Town of Chili, New York Building Permit Guide

Building permits in the Town of Chili come from the town Building Department at Chili Town Hall, 3333 Chili Avenue, and every application is filed online in Cloudpermit. Residential fences and sheds under 120 sq ft generally need no permit, inspections need 24 hours’ notice, and starting work without a permit costs a $100 surcharge plus twice the permit fee.

What requires a building permit in Chili?

Chili’s Building Department reviews plans and issues permits and compliance certificates for new construction, alterations, decks, pools and signs. Its project sheets and FAQs answer the common homeowner questions directly.

Two shed figures differ between town documents: the 2024 shed sheet allows up to 192 sq ft of total shed area before a variance is needed, while the Building Department FAQ puts the variance threshold at 197 sq ft. Sheds may be no taller than 12 feet, must stay out of the front yard and at least 55 feet from any lot line on a street, and need 8 feet from side and rear lines and from the house. Sheds in a flood zone must be anchored and need a floodplain permit.

What the town decides and what the state sets

The building rules themselves are the state’s Uniform Code and Energy Code, which the town cannot relax. Chili sets the local layer: the zoning code (Chapter 500) with its fence, shed and pool setbacks, plumber licensing, the licensing of electrical inspection agencies, flood damage prevention, freshwater wetlands and historic preservation laws, and the review boards that apply them.

Chili building department: who handles permitting

The Building Department, led by Building Department Manager Paul Wanzenried, reviews plans for zoning and building compliance, inspects the work and issues compliance certificates. It also answers building, planning and zoning questions and checks projects against conditions set by the Town Board, Planning Board and Zoning Board. Chili has no incorporated village, so this department serves every Chili address.

Permit types and supporting applications

Residential permits

Every residential building permit starts in Cloudpermit. The Building Department FAQ lists the core package: the application; an instrument survey map, to scale, with the new structure drawn on and dimensioned to the property lines and the house; the contractor’s liability and workers’ compensation certificates, or a CE-200 exemption if you do the work yourself; and design plans. A design professional is needed for any work on habitable space, any structural alteration, or when the code official asks. If you cannot find your survey, check your closing papers, ask the department whether one is on file, or contact the Monroe County Clerk.

The project requirement guides add detail by job. A deck application shows what, where and how you will build: footing depth, post, beam and joist sizes, ledger flashing and fastening, and stair and railing details, either as framing drawings or stamped plans. A gas standby generator cannot be permitted until RG&E has approved its Natural Gas Appliance Inventory form and assigned a work order number. Pools must stay out of the front yard, at least 10 feet from side and rear lines and from any well or septic system, and 15 feet (in-ground) or 10 feet (above-ground) from the house.

A finished basement needs plans drawn at 1/4 inch to the foot in blue or black ink, showing the furnace, water heater, stairs, smoke and carbon monoxide alarms, every window with its size, egress features, ceiling heights and the use of each room, with finished and unfinished square footage noted. Filling in an in-ground pool follows its own sheet: utilities capped at the house, the shell broken up at least 12 inches below grade with drainage holes in the deepest area, clean granular fill compacted in 12-inch lifts, and at least 6 inches of topsoil, graded and seeded before the certificate of compliance. A wood, pellet, coal or propane appliance needs a permit from the Fire Marshal’s office, which wants the installation manual with the application, and a final inspection after it is installed.

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

Commercial permits

Commercial plans and signs go through the same Cloudpermit intake, and site plans go to the Planning Board. Chapter 266 lets the reviewing board hire engineers, planners or attorneys at the applicant’s cost, funded by an escrow deposit paid to the Town Clerk.

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 building permit

• Zoning variance. The five-member Zoning Board of Appeals hears requests for relief from front, side and rear setbacks, accessory structure size, decks in front or side yards, fence height and location and commercial signs, plus use variances and appeals of code interpretations; the Building Department helps applicants prepare them.
• Planning Board and Architectural Advisory Committee. The seven-member Planning Board approves subdivisions for new homes and site plans for business construction or expansion, and every Planning Board application needs a Long Environmental Assessment Form; the 2026 board schedule lists AAC, Conservation Board, Planning Board and ZBA dates.
• Floodplain Development Application. For work in a mapped flood zone; Chili is in the National Flood Insurance Program, with flood maps dated August 28, 2008.
• Construction within an Easement Application. For fences or structures on a drainage or utility easement.
• Fill Permit Application. For bringing fill onto a site.
• Wetlands and historic sites. The Town Code has freshwater wetlands and historic preservation chapters that can add a review.

Chili permit fees

Section 210-20 of the Town Code says building permit, certificate and inspection fees follow a schedule the Town Board sets by resolution, but that schedule is not printed on the Building Department’s pages, its project sheets or in the code. The fee is assessed in Cloudpermit when the application is reviewed, so ask the department at 585-889-6143 for the figure for your project. The charges the town does publish are these:

The consultant escrow is deposited by certified check with the Town Clerk and kept in a separate account, and the applicant’s share can never exceed the town’s actual cost. Items not inspected before being covered must be opened up for the inspector, and the department may ask for a design professional’s verification at your cost.

Trade permits and who may pull them

Electrical. Electrical inspections are made by private agencies. Chapter 248 allows inspections only by agencies the Building Department has approved and licensed for the year, and their fees are never charged to the town. The department’s sheets name two agencies: Middle Department Inspection Agency (585-454-5191) and New York Electrical Inspection Agency (585-436-4460). Final electrical certificates must be in the department’s hands before it will schedule a final inspection or issue a certificate of occupancy or compliance.

Plumbing. Chapter 378 governs plumbing licenses and registration in Chili; plumbers apply on the town’s Plumbing License Application. The one owner allowance is narrow: in a single-family home, the resident homeowner may replace fixtures or appliances with like or similar ones, but may not relocate them, and still needs a plumbing permit and inspection. Every backflow device needs a plumbing permit and a Chili licensed plumber, lawn sprinkler systems must have a backflow preventer, and the owner must have containment devices tested yearly by a state-certified tester. Plans needing Monroe County Water Authority approval go there before the county health department.

Septic. New and repaired onsite wastewater systems are permitted by the Monroe County Department of Public Health under Article II-A of the county sanitary code, on a plan by a design professional (585-753-5060).

How to apply for a Chili building permit

Review, corrections and what causes delay

The department publishes no standard review time. Applications stall most often over a missing or unscaled survey, a contractor without liability and workers’ compensation on file, a structure that misses a setback and needs a ZBA variance, and a gas generator filed before RG&E has approved the appliance inventory form. Under Section 210-8 a permit becomes invalid if work has not started within three months of issue and expires after 18 months; a pool permit lapses unless the pool is started and finished within three months. Renewal needs an application, the fee and the Code Enforcement Officer’s approval, on the town’s Permit Extension Application.

Chili inspections and certificates

Call the Building Department at 585-889-6143 with at least 24 hours’ notice. For a footing pour, give a specific pour time so the inspector can be there before and during the pour. The usual sequence is:

• Footings, before concrete is placed
• Foundation walls, after parging and tarring and before backfill
• Storm sewer, with all pipe connected and before backfill
• Rough plumbing: underground before covering, above ground before insulation or drywall, with the system filled
• Framing, once rough plumbing and mechanical work are complete
• Insulation, before any drywall
• Fireplaces: masonry before the first flue, inserts before clearances are hidden
• Final, when the work is complete and ready to occupy

A basement finish adds its own checkpoints: underground plumbing before the slab or floor is covered, rough electrical by the agency once wire and boxes are in but no devices, rough plumbing, mechanical and gas before concealment, an interior gas line test at 10 pounds of air on a gauge of no more than 30 pounds, and rough framing once all the rough-ins are done.

The electrical agency’s final certificate must reach the town before the final can be booked. After a passed final the department issues the certificate of occupancy or compliance; a generator also needs its electrical inspection before the town’s final.

New York building code

New York builds on one statewide code, the Uniform Code, outside New York City; the 2025 edition and 2025 Energy Code took effect on 31 December 2025 (the all-electric provisions remain suspended by court order). Cities, towns and villages administer it, and local standards stricter than the code need Code Council approval. The Uniform Code in New York

Chili permit FAQ

Do I need a permit for a fence in Chili?

Not for a residential fence, unless the property is in a flood zone or the fence goes in an easement. Fences may be 6 feet tall behind the front of the house and 4 feet in front of it.

When does a shed need a permit in Chili?

At 120 sq ft and over. Larger sheds also need a variance, from 192 sq ft of total shed area under the town’s shed sheet (the FAQ says 197 sq ft), so ask the department before you buy.

How do I apply for a building permit in Chili?

Online through Cloudpermit, after creating an account; the department is at 3333 Chili Avenue (585-889-6143) for questions.

How much is a building permit in Chili?

The town does not post a fee table; Cloudpermit assesses the fee. Work started without a permit costs a $100 surcharge plus twice the fee.

Who inspects electrical work in Chili?

A town-licensed agency: Middle Department Inspection Agency or New York Electrical Inspection Agency. You pay the agency directly.

Do I need a permit to upgrade my electrical panel?

Yes. Chili requires a building permit for a panel upgrade, plus the agency’s electrical inspection.

Do I need a permit for a wood or pellet stove in Chili?

Yes. Solid-fuel appliances need a permit from the Fire Marshal’s office (585-889-6178), which asks for the installation manual with the application, and a final inspection once the stove is in.

Can I replace my own plumbing fixtures?

In a single-family home you live in, you may swap fixtures like for like without relocating them, but you still need a plumbing permit and an inspection.

Permit search and official resources

Permit applications and their status are kept in Cloudpermit, so an owner or contractor with an account can follow a current permit there. For records of older permits or certificates on a property, contact the Building Department or send a Freedom of Information request to the Town Clerk, who is the town’s Records Access Officer.

• Town of Chili Building Department
• Cloudpermit login for Chili applications
• Building Department FAQs
• Project requirement and informational guides
• Shed requirements
• Fence requirements
• Pool and spa requirements
• Deck requirements
• Generator requirements
• Inspections: what you need to know
• Code of the Town of Chili (eCode360)
• Chapter 210, permits, time limits and fees
• Chapter 248, Electrical Inspections
• Chapter 378, Plumbing Licenses
• Town Board organizational meeting minutes, January 2, 2026
• Monroe County onsite wastewater (septic) program
• NYS Department of State code adoption notice

Simplify Town of Chili permitting with Alliance Permitting

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