundaries².

Yes. Lane County divides its unincorporated territory into zoning districts under Lane Code Chapter 10³. In the Rural Residential zone, the baseline allowance is no more than one permanent single-family or manufactured dwelling on a lot or parcel, but a qualifying parcel outside an urban growth boundary and urban reserve area may also have one ADU⁶. That ADU path requires a parcel of at least 2 acres with an existing single-family dwelling; the ADU must be within 100 feet of the house and may contain no more than 900 square feet of usable floor area⁶. New Rural Residential lots are subject to map-specific minimums and Lane Code Chapter 13 rather than a single countywide acreage rule^6,14. In the Rural Residential zone outside urban growth boundaries, structures must sit at least 20 feet from a state, county or local access public road right-of-way and at least 10 feet from other property lines, subject to listed exceptions, and the zone sets no height limit⁶. Ask the Land Use/Zoning Information Line at 541-682-3577 which zoning map and standards govern the parcel¹⁰.

Lane County's On-Site Wastewater program regulates the installation, repair, alteration and maintenance of residential and commercial septic systems on properties not served by community sewer⁴. Apply to the Subsurface Sanitation Program for a septic permit before construction begins¹⁵. A new system needs an approved Site Evaluation before the county can issue an Install permit¹⁶. Only 4.7% of Lane County soils rate without severe limitations for a conventional drain field, so make septic feasibility an early purchase contingency⁷. The installation permit lists required inspections, and the installer must notify Subsurface Sanitation staff at the stated stages¹³. Septic approval must be complete before the final building inspection¹³. The On-Site Wastewater Information Line is 541-682-3754¹⁰.

Lane County allows one RV to serve as a residential rental dwelling on a qualifying Rural Residential parcel with an owner-occupied primary home, no other dwelling units and a written residential rental agreement⁶. The RV must remain highway-ready, stay outside the regulatory floodplain, receive permitted utility and sanitation service, and meet the applicable setbacks⁶. Lane County also allows one temporary manufactured home or RV for a medical hardship suffered by a resident of the existing home or the resident's relative, subject to the code's requirements⁶. A temporary campground is for overnight vacation, recreation or emergency use—not residential use¹⁷. For permanent tiny-home placement, Lane County identifies two routes: site-built construction or a manufactured home¹⁸. A qualifying rural-residential ADU is another possible small-home route, but it carries parcel, size, siting, sanitation, fire-safety and recorded-covenant conditions⁶.

1. Confirm the parcel's zoning and whether Lane County, Eugene or Springfield administers its building regulations^2,3.
2. If access will come from a county road or street, obtain a Public Works Facility permit for the driveway portion in the public right-of-way¹⁹.
3. For land without community sewer, obtain an approved Site Evaluation and septic Install permit from Lane County^4,16.
4. Apply for the required building permit through ePASS as a homeowner; contractor mechanical, electrical and plumbing applications use ePermitting¹¹.
5. An owner working on owned property or the owner's residence may qualify for Oregon's contractor-license exemption, but the exemption does not remove building-permit or inspection requirements^1,5.
6. Complete the required building and septic inspections; a dwelling requires at least 11 building inspections¹³.
7. Obtain a certificate of occupancy before using the completed dwelling²⁰.

Confirm legal access as well as physical access: a new driveway from a county road or street needs a Public Works Facility permit within the public right-of-way, and vehicle access must use existing primary driveway aprons unless a driveway-apron Facility Permit is approved^19,21; the permit fee is $250 for a temporary access or $450 for a permanent one²². For a proposed Rural Residential division, the zoning map may require 2, 5 or 10 acres outside an unincorporated community, while different mapped minimums apply inside one⁶. All subdivision and partition proposals must also conform to Oregon's subdivision law¹⁴. Only 4.7% of Lane County soils rate without severe limitations for a conventional drain field⁷. Building or developing inside a mapped special flood hazard area in rural Lane County requires a floodplain development permit before construction begins²³. Domestic well use not exceeding 15,000 gallons per day is among Oregon's water-right permit exemptions, but other water uses generally need a state permit or license²⁴. The typical effective property-tax rate is 0.9%, and the median annual bill is about $3,417⁷.