East Greenwich, Rhode Island Building Permit Guide

The East Greenwich Building Department, part of the Department of Public Works at 111 Peirce Street (lower level), issues building, electrical, plumbing and mechanical permits, and applications are filed with electronic plans through the town’s OpenGov e-permitting portal. Fees follow the state’s schedule for East Greenwich — $17 per $1,000 of value up to $10,000, with a $65 minimum — and a town impact fee is charged for each new bedroom before the certificate of occupancy. Work in the Coastal Resources Management Council’s jurisdiction also needs a CRMC assent.

What requires a building permit in East Greenwich?

East Greenwich enforces the Rhode Island State Building Code, which Code Chapter 38 makes the town’s building code. The Building Department lists the work that typically needs a permit:

What East Greenwich handles, and what stays with the state

Inside Public Works, the Building Official issues the building and trade permits, manages the floodplain overlay and decides whether land disturbance needs a stormwater pollution prevention plan under Code Chapter 207, while the Director of Public Works issues sewer connection permits under Chapter 197. The Planning Department runs zoning, development and subdivision review and historic district review, and the portal’s Engineering Permits section takes the soil erosion (Phase II stormwater) application.

The state keeps coastal assents at CRMC and septic and freshwater wetlands permits at RIDEM; in the flood overlay, development a building permit does not cover is permitted by those agencies. Fire review is built into the town’s online forms: the portal notes that the Fire Plan and Fire Alarm permits a project needs are included in the construction permit, through a Fire Plan Review from the Fire Marshal on building and mechanical applications and a Fire Alarm Review from the Fire Department on electrical ones.

East Greenwich building department: who handles permitting

The Building Department, which sits within the Department of Public Works, issues East Greenwich’s building and trade permits and inspects the work. James Tavarozzi is the Building Official, and his office is also responsible for floodplain management. Zoning and land development are handled by the Planning Department in the same building, whose Town Planner also serves as Zoning Official.

East Greenwich permit types and checklists

Building, electrical, plumbing and mechanical permits are applied for in the town’s OpenGov e-permitting portal, with the plans uploaded electronically. Its Construction Permits section has six forms: EG Building, EG Solar, EG Moving or Demolition, EG Mechanical, EG Electrical and EG Plumbing. The Building Department publishes four submittal checklists, each revised December 1, 2025, and the department can ask for more information or for plans stamped by an architect or engineer:

• Residential Building Permit Checklist for one- and two-family buildings, accessory structures, remodeling and additions.
• Residential Sheds and Decks Checklist. Sheds over 200 sq ft need a code-compliant foundation or footings; sheds of 200 sq ft or less may sit on blocks but must be securely anchored.
• Residential Swimming Pool and Spas Checklist, built on the 2021 International Swimming Pool and Spa Code with Rhode Island amendments.
• Commercial Building Checklist. Incomplete commercial applications are not accepted, and missing documents cause rejection.

Residential permits

A new house, an addition or a remodel uses the EG Building Permit with the residential checklist, and solar systems have their own form. A house or addition that adds bedrooms also pays the per-bedroom impact fee before the certificate of occupancy.

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

Commercial permits

Commercial buildings and changes of use go on the same building form with the commercial checklist, every plan stamped, and the fire review attached. Development and subdivision review and historic district review are filed in the portal’s Planning & Zoning section, and hot work and tent or event permits in its Fire Safety Inspections section.

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

East Greenwich permit costs and fees

Code Chapter 38 says the building permit fee schedule and the electrical, plumbing and mechanical fee schedules are “determined by the State of Rhode Island”. The state’s schedule for East Greenwich in 510-RICR-00-00-21 (amended effective December 10, 2023) is:

A $40,000 kitchen remodel, for example, comes to $170 plus 30 × $15, or $620. The town’s schedule does not include the state levy, which adds 0.1% of the construction cost to each permit, up to $50 per permit for a one- or two-family dwelling.

Impact fees: under Code Chapter 93, new residential development pays a development impact fee per bedroom, and an alteration that adds bedrooms pays on the added ones; the fee is set in the code at $1,790 ($1,600 in the PD and MUPD zones) and adjusted every year by the Engineering News Record construction cost index, so the current figure differs from the code amount. It is paid before the certificate of occupancy. Remodeling that adds no bedrooms, accessory buildings without bedrooms and qualifying affordable housing are exempt.

Historic properties: for reconstruction, replacement, renovation or restoration of existing structures in the Historic Districts, or of existing historic structures, the Building Official waives the building and trade permit fees, up to $750 per property. The permit and the historic district review are still required.

Electrical, plumbing and mechanical permits

The Building Department issues trade permits, on fee schedules the town code says are determined by the State. All electrical and all plumbing installations or modifications need a permit, as do HVAC systems. On commercial jobs the trade permits carry the fire protection plans: sprinkler and kitchen hood suppression plans go with a mechanical permit application, and fire alarm plans with an electrical permit application, alongside stamped mechanical, electrical and plumbing drawings.

Alliance handles electrical permits for contractors here. More on this: who pulls the electrical permit.

Who may pull them

Electricians, plumbers and mechanical contractors must hold the matching Rhode Island licence, and contractors must be registered with the state Contractors’ Registration and Licensing Board; the Building Department links to both state licence look-ups. A sewer connection permit is applied for by the owner, the owner’s attorney, an underground utility contractor or a master plumber; a licensed contractor files it in the owner’s name with the owner’s signature and a location plan stamped by a Rhode Island registered engineer or land surveyor.

Application documents

The town code also asks for a site plan showing the maximum groundwater elevation from the septic design, the depth of the foundation, any wetlands and a bench mark, plus a grading plan whenever the first floor, driveway or garage floor sits below the street.

How to apply for an East Greenwich building permit

Review, corrections and what causes delay

The commercial checklist is blunt: the office will not accept an incomplete application, and any missing document causes the permit application to be rejected. Earlier in the process, a project that needs zoning, planning or historic district approval must have it before the building permit file is complete.

Site work can add a plan of its own. Under Chapter 207 the Building Official decides whether land disturbance needs a stormwater pollution prevention plan, prepared by a registered engineer, landscape architect or certified erosion specialist and filed in seven copies. A house addition covering less than 1,000 sq ft, more than 100 feet from any watercourse or coastal feature and on slopes of 10% or less, needs no determination. For a sewer connection, the Director of Public Works needs 48 hours’ notice before a street is opened and 24 hours’ notice before the connection is inspected.

Inspections and close-out in East Greenwich

The Building Official and building inspector handle inspections; the department can be reached at 401-886-8620. Each reinspection costs $55 under the town code. Before a new house is closed out, the residential checklist requires a foundation as-built plan (Class I, by a registered land surveyor or engineer), the OWTS Certificate of Conformance where there is a septic system, water test approval, and certified blower door and duct test results that meet the code.

Local details that matter in East Greenwich

Flood zones: Code Chapter 113 makes the special flood hazard areas on the Kent County flood maps — zones A, AE, AH, AO, A99, V and VE — a floodplain overlay district. FEMA lists East Greenwich as a participating community with a current effective map date of October 2, 2015. Every kind of “development” there needs a permit, including filling, grading and excavation; work that a building permit does not cover is permitted by CRMC or RIDEM, and the town must see evidence of every other required permit before it issues its own.

Coast: work on the shoreline and within the Coastal Resources Management Council’s jurisdiction needs a CRMC assent in addition to the town permit.

Historic Districts: the Historic District Commission reviews work under the zoning ordinance’s historic district article, and the Planning Department publishes Standards and Guidelines for Historic Properties.

Permit search and records

The town’s OpenGov portal, titled Online Permits & Business Licensing, has a public “Search for Records” tool and a “Claim a Record” option for attaching an existing application to your account.

Rhode Island building code

The town’s checklists cite the 2025 Rhode Island State Building Code — SBC-1 for commercial buildings and SBC-2 for one- and two-family dwellings, based on the 2021 International Codes and in force since December 1, 2025 — and the 2024 energy code.

Rhode Island has one state building code, kept by the State Building Code Office and enforced by each city or town’s building official; there is no county layer, and appeals go first to the town’s board of appeals, then to the state Building Code Board of Standards and Appeals. Rhode Island rules

East Greenwich building permit FAQ

Who issues building permits in East Greenwich?

The Building Department within Public Works at 111 Peirce Street, Lower Level (401-886-8618). James Tavarozzi is the Building Official.

How much is a building permit in East Greenwich?

$17 per $1,000 of value up to $10,000, $170 plus $15 per $1,000 up to $50,000, and $770 plus $13 per $1,000 above that, with a $65 minimum. A $40,000 project is $620 before the state levy.

Is there an impact fee for adding a bedroom?

Yes. Added bedrooms pay the town’s development impact fee, set at $1,790 per bedroom in the code ($1,600 in the PD and MUPD zones) and adjusted each year, before the certificate of occupancy.

Do I need a permit for a shed?

Yes, for any shed over 64 sq ft, and zoning approval is required. Sheds over 200 sq ft also need a code-compliant foundation or footings.

What is the late filing fee?

$275 or 50% of the required permit fee, whichever is greater, under Code Chapter 38.

Do I need CRMC approval?

For work within the Coastal Resources Management Council’s jurisdiction on the shoreline, yes, in addition to the town permit.

Are permit fees waived for historic houses?

For reconstruction, renovation or restoration of existing structures in the Historic Districts or existing historic structures, up to $750 per property, but the permit and historic review still apply.

East Greenwich permit search and official resources

• East Greenwich Building Permits & Information
• East Greenwich OpenGov e-permitting portal
• Residential building permit checklist (Dec. 2025)
• Commercial building checklist (Dec. 2025)
• Residential sheds and decks checklist
• Residential swimming pool and spa checklist
• East Greenwich Planning Department
• East Greenwich Code Chapter 38, Building Construction
• East Greenwich Code Chapter 93, Fees and impact fees
• East Greenwich Code Chapter 113, Flood Hazard Areas
• East Greenwich FEMA flood maps
• 510-RICR-00-00-21, statewide building permit fee schedules
• RI Building Code Commission: laws, rules and regulations
• Coastal Resources Management Council
• RIDEM septic (OWTS) permitting
• RIDEM freshwater wetlands permitting
• RI Contractors’ Registration and Licensing Board
• FEMA Community Status Book, Rhode Island
• East Greenwich online construction permit forms
• East Greenwich Code Chapter 197, Sewers
• East Greenwich Code Chapter 207, Stormwater Pollution Prevention

Simplify East Greenwich permitting with Alliance Permitting

Alliance Permitting is a permit documentation and submission company in Rhode Island. 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 East Greenwich permitting. Requirements, fees, and procedures change; confirm details with the permitting authority before relying on them.