Pole barns and barndominiums in Caroline County, Maryland.

Outside the incorporated towns, permits come from the Caroline County Department of Planning & Codes, Health & Public Services Building, 403 South 7th St., Suite 210, Denton, 410-479-8100, and applications go in through the county’s online portal. A building permit is required for new construction, additions and sheds, though accessory structures of 200 sq ft or less are exempt under County Code § 88-11. The county targets 15 working days for review comments, and a permit is good for one year. Staff inspect the staked site before the permit issues, and work started without a permit pays double.

A pole building over 200 sq ft pays the county permit fee, $0.12 per sq ft with a $50 minimum for residential accessory structures in FY2027, plus the private inspection agency’s fees for the footer, foundation and final inspections. Depending on the site, Environmental Health, the State Highway Administration or county public works for an entrance, the Caroline Soil Conservation District (410-479-1202) and MDE may also sign off. County Code § 88-13 bans wood footings and wood foundation walls, and the county’s inspection fee schedule lists pole buildings as their own category, so we confirm with Planning & Codes how the posts will be set before drawings are final. The frost line is 24 inches below finished grade.

Farm buildings still need a county permit, but under County Code § 88-11 they are exempt from the building code itself. The exemption covers only structures used exclusively for agriculture, such as animal housing, farm equipment and farm storage, with no residential, commercial or other use. They still have to meet electrical, plumbing, zoning and other codes, Planning & Codes does their final inspection, and the fee is based on value, $50 for the first $10,000. If the building is later altered or put to another use, it needs a permit and full code compliance. Maryland’s agritourism exemption doesn’t reach Caroline, which isn’t on the statutory list.

The Critical Area here covers land within 1,000 feet of the Choptank River, Tuckahoe Creek, Marshyhope Creek and their tidal tributaries. For a parcel in it, or construction in a flood zone, the county’s checklist calls for a professional location survey showing the 1,000-foot line, the 100-foot buffer, the limit of disturbance and lot coverage, and the county caps lot coverage at 15% on all but grandfathered lots. Even a waterfront shed under 200 sq ft gets a Critical Area review. In the floodplain, an accessory building over 300 sq ft must meet the elevation rules, and the flood protection elevation is base flood plus 2 feet.