Maywood Borough, New Jersey Building Permit Guide

In the Borough of Maywood, construction permits come from the Building Department at Borough Hall, 15 Park Avenue (201-845-2900), open Monday to Thursday from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. and closed on Fridays; Gary Goodman is the Construction Official and building inspector. Applications can start on the borough’s online permit portal, inspections are requested by email, a development (COAH) fee applies to all new construction and additions, and a home sold or rented needs the borough’s resale and rental certificate.

What requires a building permit in Maywood?

Maywood applies the Uniform Construction Code, so new buildings, additions, alterations, and electrical, plumbing and fire work need a construction permit unless the state’s ordinary maintenance rules exempt them. On top of that, the borough runs its own zoning permit for fences, patios, driveways, sidewalks, curbs, aprons and small sheds.

Separate borough permits cover dumpsters, street openings and landscapers working in town. The zoning form also asks the fence height and whether a fence surrounds a pool or hot tub.

What Maywood decides and what the state holds

The technical code is New Jersey’s. Maywood’s own pieces are its zoning ordinance (Chapter 209), the development fee chapter (Chapter 210, added by Ordinance 5-17), the street and sidewalk sections of Chapter 287, its property maintenance code and house-numbering rule (Section 247-4C(4)), and the resale and rental certificate. In July 2025 the Mayor and Council also adopted Resolution 200-25, a green building policy under which the borough will consider green building measures in the design, construction, operation and maintenance of municipal buildings and facilities.

Maywood building department: who handles permitting

The Building Department, which also signs its forms as the Department of Code Enforcement, is Maywood’s construction office. It has a construction official who is also the building inspector, separate electrical, plumbing and fire inspectors, and a zoning official and inspector who also takes inspection requests. Land use cases go to the Maywood Planning Board, a consolidated board that also acts as the Zoning Board of Adjustment.

The DCA roster dated September 2, 2026 lists the same address, phone and fax but leaves the construction official and most subcode posts blank; the borough’s own Building Department page names the current staff.

Maywood permit types

Every construction permit needs three things, according to the Building Department: a copy of each contractor’s license, the permit jacket (construction permit application), and the subcode tech sheets for building, electrical, plumbing and fire as the work requires. The electrical and plumbing sheets must carry the contractor’s seal on every copy. All forms can be picked up at the office, and the borough’s online permit services let applicants register and file at any hour.

Residential permits

• Fuel-fired appliances. A chimney verification is required for every fuel-fired appliance, such as a furnace, boiler or water heater.
• Pools. A pool installation needs the borough’s swimming pool procedures certification in addition to the construction permit, and any fence around it is noted on the zoning form.
• Oil tanks. An underground storage tank removal or abandonment follows the borough’s UST closure checklist, based on DEP-accepted practice: the tank cleaned and the residue containerized for disposal, piping disconnected or capped, a tank left in place filled with inert material, and a removed tank tested free of flammable vapour and disposed of properly.
• Small sheds, fences, patios and driveways. Zoning permit with a current survey, the contractor’s registration number and the estimated cost.
• Demolition. A survey, utility disconnect letters (electric, gas, water and communications), silt fencing, a licensed exterminator’s letter dated no more than 10 days before demolition, an asbestos clearance letter from an NJDEP-registered contractor, a dig number and certified letters to every adjoining owner.

Building or remodeling a home here? Alliance handles home building permits, so the crew isn't waiting on the counter.

Commercial permits

The Building Department page also posts a new business inquiry form for anyone opening a business in town, and any fit-out follows the construction permit route. The resale and rental certificate application has its own categories for commercial structures over 5,000 square feet and for all other use groups, so commercial space changing hands is inspected too. New non-residential construction and additions also pay the 2.5% development fee.

For tenant improvements and new commercial builds, Alliance handles commercial permit filing through issuance. More on this: commercial building permits explained.

What comes before the construction permit

• Zoning. The Administrative Officer / Zoning Officer reviews zoning; variances from Chapter 209 go to the Planning Board.
• Planning Board. The consolidated board hears appeals of the Administrative Officer’s decisions, grants variances, interprets the zoning ordinance and reviews site plans and subdivisions. It meets on the first and fourth Thursdays at 7 p.m. in the council chambers. Its 9 regular and 4 alternate members are Maywood residents appointed by the Mayor, and it has its own attorney, engineer and planner; the master plan was last reexamined in 2020. The board describes Maywood as almost fully developed and its task as balancing redevelopment and new commercial uses with the borough’s residential character.
• Soil. Demolition and larger site work need Bergen County Soil Conservation District sign-off (201-261-4407), and any soil moved on a property is inspected at resale.
• Streets and containers. A street opening permit covers work in a borough road. A dumpster or storage pod needs a permit under Borough Ordinance 12-12-B(12)(e): $25 on the work site, $50 on borough property.

Maywood permit costs and fees

Maywood’s construction permit fees are set in the borough code, which is published on eCode360; the Building Department page and forms do not list the UCC fee amounts, so ask the department at 201-845-2900 for the fee on a particular job. A dumpster or pod permit is $25 on the work site and $50 on borough property. The borough also publishes its development fee ordinance, which applies on top of construction fees.

The Building Department page states that these fees, which it calls COAH fees, apply to all new construction and additions. Equalized assessed value means the assessed value divided by the borough’s current ratio of assessed to true value, so the fee follows the tax assessor’s figures rather than the construction cost. Ordinance 5-17 ties the program to the Council on Affordable Housing development fee rules at N.J.A.C. 5:93-8.

Trade permits and who may pull them

Electrical, plumbing and fire work is filed on its own tech sheet with the permit jacket and is inspected by that trade’s inspector. Maywood asks for a copy of each contractor’s license with every permit and a contractor’s seal on every copy of the electrical and plumbing sheets; electrical contractors and master plumbers are licensed by the state. Home improvement contractors register with the Division of Consumer Affairs (the demolition checklist asks for a copy of that registration), and the zoning form asks for the contractor registration number.

• Fire subcode work, including alarms and suppression, is inspected on Monday and Wednesday evenings.
• Plumbing and electrical inspections run Tuesday and Thursday mornings.
• Landscapers working in Maywood file the borough’s landscaper permit application.
• Construction and demolition waste. The borough’s curbside hauler will not take renovation debris such as building materials, pallets, paint, liquids, stone, concrete, dirt or oil; dumpster and private pick-ups must be collected Monday to Friday between 7 a.m. and 6 p.m.

How to apply for a Maywood building permit

Review, corrections and what causes delay

Missing contractor licenses or unsealed trade sheets are the gaps the department’s checklist is built to catch. Because the office is closed on Fridays, a package handed in late on a Thursday waits until Monday. A demolition cannot be scheduled without the utility letters, the exterminator and asbestos letters and proof that neighbors were notified by certified mail. The state’s 20-business-day review period applies once the application is complete.

Inspections and certificates in Maywood

Demolitions get two inspections: a backfill inspection before fill is placed (clean fill only, at least 6 inches of topsoil, 95% compaction recommended) and a final once the site is cleared, graded and seeded.

Resale and rental certificate

Maywood requires a resale and rental certificate (CCO) before a property is sold or rented, with the original application picked up at Borough Hall; the application asks whether any permits are still open. The department also posts a sample smoke certificate for the CCO; that original, too, comes from Borough Hall. The borough’s checklist says a CCO will not be issued unless, among other items: handrails are secure on any stair of 3 or more risers or over 24 inches high, including attic and basement stairs; the front door deadbolt is not keyed on both sides; the electrical panel has no open slots and ground-fault outlets are in place; every fixture has a trap and every gas line not serving an appliance is capped; smoke pipes are screwed and the chimney base sealed; sump pumps discharge outside, not into the sewer; earlier work, including water heater and boiler replacements, has permits with final inspections; sidewalks are not lifted, broken or cracked; and house numbers are at least 3 inches high. Shrubs within 10 feet of a road or 25 feet of an intersection may be no taller than 3½ feet.

New Jersey building code in Maywood

Maywood enforces the statewide UCC through its own Building Department. FEMA’s Community Status Book lists Maywood (community 340050) as participating in the National Flood Insurance Program, with flood maps dated August 28, 2019.

New Jersey has one Uniform Construction Code for every municipality; the town supplies the enforcing agency, the fee ordinance and the zoning approvals. New Jersey rules

Maywood permit search and official resources

Permit records and approved plans are public records: use the Open Public Records Act request form on the Borough Clerk’s page. The resale and rental certificate application also shows whether a property has open permits.

• Maywood Building Department
• Borough of Maywood online permit services
• Permit jacket (construction permit application)
• Zoning permit: fence, patio, driveway, sidewalk, shed
• Sample resale and rental certificate application and CCO checklist
• Demolition permit checklist
• Underground storage tank closure checklist
• Dumpster and pod permit
• Construction and demolition waste rules
• Ordinance 5-17, development fees (Chapter 210)
• Resolution 200-25, green building policy
• Maywood Planning Board
• Borough Clerk and OPRA request form
• DCA Local Construction Contacts roster
• FEMA Community Status Book, New Jersey

Maywood building permit FAQs

Do I need a permit for a fence or patio in Maywood?

Yes, a borough zoning permit with a current survey showing the work; the same form covers driveways, sidewalks, curbs, aprons and sheds under 100 square feet.

Can I apply online?

Yes. Maywood offers online permit services; register on the portal first. Paper forms are available at the Building Department.

Is the Building Department open on Fridays?

No. It is open Monday to Thursday from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.

How do I schedule an inspection?

By email, as the Building Department page directs; building inspections are Tuesday and Thursday afternoons, fire inspections Monday and Wednesday evenings.

Do I need a certificate to sell or rent my house?

Yes, the resale and rental certificate (CCO) with its smoke certificate; the original application must be picked up at Borough Hall.

What is the development fee on a new house?

1.5% of the equalized assessed value under Chapter 210, charged on new construction and additions.

Who hears variance requests?

The Maywood Planning Board, which also acts as the Zoning Board of Adjustment and meets on the first and fourth Thursdays at 7 p.m.

Simplify Maywood Borough permitting with Alliance Permitting

Alliance Permitting is a permit documentation and submission company in New Jersey. 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 Maywood Borough permitting. Requirements, fees, and procedures change; confirm details with the permitting authority before relying on them.