Washington

1. Pre-application meeting - Washington Building Inspection (City Hall, 301 Walnut Street) (~5d)
   Walk-in or phone consult with Building Inspector. Confirm zoning district (R-1 / R-2 / R-3) and whether the parcel is in the post-tornado rebuild area (Devonshire, Northwoods, Westwood, Trails Edge) where engineered-framing standards are well established.
2. Planning & Zoning Commission accessory-use determination (~30d)
   Required for any new dwelling unit not falling within an existing principal-structure footprint. Washington PZC meets monthly. Accessory-use determination clarifies whether item is a permitted accessory or requires special-use review.
3. Engineered framing review (post-tornado standard practice) (~21d)
   Washington Building Inspection requires structural-engineer-sealed plans for new residential shells; continuous load path hardware, hold-downs at corners, hurricane clips at top plate, sheathing nail schedule per ASCE 7-22 tornado-zone provisions.
4. ICC 500 storm shelter design review (if included) (~14d)
   Washington recommends but does not mandate ICC 500 safe room. Designs reviewed against ICC 500-2020 standard; rebar schedule, slab and roof reinforcement, FEMA P-320/P-361 sample drawings frequently used.
5. Building permit submittal - City Hall counter or email (~5d)
   Submit plans (architect or engineer seal required), Manual J energy compliance, electrical load letter from Ameren Illinois, septic capacity letter from Tazewell County Health if outside city sewer service.
6. Plan review (Building, Fire, Public Works) (~25d)
   Concurrent across three divisions. Washington Fire Protection District checks egress and ladder access; Public Works checks water/sewer tap capacity.
7. Permit issuance and fee payment (~5d)
   Permit issues upon plan-review approval and fee payment. Washington uses a reasonable valuation-based fee schedule.
8. Construction inspections
   Footing, framing (with continuous load path verification - distinctive Washington requirement post-tornado), plumbing rough-in (IDPH-licensed), electrical, insulation, drywall, final.
9. 911 address assignment + Certificate of Occupancy (~7d)
   Tazewell County 911 office assigns a unique address to the ADU (matches county rule for unincorporated parcels; Washington follows the same practice for clarity). Final Building inspection issues CO.

• Long-term rental: yes (Default Illinois landlord-tenant law (765 ILCS 705)) Long-term rental permitted; no city rental-registration program found.
• Short-term rental: with-restrictions (Washington Municipal Code business-license + Illinois Hotel Operators Tax) STR market draws from Caterpillar (Peoria HQ) corporate visitors and Mackinaw River recreation. Washington has not adopted a separate STR-specific ordinance.
  • City business license required
  • Illinois Hotel Operators Occupation Tax (state)
  • Tazewell County tourism / lodging tax may apply
• Office rental: no Title 11 zoning limits residential ADU to dwelling use.
• Home office: yes Home occupation permitted under Title 11 with restrictions on signage and customer traffic.
• Studio / workshop: yes Personal artist/workshop is a permitted accessory residential use.
• Agriculture: with-restrictions Backyard chickens permitted with city limit on number; no livestock in R-1/R-2.
• Relative support: yes Multigenerational ADU explicitly favored in PZC findings; aligns with Tazewell County's owner-occupancy + related-party rule.

• FEMA Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP) - storm shelter cost share — Illinois Emergency Management Agency periodically opens HMGP rounds offering up to 75% cost share on residential safe rooms in declared-disaster counties (Tazewell qualifies post-2013). When active, can offset $4,000-6,000 of ICC 500 shelter cost on an ADU rebuild.
• Washington post-tornado expedited-review precedent — Building Inspection retains an established expedited-review track for footprint-matching rebuilds; though designed for tornado-displaced families, the workflow improvements benefit all residential applicants including new ADU work.

Staff: Washington Planning & Zoning Commission (Accessory-use and special-use review), Washington Fire Protection District (Egress + ladder-access review), Tazewell County Department of Community Development (Pekin) (Unincorporated zoning and county-wide subdivision review), Tazewell County 911 Coordinator (Address assignment for new dwelling units (including ADUs))

• Water: Illinois American Water - Washington System (formerly Washington Water Department) · 21d connect · $3,500
• Sewer: City of Washington Wastewater Department (Mackinaw River discharge WWTP) · 28d connect · $4,800
• Electric: Ameren Illinois · 25d connect · $1,700
• Gas: Ameren Illinois (natural gas) · 28d connect · $1,300

Realistic total: best 7mo · typical 10mo · worst 16mo

Washington has the deepest residential-builder bench in central IL post-2013-rebuild; lead times are shorter than Springfield or Morgan County despite tornado-zone construction premium. Winter shutdown still applies but hardened framing is muscle memory.

Modular pathway Illinois Manufactured Building Program (Capital Development Board) · inspectors are regular with modular · 4 modular permits (last 24mo)

Post-2013 rebuilt subdivisions (Devonshire, Northwoods) accept 14-ft modules with crane setup; older blocks near Washington Square have narrower right-of-way and may limit to 12 ft. I-74 / I-155 corridor adequate for module transport.

State ADU loans:

• IHDA Smart Move Mortgage (Illinois Housing Development Authority)
• FEMA Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP) - safe room cost share (FEMA via Illinois Emergency Management Agency) up to $5,000

Carrier underwriters apply tornado-zone surcharge unique to Washington post-2013. Engineered framing + ICC 500 shelter materially reduce premium with most carriers (State Farm Bloomington-headquartered, COUNTRY Financial, Pekin Insurance offer documented credits).

Devonshire, Northwoods, Trails Edge subdivisions are HOA-governed; older central blocks east of Washington Square are fee-simple. Post-2013 rebuilds in HOA subdivisions standardized covenants but most do not specifically prohibit ADUs.

• tornado-zone — Entire city - Washington was struck by EF-4 tornado 2013-11-17; ASCE 7-22 tornado loading applies; FEMA-declared disaster county · +14d · +6% cost
  Engineered framing with continuous load path is Washington Building Inspection's standard practice. ICC 500 storm shelter recommended on every new ADU; FEMA HMGP cost-share occasionally available. Distinguishing feature versus all other IL cities. (map)
• flood-zone — FEMA SFHA Zone AE along Farm Creek, Mackinaw River; X-shaded around the Washington/East Peoria boundary · +14d · +7% cost
  Most of central Washington sits on prairie upland with limited SFHA exposure. Mackinaw River corridor on east edge has Zone AE. (map)
• rebuild-zone — Devonshire, Northwoods, Westwood, and Trails Edge subdivisions - 2013 tornado rebuild zones
  Post-tornado rebuild areas have updated infrastructure (new water/sewer mains, sidewalks, electric service); ADU work in these subdivisions enjoys reduced utility-tap costs and faster permits compared to older parts of the city. (map)