Siloam Springs, Arkansas Building Permit Guide

The City of Siloam Springs issues building permits through its Building and Inspections Division, 410 N Broadway (479-373-6466 ext. 1), and its own electric department sells electrical permits for the City’s electric service area. A house is valued at $70 per heated square foot, so a home with 2,000 sq ft of heated space pays a $580 building permit and a $50 plan review fee, plus a $245.37 street impact fee per house.

What needs a permit in Siloam Springs?

City Code Sec. 18-1 requires a building permit before anyone builds a building of any kind, or adds to or alters an existing one. The City’s permit page also lists these separate permits:

Plumbing permits are not needed for minor repairs to faucets, valves, pipes and appliances or for clearing stoppages.

Who issues building permits in Siloam Springs?

The Building and Inspections Division inspects all new construction, from houses, remodels and additions to commercial and industrial buildings. It also coordinates street addresses with the Fire and Police Departments, administers the floodplain program and enforces local, state and federal construction codes. Electrical permits are bought from the City’s electrical department, whose inspectors cover the City’s electric service area.

Siloam Springs applications

The City’s Permit page works as a one-stop shop. Each permit has a printable PDF and an interactive version that can be signed electronically on BSA Online: building, accessory building, trade (electric, HVAC/R and plumbing on one form), demolition, fence, and driveway and parking lot permits. Grading, road bore and street cut permits are filed as online forms. Completed submittals can be emailed to building@siloamsprings.gov or delivered to 410 N Broadway.

The iWorQ portal shows the status of an application and its inspections; contractors log in with their contractor code, which the office can provide.

Who may apply. A professional builder’s application for a house must include a copy of the builder’s licence and a statement that it is in force. An owner acting as his or her own general contractor for a principal residence must show workers’ compensation for everyone hired and liability insurance of at least $100,000 per occurrence, and may get only one such permit every three years. Model home permits are allowed in subdivisions without final plats, limited to one per 25 lots.

Siloam Springs permit fees

For houses, City Code Sec. 18-1 values new construction, alterations, remodeling and repair at $70 per square foot of heated space; nonresidential work is valued at the cost of labor and materials. The Building Permit Instruction Packet then applies this schedule:

For example, a house with 2,000 sq ft of heated space is valued at $140,000, so the permit is $460 plus 40 × $3, or $580, and plan review adds $50. The plan review fee is due when you submit; the rest is due after approval.

A residential permit covers up to eight inspection trips. A ninth trip costs $35, a tenth $75, an eleventh $150 and each one after that $200.

Street impact fee. Ordinance 25-34 (adopted November 4, 2025) charges street impact fees by land use, paid before the building permit is issued for new development inside the city: $245.37 per single-family house, $169.99 per multifamily unit, $211.02 per hotel room, and per 1,000 sq ft $1,100.47 retail, $282.30 office, $178.45 industrial and $127.17 warehouse. Uses not on the schedule pay $25.64 per trip from the ITE Trip Generation Manual. Alterations that add no dwelling units, like-for-like rebuilding after damage and projects in the H1-DT overlay district are exempt.

Electric service charges. The packet also lists the City electric utility’s charges: an extension fee of $4,779.19 per lot in subdivisions of at least four lots, and $521 to connect service to each building.

Electrical, plumbing and mechanical permits in Siloam Springs

Electrical. Permits are bought from the City electrical department in person, by phone or by mail, and paid within 30 days. They are sold only to master electricians, licensed electrical contractors and owners who qualify for the owner exemption. A copy of the state licence, $100,000 of liability insurance and a $2,000 bond must be on file first, and commercial and industrial jobs need electrical plans reviewed. Working without a permit brings a $50 administration fee. The owner exemption covers a single-family home owned solely by the person wiring it and lived in full time, with no pay and no unlicensed help except family.

Plumbing. Permits go to licensed master plumbers who hold a City occupation license, or to an owner plumbing the single-family home he or she occupies, who must give the inspector a drawing of the planned work. Plumbing permits cover work connected to the City’s water or sewer system, and every commercial plumbing permit needs the state approval letter before it issues. An extra trip caused by unready work costs $10 inside the city or $15 outside.

What to submit

The Building Permit Instruction Packet says incomplete submittals cannot be accepted. A complete package includes:

• A current Arkansas contractor’s licence, unless exempt
• The completed building permit application and the plan review fee
• One PDF set of building plans, with an engineer’s or architect’s stamp where needed
• One PDF plot plan with the legal description, lot lines, all existing and proposed structures, driveways, sidewalks, streets, easements and setbacks, plus drainage arrows, scale, north arrow and date (no hand-drawn plot plans for new structures)
• The Health Department’s septic approval, where a septic system is used
• The signed confirmation page for the instruction packet, covering the drainage and right-of-way rules

Projects that go through a Significant Development Permit do not file a separate site plan with the building permit.

How to get a Siloam Springs building permit: 6 steps

Siloam Springs inspections

Call 479-373-1811 or request inspections online at least 24 hours ahead; slots are booked as morning or afternoon visits. Final inspections need two working days’ notice, every earlier inspection must have passed, and no final inspection for occupancy is done on a Friday. Building, plumbing, HVAC/R and electrical permits must be posted where they can be seen from the street, along with the street number, or the inspector will not inspect. A concrete washout must be in place, and termite protection must be certified in writing where required.

A typical house is inspected at footing (at least 18 inches below undisturbed ground with two #4 bars), under-slab plumbing, floor framing, slab pre-pour, crawl space insulation, top-out of framing and all trades before insulation, wall insulation, any fire separation, driveway and sidewalk, final grading and final. Before a temporary or permanent power inspection, the contractor must set up the utility account and request a meter.

No structure may be occupied, and no furniture or contents moved in, until the final inspections are done and the certificate of occupancy is issued. City Code Sec. 18-2 fines the contractor and the owner up to $250 each per day. Temporary certificates and bonded certificates of occupancy are available when some work is unfinished.

Local rules that matter in Siloam Springs

Floodplain: Chapter 42 of the City Code adopts a flood damage prevention code, Parts A and B dated September 28, 2007, with copies at the City Clerk’s office. The Building and Inspections Division administers the floodplain program, and Siloam Springs takes part in the National Flood Insurance Program.

Drainage and right-of-way: land development must meet the City’s Stormwater Management and Drainage Manual of 2015. Lots need positive drainage away from the house; curbs, ramps, aprons, sidewalks and utility cuts in the right-of-way are built to City specifications and inspected; and trenches must be backfilled and compacted within 24 hours. Mud and debris may not build up on streets.

Energy code: the packet sets Siloam Springs values for the 2014 Arkansas Energy Code, among them R-38 ceilings, R-13 wood-frame walls, R-19 floors and a 0.50 window U-factor, and requires a completed label in the electrical panel.

Arkansas building code

Arkansas’s building code is the 2021 Arkansas Fire Prevention Code, adopted by the State Fire Marshal and in force statewide since 1 January 2023; building permits are issued locally where a city or county runs a permit program, and the plumbing, gas, mechanical, energy and electrical codes are adopted by separate state agencies. The Arkansas codes

Siloam Springs permit FAQs

Who issues building permits in Siloam Springs?

The City’s Building and Inspections Division at 410 N Broadway (479-373-6466 ext. 1). Electrical permits are sold by the City electric department.

How much is a building permit for a new house?

The house is valued at $70 per heated square foot. For 2,000 sq ft that is $140,000, giving a $580 permit plus a $50 plan review fee, before trade permits and the street impact fee.

What is the street impact fee?

$245.37 for a single-family house under Ordinance 25-34, paid before the building permit is issued; uses not on the schedule pay $25.64 per vehicle trip.

Can I do my own wiring or plumbing?

Yes, in a single-family home you own and occupy, if you do the work yourself and buy the permit. Otherwise permits go only to master electricians or licensed master plumbers.

When are inspections done?

Book at least 24 hours ahead, or two working days ahead for finals. Inspections are set for morning or afternoon, and final inspections are not done on Fridays.

How long do I have to start work?

Six months from the date of the permit; after that a new permit is required.

Official Siloam Springs permit resources

These are the primary sources behind this guide. Codes, fee schedules and procedures change — confirm the position for your filing date.

• Siloam Springs building permit instruction packet
• Siloam Springs Building Inspection Division
• Siloam Springs permit applications
• Siloam Springs Building division and adopted codes
• Siloam Springs iWorQ permit and inspection status
• Siloam Springs Code Chapter 18, buildings
• Siloam Springs street impact fees (Code Sec. 35-146 to 35-154)
• Siloam Springs Code Chapter 42, floods

Simplify Siloam Springs permitting with Alliance Permitting

Alliance Permitting is a permit documentation and submission company in Arkansas. We prepare your paperwork, file it correctly and coordinate with the permitting authority through issuance. We are not a contractor and we do not perform licensed plan review or inspections; that work stays with your licensed team and the jurisdiction.

This guide is provided by Alliance Permitting for general information about Siloam Springs permitting. Requirements, fees, and procedures change; confirm details with the permitting authority before relying on them.