Lake County, IN Ordinances (2026)

Lake County's Unified Development Ordinance sets no overnight on-street parking prohibition for residents. Overnight and snow-route parking bans on public streets are enacted by…

Lake County's UDO sets no blanket ban on keeping an RV, camper, or boat at your home in unincorporated areas, but a recreational vehicle occupied or installed on a site more than 180…

Storing inoperable or abandoned vehicles or vehicle parts in an unincorporated Lake County zoning district that doesn't permit it is a civil zoning violation under the UDO. Statewide…

Lake County's UDO permits private EV charging stations as an accessory use in all zoning districts, and public charging as an accessory to nonresidential uses. Charging spaces can…

Lake County's UDO does not regulate resident on-street parking; it only lets nonresidential uses count striped street spaces toward off-street minimums. On-street parking on public…

The Lake County UDO restricts storing oversized and heavy vehicles at homes: parking trucks or tractors with dual rear wheels or more than two axles, semi-trailer tractors and…

For developments in unincorporated Lake County, off-street loading areas must be designed so all vehicle maneuvering and loading/unloading happens on private property, may not sit in…

Once two inches or more of snow has fallen, it's unlawful to park on the paved portion of any county-maintained street or highway in unincorporated Lake County for the next 12 hours…

In unincorporated Lake County, off-street parking is prohibited in front and street-side setback areas in residential (R) districts: except on an approved driveway serving a house…

Unincorporated Lake County, Indiana sets numeric boundary decibel limits (Code § 93.03): 55 dBA at all times for residential and commercial zones and 66 dBA for industrial zones…

Unincorporated Lake County, Indiana has a real noise ordinance (Code Chapter 93, Ord. 1116A). Its general rule bans any noise that unreasonably annoys or disturbs others at any hour…

Unincorporated Lake County, Indiana has no leaf-blower-specific ordinance, but leaf blowers fall under the domestic power-tool rule: operating any lawn or garden tool outdoors between…

In unincorporated Lake County, Indiana it is unlawful to operate construction, drilling or demolition equipment between 8:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. in a way that disturbs or annoys a…

In unincorporated Lake County, Indiana it is unlawful for a light motor vehicle to exceed 80 dBA in 35-mph-or-less zones (measured 15+ feet from the lane), or to make excessive noise…

Unincorporated Lake County, Indiana makes it unlawful at any time to keep any animal that, by frequent or habitual howling, barking, meowing, squawking or other noise, causes a noise…

In unincorporated Lake County, Indiana it is unlawful at any hour to operate a radio, TV, musical instrument, amplifier or similar device so that it is plainly audible across property…

Open burning is prohibited statewide unless it fits an IDEM exemption. In Lake County, burning leaves, grass, sticks, and other yard waste is banned everywhere. Only clean-wood…

Small recreational backyard fires are allowed under the state open-burning exemption, but only at homes of four or fewer units, in a contained non-combustible pit burning clean wood…

Consumer fireworks in unincorporated Lake County may only be used during set windows around Independence Day and New Year's, not whenever a resident chooses. Outside those hours, any…

Every Lake County building permit needs at least eight inspections in a set order, from footing pre-pour through final framing, under § 151.025. Work that fails an inspection draws a…

Every electrical job on a building or structure in unincorporated Lake County needs a building permit before work starts, built on the 1987 Indiana Electrical Code the county adopted…

Plumbing work on a building or structure in unincorporated Lake County falls under the same building permit § 151.020 requires, built on the 1985 Indiana Plumbing Code the county…

Unincorporated Lake County requires a permit from the County Planning and Building Department before any construction, alteration, repair or maintenance of a building or structure…

A food truck operating in unincorporated Lake County needs a permit from the Lake County Health Department before serving a single meal, and the annual mobile-unit fee is $25. If the…

Mobile food vendors and other sellers cannot simply set up on Lake County Fairgrounds property; only an "authorized vendor," meaning someone invited by an event's lessee or holding a…

Indiana law protects short-term rentals of an owner's residence. IC 36-1-24-8 makes an owner-occupied STR a permitted residential use that a zoning ordinance may not disallow in any…

Indiana's STR law lets a unit set a reasonable maximum occupancy, and the owner states an intended maximum on the permit application. Lake County proper sets no countywide STR…

Indiana defines a short-term rental as a stay of fewer than 30 days (IC 36-1-24-6) but sets no annual cap on rental nights. Lake County imposes no statewide-style night limit; any cap…

Under Indiana's statewide STR law (IC 36-1-24), a local unit may require a permit for each short-term-rental property, but the ordinance may impose only the requirements that state law…

There is no STR-specific state noise rule. Guests at a Lake County short-term rental must follow the same nuisance/noise ordinance that applies to any residence in the unincorporated…

Short-term stays in Lake County are subject to the 5% Lake County innkeeper's (lodging) tax under IC 6-9-2, on top of Indiana's 7% state sales tax. The tax applies to rooms and…

Unincorporated Lake County's UDO sets minimum yard setbacks by zoning district. In R-1, other-street front setback is 30 feet, single-side interior setback is 10 feet, and rear setback…

The Lake County UDO caps building height by district. R-1 residential allows 2.5 stories / 35 feet, while R-2 and R-3 allow 2 stories / 25 feet. Chimneys, steeples, and similar…

The Lake County UDO limits building coverage by district: 35% of the lot in R-1 and 40% in R-2 and R-3. Only roofed building areas count; uncovered decks do not.

Unincorporated Lake County fences must stay out of street rights-of-way and off corner-lot visibility triangles. On corner lots, nothing may block sightlines between 3 and 10 feet high…

Unincorporated Lake County does not set a private good-neighbor or 'finished side out' rule, but its UDO makes property owners responsible for fences in easements and requires…

Where the Lake County UDO requires a fence for screening, it must be opaque and made of commonly used fencing material such as wood, composite wood, or recycled plastic wood. Supports…

In unincorporated Lake County, erecting a fence is exempt from site plan review, but fences must still comply with UDO standards and are subject to building permit review. Requirements…

The Lake County UDO treats walls like fences for height and location, but requires walls to be opaque and built of durable masonry materials. Where grade changes, wall height is…

There is no county-wide permit to remove a healthy tree from private residential land in unincorporated Lake County. Removal is restricted mainly where the tree sits in a regulated…

The county does not set a single grass-height number countywide; the Lake County Public Works Department fields weed and tall-grass complaints on unincorporated land, and Indiana's IC…

In unincorporated Lake County, keeping horses and farm animals is prohibited except on traditional farms (20+ contiguous acres) or hobby farms (2.5+ acres). Hobby farms are capped at…

Lake County Code sets no flat cap on household dogs or cats, but any person keeping animals must register them, and keeping enough animals to run a kennel or cattery requires an annual…

Lake County requires a pet shop permit for anyone selling dogs, cats or other animals, bars sale of a puppy or kitten under eight weeks old, and forces shops to give buyers a written…

Anyone operating a pet grooming shop in unincorporated Lake County must hold a grooming shop permit from Animal Control, keep the shop open to inspection during business hours, and may…

Unincorporated Lake County requires dogs and cats over six months old to be vaccinated annually for rabies by a licensed veterinarian, and to wear a collar or harness when off the…

In unincorporated Lake County, dogs may not run at large. An owner or keeper must not cause, suffer, or allow an animal to be at large, meaning unconfined and not under a competent…

Unincorporated Lake County bans keeping wild animals without a Director's waiver, even if you hold a state or federal permit. Wild animals include alligators, foxes, big cats, monkeys…

Lake County Animal Control treats a microchip as valid proof of ownership when a lost dog or cat is impounded. A chipped animal is held ten working days before it becomes county…

Unincorporated Lake County allows backyard beekeeping as an accessory use. Up to four hives are permitted, plus one more per 2,500 sq ft of lot over 10,000 sq ft, with no limit above…

Unincorporated Lake County imposes breed-specific rules on pit bulls. When not confined, a pit bull must be muzzled and leashed on a four-foot leash attached to an escape-proof…

Unincorporated Lake County allows two home-occupation types under UDO 154-9-090: suburban (permitted by right, in the dwelling only, up to the lesser of 1,000 sq ft or 40% of floor…

Indiana licenses family child care homes through FSSA under 470 IAC 3: a Class I home serves up to 12 children and a Class II home serves 13 to 16. In unincorporated Lake County, small…

Lake County's suburban home occupation rules bar any external change that alters the residential character of the lot and prohibit outdoor display of goods, effectively barring…

Indiana lets home based vendors sell non-hazardous homemade foods without a license under IC 16-42-5.3, exempt from food-establishment rules. Every product needs a label with the…

Unincorporated Lake County has a dedicated Illegal Dumping ordinance (Chapter 99) plus a Littering chapter (Chapter 97). Statewide, Indiana bans open dumping of solid waste (IC…

Unincorporated Lake County requires every licensed manufactured home park to have garbage and rubbish collected at least twice weekly, per County Code § 152.035(D)(7)(b). Disposal must…

In unincorporated Lake County commercial, industrial, manufacturing, and multi-family districts, dumpsters and refuse containers must be enclosed by a solid fence or wall at least five…

On agricultural and residential lots in unincorporated Lake County, detached sheds, garages, and pole buildings must sit in the rear yard, set back at least 5 ft from side and rear lot…

Unincorporated Lake County has no rule banning garage conversions outright, but converting interior floor area into a secondary suite (an ADU inside a detached house) triggers the…

Unincorporated Lake County has no separate 'tiny home' ordinance. A tiny house used as a second dwelling fits the UDO's backyard cottage category: a small detached accessory dwelling…

Unincorporated Lake County allows two ADU forms: a detached backyard cottage (special exception in A-1 and R) and an interior secondary suite (permitted in A-1 and R). Both cap floor…

In unincorporated Lake County, the UDO's size and number limits on signs up to 32 sq ft are suspended from 60 days before an election until the 6th day after. Any allowed sign may also…

Unincorporated Lake County has no garage-sale-specific sign rule. A garage-sale sign is a temporary residential sign under UDO 154-15-030.F.3: one freestanding or wall sign up to 8 sq…

Unincorporated Lake County's UDO has no general residential dark-sky ordinance. The only codified downward-shielding standard applies to solar farms, which must shield operational…

Unincorporated Lake County's UDO sets no numeric residential light-trespass (foot-candle) limit. Its enforceable trespass-type controls are narrow: solar-farm lighting must be shielded…

In unincorporated Lake County's Special Flood Hazard Areas, new or substantially improved residential structures must set the lowest floor, including any basement, at or above the…

Unincorporated Lake County requires a floodplain development permit from the Floodplain Administrator before any construction, grading, fill or structure placement begins in a mapped…

Lake County regulates stormwater and drainage through Ordinance 1500A, its 2024 Stormwater Management and Clean Water Regulations, adopted by reference into County Code § 52.01. The…

Unincorporated Lake County requires every licensed manufactured home park to stay free of debris that could shelter rodents, flies or mosquitoes, under County Code § 152.035(D)(7)(c)…

Private residents closing a Lake County road for a block party that will serve beer or liquor need only the special-event permit form filed at least seven days ahead under § 114.11…

Anyone planning a circus, carnival, bazaar, festival, exhibition, athletic contest, outdoor beer garden, or similar public spectacle in unincorporated Lake County needs a permit first…

Anyone staging a circus, carnival, festival, athletic contest, exhibition or outdoor beer garden on county-owned land in unincorporated Lake County, Indiana, or on private land, needs…

A food vendor selling at a fair, carnival, or festival in unincorporated Lake County operates under a "temporary food preparation establishment" permit, capped at two weeks per event…

Lake County caps continuous mechanical noise, including HVAC condensers and rooftop equipment, at the property line under its stationary-source rule. Residential and commercial…

Playing a car stereo, subwoofer, or other vehicle sound system loud enough to be heard, or felt, more than 20 feet away is a standalone violation in unincorporated Lake County. First…

Lake County makes it unlawful to sound a vehicle horn or other audible signaling device, including a triggered car alarm, anywhere in the unincorporated county except in a genuine…

Registered solicitors in unincorporated Lake County can only knock on doors from 9:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. on weekdays and noon to 5:00 p.m. on Saturdays, with no door-to-door selling…

Anyone who wants to sell goods or take orders door-to-door in unincorporated Lake County must first register with the Lake County Sheriff, submit to fingerprinting, and pay a $100 fee…

In unincorporated Lake County, the Zoning Code bars outdoor storage of junk, trash, debris, or inoperable and abandoned vehicles in any district that does not specifically permit it…

Lake County has no standalone vacant-lot ordinance; unmaintained lots are handled through the Zoning Code (nuisance/junk storage), the state noxious-weed law (IC 15-16-8), and Public…

For private pools, safety centers on the required 4-foot barrier and keeping abandoned pools drained or covered. Public pools must meet Indiana's health rules, which require a…

In unincorporated Lake County, a pool deeper than 42 inches must meet the Indiana Administrative Code and needs a Lake County building/zoning permit before installation. Public and…

Lake County selects and contracts with towing companies through its Board of Commissioners, and only a company under a Board-approved contract may be called to tow vehicles for the…