Zoning, building permits and septic rules in Town of St. Albans, Vermont

Town of St. Albans’s own rules

• Building permitRequired

  Land development, including new residential construction, inside St. Albans town.

  • The rule has the exemptions in §5.2; new construction and qualifying structural alteration or use change require a zoning permit.
  • Permits remain effective 24 months and may receive two 24-month extensions from the Zoning Administrator; additional extensions require DRB review.

  permit duration: 24 months (Zoning Administrator may grant two extensions of the same duration; further extension requests go to the DRB.)

  “No land development shall commence without a valid Zoning Permit issued by the Zoning Administrator that specifically authorizes the action except as specifically exempted by these regulations in Section 5.2 below.”

• InspectionsLimited

  Land development regulated by the Town Unified Development Bylaws inside St. Albans town.

  • The Zoning Administrator may make inspections necessary to determine compliance; the bylaws do not establish a universal inspection schedule in the cited section.

  “The Zoning Administrator may make reasonable inspections that they deem necessary to determine compliance, and shall maintain a full and accurate record, available to the public, of all applications and fees received, permits issued and denied, and violations reported.”

• Certificate of occupancyRequired

  Occupancy of new construction inside St. Albans town.

  • A Certificate of Compliance is required before occupancy of new construction or where one was never obtained.
  • For new construction, the Zoning Administrator may issue the certificate if all proposed units have running water, flushing toilets, and are built according to approved plans.

  “Prior to occupancy on a new construction, or in the event a certificate of compliance has never been obtained, a Certificate of Compliance shall be obtained.”

• Local zoningPresent (with conditions)

  Land inside the Town of St. Albans, Franklin County, Vermont.

  • The Unified Development Bylaws amend in their entirety the bylaws and subdivision regulations adopted September 7, 2022.

  “In accordance with the Vermont Planning and Development Act, 24 V.S.A Chapter 117, there are hereby established Unified Development Bylaws for the Town of St. Albans, Vermont.”

• Zoning districtsPublished (with conditions)

  Zoning districts inside St. Albans town.

  • The Official Zoning Map in Town Hall is the final authority for zoning status; the bylaw adopts the map by reference.
  • Where the Growth Center boundary divides a qualifying preexisting lot, the entire lot is treated as in the Growth Center; a divided lot may receive conditional-use extension of either district's rules.

  “The Town of St. Albans is divided into the following Zoning and Overlay Districts: Lakeshore, Conservation, Rural, Residential, Mixed Residential/Commercial, Commercial, Industrial, Village Core, Flood Hazard Overlay, and Growth Center Overlay (North & South).”

• Living in an RVTemporary only (with conditions)

  Camping-vehicle occupancy on private property inside St. Albans town.

  • One vehicle requires owner or landowner permission and compliance with district setbacks.
  • Occupancy cannot exceed 150 days in any consecutive 12-month period.
  • A vehicle used as living quarters and sited so it is not readily movable is a dwelling and subject to dwelling regulations.

  maximum occupancy: per 150 days (Any consecutive 12-month period; one camping vehicle.)

  “One single camping vehicle may be parked on the property of its owner or with the permission of the landowner provided the vehicle meets all district setback requirements and the period of occupancy does not exceed one hundred fifty (150) days in any consecutive twelve (12) month period.”

• Camping on your landLimited

  Camping vehicles and campgrounds inside St. Albans town.

  • Camping-vehicle occupancy is limited to 150 days in any consecutive 12-month period and district setbacks apply.
  • New campgrounds and additions or alterations to existing campgrounds require conditional-use approval, facilities, and state-regulatory compliance.

  maximum camping-vehicle occupancy: per 150 days (Any consecutive 12-month period.)

  “New campgrounds and any addition or alteration to an existing campground shall be subject to the following regulations:”

• Manufactured homesAllowed (with conditions)

  Mobile, modular, and other prefabricated housing on its own lot or in a planned unit development inside St. Albans town.

  • The housing is treated as any other residential unit unless it is unoccupied and displayed in a sales establishment or allowed as a temporary use.
  • New mobile-home parks and additions or alterations to existing parks require conditional-use and site-plan approval by the DRB.

  “Mobile homes, modular housing or other forms of prefabricated housing when placed on its own lot or part of a Planned Unit Development shall be treated as any other residential housing unit unless unoccupied and displayed in a mobile home sales establishment or allowed as a temporary use under Section 7.5 of these Regulations.”

• Agricultural exemptionAvailable (with conditions)

  Required agricultural and silvicultural practices inside St. Albans town.

  • The practice must be regulated by the Vermont Agency of Agriculture or Department of Forests, Parks, and Recreation.
  • The exemption is from the Town zoning-permit requirement outside the Flood Hazard Overlay.

  “Required agricultural and silvicultural practices regulated by the Vermont Agency of Agriculture or Department of Forests, Parks, and Recreation”

• Subdividing landRegulated (with conditions)

  Subdivision and specified road/right-of-way development inside St. Albans town.

  • The rules apply to subdivision into two or more lots, including leased lots but excluding specified condominium or townhouse footprint lots, and construction, extension, or relocation of a road/right-of-way serving more than two single-dwelling units/lots.
  • Two-lot subdivisions and qualifying boundary adjustments are excluded from DRB approval but may receive administrative review.

  “Subdivision of any tract of land into two or more lots, including leased lots (but excluding footprint lots associated with condominium or townhouse ownership) for the purpose of development or transfer of ownership.”

• Driveway accessLimited

  Commercial drives and residential drives with zoning potential to serve three or more properties inside St. Albans town.

  • These drives are treated as roads under the Town Road Standards Ordinance.
  • The first 50-foot section of access roads and driveways may not exceed an average 10% grade unless the Selectboard approves otherwise.

  maximum average grade in first section: <= 10 percent (First 50 feet from public right-of-way, unless Selectboard approval.)

  “All commercial drives and all residential drives with the zoning potential to serve three (3) or more properties are considered roads for the purposes of the Town of St. Albans Road Standards Ordinance.”

• Permit feesVariable (with conditions)

  Zoning-permit and subdivision applications inside St. Albans town.

  • The zoning-permit fee schedule is established and may be amended by the Selectboard.
  • A subdivision application must include the fee established by the Selectboard; the actual dollar schedule was not present in the opened bylaw.

  “The application for subdivision approval shall be accompanied by a fee established by the St. Albans Town Selectboard.”

• Permit processPublished (with conditions)

  Town zoning permits inside St. Albans town.

  • The application must be complete and include applicable fees.
  • The Zoning Administrator may issue, refer to the DRB, or deny; inaction within 30 days deems the permit approved on day 31.
  • The Administrator cannot issue a nonconforming permit unless authorized by a DRB decision.

  decision period: <= 30 days (Inaction means approval on the 31st day.)

  “If the Zoning Administrator fails to act within the thirty (30) day period, the Zoning Permit shall be deemed approved on the thirty-first (31) day.”

Rules another office applies inside Town of St. Albans

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

• Minimum lot sizeDistrict specific (with conditions)

  Residential lots in the Rural District inside St. Albans town.

  • The reduced size applies to a residential dwelling with off-site community or public water and sewer.

  minimum lot size: 40000 square feet (8,700 square feet for a residential dwelling with off-site community or public water and sewer.)

  “Minimum Lot size: residential dwelling with off-site community, or public water and sewer 8,700 sq. ft.”

• SetbacksDistrict specific (with conditions)

  Structures in the Residential District inside St. Albans town.

  front setback: 20 feet · side and rear setbacks: 15 feet

  “Front Setback 20 ft. Side & Rear Setbacks 15 ft.”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • District specific (with conditions) — Structures in the Rural District inside St. Albans town.

    “Front Setback 40 ft. Side & Rear Setbacks 25 ft.”

• Building heightDistrict specific (with conditions)

  Structures in the Residential District inside St. Albans town.

  • The governing height is the shorter of three stories or 40 feet.

  maximum stories: 3 stories (Whichever is shorter than 40 feet.) · maximum height: 40 feet (Whichever is shorter than three stories.)

  “Height 3 Stories Max Height 40 ft. or whichever is shorter”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • District specific (with conditions) — Structures in the Rural District inside St. Albans town.

    “Height 3 Stories Max Height 36 ft. or whichever is shorter”

• Building in a floodplainRequired

  Development in mapped special-flood-hazard areas inside St. Albans town.

  • The overlay rules apply to all Town areas identified as special flood hazards on adopted NFIP maps; the more restrictive overlay or underlying-district rule governs.
  • DRB conditional-use approval is required for new buildings, substantial structural improvements, floodway development, fill, excavation, grading, and storage of equipment/materials in special-flood-hazard areas.
  • No permit for new construction or substantial improvement may be granted until ANR receives an application copy and either 30 days elapse or ANR comments.

  “In addition to the uses listed in this overlay district, conditional use approval by the DRB is required for:”

Still unanswered

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

• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-built residential construction inside St. Albans town.
• Building code adopted — Building-code adoption inside St. Albans town.
• Minimum dwelling size — Principal dwellings inside St. Albans town.
• Tiny homes — Tiny-home occupancy inside St. Albans town.
• Septic inspection — On-site wastewater systems serving land inside St. Albans 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.