Zoning, building permits and septic rules in Town of Deerfield, Wisconsin

Town of Deerfield’s own rules

• Driveway accessRequired

  New or changed driveway access onto land inside Deerfield town limits

  • A driveway permit is required under the town driveway ordinance (approved 2.12.18).
  • The driveway ordinance text was not opened; its standards are not recorded.

  “driveway permit to understand the driveway permit requirements please review the driveway ordinance: driveway ordinance approved 2.12.18”

• Permit feesPublished (with conditions)

  Building, electrical and plumbing permit fees inside Deerfield town limits

  • The town's fee schedule dated 06-13-2022 is linked on the permits page but was not opened; amounts are not recorded.
  • The draft ordinance sets the application fee by town board resolution.

  “building, electrical & plumbing permits schedule of fees updates fee schedule 06-13-2022”

• Permit processPublished (with conditions)

  Building permit application process inside Deerfield town limits

  • The permits page links a building permit checklist and a permit short form; the forms were not opened.
  • Zoning permits are routed to Dane County.

  “checklist for building permit fee schedule[1487] permit short form[1484] sbd5823uniformbldgpermitapplfillin[1485]”

Rules another office applies inside Town of Deerfield

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

• Who permits septicCounty (with conditions)

  Private onsite wastewater systems on land inside Deerfield town limits (county rule that applies inside the town; not a county-wide claim about unincorporated land only)

  • Dane County Chapter 46 provides the sanitary permit rule; the jurisdiction clause was not read in this research.
  • The draft town building ordinance lists a county sanitary permit as a supporting document where the county requires one.

  “the provisions of this chapter shall apply to all lands and waters within dane county except as otherwise provided by wis. stats.”

• Septic permitRequired

  Installing, repairing, modifying, extending, enlarging, converting, reconnecting or structurally altering a private sewage system on land inside Deerfield town limits (county permit that applies inside the town)

  • Permit is issued by the Dane County sanitary permit program under Chapter 46, not by the town.
  • Permit expires two years after issuance if the system is not installed and approved (sec. 46.08(8)); this comes from the search summary and was not confirmed in the opened text.
  • Construction may proceed after the sanitary permit is issued.

  sanitary permit validity: 2 years (if system not installed and approved within that time)

  “no person shall install, repair, modify, extend, enlarge, convert, reconnect or structurally alter a private sewage system or any component thereof unless the owner of the property on which the private sewage system is located holds a valid sanitary permit.”

• Off-grid sanitationLimited

  Non-plumbing sanitation systems such as privies on land inside Deerfield town limits (county rule that applies inside the town)

  • Structures served solely by a privy shall not contain any plumbing and shall not be connected to a water supply.
  • A county sanitary permit is required before installing any privy or similar device regulated by ch. sps 391, wis. admin. code.
  • Plumbed structures must follow the water-closet rule in Chapter 46 sec. 46.06(6)(b), which was not fully read.

  “structures served solely by a privy shall not contain any plumbing and shall not be connected to a water supply. the property owner must obtain a county sanitary permit before installing any privy or similar device regulated by ch. sps 391, wis. admin. code.”

Still unanswered

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

• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder construction inside Deerfield town limits
• Certificate of occupancy — Occupancy approval for new buildings inside Deerfield town limits
• Local zoning — Land inside Deerfield town limits: whether the town administers its own zoning ordinance
• Zoning districts — Zoning districts for land inside Deerfield town limits
• Minimum dwelling size — Minimum dwelling size inside Deerfield 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.