Zoning, building permits and septic rules in Chehalis, Washington

Chehalis’s own rules

• Local zoningPresent (with conditions)

  Land inside Chehalis city limits.

  • Land-use zones are amended by Ordinance 1125-B.

  “Ord. 1125-B pdf | 2026-07-27 | Amends Uniform Development Regulations: Land Use Zones (Zoning) | Ttl 17 Div V”

• Mandatory utility hookupSewer (with conditions)

  Houses, buildings, or properties for human occupancy, employment, recreation, or other purposes inside Chehalis city limits that abut a street, alley, or right-of-way with city public sanitary sewer.

  • The public sewer must be within 200 feet of the building.
  • Connection must occur within 60 days after written notice from the public works director.
  • The owner must install suitable sanitary plumbing fixtures and connect at the owner's expense.

  public sewer distance from building: <= 200 feet (Connection rule stated for a property receiving written notice.) · connection deadline after written notice: <= 60 days

  “The owner of all houses, buildings or properties used for human occupancy, employment, recreation or other purpose, situated within the city and abutting on any street, alley or right-of-way in which there is now located or may in the future be located a public sanitary sewer of the city, is hereby required at his expense to install suitable sanitary plumbing fixtures therein, and to connect such facilities directly with the proper sewer in accordance with the provisions of this chapter within 60 days after the date of receipt of a notice in writing issued by the public works director for connection to be made; providing, that said public sewer is within 200 feet of the building.”

Rules another office applies inside Chehalis

Chehalis 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 sizeSpecified

  Permitted uses in the R-1 single-family, low-density zone inside Chehalis city limits.

  • The R-1 table separately provides different lot-size entries for accessory, conditional, and temporary use categories.
  • A flag lot may have 12 feet of frontage.

  minimum lot size: 7500 square feet (Permitted-use row in the R-1 bulk-regulations table.)

  “Permitted | 10 acres of contiguous residential zones | 7,500 sq. ft. | 75' except a flag lot may have 12' of frontage | 50% | 35' | 20' | 5' | 5' | 4/6 units/acre”

• SetbacksSpecified

  Permitted uses in the R-1 single-family, low-density zone inside Chehalis city limits.

  • The administrator may approve zoning setback reductions necessitated by floodway and/or NWI-area considerations.
  • Existing-building additions are subject to the referenced setback criteria in CMC § 17.03.080(D).

  minimum street setback: 20 feet (Permitted-use row in the R-1 bulk-regulations table.) · minimum adjacent-lot setback: 5 feet (Permitted-use row in the R-1 bulk-regulations table.) · minimum alley setback: 5 feet (Permitted-use row in the R-1 bulk-regulations table.)

  “Permitted | 10 acres of contiguous residential zones | 7,500 sq. ft. | 75' except a flag lot may have 12' of frontage | 50% | 35' | 20' | 5' | 5' | 4/6 units/acre”

• Lot coverageSpecified

  Permitted uses in the R-1 single-family, low-density zone inside Chehalis city limits.

  • The R-1 table lists separate maximum-coverage standards for accessory, conditional, and temporary categories.

  maximum lot coverage: 50 percent (Permitted-use row in the R-1 bulk-regulations table.)

  “Permitted | 10 acres of contiguous residential zones | 7,500 sq. ft. | 75' except a flag lot may have 12' of frontage | 50% | 35' | 20' | 5' | 5' | 4/6 units/acre”

• Building heightSpecified

  Permitted uses in the R-1 single-family, low-density zone inside Chehalis city limits.

  • The R-1 table lists separate height standards for accessory, conditional, and temporary categories.

  maximum building height: 35 feet (Permitted-use row in the R-1 bulk-regulations table.)

  “Permitted | 10 acres of contiguous residential zones | 7,500 sq. ft. | 75' except a flag lot may have 12' of frontage | 50% | 35' | 20' | 5' | 5' | 4/6 units/acre”

Still unanswered

We looked and could not find an official answer yet. Silence is not permission; ask Chehalis or Lewis County directly.

• Building permit — New residential construction inside Chehalis city limits.
• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-built residential construction inside Chehalis city limits.
• Building code adopted — Building construction inside Chehalis city limits.
• Inspections — Building work inside Chehalis city limits.
• Certificate of occupancy — Occupancy of structures inside Chehalis city 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 Chehalis 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.

These are affiliate links — we may earn a commission, at no cost to you. As an Amazon Associate, Bolthole Index earns from qualifying purchases.