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

Town of Burns’s own rules

• Building permitRequired

  New construction inside Burns town limits that needs a town building permit

  • Town building permit may not issue until a safe water supply and sewage disposal system is assured and a sanitary permit or well permit is issued.
  • Town FAQ directs building-permit questions to La Crosse County Zoning and the town building inspector.

  “no town building permit may be issued until any required installation or reexamination of a safe and adequate water supply and sewage disposal system is assured and a sanitary permit or well permit is issued.”

• Local zoningPresent (with conditions)

  Land inside Burns town limits (Town of Burns, La Crosse County, WI). The town adopts and administers its own Chapter 17 zoning ordinance.

  • La Crosse County does not administer zoning in Burns town; county zoning covers the other unincorporated towns of La Crosse County.
  • Chapter 17 use rule: any use that is not listed as a permitted, special, or conditional use in a district is prohibited in that district.
  • Chapter 17 section 17.84 states that La Crosse County ordinances (driveway, sanitation, floodplain and others) may also affect land in the town.

  “chapter 17 zoning ordinance plan commission adoption of comprehensive plan resolution authorizing zoning authority”

• Zoning districtsPublished (with conditions)

  Zoning districts of the Burns town Chapter 17 zoning ordinance

  • Table of contents lists residential A, B and C, agricultural A and B, farmland preservation, agricultural transition, commercial A to C, industrial, and mobile home court districts (sections 17.30-17.41).
  • District dimensional standards were not read.

  “17.30 residential district "a". in the residential district "a", no building or premises shall be used and no building shall hereafter be erected or structurally altered, unless otherwise provided for in this chapter, except for one or more of the following uses in accordance with the following standards:”

• Minimum lot sizeSpecified

  Creation of any new parcel in Burns town created after the Chapter 17 effective date (general minimum, not a district-specific minimum)

  • Applies except as expressly provided elsewhere in Chapter 17.
  • District-specific lot minimums in sections 17.30-17.36 were not read.

  minimum lot area for a new parcel: >= 1 acre (except as expressly provided for herein)

  “the minimum lot area for the creation of any new parcel established after the effective date of this chapter shall be one acre except as expressly provided for herein.”

• Living in an RVLimited

  Parking or storing a trailer, camper or RV on residential land inside Burns town limits

  • Rear-yard parking or storage is allowed only if no human habitation occurs there and no business is conducted in the trailer while it is parked or stored.
  • Temporary occupancy of a camper, RV, mobile or manufactured home in residential and agricultural districts is governed by a separate paragraph (10) that was not fully read.

  “one trailer, camper, or rv may be parked or stored in a rear yard, provided that no occupancy for human habitation is maintained and no business is conducted therein while such trailer is so parked or stored.”

• Manufactured homesLimited

  Manufactured and mobile homes inside Burns town limits

  • Single-section manufactured homes are allowed only if they conform to section 17.35(2)(j) (farm residences on a farm).
  • Single-section mobile or manufactured homes of record as of January 30, 2013 are not prohibited and may be altered or replaced (replacement must be an upgrade to a newer model year).
  • Manufactured, modular or multi-section homes at least 24 feet wide when assembled are not excluded from the residential and agricultural districts.

  “preexisting, single section mobile or manufactured homes, in any district, of record as of january 30, 2013, and installed pursuant to and in accordance with the standards and regulations in effect at the time of first placement, or pursuant to any zoning-occupancy permit, shall not be prohibited”

• Subdividing landRegulated (with conditions)

  Subdivisions and minor subdivisions of land inside Burns town limits

  • Must comply with La Crosse County chapter 18 for platting or certified survey maps.
  • A county-approved subdivision plat must also be approved by the town board and conform to Chapter 17.

  “shall comply with the requirements of la crosse county chapter 18, with regard to platting or”

• Permit feesVariable (with conditions)

  Zoning-occupancy permit charges inside Burns town limits

  • Charges are set by the town board from time to time; no fee schedule was located in the sections read.
  • Board inspection fees must be related to actual costs under section 17.82 (not punitive).

  “the charges for the issuance of zoning-occupancy permits shall be determined by the town board from time to time.”

• Permit processPartial

  Zoning-occupancy permit process inside Burns town limits

  • Application goes to the town zoning administrator with plans, lot dimensions, use, number of families, and septic and water locations.
  • Building-permit and inspection steps are not fully described; the town FAQ points residents to La Crosse County Zoning.

  decision deadline: 10 days (after receipt of the application)

  “such permit shall be issued or the application be denied within 10 days after the receipt of the application.”

Rules another office applies inside Town of Burns

Town of Burns 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 sewage disposal systems on land inside Burns town limits; La Crosse County chapter 12 applies in the town

  • Applies through Chapter 17 section 17.84, which lists La Crosse County chapter 12 as an ordinance that may affect town land.
  • County sanitation ordinance text itself was not opened.

  “chapter 12; sanitation; well and septic systems and permits. private water supplies or sewage disposal systems,.”

• Septic permitRequired

  New buildings needing a private sewage system inside Burns town limits

  • A sanitary permit is required before a town building permit can issue, unless an existing compliant system is in place (per section 17.84 wording).

  “no town building permit may be issued until any required installation or reexamination of a safe and adequate water supply and sewage disposal system is assured and a sanitary permit or well permit is issued.”

• Well permitRequired

  Private water supply wells needed for new buildings inside Burns town limits

  • A well permit (or sanitary permit) must be issued before a town building permit issues, per section 17.84.

  “no town building permit may be issued until any required installation or reexamination of a safe and adequate water supply and sewage disposal system is assured and a sanitary permit or well permit is issued.”

• Driveway accessLimited

  Driveway or access connecting to a La Crosse County trunk highway in Burns town

  • Applies only where an access or easement connects to a county highway; other driveway rules are in a separate town driveway ordinance not opened.

  “chapter 8, driveway access to county trunk highways; permit application required if an access or an easement connects to a county highway.”

• Building in a floodplainRequired

  Development on land inside a floodplain district in Burns town

  • Permit applies only if the property is in a flood plain district.
  • County chapter 16 floodplain text not opened.

  “chapter 16, floodplain zoning; permit application required if property is in a flood plain district.”

Still unanswered

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

• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder permit exemption inside Burns town limits
• Inspections — Inspections for new construction inside Burns town limits
• Certificate of occupancy — Occupancy approval for new homes inside Burns town limits
• Minimum dwelling size — Minimum dwelling size in the Burns town residential districts
• Setbacks — Building setbacks in the main single-family residential district and the agricultural or rural-residential district in Burns 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.