Town of Ogden, New York Building Permit Guide

One office handles permits for all of Ogden: the Town Building Department, led by Building Inspector Sue Duggan, reviews and inspects work in the town and, under a shared-services agreement, in the Village of Spencerport. Since August 12, 2026 residents can apply and track permits on the City Squared portal, though fees are still paid in person or by mail. Under the 2026 fee schedule a new house costs 30 cents per square foot plus a $350 certificate of occupancy fee and an $850 recreation fee.

What requires a building permit in Ogden?

The department’s rule is that permits are needed whether you hire a contractor or do the work yourself, and the town code’s exemption list is short. Chapter 117 of the Town Code has no shed exemption, and the town repealed its fence exemption in 2009, so both need permits.

The Fire Marshal runs a separate permit track for commercial kitchens and hoods, fire alarm, sprinkler and fire pump systems, private hydrants, tents, food trucks, fireworks and blasting, and makes yearly fire safety inspections of every building except single-family homes.

What the town decides and what the state holds

The state’s Uniform Code and Energy Code set the construction rules, and Ogden cannot make them stricter without Code Council approval. The Town Board sets the fee schedule, adopts the zoning chapter and laws such as the battery energy storage, pool, stormwater and flood chapters, and decides by agreement with the village that the town department serves Spencerport. Spencerport keeps its own zoning code (chapter 340) and Zoning Board of Appeals.

Ogden building department: who handles permitting

Ogden has 19,940 residents, 3,592 of them in the Village of Spencerport. Both are served by the same Building Department at Town Hall, which also staffs the town Planning Board and Zoning Board of Appeals. The difference for a village property is the rulebook: Spencerport’s zoning code sets its fence, shed and pool limits, village variances go to the Village Zoning Board of Appeals, and the department does not take credit cards for village transactions.

The handouts show how far the two rulebooks differ. In the town, a shed is anything up to 200 sq ft, may be 15 feet high and sits 5 feet from side and rear lines; larger accessory buildings may reach 24 feet but need 15-foot setbacks, and all accessory buildings together may cover up to 1% of the lot, never more than 5,000 sq ft. In Spencerport, a lot may have one Class I structure of up to 120 sq ft and one Class II structure of up to 1,000 sq ft, at 15 and 17 feet high, with 5-foot setbacks and total lot coverage capped at 25%. Village fences on corner lots need the approval of both the building inspector and the village public works superintendent, and a fence in a village nonresidential district needs a special permit from the Village Zoning Board of Appeals.

Ogden permit types and filing

You can file a residential permit on City Squared, where first-time users register with their own email address and then track review and issuance online, or email the application with drawings and a marked-up survey map to the building clerk, mail it, or bring it in. Commercial work uses the separate commercial application. Payment is cash, check or card in person (cards carry a 2.5% processor fee, and not for village transactions) or by mail; the portal does not take payments yet.

Residential permits

A new single-family house needs the application, a plot plan, a REScheck energy report, an energy loss survey, two copies of the plans with one stamped, truss certifications, stamped drawings for precast foundation walls where used, and a highway access permit for the road. After the footings are in, a certified survey confirming the basement floor elevation against the approved subdivision plan must be filed before work continues. Decks need a survey, two construction drawings with a cross section and top view, 42-inch-deep footers and proof of contractor insurance; accessory structures need an instrument survey and a structural drawing, or just a photo for a pre-built shed.

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

Commercial permits

New commercial and industrial buildings are 30 cents per square foot ($500 minimum) plus a $750 certificate of occupancy per building and a recreation fee of $1,000 plus $100 per extra dwelling unit; additions and alterations are 30 cents per square foot with a $250 minimum. A tenant change that needs no building permit still costs $150, commercial EV chargers $50 per port ($150 minimum), and signs $2 per square foot. Sprinkler and fire alarm plans follow the Fire Marshal’s submittal checklists.

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

Variances, special use permits and site plans come first. The town Zoning Board charges $125 for an area variance and $400 for a residential use variance; Planning Board concept review is $400 plus engineering fees from $500, and public hearings $400 plus engineering from $650. Lots in GCO-regulated sewer districts pay that district’s fees instead of town fees, and new connections in town districts add $1,500 per unit for infiltration and inflow. A septic lot needs a system designed by a professional and approved and inspected by the Monroe County Department of Public Health. Flood-zone work follows the town’s flood damage prevention chapter.

Ogden building permit fees

The Building Department’s 2026 Fee Schedule (final version dated January 27, 2026) prices most residential work by square foot or flat fee, and most flat fees include the certificate of compliance. Permits for work already built without one carry a 50% surcharge, and an annual renewal is 50% of the original fee.

Worked example: a new 2,000 sq ft house is 2,000 × 30 cents, or $600, plus the $350 certificate of occupancy fee and the $850 recreation fee, for $1,800, with the $1,000 driveway, grading and soil stabilization escrows held on top. A 400 sq ft addition works out to $120 and pays the $200 minimum. Village of Spencerport handouts tell applicants to ask the department for village permit fees.

Trade permits and who may pull them

Ogden has no local license for electricians, plumbers or contractors; the department inspects plumbing and heating rough-ins itself, with a plumbing wet test and sealed ductwork checked at the rough frame stage. Rough and final electrical inspections must come from an outside agency, and the accepted list differs by place: in the town, Middle Department Inspection Agency or Commonwealth Electrical Inspection Service; in the Village of Spencerport, Middle Department Inspection Agency only.

Contractors must have general liability, workers’ compensation and disability insurance on file before a permit issues. The permit page also links the utility’s RG&E appliance form and work order page for gas appliance work.

How to apply for an Ogden building permit

Review, corrections and what causes delay

Department staff review plans before issuing a permit; the deck handout warns that in busy periods even a minor project can take up to 10 business days. Missing surveys, drawings or insurance certificates hold up review, and setbacks that do not meet the handouts need a Zoning Board variance. A permit is void if work has not started within six months and expires after 12 months under chapter 117. A stop-work order costs $150.

Ogden inspections and certificates

For new homes and additions the department’s list is: footings with forms and rebar, water and sewer laterals before backfill, foundation steel before the pour, foundation with damp-proofing before backfill, rough framing with the air barrier, plumbing and heating rough-in, fireplace, insulation baffles, rough electrical by the outside agency before insulation, insulation checked against the REScheck, and a final. Decks get footing, rough framing and final inspections. The permit page asks for 48 hours’ notice and the building page and some handouts say 24; chapter 117 sets no notice period, so the longer one is the safe plan. Under chapter 117 the inspection fee is paid before or at each inspection, and a temporary certificate for early occupancy lasts no more than six months and needs any installed fire and smoke detection equipment working and every required exit in place.

A certificate of occupancy is required for all new residential and commercial construction, and its fee is paid before it is issued. Decks, sheds, fences and other smaller permits close with a certificate of compliance after the final inspection, which the deck handout makes the homeowner’s responsibility. In the town, pools need a 48-inch barrier, a self-closing gate with a latch at least 54 inches high, alarms on doors with direct access, a pool surface alarm and a filter timer; they must sit behind the front of the house, 10 feet from buildings, 20 feet from side and 15 feet from rear lot lines, and never over a septic leach field.

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

Ogden permit FAQ

Does the Town of Ogden issue permits in Spencerport?

Yes. The town Building Department serves the Village of Spencerport under an intermunicipal agreement, using the village’s zoning rules for village lots.

Do I need a permit for a shed?

Yes, for any size in the town: $50 up to 200 sq ft. Town sheds are limited to 15 feet high with 5-foot side and rear setbacks, behind the front of the house.

Do I need a permit for a fence?

Yes, in both the town and the village. Fences may be 6 feet in side and rear yards and 3 feet in front yards; in the town a front fence must be open construction.

How much is a permit for a new house?

30 cents per square foot with a $450 minimum, plus $350 for the certificate of occupancy and an $850 recreation fee, and $1,000 escrows for the driveway, grading and soil stabilization.

Can I pay online?

Not yet. The City Squared portal takes applications, but fees are paid by mail or in person.

Who does electrical inspections?

An outside agency: Middle Department Inspection Agency or Commonwealth Electrical Inspection Service in the town, and Middle Department only in Spencerport.

Is Ogden in the flood insurance program?

Yes. FEMA lists the Town of Ogden and the Village of Spencerport as participating communities, each with a current flood map dated August 28, 2008.

Ogden permit search and official resources

Applicants can follow their own applications on City Squared. The department checks whether a permit exists at no charge; archive searches, copies for closings and verification letters cost a $22 research fee, and an owner can get a copy of a permit in the department’s files for 25 cents a page. Other records go through a Freedom of Information Law request emailed to the Town Clerk, who must respond within five business days.

• Town of Ogden Building Department
• Permits and guidelines (town and village handouts)
• City Squared online permit portal
• Online permit system launch notice (August 2026)
• 2026 fee schedule
• Required inspections for new homes and additions
• Accepted electrical inspectors
• Fencing in the Town of Ogden
• Fencing in the Village of Spencerport
• Accessory structures in the town
• Pools and pool decks in the town
• Town of Ogden Code (eCode360)
• Town Clerk (FOIL requests)
• Monroe County onsite wastewater program

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