Zoning, building permits and septic rules in Town of Westfield, Vermont

Town of Westfield’s own rules

• Local zoningPresent

  Land inside Westfield town limits; the Town of Westfield administers its own zoning bylaw.

  • Bylaw adopted in 1972 and last amended March 18, 2024 per its adoption history.
  • Zoning Administrator and Development Review Board administer the bylaw.

  “for the purposes of this zoning bylaw the town of westfield is divided into the following zoning districts:”

• Zoning districtsPublished

  Land inside Westfield town limits.

  • Districts named in §301: Village, Recreational-Residential, Rural-Agricultural, Mountain, Special Flood Hazard Area overlay, River Corridor overlay.
  • Table 2 (dimensional standards) covers Village, Recreational-Residential, Rural-Agricultural and Mountain districts.

  “village recreational-residential rural-agricultural mountain special flood hazard area overlay river corridor overlay”

• Minimum lot sizeSpecified

  Recreational-Residential district inside Westfield town limits (main single-family residential district).

  • Table 2 text was extracted without clean column alignment; the value is mapped to this district by the header order village, recreational-residential, rural-agricultural, mountain. Verify against the PDF table.
  • Lot frontage 150 ft and lot depth 150 ft in the same column per extracted table.

  minimum lot size: 1 acre

  “minimum lot size (acres).25 acre 1 acre 2 acres 10 acres”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — Rural-Agricultural district inside Westfield town limits.

    “minimum lot size (acres).25 acre 1 acre 2 acres 10 acres”

• SetbacksSpecified

  Recreational-Residential district inside Westfield town limits; side and rear setbacks shown.

  • Front setback values in the extracted table are not legible enough to report; verify against the PDF.
  • Fences are exempt from setbacks in all districts per Table 2 note.
  • Waterway setback is 50 ft in all districts per Table 2 (not restated here).

  side lot line setback: 20 ft · rear lot line setback: 30 ft

  “minimum setback from side lot line (feet) 20 ft 1 20 ft 20 ft 50 ft minimum setback from rear lot line (feet) 10 ft 30 ft 30 ft 50 ft”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — Rural-Agricultural district inside Westfield town limits; side and rear setbacks shown.

    “minimum setback from side lot line (feet) 20 ft 1 20 ft 20 ft 50 ft minimum setback from rear lot line (feet) 10 ft 30 ft 30 ft 50 ft”

• Building heightSpecified

  Structures in all Westfield town zoning districts (Village, Recreational-Residential, Rural-Agricultural, Mountain).

  • Table 2 lists a 35 ft maximum structure height in each district (footnote 2 not read).
  • Under §813.03 the Development Review Board under conditional use review may permit structures taller than 35 feet, subject to listed conditions (does not change character of area, not a hazard, occupied height not above 35 ft).

  maximum structure height: <= 35 ft (DRB conditional use review may allow taller structures under §813.03)

  “813.03 the development review board under conditional use review may permit structures taller than 35 feet provided the structure”

• Accessory dwellingsLimited

  Accessory dwelling units on lots inside Westfield town limits.

  • Permitted for each single-household or two-household dwelling that is permitted on the lot.
  • Property must have sufficient wastewater capacity, which requires state approval.
  • Unit may not exceed 1,200 square feet of above-ground living space.
  • Setback requirements must be met.
  • In any zoning district, a business with more than one floor may have accessory dwelling units of up to 1,200 square feet each on floors above the ground floor in a conforming structure.

  maximum ADU living space: <= 1200 square feet (floors above ground floor of a business in a conforming structure, each unit)

  “an accessory dwelling unit shall be permitted on a lot for each single-household dwelling or two-household dwelling that is permitted, and shall comply with the following standards”

Still unanswered

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

• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder exemption inside Westfield town limits.
• Building code adopted — Building code adoption inside Westfield town limits.
• Inspections — Building inspection inside Westfield town limits.
• Certificate of occupancy — Certificate of occupancy inside Westfield town limits.
• Minimum dwelling size — Minimum dwelling size inside Westfield town limits.

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.

Off-grid gear

Going off-grid in Town of Westfield means bringing your own water and power. The kit we’d start with:

• Water Crystal Quest Filter any source — well, rain, or creek — to drinking-clean.
• Power Bluetti Solar generators and home battery backup for living off the grid.
• Septic Soil percolation test kit Run your own perc test before paying an engineer — the first thing a septic office asks about.
• Water Well water test kit Bacteria, nitrates, hardness — know what the well on a parcel is really pumping.

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