Wisconsin
Buying Land in St. Croix County, Wisconsin
St. Croix County, seat Hudson, sits directly across the St. Croix River from Minneapolis-St. Paul -- one of only two Wisconsin counties formally part of that metro area, and for decades the single fastest-growing county in the state. Zoning splits between the county and three towns that run their own, and the growth pressure that comes with being a genuine Twin Cities exurb is the county's defining land-buying fact.
Zoning: county-administered in most towns, with three confirmed exceptions
St. Croix County Community Development (1101 Carmichael Rd, Suite 1300, Hudson, WI 54016; (715) 386-4680) administers the county's general zoning ordinance, along with land division, shoreland, floodplain, sanitary (POWTS), and Lower St. Croix Riverway review. Per the county's own February 2018 Zoning Ordinance Technical Review Memo, 17 of the county's towns have accepted county zoning.
The same memo identifies three towns -- Forest, Hudson, and Troy -- that maintain their own separate zoning ordinances rather than county zoning, each independently corroborated by that town's own published zoning code (the Town of Hudson's Chapter 105 Zoning Ordinance, dated to a 1977 zoning map; the Town of Troy's own Lower St. Croix Riverway zoning references; the Town of Forest's own zoning map). Note that the Town of Hudson is a separate unit of government from the City of Hudson (the county seat), which runs its own municipal zoning as well -- don't confuse the two when confirming which office governs a specific parcel. St. Croix County is reported to have 21 towns total; this research pass's sources accounted for 20 of them (17 under county zoning, 3 running their own), and could not identify the twenty-first town's specific status -- confirm directly with St. Croix County Community Development for any town not named here.
Wisconsin's fastest-growing county: what that means for land
St. Croix County sits directly across the St. Croix River from the Twin Cities, and it shows in the numbers: the county's population grew 33.6% in the 2000s alone -- the fastest rate of any of Wisconsin's 72 counties that decade -- climbing from roughly 61,000 residents in 2000 to about 84,000 in 2010, 93,500 in 2020, and nearly 99,000 by 2026. Along with neighboring Pierce County, St. Croix is one of only two Wisconsin counties formally included in the Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI Metropolitan Statistical Area, reflecting how many residents commute across the river for work.
That sustained growth is a double-edged fact for a land buyer: it has historically meant strong appreciation and real development opportunity near Hudson and along the I-94 corridor toward New Richmond, but it also means real, ongoing farmland-to-residential conversion pressure and active review of new subdivisions. See our dedicated page for the county's actual Land Division Ordinance thresholds and what growth pressure means if you're evaluating land near Hudson specifically for its subdivision or development potential rather than its rural character.
The Lower St. Croix Riverway, briefly
St. Croix County's entire frontage on the St. Croix River -- from the county line downstream to the Mississippi confluence -- falls within the St. Croix National Scenic Riverway's Lower segment, the portion of the Riverway managed primarily through local zoning built to Wisconsin Administrative Code NR 118's standards rather than direct federal ownership. The county's own Chapter 17 Lower St. Croix Riverway ordinance implements this locally, alongside the county's separate shoreland and floodplain ordinances.
This is the same regulatory structure this project's Pierce County page documents in detail, including NR 118's larger bluffline setback (200 feet in the conservation management zone, well beyond the standard statewide NR 115 baseline of 75 feet). Rather than repeat that explanation here, see the Pierce County page for the substantive standards -- the fact that matters for St. Croix County specifically is simply that the entire county frontage is Lower-segment, with no Upper-segment stretch as found in Polk County to its north.
Septic, GIS, records, and other departments to know
POWTS (septic) sanitary permits and site evaluations run through the county's Sanitary Program under statewide SPS 383 standards, reached through the same Community Development office at (715) 386-4680. The Register of Deeds ((715) 386-4652) holds recorded deeds, easements, and plats; the Treasurer (1101 Carmichael Road, Hudson, WI 54016; (715) 386-4645) handles property tax payment; and the county's Land & Water Conservation Department runs soil, water, and Farmland Preservation Program enrollment.
UW-Madison Division of Extension's St. Croix County office (1960 8th Ave, Suite 140, Baldwin, WI 54002) supports the county's agricultural sector, which -- despite the growth pressure described above -- still includes real dairy and row-crop farming enrolled in the state's Farmland Preservation Program alongside land recommended for preservation under the county's LESA (Land Evaluation and Site Assessment) scoring system.
Who to Call Before Buying Land in St. Croix County
Direct WebFetch access to sccwi.gov was blocked by a network egress restriction throughout this research pass, so department details reflect search-indexed content rather than a full verbatim read of current staff directories -- confirm current staff, hours, fees, and a specific town's zoning status before relying on this page for a specific parcel.
Planning & Zoning
St. Croix County Community Development
Zoning district lookups, confirming whether county or Town of Forest/Hudson/Troy zoning applies, rezoning, conditional-use permits, and variances.
Building & Permitting
St. Croix County Community Development
Land-use and building permit applications countywide, except within the Towns of Forest, Hudson, and Troy (which administer their own).
Septic / Onsite Wastewater
St. Croix County Sanitary Program
POWTS (septic) sanitary permits and soil evaluations under statewide SPS 383 standards.
Wells / Private Water
Wisconsin DNR -- Wells Program
Private well construction rules (NR 812) and certified well-driller lookups statewide, including St. Croix County.
Subdivision & Land Development
St. Croix County Community Development
Land Division Ordinance review for minor and major subdivisions, certified survey maps, and platting.
Floodplain / Stormwater
St. Croix County Community Development
Floodplain, shoreland, and Lower St. Croix Riverway (NR 118) zoning questions along the county's rivers.
GIS / Parcel Records
St. Croix County Maps, GIS and Land Information
Parcel mapping and GIS data.
Assessor / Property Tax
St. Croix County Treasurer
Property tax payment and records.
Recorder / Clerk / Land Records
St. Croix County Register of Deeds
Recorded deed, easement, and plat history for a specific parcel.
Agricultural Extension
UW-Madison Division of Extension, St. Croix County
Agriculture, farmland preservation, and community-development guidance.
Other
St. Croix County Land & Water Conservation
Soil, water, and conservation programs, and Farmland Preservation Program enrollment.
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Get local guidanceTopics Specific to St. Croix County
Sources
- Land Use and Zoning — St. Croix County, Wisconsin Government (accessed 2026-09)
- St. Croix County Zoning Ordinance Technical Review Memo (February 2018) — St. Croix County, Wisconsin Government (accessed 2026-09)
- Chapter 105 Zoning — Town of Hudson, St. Croix County, Wisconsin (accessed 2026-09)
- Ordinances -- Town of Troy — Town of Troy, St. Croix County, Wisconsin (accessed 2026-09)
- St. Croix County Code of Ordinances, Chapter 17 -- Lower St. Croix Riverway — St. Croix County, Wisconsin Government (accessed 2026-09)
- Community Development — St. Croix County, Wisconsin Government (accessed 2026-09)
- Land Division — St. Croix County, Wisconsin Government (accessed 2026-09)
- Comprehensive Plan — St. Croix County, Wisconsin Government (accessed 2026-09)
- Farmland Preservation Program — St. Croix County, Wisconsin Government (accessed 2026-09)
- Sanitary Program — St. Croix County, Wisconsin Government (accessed 2026-09)
- Register of Deeds — St. Croix County, Wisconsin Government (accessed 2026-09)
- Land & Water Conservation — St. Croix County, Wisconsin Government (accessed 2026-09)
- St. Croix County population likely to double, demographer says — Star Tribune (accessed 2026-09)
- St. Croix County, Wisconsin — Wikipedia (accessed 2026-09)
- St. Croix County, Wisconsin Population 2026 — World Population Review (accessed 2026-09)
- Extension St. Croix County — University of Wisconsin-Madison Division of Extension (accessed 2026-09)
- Wisconsin Administrative Code, Chapter NR 118 (Lower St. Croix Riverway standards) — Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (accessed 2026-09)
Last reviewed 2026-09