Skip to content Skip to left sidebar Skip to right sidebar Skip to footer

Planning & Zoning

The Bureau County Planning & Zoning Department is responsible for regulating construction activities in both the unincorporated area of the county and in all incorporated towns in Bureau County without municipal zoning controls including:

  • Arlington
  • Buda
  • Bureau
  • Cherry
  • Dover
  • Hollowayville
  • LaMoille
  • Malden
  • Manlius
  • Mineral
  • New Bedford
  • Ohio
  • Sheffield
  • Wyanet

The Ordinance also covers unincorporated areas including:

  • Kasbeer
  • Langley
  • Limerick
  • Milo
  • Normandy
  • Providence
  • Thomas
  • Van Orin
  • Whitefield
  • Yorktown
  • Zearing

Construction

Permits are generally required for most construction activities including: new homes; additions to homes; decks and porches; garages; detached buildings, including small storage buildings (sheds); swimming pools (both above and below ground).

Floodplain Regulations

The federal government has required local units of government to adopt regulations which restrict development activities on land designated by federal special flood hazard maps as being subject to 100-year flooding. They are fairly restrictive and allow only limited development activity. Check with the Planning & Zoning Department to ascertain any potential problem with designated special flood hazard areas.

Subdivision

The Planning & Zoning Department is charged with regulating the division of lands under the jurisdiction of the Bureau County Zoning Ordinance.

Zoning Board of Appeals

The Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA) is a five member citizen board organized under the Zoning Ordinance to hear several types of zoning issues. These include: Request for changes in zoning classification; permission for certain uses under zoning named as “Conditional Uses” in the Zoning Ordinance; request for relief from specific requirements of the Zoning Ordinance through Variation requests; and appeal of a determination made by the Zoning Administrator. A citizen may apply for a public hearing, pay a filing fee and present his/her case to the ZBA. In the case of variations and appeals of determinations made by the Zoning Administrator, the ZBA makes a final administrative decision. However in all other instances, the ZBA makes a recommendation to the full County Board for their final consideration.

Public Information Service

The Planning & Zoning Department cannot give legal advice on how citizens should proceed under the requirements of the Bureau County Zoning Ordinance, Bureau County Floodplain Ordinance, and Bureau County Subdivision Ordinance. It does, however, maintain a public information service to provide information concerning the regulations. The Department maintains records on all zoning and subdivision activity on tracts of land under the County’s jurisdiction.

For more information visit our website: zoning.bureaucounty-il.gov.

Contact

Opening hours

  • Sunday
    Closed
  • Monday
    8:00 am - 4:00 pm
  • Tuesday
    8:00 am - 4:00 pm
  • Wednesday
    8:00 am - 4:00 pm
  • Thursday
    8:00 am - 4:00 pm
  • Friday
    8:00 am - 4:00 pm
  • Saturday
    Closed