Wood Village, OR Building Permits, Zoning & Septic Rules

Wood Village, Oregon requires a building permit to construct, enlarge, alter, repair or move a building¹. The city adopts and administers its own zoning and development code². Septic permits are separate: Multnomah County septic permitting and inspections run through Portland Permitting & Development, and they cover every address in the county, city or not³.

At a glance

Building permit: Required inside Wood Village for building, electrical, mechanical and plumbing work; minor work such as finish work and like-for-like replacement is exempt¹
Zoning: Wood Village has its own zoning and development code²
Inspections: Permit cost includes all required inspections; re-inspections may cost extra⁴
Owner-builder: Homeowners still need permits and must file a homeowner responsibility form⁵
Septic: Permitted through Portland Permitting & Development for all of Multnomah County³
Townhome lots: Minimum lot size of 1,500 square feet in residential areas covered by the HB 2001 revisions⁶

Who to call

Building permits

City of Wood Village Building Department

Building and trade permits and inspections inside Wood Village city limits

(503) 667-6211

Planning & zoning

City of Wood Village Planning Department

Zoning, land use applications and the zoning and development code inside Wood Village

(503) 667-6211

24200 NE Halsey, Wood Village, OR 97060

Septic permits

Portland Permitting & Development - Septic Permits

Septic permits and inspections for all of Multnomah County, including Wood Village

503-823-6892

septic@portlandoregon.gov

Contact details are copied from each office’s official page and were checked against it on October 14, 2026.

Off-grid gear

Going off-grid in Wood Village means bringing your own water and power. The kit we’d start with:

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Do you need a building permit in Wood Village, Oregon?

Yes. Wood Village requires a permit to construct, enlarge, alter, repair, move or change the occupancy of a building or structure¹⁷. The city's own page lists minor work, such as finish work and like-for-like replacements, as exempt¹.

Permitted projects get their required inspections as part of the permit cost, though re-inspections may carry an extra charge⁴. Contractors submit permits and inspection requests through the city's CloudPermit system, while homeowners use a paper permit form⁸.

Can a homeowner pull their own permits in Wood Village?

Homeowners doing their own work inside Wood Village still need permits. Oregon law requires a homeowner responsibility form to accompany residential construction permits when the owner is not using a licensed contractor⁵. Electrical permits are the exception to doing it yourself: they are obtained by the electrical contractor under Oregon law⁵.

Oregon's statewide owner-builder exemption covers owner-built single-family homes and adjacent outbuildings where the owner intends to occupy them⁹.

Does Wood Village have zoning, and what are the lot and setback rules?

Wood Village has its own zoning. The city council and planning commission adopted zoning and development code revisions to comply with Oregon's HB 2001, effective June 26, 2022².

The city's summary of those revisions sets a 1,500 square foot minimum lot for townhomes⁶, a 10-foot front setback and a 15-foot rear setback (20 feet on corner lots) in the affected residential areas¹⁰, and maximum site coverage of 45 percent¹¹. These come from a city summary, not the codified text, and apply to the residential areas the revisions cover, so confirm your parcel's district with the Planning Department before you design anything¹².

How do septic permits work inside Wood Village?

Septic permits for Wood Village addresses come from Portland Permitting & Development under an agreement with Multnomah County and Oregon DEQ, covering all of Multnomah County¹³. Where a municipal sewer is not available, development must use an onsite wastewater system¹⁴. We could not confirm whether your specific lot is on city sewer; ask the city's building department and the septic office before buying.

What stays with Multnomah County and the state?

Wells and water rights follow Oregon rules rather than city rules: a landowner constructing a well needs a landowner permit and bond before work begins¹⁵, and using groundwater generally needs an Oregon Water Resources Department water right¹⁶.

The county's own zoning, driveway permits and RV rules apply only to unincorporated land. For land outside Wood Village's limits, see the Multnomah County page. We did not find a Wood Village rule on living in an RV or tiny home on a lot, so ask the Planning Department.

Watch-outs

Setback, lot-size and coverage figures we found are from the city's summary of its HB 2001 revisions, not the full code; verify against the zoning and development code for your district¹⁰.
Multnomah County's zoning, driveway and RV rules do not apply inside Wood Village city limits; the city's Planning Department handles zoning².
Electrical permits must be pulled by the electrical contractor, even on an owner-built home⁵.

Sources

Written October 14, 2026 from the rules quoted below, each taken from an official source and re-checked by an independent reviewer. This is research, not legal advice: rules change, so confirm with the office before you buy or build.

Unanswered questions are usually a sign that Wood Village publishes no rule on the point, not that none exists. Multnomah County’s page lists the county offices to call.

Building permits, zoning and septic rules in Wood Village, Oregon