Permits

Do you ever have such strong resistance to dealing with something that your mind very conveniently conspires to help you avoid this one thing? I have thought for some time that I should go to my town office, spell out my plans for my tiny home and for tearing down my current home and rebuilding, and see what permits I need. I've dreaded this. I know my plans are unconventional, and wasn't sure if I would encounter helpfulness or resistance.

Yesterday, I "lost track of time" so that, by the time I left the house, I could not fit in a stop at the town office as well as make the appointments I had. Hmm. Had a good talk with myself about that. After all, I took two days off of work just so I could deal with some of these things that have to be done during weekday hours. Then, as I was leaving the house this morning and mentally reminding myself of all the things I had to do while I was out, I left the town-office stop off the list. My goodness! I can be my own worst enemy sometimes. Luckily, I had the town-office stop on my written list and used the list to take myself in hand...

Long story short: I did stop in at the town office today, and it looks like I will be able to carry out my projects as I envision. Yes, my plans are somewhat unconventional. I had to give the Code Enforcement Officer time to wrap his mind around all that I hope to do and figure out how the codes apply to my projects and timelines. And I have the additional complications of 1) living in a rural residential zone with a shoreland overlay that affects where my house sits, and 2) having my current home situated in a way that doesn't conform to the current codes. In the end, because I intend to tie my tiny home into the existing water and septic systems, it looks like my tiny home can be permitted as a "permanent campsite." Phew.

It also turns out I will need a permit to demolish my existing home. I had no idea! Pays to find out these things, I guess...