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

Town of Holland’s own rules

• Building permitRequired

  New one- and two-family dwellings, commercial buildings, and additions or remodeling to them inside Holland town

  • A town building permit must be obtained before construction; permit fee is set by the town fee schedule (s.3.01, s.3.08).
  • The application must be accompanied by a validly issued county zoning permit when applicable (s.3.02).
  • Agricultural buildings on land zoned Exclusive Ag or General Ag are exempt from the building permit but require certification (town building permits page).
  • Shoreland-district parcels need a permit for almost any construction (county land conservation department).

  “The Town of Holland requires a building permit for all residential and commercial buildings. The only exception would be agricultural buildings on land zoned Exclusive Ag or General Ag.”

• Building code adoptedAdopted (with conditions)

  Buildings and structures inside Holland town limits

  • Ordinance 1-2016 states its scope as regulating buildings 'not covered by the state residential or commercial code' (s.1.03), so one- and two-family dwellings are governed by the state Uniform Dwelling Code and the town ordinance covers other buildings.
  • Section 2.04 separately adopts the state plumbing code (wis. admin. code chapters sps 381-386) by reference.
  • Section 2.02 adopts the state residential code by reference, but the quoted excerpt for that section was truncated in the open-page output, so it is not quoted here.

  “the provisions of wis. admin. code chapters sps 361-367 commonly known as the commercial building code, describing standards and inspection procedures for all commercial buildings are hereby adopted and incorporated herein by reference”

• Agricultural exemptionConditional

  Agricultural buildings on land zoned Exclusive Ag or General Ag inside Holland town

  • Exempt from the town building permit but still require certification.
  • Applies only to the zoning classes named; other agricultural buildings are not exempt.

  “The only exception would be agricultural buildings on land zoned Exclusive Ag or General Ag. Such buildings, do, however, require certification.”

• Driveway accessRequired

  New driveways connecting to any public road inside Holland town

  • Permit comes from the road owner: town road (town), county road (county), or state road (Wisconsin DOT).
  • Town permit packet includes a driveway application for new houses accessing a town road.

  “A driveway permit is required to access all roads and is obtained through the respective municipality:”

• Permit processPartial

  Building permit process for construction inside Holland town

  • Permitting runs through La Crosse County: the county completes its process and issues a zoning permit, which is stamped and used as the town's copy.
  • New houses also need a town building permit application, thermal envelope verification, a driveway application if accessing a town road, and building plans showing UDC compliance.
  • Building permit applications are filed through the town's GEC web app, per the town page.

  “The Town of Holland relies on La Crosse County to assist with the permitting process. Once their process has been completed, they will issue a "zoning permit".”

Rules another office applies inside Town of Holland

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

• Zoning districtsPublished

  County zoning districts applying to land inside Holland town

  • Chapter 17 names residential district 'a', residential district 'b', residential district 'c', rural district, exclusive agricultural district, commercial district, and others.
  • District map: the town's comprehensive plan cites a La Crosse County Planning Department zoning map (not opened); the copy is hosted by the town and is not an official county-published text.

  “17.06 RESIDENTIAL DISTRICT A 17.07 RESIDENTIAL DISTRICT B 17.08 RESIDENTIAL DISTRICT C 17.09 RURAL DISTRICT 17.10 EXCLUSIVE AGRICULTURAL DISTRICT 17.11 GENERAL AGRICULTURAL DISTRICT”

• Minimum lot sizeDistrict specific (with conditions)

  Exclusive agricultural district (La Crosse County Chapter 17, s.17.05(5)) for 1-family dwellings on land inside Holland town

  • Each two-family dwelling requires 25,000 sq ft.
  • Farm residences are conditional uses: a conditional use permit may be granted for up to 1 farm residence for every 35 acres of the base farm tract, subject to recorded deed restrictions.
  • Section placement inferred from the order of paragraphs in the town-hosted copy; verify against the official county code.

  minimum lot area, 1-family dwelling: >= 20000 sq ft (25,000 sq ft for a two-family dwelling)

  “Lot area. There shall be a minimum lot area of 20,000 square feet for each 1-unit dwelling and 25,000 for each 2-unit dwelling.”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • District specific (with conditions) — Rural district (La Crosse County Chapter 17, s.17.05(4)) for 1-family dwellings on land inside Holland town

    “There shall be a minimum lot area of 20,000 square feet for a 1-unit dwelling and 5,000 square feet for each additional dwelling unit.”

• SetbacksDistrict specific (with conditions)

  Rural district (La Crosse County Chapter 17, s.17.05(4)) for dwellings on land inside Holland town

  • Front setback follows the highway setback lines in s.17.06, or lines on a recorded subdivision or right-of-way plat.
  • Side yards and rear yard for this district are in the same dimensional paragraph and were not separately quoted; see the residential district 'a' claim for the 20 ft combined / 8 ft minimum wording used in the county text.
  • Ordinance 1-2016 s.2.08 provides that county zoning dimensional restrictions are not modified by the building code.

  “Setback. Highway setback lines as provided in §17.18 or as established on a recorded subdivision plat or right-of-way plat.”

• Who permits septicCounty (with conditions)

  Private onsite wastewater (septic) systems on land inside Holland town; La Crosse County Health Department issues sanitary permits

  • The town page links the county health department for 'water and septic' matters and does not set its own septic rules.
  • Section 2.08 of Ordinance 1-2016 defers location, use and yard rules to county zoning and shoreland ordinances.

  “Our sanitarians: Review septic designs Issue permits Inspect system construction Oversee required septic inspections and maintenance”

• Septic permitRequired

  Installing, replacing, repairing, extending, enlarging, reconnecting or modifying a private septic system on land inside Holland town

  • Steps: soil evaluation by a licensed certified soil tester, system design by a licensed professional, then application submitted through that professional.
  • Fees are on the county sanitary permit fees page (not opened).

  “You need a sanitary permit to: Install a new private septic system or replace a system Repair, extend, or enlarge an existing private septic system Reconnect to an existing private septic system Modify an existing private septic system in some other way”

• Septic inspectionRequired

  Private septic systems on land inside Holland town

  • Inspection and servicing cadence: most systems require service every three years; some require more frequent service.
  • Owners must submit maintenance reports; reminder notices and citations are used for enforcement.

  service interval: 3 years (some systems require more frequent service)

  “All septic systems in La Crosse County must be inspected and serviced on a regular basis to make sure they are working correctly.”

Still unanswered

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

• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder permit exemption for dwellings inside Holland town
• Certificate of occupancy — Occupancy approval for new buildings inside Holland town
• Local zoning — Whether Holland town itself adopts and administers a zoning ordinance for land inside its limits
• Minimum dwelling size — Minimum floor area for a dwelling inside Holland town
• Lot coverage — Maximum lot coverage for land inside Holland 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.