Hamilton County, TN Building Safety: Building Permits (2026)

Article V, § 105 (No Permit for Buildings on Lots Without Publicly Accepted Access) sets three alternative ways a lot can qualify for a building permit: it must abut an already constructed, dedicated and publicly accepted municipal or County street or road; abut a street in a subdivision that has received final approval but is not yet recorded, with proper bond posted; or abut a permanent recorded easement or right-of-way that provides access to a publicly accepted road. For the easement route, § 105(3)(a) sets a minimum width of fifteen feet per lot served, rising to fifty feet for a common easement serving more than three lots.

A grandfather clause at § 105(3)(b), tied to Resolution 1078-47, lets the Director of Building Inspection accept a narrower easement that was established before October 18, 1978, if the pre-existing instrument still provides safe and adequate access without expense or risk to the public; that clause was itself updated by Resolution 115-29 on January 21, 2015. This access requirement sits alongside § 104, which lets up to two principal structures share a single tract if each meets all zoning and subdivision standards independently, and requires a recorded subdivision plat before a permit issues for a third structure; the Director of Building Inspection, Hamilton County Groundwater Protection, or Planning staff can also demand a scaled site plan, at the applicant's expense, when there is doubt about compliance.