St. Joseph County, IN Solar Energy: Panel Permits (2026)

St. 512 makes the entire subchapter apply to any new development or addition to an existing development anywhere in the unincorporated county. 513(A) splits systems into Building-mounted SES (roof-mounted or facade-mounted) and Ground-mounted SES, further split into small-scale (40,000 square feet of panel area or less) and large-scale (over 40,000 square feet). Building-mounted systems are an accessory use in every district; ground-mounted small-scale systems are a permitted primary use on 5-plus-acre residential lots and in the Agricultural, Commercial, Industrial and University districts, but need special-use approval from the board of zoning appeals on smaller residential lots and in the Office/Buffer, Office and Business districts.

Large-scale ground-mounted systems need a special use everywhere except Industrial and University districts, where they're an outright permitted use, and are the preferred use on brownfields, Superfund sites, parking lot canopies and former landfills. 515(B), and setbacks run from the panel edge to the property line or, near a house, to the outermost foundation of the dwelling. Large-scale arrays in agricultural districts also need a 500-foot buffer from a non-participating residence and a 150-foot buffer from a non-participating property line, waivable only by a notarized, recorded agreement. 513(H) before the building permit issues, and the installation must still clear FAA rules near airports and floodplain placement rules.