Off-Grid Living in Stonington, Maine

I'll be upfront: Stonington, Maine turned out to be a town where the honest answer is "it's less regulated than you'd expect, but not a free-for-all." Here's what I found digging through the town's own ordinance list and state resources.

Zoning. Stonington does not appear to have a general, town-wide zoning ordinance with use districts the way many towns do. What it does have, required by the state of Maine, is a Shoreland Zoning Ordinance that governs land near water. Away from the shore, land use runs through a patchwork of the Building Permit Ordinance, Site Plan Review Ordinance (for commercial projects), and Subdivision Ordinance, all administered by the town's Code Enforcement Officer (CEO). Worth knowing: the town is actively revising its site plan review, subdivision, and building permit ordinances starting in mid-2025, so anything you learn now should be double-checked against the current version when you're ready to act.

Dwellings, tiny homes, RVs. I couldn't find specific town rules on minimum dwelling size, tiny homes, or RV living. This would fall under the CEO's interpretation of the Building Permit Ordinance, so this is a "call before you buy land" situation.

Building permits. A building permit from the CEO is required before any development starts, full stop. That's a town-level requirement, not something optional. Larger commercial work also goes through the Planning Board's Site Plan Review process.

Septic and composting toilets. Any subsurface wastewater system, including composting or alternative toilets that fall under state rules, needs a permit from the town's Local Plumbing Inspector before you install anything. The technical rules themselves come from the state, specifically Maine CDC's subsurface wastewater rules, not the town.

Greywater and rainwater. I found nothing town-specific on either. Greywater would default to the same state wastewater rules referenced above. Rainwater harvesting doesn't appear to be addressed anywhere in Stonington's ordinances or state code that I could find, one to confirm directly with the CEO.

Wells. Private wells follow state well construction rules, separate from septic permitting. Stonington also has a Water Supply Protection Ordinance on its books that could add restrictions if you're near the town's water supply area, though I didn't find details beyond its existence, so ask the CEO if that applies to your parcel.

Living off-grid/utility-disconnected. No ordinance explicitly bans disconnecting from utilities. But you'd still need to satisfy the Building Permit Ordinance, shoreland rules if applicable, and state septic/well requirements, so "off-grid" doesn't mean "unpermitted."

Bottom line: Stonington is more permissive on paper than towns with full zoning codes, but that also means more depends on how the CEO interprets things case by case. Call before you commit to a plan.