Off-Grid Living in Addison, Maine

I'll level with you up front: Addison, Maine is a small Washington County town, but it is NOT unorganized territory and it's NOT a free-for-all for off-grid building. It has its own Land Use Development Ordinance, a Shoreland Zoning Ordinance, a Building Permit Ordinance, and a Code Enforcement Officer who actually enforces this stuff. If you're picturing "rural Maine, nobody's watching," that's not quite right here, especially near water.

Zoning and raw land. Addison administers its own Land Use Development Ordinance and Shoreland Zoning Ordinance locally, per town records. On top of that, Maine's Mandatory Shoreland Zoning Act (state law, administered through the Maine DEP) kicks in on any land within 250 feet of a great pond, river, or coastal wetland, or 75 feet of certain streams. A lot of Addison, being coastal Washington County, likely falls under this. If your land touches water in any of those ways, expect extra restrictions.

Dwellings, tiny homes, RVs. I could not find Addison-specific text on tiny homes or RVs as permanent dwellings. The town does have a Mobile Home Ordinance and the broader Land Use Development Ordinance, which probably address this, but I didn't have access to the actual ordinance text. Don't guess here, call the town office and ask for the ordinance language directly.

Building permits. Addison requires a building permit before you build anything, issued through the town office, with the Code Enforcement Officer (Kevin Brodie) doing inspections. Whether the town has formally adopted Maine's MUBEC statewide building code (only mandatory for towns over 4,000 people, which Addison is well under) wasn't confirmed, so ask the CEO directly what construction standards apply.

Septic and composting toilets. Like every Maine town, Addison must have a Local Plumbing Inspector who reviews septic permits under the state's Subsurface Wastewater Disposal Rules. The Code Enforcement Officer role in Maine, defined at the state level, typically covers plumbing and wastewater too. Confirm with Addison's CEO/LPI whether composting or alternative toilets need separate sign-off locally.

Greywater. No town-specific greywater rule turned up. This falls under the same state Subsurface Wastewater Disposal Rules, reviewed locally by the LPI.

Rainwater harvesting. I found nothing, town or state, specifically addressing rainwater collection. If it ties into interior plumbing, the town plumbing inspector's rules may apply, but this is genuinely unclear.

Wells. No Addison-specific well ordinance. Well construction falls under Maine's Water Well Commission standards at the state level, though shoreland setbacks near water could be locally enforced.

Off-grid utility disconnection. No explicit ban found, but there's also no explicit protection. Building permits, septic/LPI approval, and shoreland zoning enforcement all funnel through the Code Enforcement Officer, so going off-grid doesn't exempt you from those local processes.

Bottom line: Addison is small but organized and zoned, with real local enforcement. Before you buy or build, talk to the town office and the Code Enforcement Officer, especially about shoreland setbacks and building permits.