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

Town of Clinton’s own rules

• Local zoningPresent (with conditions)

  Land inside the Town of Clinton, Rock County, WI (not the Village of Clinton and not unincorporated county areas outside the town)

  • The town's zoning ordinance text was read from a PDF copy hosted at energyzoning.org, not from a town-hosted copy; confirm against the town's adopted code before relying on it.
  • Zoning permits are required for structures and uses under the ordinance; the zoning officer and planning & zoning committee administer it.
  • Violations carry a forfeiture of not less than $100 nor more than $5,000 per violation, each day a separate offense.

  forfeiture per violation: >= 100 USD (maximum $5,000 per violation; each day is a separate offense)

  “any person or entity who fails to comply with, or violates, the provisions of this chapter shall, upon conviction thereof, forfeit not less than $100 nor more than $5,000”

• Zoning districtsPartial

  All land inside the Town of Clinton, Rock County, WI

  • Section 4.1 lists A-1, A-1a, A-2, A-3, CHI, B-1, R-R, REC and SP districts; the RU-3 (general rural district three) heading appears in Section 4.7 but is not in the Section 4.1 list, so the district list is internally inconsistent.
  • The official zoning map is kept on file at the town clerk's office per Section 4.2; no online map was located.

  “said map shall be kept on file in the office of the town clerk”

• Minimum lot sizeSpecified

  Rural Residential District (R-R), main single-family residential district, inside the Town of Clinton

  • Maximum lot area in R-R is less than 3 acres (R-R requirements block, lot area line).
  • Subject to the county sanitary code and any applicable state septic rules.

  minimum lot area: >= 40000 sq ft · maximum lot area: < 3 acres

  “(a) minimum lot area[...] .40,000 sq. ft.”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — Agricultural District One (A-1), agricultural district inside the Town of Clinton, for residential or farmland use

    “(a) minimum lot size[...] . 40 acres for residential or farmland use”

• Building heightSpecified

  Agricultural District One (A-1) inside the Town of Clinton, residential structures

  • Other (non-residential) structures have no maximum except as set forth in subsection 4.4(18), which was not opened.

  maximum building height, residential structures: <= 35 ft (no maximum on other structures except as set forth in subsection 4.4(18))

  “(b) maximum building height...............................35 ft. residential structures [no maximum on other structures except as set forth in subsection 4.4(18)]”

• Subdividing landRegulated (with conditions)

  Certified survey maps and subdivision plats in the Town of Clinton

  • Planning & zoning committee reviews and recommends preliminary land divisions to the town board.
  • All proposed certified surveys and subdivision plats must be referred to the committee before final town board action.

  “to review and recommend to the town board the approval, conditional approval, or denial of preliminary land divisions.”

• Permit processPartial

  Zoning permits in the Town of Clinton

  • The zoning officer issues permits in strict compliance with the ordinance; unclear cases go to the planning & zoning committee.
  • Construction started before a required permit doubles the permit fee as a penalty (Section 2.7).
  • The town's building-permit and inspection process is not covered by this claim.

  “the zoning officer may issue zoning permits which are in strict compliance with the requirements of this chapter”

Still unanswered

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

• Building permit — State building permits for dwellings inside the Town of Clinton
• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder exemption inside the Town of Clinton
• Building code adopted — Building code applicable inside the Town of Clinton
• Inspections — Building inspection inside the Town of Clinton
• Certificate of occupancy — Certificate of occupancy inside the Town of Clinton

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.