Clinton County, New York Building Permit Guide

Clinton County has no county building inspector. The county government is one of the twelve the Department of State lists as having opted out of the enforcement of the Uniform and Energy codes, so permits come from the City of Plattsburgh and from each town and village code officer, many of whom keep only a few office hours a week. The county’s part is the septic construction permit from its Health Department, highway work permits on county roads, and Planning Board review of zoning actions the municipalities refer.

What requires a building permit in Clinton County?

Every local office works from the same state code, but each publishes its own threshold. Au Sable puts it most broadly: building permits are needed for anything built, from houses and garages to decks, porches, pools and sheds. Chazy requires a permit for anything of 144 square feet or more and lists pools, roofing, fences, solar panels, demolition and floodplain work on its fee schedule. Dannemora’s list is the most detailed: building, altering, demolishing or moving a structure, wiring, exterior siding, any roof work, decks, sheds of 144 square feet or more, chimneys, fireplaces and wood stoves, pools over 24 inches deep, additions, plumbing and heating systems.

Small sheds are where the local rules differ most. Chazy and Dannemora both set the line at 144 square feet, yet Dannemora’s same page also says no permit is needed for a noncommercial, uninhabited structure of 100 square feet or less, so ask the officer about anything between those sizes. Au Sable lists sheds without any size exemption.

What the municipalities decide and what the state holds

The Uniform Code and Energy Code are the state’s and apply everywhere. The local offices decide how they administer them (forms, fees, office hours, which agencies may inspect wiring) and keep their own zoning, subdivision and flood rules. That means the county does not enforce the code in a town or village that has also opted out; there, the Department of State’s Code Inspection Unit provides code enforcement and administration in place of the local government and charges fees for it. The state’s page names no such municipality, and every Clinton town with an official website names its own code officer.

Clinton County building department: who handles permitting

The table covers every city, town and village the Census Bureau lists in the county. Town offices cover land outside their villages; the city is separate from the Town of Plattsburgh around it.

Three local arrangements stand out. The Town of Champlain contains two villages, Champlain and Rouses Point, and both villages list the same code enforcement officer and phone. The Town and Village of Dannemora each keep their own officer. And the Town of Plattsburgh contains no village at all, so the only second office near it is the City of Plattsburgh’s. Altona, Clinton and Peru had no working official website, so call the town clerk there; one site using Altona’s name is not a government site.

What Clinton County itself does

• Health Department (Environmental Health & Safety Division, 135 Margaret Street, Plattsburgh; 518-565-4870): construction permits to install, replace or re-engineer a septic system, with a permit packet that holds the instructions, percolation test forms, a soil test referral list and the construction permit application. Owners within 250 feet of Lake Champlain, the Saranac River, Chazy Lake and other listed waters may qualify for state septic replacement grants through the department.
• Highway Department (736 Route 3, Plattsburgh; 518-565-4040): permits for any work in the right-of-way of the 350.75 miles of county roads, filed in triplicate, including its Highway Work Permit Application for Non-Utility Work for homes, businesses and home businesses.
• Planning Department (135 Margaret Street, Suite 124; 518-565-4711): zoning and planning help for municipalities, wetland, floodplain and aerial information, the county GIS map, and staff for the county Planning Board.

Clinton County permit types and applications

Residential permits

Each office has its own application. The Town and Village of Champlain take building permit applications online through the same GovWell portal; Beekmantown posts a 2026 town application; Schuyler Falls posts a building permit application with instructions; Mooers posts its application with its zoning law. Dannemora wants the application signed before a notary, and Saranac posts a lumber certification form and a separate demolition application.

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

Commercial permits

Commercial work usually needs local site plan approval before the building permit; Rouses Point notes that it is a zoned village with subdivision regulations and site plan review. Chazy prices commercial and industrial buildings at $0.20 per square foot up to 30,000 square feet and $0.50 above that, Beekmantown at $0.12 per square foot.

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: town or village planning boards and zoning boards of appeals; Champlain’s Planning Board meets the first Thursday and its ZBA the third Thursday of each month.
• County referral: actions the General Municipal Law sends to the county Planning Board, which meets the first Wednesday of each month. Referrals must reach the Planning Department by its posted Monday deadline, about nine days before the meeting; mailed referrals that arrive after it are treated as late, so the department accepts them by email.
• Adirondack Park: Dannemora’s application carries an Adirondack Park Agency jurisdictional inquiry that you mail to the APA, not to the town.
• Septic: the county Health Department construction permit on any lot without public sewer.
• County road: a Highway Department permit for a new driveway or other work in the county right-of-way.

Building permit fees in Clinton County

There is no county building fee. Each municipality adopts its own schedule, and the same house can cost very different amounts a few miles apart.

Worked comparison for a 2,000 square foot house: $400 in the Town of Chazy ($0.20 per square foot), $200 in Beekmantown ($0.10), $500 in the Town of Plattsburgh (25 cents) and $400 in the City of Plattsburgh ($0.20). Chazy doubles the fee for building without a permit, and Mooers charges $50 to $1,000. The Village of Champlain and Rouses Point post their own fee sheets as scanned pages.

Trade permits and who may pull them

The county licenses no trades, and electrical work is handled through approved third-party inspection agencies chosen locally. The Town of Champlain’s board designates the electrical inspection services accepted for building permits and code compliance, and the Village of Rouses Point keeps its own approved list together with a 2024 electrical inspection fee schedule and its building fee sheet, revised June 10, 2024. In the City of Plattsburgh every contractor registers each year for $25, and the city’s Municipal Lighting Department is involved in any new or changed electrical service. Each office asks for proof of workers’ compensation and disability coverage, or the state exemption form, before it issues a permit.

How to get a building permit in Clinton County

Review, corrections and what causes delay

No county-wide review time exists. The common delays are part-time office hours, a septic design not yet approved by County Health, a referral that missed the county Planning Board deadline, and in Dannemora the Adirondack Park Agency’s answer to the jurisdictional inquiry.

Inspections and certificates

Inspections are booked with the local office, never the county. Au Sable inspects by appointment only. Dannemora puts the duty on the permit holder to tell the code officer when work is ready, requires a final inspection before the building is used, and treats a permit as valid for one year: renew it or pass the final before it lapses. Its town also requires water and sewer connection applications in the special districts and driveway permits on town roads. Mooers issues a certificate of occupancy free if the permit holder calls for the inspections and charges $100 if not, and Beekmantown charges nothing for the certificate. Electrical certificates come from the approved inspection agency and go to the local code officer before the 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

Clinton County permit FAQ

Does Clinton County issue building permits?

No. The county has opted out of the enforcement of the Uniform and Energy codes, and permits come from the City of Plattsburgh or the town or village where the land lies.

Who issues permits in Rouses Point or the Village of Champlain?

Each village has its own code enforcement office, and both list the same officer (518-534-0323). The Town of Champlain office covers the rest of the town.

Who approves a septic system?

The Clinton County Health Department issues construction permits to install, replace or re-engineer septic systems; call its Environmental Health & Safety Division at 518-565-4870 for the packet.

Do I need a county permit for a driveway?

Yes, on a county road. The county Highway Department permits all work in the county right-of-way; town and state roads have their own permits.

How much is a building permit for a new house?

It depends on the municipality: for 2,000 sq ft, $200 in Beekmantown, $400 in Chazy or the City of Plattsburgh, and $500 in the Town of Plattsburgh under their current schedules.

Is my community in the flood insurance program?

Sixteen Clinton communities are. FEMA lists the Town and the Village of Dannemora in its section of communities not in the National Flood Insurance Program.

Which office covers a Plattsburgh address?

Inside the city line, the city’s Building and Zoning Department at 41 City Hall Place (518-563-7707). In the surrounding Town of Plattsburgh, the town’s Codes & Zoning Department at 151 Banker Road (518-562-6840). A Plattsburgh mailing address alone does not tell you which.

Do I need a permit for a project in the Adirondack Park?

You need the local building permit, and in Dannemora the town’s application includes an Adirondack Park Agency jurisdictional inquiry that you send to the APA yourself.

Clinton County permit search and official resources

Permit and certificate files stay with the city, town or village that issued them. Ask that office, or file a Freedom of Information Law request with the municipal clerk. Septic permits are on file with the county Health Department.

• Clinton County Planning Department
• Clinton County Planning Board meetings and referral deadlines
• Clinton County Health Department septic installation
• Clinton County Highway Department permit program
• NYS Department of State Code Inspection Unit (opted-out counties)
• Town of Chazy building fee schedule (2023)
• Town of Beekmantown schedule of fees
• FEMA Community Status Book, New York
• NYS code adoption and enforcement updates

Simplify Clinton County 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 Clinton County permitting. Requirements, fees, and procedures change; confirm details with the permitting authority before relying on them.