Zoning, building permits and septic rules in New Cordell, Oklahoma

New Cordell’s own rules

• Local zoningPresent (with conditions)

  Land inside New Cordell city limits.

  • The code establishes zoning districts for the city.

  “For the purpose of this chapter and the promotion of public health, safety and general welfare of the community, the following districts are established for the city:”

• Zoning districtsPublished (with conditions)

  Zoning districts inside New Cordell city limits.

  • The code establishes A-G General Agricultural, R-S Single-Family Residential, R-G General Residential, C-C Convenience Commercial, C-A/R Automotive Commercial and Commercial Recreation, C-G General Commercial, I-L Light Industrial, and I-H Heavy Industrial districts.

  “(A) A-G General Agricultural District; (B) R-S Single-Family Residential District; (C) R-G General Residential District; (D) C-C Convenience Commercial District; (E) C-A/R Automotive Commercial and Commercial Recreation District; (F) C-G General Commercial District; (G) I-L Light Industrial District; and (H) I-H Heavy Industrial District.”

Rules another office applies inside New Cordell

New Cordell 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

  R-S Single-Family Residential District inside New Cordell city limits.

  • Each lot must have at least 7,200 square feet of area and at least 60 feet of frontage.

  minimum lot area: >= 7200 square feet · minimum lot frontage: >= 60 feet

  “(A) All lots shall have not less than 7,200 square feet of lot area. (B) Each lot shall have a frontage of not less than 60 feet.”

• SetbacksSpecified

  R-S Single-Family Residential District inside New Cordell city limits.

  • A one-story single-family dwelling has five-foot interior side yards and a ten-foot side yard adjacent to a side street on a corner lot.
  • More-than-one-story buildings require at least ten-foot interior side yards.
  • For another principal building, side yards must equal building height and never be less than 15 feet.
  • Accessory buildings in the rear yard are subject to the stated rear-lot-line, wall-height, and rear-yard-coverage limits.

  minimum front yard setback: >= 25 feet · minimum rear yard: >= 20 percent of lot depth (Principal building)

  “(E) All structures shall have not less than a 25-foot front yard setback. (F) (1) For a single-family dwelling of one story, the minimum width of the side yard shall be five feet for interior lot lines and ten feet for the side yard abutting the side street on a corner lot. (2) For buildings of more than one story, the minimum width of the side yard on interior lot lines shall be not less than ten feet. (3) For a principal building other than a single-family dwelling, the minimum width of the side yard shall be not less than the height of the building, but in no case less than 15 feet. (G) A rear yard of 20% of the depth of the lot shall be provided for the principal building. Unattached buildings of accessory uses may be located in the rear yard of a main building; provided, however, that no accessory building shall be located closer than ten feet to the rear lot line, shall not have sidewalls greater than ten feet in height and shall occupy no more than 35% of the rear yard or 750 square feet, whichever is greater.”

• Lot coverageSpecified

  R-S Single-Family Residential District inside New Cordell city limits.

  • Paved areas are not improvements for this lot-coverage rule.

  maximum lot coverage: <= 30 percent (Paved areas are not considered improvements.)

  “(C) Not more than 30% of the lot area shall be covered with improvements. Paved areas are not considered improvements within the meaning of this division (C).”

• Building heightSpecified

  R-S Single-Family Residential District inside New Cordell city limits.

  maximum structure height: <= 35 feet

  “(D) No improvement or structure shall exceed 35 feet in height.”

Still unanswered

We looked and could not find an official answer yet. Silence is not permission; ask New Cordell or Washita County directly.

• Building permit — Construction inside New Cordell city limits.
• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-built residential construction inside New Cordell city limits.
• Building code adopted — Construction inside New Cordell city limits.
• Inspections — Construction inside New Cordell city limits.
• Certificate of occupancy — Buildings inside New Cordell 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 New Cordell 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.

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