Off-Grid Living in Middlebury, Vermont

I've been digging into what off-grid living actually looks like in Middlebury, Vermont, and the short version is: this is a zoned town, and both the town and the State of Vermont have a say in what you can build and how you handle water and waste.

Zoning. Middlebury has had a zoning ordinance since 1968, amended many times since, most recently with reforms adopted by the Selectboard in August 2022. The town's Zoning Administrative Officer runs the permit process, and you cannot legally use or occupy land or a structure that's been built, changed, or enlarged without a Certificate of Compliance/Occupancy. This isn't a rural unzoned township where you can just go build; you're working within an established bylaw and, depending on the district and project, possibly the Development Review Board too.

Dwellings, tiny homes, RVs. I found the general permitting and occupancy framework, but I could not pin down specific rules for tiny homes or RVs as dwellings in the bylaw text I reviewed. This is genuinely unclear from what I've read, so if that's your plan, call the Planning & Zoning office and ask how your district treats these structures.

Building permits. The town issues a zoning permit (described in its own paperwork as a "yellow" permit) that must be posted on-site for a 15-day appeal window before work or occupancy begins, and the permit is valid for a couple of years. Separately, getting a Certificate of Occupancy requires that a Residential Building Energy Certificate be completed and recorded with the Town Clerk, a state-level energy requirement layered on top of local permitting. Owner-builders may be able to self-certify; commercial projects need a Commercial Building Energy Certificate.

Septic, composting toilets, greywater, wells. None of this is handled by the town itself. Vermont's Agency of Natural Resources, through the Wastewater System and Potable Water Supply Rules, permits septic systems, composting/incinerating toilets, and private wells, and Middlebury falls under the Rutland Regional Office's territory covering Addison County. The town's own zoning permit application says plainly that private water and wastewater permits come from the state, not the town. Greywater reuse isn't singled out separately in what I found, so it likely falls under the same state wastewater permitting umbrella.

Rainwater harvesting. I didn't find a Middlebury ordinance addressing this at all, and a state DEC fact sheet on accessory dwelling units mentions rainwater collection systems as an acceptable water-supply option, suggesting no blanket state or town prohibition.

Living off-grid generally. The town doesn't force you to hook into municipal water or sewer, based on the zoning permit form's own language distinguishing town zoning approval from state water/wastewater permitting. But going off-grid on utilities doesn't mean going off-permit: your septic or composting toilet setup and your well still need state sign-off from the Rutland Regional Office.

Bottom line: Middlebury's zoning and building rules are locally administered, but nearly everything about water and waste on your property runs through the State of Vermont, not the town hall. Confirm specifics for your parcel and district before you buy or build.