Off-Grid Living in Perry, Maine

If you're eyeing raw land in Perry, Maine for an off-grid setup, here's what I found digging through the town's own documents, plus what's genuinely unclear and needs a phone call.

Zoning: Perry does not have a comprehensive, townwide zoning ordinance the way a lot of towns do. What it has instead is a short list of specific ordinances: Alewife, Building, Cable TV, Floodplain Management, Large Scale Water Extraction, Recall of Elected Officials, Road Weight, Shellfish, Shoreland Zoning, and Subdivision. The only one that functions like zoning is the Shoreland Zone Ordinance, which the town adopted under state authority (Title 38 §§435-449 M.R.S.A.) and which only applies within 250 feet of a shoreline. If your land is inland and away from water, it looks like you're largely outside any zoning map, but that also means the Code Enforcement Officer (CEO) has a lot of discretion case by case. I'd confirm this directly with the town before assuming "unzoned" means "no rules."

Dwellings, tiny homes, RVs: I couldn't find anything in Perry's Building, Subdivision, or Shoreland ordinances specifically addressing tiny homes or RVs as year-round residences. This is a live question, not a settled one, so ask the CEO before you commit.

Building permits: Perry does have its own Building Ordinance and issues permits locally through the Code Enforcement Officer. Maine's state building code (MUBEC) is only mandatory for towns above a population threshold, and Perry is well under that, so the state code may not be automatically in force here. That said, I wasn't able to pull the full text of the building ordinance, so don't take my word for what it actually requires, call the CEO.

Septic and composting toilets: Perry's Shoreland Ordinance explicitly requires compliance with the State of Maine's Subsurface Wastewater Disposal Rules, and the CEO's state-defined role includes enforcing subsurface wastewater disposal standards. So septic systems are permitted and regulated, mostly through the state rulebook with local enforcement. Composting toilets aren't separately addressed in what I found; ask the local plumbing inspector how they're treated.

Greywater: No Perry-specific ordinance on greywater reuse turned up. It would likely fall under the same state Subsurface Wastewater Disposal Rules as septic, enforced locally.

Rainwater harvesting: Nothing in Perry's ordinances addresses this either way. Not prohibited, not explicitly regulated at the town level.

Wells: For land inside a subdivision, Perry's Subdivision Ordinance requires proof of adequate water supply and compliance with the state's Well Drillers and Pump Installers rules and Maine's drinking water rules. For a single well on unsubdivided land, you're likely just following state Water Well Commission standards without an added town layer.

Utility disconnection: I found no ordinance in Perry that bans living off-grid or disconnected from utilities. Whatever requirements apply would flow through the Building Ordinance, septic/plumbing permitting, and the Shoreland Ordinance if you're near water.

Bottom line: Perry is refreshingly light on paperwork compared to many towns, but "light" isn't "none," and several important questions (tiny homes, full building ordinance text) just aren't answered in what's publicly posted. A call to the Town Office is worth the ten minutes.