Town of Lancaster, New York Building Permit Guide

The Town of Lancaster’s Building and Zoning Department, 21 Central Avenue (716-684-4171), reviews plans, issues building permits and inspects work for both the town and the Village of Lancaster. Applications can be started in the town’s online permit portal by parcel, and under the fees adopted for 2026 a one-family house carries a flat $200 building permit plus a $1,250 recreation fee and a $250 tree reforestation fee per lot.

What requires a building permit in Lancaster?

Lancaster’s Code Enforcement Program law (Chapter 140, Local Law 7 of 2022) requires a building permit for any work that must comply with the Uniform Code or the Energy Code, including building, enlarging, altering, improving, removing, relocating or demolishing a structure. The law has no list of exempt work: both exemption subsections are marked “intentionally omitted”. The department’s own forms show what it permits day to day.

Because there is no exemption list, even a small shed gets a permit here: the town has a separate form for sheds under 144 sq ft, and sheds cost $40. Before applying, the department asks owners to call about setbacks and the permitted size and height of structures. The fence sheet (revised September 8, 2025) gives the heights: 3 feet in front yards and 6 feet in side and rear yards in the town, with the good side facing out, corner lots treated as front yards on both street sides, and no fence in an easement without the Town Engineer’s or Public Works superintendent’s approval.

What the town decides and what the state holds

The construction rules are the state Uniform Code and Energy Code, and the town’s structural design criteria follow the 2025 Residential Code’s Table R301.2 as filled in for Lancaster; stricter construction standards would need Code Council approval. Lancaster sets its permit procedures, the 2026 fee schedule, zoning, floodplain development (Chapter 182), stormwater and erosion control, and, since June 1, 2026, a public tree law (Chapter 334, Local Law 3 of 2026) that bars damaging or removing a tree on town property or in a town right-of-way without the written permission of the Park Crew Chief.

Lancaster building department: who handles permitting

The Building and Zoning Department administers the building and fire codes, the local zoning code, stormwater practices and floodplain development for the Town of Lancaster and the Village of Lancaster. The village’s own Building Department page uses the same wording and sends applicants to the town office and its phone number, so a village parcel is filed at 21 Central Avenue too. Matthew Fischione is the Code Enforcement Officer.

Village of Depew. Depew straddles the Lancaster–Cheektowaga line, with 5,770 of its residents on the Lancaster side and 9,031 on the Cheektowaga side by the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimates. The whole village is served by Depew’s own Building Inspection department, which handles building permits and building and plumbing inspections under the Uniform Code, enforces village zoning, charges a double permit fee for work started before a permit, and issues the $50 sewer discharge certificate needed to sell a Depew house.

Lancaster permit types and filing

The town’s online permit application, hosted by its permit software provider, starts with a parcel or address search; from there you can submit an application or return to an existing transaction. Paper forms for each permit type are posted on the Building Department page and can be brought to 21 Central Avenue.

Residential permits

The checklist for a new one- or two-family dwelling (revised January 23, 2023) asks for two sets of construction drawings, a code review checklist and an energy-code compliance path and checklist prepared by a New York registered architect, a soil test certification, an original survey stamped by a licensed surveyor, a plot plan with yard dimensions, utilities, driveway and sidewalk, and a grading plan. Outside a subdivision the grading plan must be prepared by a registered New York engineer and approved by the Town Engineer; inside one, the approved subdivision grading plan applies. The builder also supplies a letter from a disposal company that a dumpster will be on site from framing, or uses a cleaning service the department approves, and insurance certificates for liability, disability and workers’ compensation naming the Town of Lancaster as certificate holder.

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

Commercial permits

New commercial construction is charged $0.40 per sq ft and renovation of existing commercial space $0.25 per sq ft, with $50 added for truss-type construction plus the identifying sign it requires. Site plan review by the Planning Board costs $1,500 for up to an acre plus $500 for each further acre, stormwater pollution prevention plan review starts at $1,000 for up to 5 acres, and there is an environmental review fee under SEQRA ($1,000 for a short form, $2,500 for a long form). The 2026 Planning Board meeting dates are posted on the Building Department page.

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 setbacks, sizes and heights come first; variances go to the Zoning Board of Appeals ($150 residential, $225 nonresidential). A new house on public sewer needs a sewer tap permit from Erie County Sewer District No. 4 (3789 Walden Avenue, 716-684-1234); on septic, Erie County Department of Health approval. Driveways onto county roads need an Erie County Highways permit (716-858-8300) and onto state roads a State Department of Transportation permit (716-847-3291). The department also posts Buckeye Partners’ requirements for building near its high-pressure pipeline and a map of the town’s environmental resource areas.

Lancaster building permit fees

Fees come from Chapter 258 as adopted for the year 2026.

For a new one-family house the fixed charges add up to $1,700: the $200 permit, the $1,250 recreation fee and the $250 tree reforestation fee. The certificate of occupancy is priced on the value of the work: $25 up to $10,000, $35 to $20,000, $40 to $50,000 and, above that, $40 plus $5 for each $1,000. Section 258-27 values a new dwelling at $170 per sq ft in the list it marks as the basis for that fee; a second, unlabelled list in the same section shows $70, so ask the department which figure it applies. Plumbing fees are added separately.

Work started without a permit is charged a minimum of $200 or up to 50% of the permit fee. A deck of 300 sq ft costs $40 plus $45, or $85, and 150 feet of fence $40 plus $15, or $55.

Trade permits and who may pull them

Electrical. Chapter 158 makes an electrical inspection part of every building permit the town issues, and only agencies designated by the Town Board, whose inspectors hold International Association of Electrical Inspectors certification, may do it. The September 2025 list names five: Atlantic-Inland, Commonwealth Electrical Inspection Service, Excelsior Inspections of WNY, Middle Department Inspection Agency and New York Electrical Inspection Agency. Under the code, an agency must inspect within two business days of the application and file its report with the Building Inspector within five business days, and its inspectors may not do electrical work in the town. The town also posts National Electrical Code handouts on residential requirements, arc-fault protection, pools, storable pools and hot tubs.

Licensing. Lancaster’s code has no chapter licensing electricians, plumbers or home-improvement contractors, and Erie County is not one of the counties with a home-improvement license. Plumbing is permitted and charged by fixture through the Building and Zoning Department. Every contractor files liability, disability and workers’ compensation certificates naming the town; owners doing their own work without employees use the state CE-200, and the department posts a help sheet for getting one.

Sewer and septic. A new house on public sewer needs a tap permit from Erie County Sewer District No. 4. Where there is no public sewer, the Erie County Department of Health, 503 Kensington Avenue, Buffalo (716-961-6800), approves the onsite system: new systems are designed by a licensed engineer, architect or exempt surveyor, the county issues a construction permit, and a completed-works approval follows installation. Repairing or replacing an existing system needs a county application and a $300 fee.

How to apply for a Lancaster building permit

Review, corrections and what causes delay

Every item on the town’s ten-point new-house checklist is required at application, so a missing soil test certification, stamped survey, engineered grading plan (outside a subdivision), sewer tap permit or dumpster letter holds the permit. Commercial projects also go through Planning Board site plan review and, where it applies, stormwater plan review. Under Chapter 140 a permit becomes invalid if work does not start within six months and expires 12 months after it is issued, unless renewed.

Lancaster inspections and certificates

Call the office at 716-684-4171 to schedule each inspection listed on your building permit. Chapter 140 provides for inspections of the work site before the permit, footing and foundation, slab preparation, framing, building systems including underground and rough-in, fire-resistant construction and penetrations, solid-fuel appliances and chimneys, energy-code compliance and a final inspection, and work must stay exposed until it is accepted. Electrical inspections are arranged directly with your chosen agency.

Before a new house receives its certificate of occupancy, iron stakes must be driven at the four corners of the property so the lot lines can be found: at least 18 inches long and half an inch thick, with fluorescent orange tops, set flush enough to avoid a tripping hazard. The department also lists requirements for an as-built survey. A temporary certificate of occupancy costs $25 on top of the final certificate fee, and each reinspection $50.

Construction near trees on town property or in a town right-of-way has to be discussed with the Park Crew Chief, who can require protection measures under the June 2026 tree law; violations carry fines of up to $500.

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

Lancaster permit FAQ

Does the town issue permits in the Village of Lancaster?

Yes. The town’s Building and Zoning Department reviews plans, issues permits and inspects for both the town and the Village of Lancaster.

What about Depew?

The Village of Depew, which lies partly in Lancaster and partly in Cheektowaga, has its own Building Inspection department (716-683-1400) for all village parcels.

Do I need a permit for a small shed?

Yes. Lancaster’s code has no shed exemption, and the town has a separate permit form for sheds under 144 sq ft. The fee is $40.

What does a new house cost in town fees?

$1,700 in fixed fees (a $200 permit, $1,250 recreation fee and $250 tree reforestation fee), plus plumbing fees and the certificate of occupancy fee, which is based on the value of the work.

Can I apply online?

Yes. The town’s online permit application lets you look up the parcel, submit an application and return to it later.

Who inspects electrical work?

One of the five agencies on the town’s September 2025 list. Inspections are due within two business days of your request to the agency.

Do I need a permit for a fence?

Yes, at $40 plus 10 cents per linear foot, with a stamped survey showing the fence. In the town, fences may be 3 feet high in a front yard and 6 feet in side and rear yards, up to the property line. In the village, side yards are limited to 4 feet (6 feet more than 6 feet from an egress window) and front-yard fences must be 2 feet from a public sidewalk and no more than 50% solid.

Lancaster permit search and official resources

Applicants can return to their own applications through the portal’s transaction lookup. Records of past permits and certificates are held by the Building and Zoning Department; for a sale, a letter of zoning compliance costs $50. Other records can be requested from the town under the Freedom of Information Law.

• Town of Lancaster Building and Zoning Department
• Town of Lancaster online permit application
• 2026 schedule of permit and application fees
• New one- or two-family dwelling permit checklist
• Third-party electrical inspection agencies (September 2025)
• Code of the Town of Lancaster (eCode360)
• Village of Lancaster Building Department page
• Village of Depew Building Inspection
• Erie County Department of Health septic systems
• NYS Uniform Code adoption notice

Simplify Town of Lancaster 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 Lancaster permitting. Requirements, fees, and procedures change; confirm details with the permitting authority before relying on them.