Inside Riverton, the City’s Building Department issues building, electrical, plumbing and mechanical permits. You email the Building Permit Application with digital plans and engineering to building@rivertonutah.gov; permit fees follow the City’s modified 1994 UBC fee table (for example $2,815 for a $400,000 project), and a new house adds a 45% plan check fee.
What requires a building permit in Riverton?
Riverton requires a permit to build, enlarge, alter, repair, move, demolish or change the occupancy of a building, and to install or change any electrical, gas, mechanical or plumbing system. Working without one is a class B misdemeanor.
Permit required
- New homes, additions and remodels
- Basement finishes and basement walkouts
- Garages, carports, covered patios and decks
- Swimming pools
- Solar systems
- Re-roofs and demolition
- Retaining walls over 4 feet
- Commercial buildings, shells, tenant finishes and remodels
- Any plumbing, electrical or gas line, including in a shed
No building permit
- One-story sheds, playhouses and similar buildings up to 200 sq ft and 16 feet tall (setbacks still apply)
- Retaining walls up to 4 feet, measured from the bottom of the footing, unless holding a surcharge
- Fences up to 6 feet
Signs are permitted by Planning and Zoning, not the Building Department.
Who issues building permits in Riverton?
The Riverton City Building Department reviews plans, issues permits and inspects construction for property inside the city. Mark Smith is the Chief Building Official and takes commercial questions (801-208-3111); residential questions go to the Assistant Building Official (801-208-3123). Planning and Zoning answers questions on building size, height, setbacks and easements (801-208-3149). Fire sprinkler inspections are done by the Unified Fire Authority fire marshal. Neighboring cities run their own permit offices, and unincorporated Salt Lake County is served by the Greater Salt Lake Municipal Services District.
Short on time to read all of this?
Get a free quote →| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Office | Riverton City Hall, Room 105, 12830 S Redwood Road, Riverton, UT 84065 |
| Phone | 801-208-3138 (fax 801-254-6496) |
| building@rivertonutah.gov | |
| Hours | Monday–Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. |
| Stormwater (land disturbance permits) | stormwater@rivertonutah.gov, 801-208-3103 |
| Engineering | 801-208-3147 |
Riverton applications and forms
Riverton does not use a permit portal for building work. Fill in the fillable Building Permit Application and email it, with plans, engineering documents and specifications in digital form, to building@rivertonutah.gov. The application covers residential work (new home, basement finish, garage, shed, pool, addition, remodel, deck or patio, solar) and commercial work (new building, shell, tenant finish, remodel), and asks for the project valuation, construction and occupancy type, and the licence numbers of the general, electrical, mechanical and plumbing contractors.
- Owner/Builder Certification: owners acting as their own general contractor declare, trade by trade, who does the work (a contractor or “owner”). Owner-builder is not allowed on commercial projects.
- Land Disturbance Permit: issued by the Stormwater Division and required before a new construction permit is approved, including accessory structures, additions, in-ground pools and spas, and walkouts. The residential fee is $25.
- Demolition: a building permit application plus disconnect letters from Rocky Mountain Power, Enbridge Gas, Riverton City Water and Jordan Basin Improvement District, an asbestos and lead letter from the Utah Division of Air Quality, and the county health department’s pre-demolition letter.
Riverton building permit fees
Fees come from Riverton’s adopted Fee Schedule for fiscal year 2026-27. Building permit fees use the City’s modified 1994 UBC Table 1-A, applied to a valuation from the current ICC valuation tables (or the per-square-foot values the schedule sets for basements, decks and patios). Above $100,000 the table becomes a formula:
Not sure this scope needs a permit?
Get a free quote →| Project | Fee |
|---|---|
| Valuation up to $100,000 | Table in $1,000 steps, from $43 up to $1,075 |
| Valuation $100,000–$500,000 | $1,075 + $5.80 per $1,000 over $100,000 |
| Valuation $500,000–$1,000,000 | $3,354 + $4.94 per $1,000 over $500,000 |
| Valuation over $1,000,000 | $5,824 + $3.80 per $1,000 over $1,000,000 |
| Plan check, single-family house | 45% of the building permit fee |
| Plan check, multi-family and non-residential | 65% of the building permit fee |
| Repeat floor plan after first review | 15% of the building permit fee |
| Plan check, basement finish or accessory structure | $25 |
| Re-roof, demolition or temporary power | $50 each |
| Solar permit (plus $100 plan check) | $175 |
| Basement walkout or retaining wall over 4 ft | $175 |
| Re-inspection | $50 |
| Further review of revised plans (all departments) | $100 |
For a house valued at $400,000, the permit fee is $1,075 + 300 × $5.80 = $2,815 and the plan check fee is $1,266.75. A finished basement is valued at $35 per sq ft, so a 900 sq ft basement finish ($31,500) falls in the $31,000–$32,000 row of the table: a $499 permit fee plus the $25 plan check.
New homes also pay City impact fees: $4,234.02 for parks, $2,653.36 for roads, $1,426.06 for culinary water and $355.38 for fire per single-family dwelling. Storm drain impact fees are charged per acre ($3,071.67 east of Bangerter Highway, $4,604.81 west).
Rather talk it over?
Call 1-855-478-4290 →Electrical, plumbing, mechanical and fire work
The Building Department permits and inspects electrical, plumbing, mechanical and gas work, and it is listed on the same Building Permit Application. Even a shed small enough to skip a building permit needs one for any plumbing, electrical or gas line. Fire sprinkler piping is inspected by the Unified Fire Authority fire marshal once it is installed and tested. For sewer connections and lines, the City’s inspection sheet sends builders to the sewer district at 801-571-1166 (the district its demolition list calls Jordan Basin Improvement District).
Plans and documents
- A lot-specific soils (geotechnical) report for every new single-family home and commercial building
- Plans, engineering documents and specifications, all in digital form
- For accessory structures: a site plan with lot dimensions and buildings, a floor plan with footings, slabs, joists, rafters and headers, and sections or elevations showing the foundation, materials and construction
- For a basement finish: a basic plan labeling each room and its use, the electrical layout including any sub-panel, and doors, windows, furnace and water heater
- Truss specifications, energy compliance (REScheck) and Manual J and D calculations, which must also be on site for inspections
The City’s design criteria, effective July 1, 2026, are seismic zone D, a 105 mph wind speed at Exposure C, a 30-inch frost depth and ice barrier underlayment 24 inches inside the wall line; snow loads come from Utah State University’s snow load site.
How to get a Riverton building permit
Confirm setbacks and any public utility easement with Planning and Zoning; nothing can be built in an easement without utility releases.
New homes and commercial buildings need a lot-specific geotechnical report.
Send it to stormwater@rivertonutah.gov; new construction cannot be approved without it.
Send the completed application, plans and engineering to building@rivertonutah.gov, with the owner-builder form if it applies.
Pay the assessed permit, plan check and impact fees before work starts.
Call for each inspection and collect the sign-offs on the Certificate of Occupancy checklist.
Rather not deal with the building department?
Get a free quote →Riverton inspections
Call 801-208-3138 one working day ahead, before 1:00 p.m., with your permit number. The City’s required-inspections sheet lists temporary power, footing, foundation, underground plumbing, electrical, mechanical and gas, the rough 4-way (plumbing, electrical, mechanical, framing and gas), power to panel, fire sprinklers, insulation, weather barrier, ceiling grid and final. The final covers grading, concrete, the address and any required landscaping, and needs Engineering and land disturbance permit approval. Each re-inspection is $50.
For a new house, the Building Official marks the needed sign-offs on the Certificate of Occupancy Residential Checklist: Building, Engineering, water inspection and meter set, land disturbance and SWPPP, and Planning. Each office signs off in the City’s permitting software, and the certificate is issued only after the Building Official receives every electronic approval.
Local Riverton details
Setbacks: in single-family zones, houses sit 8 and 10 feet from the side lot lines (10 feet on the garage side), typically 15 feet from the front to the house and 25 feet to the garage, and 25 feet from the rear. Setbacks are measured from the foundation.
Accessory buildings: the house and detached accessory buildings together may cover no more than 40% of the lot, and accessory buildings no more than 10%. They are limited to 20 feet in height, or 25 feet on lots of at least 10,000 sq ft if set 15 feet from lot lines. Materials must match the house, and buildings over 1,200 sq ft need masonry on at least 20% of the front walls.
Private rules: the City reminds owners that HOA or architectural committee approvals are their own responsibility.
Permit reports: the Building Department posts a monthly report of the permits it has issued.
Want this handled start to finish?
Get a free quote →Utah building code
Utah adopts one construction code for the whole state; cities and counties enforce it, and any local amendments are set by the Legislature. Utah rules
Official Riverton permitting resources
- Riverton Building Inspections & Permits
- Riverton applications, permits and inspections required
- Riverton Building Permit Application
- Riverton Owner/Builder Certification form
- Riverton required inspections
- Riverton Adopted Fee Schedule, fiscal year 2026-27
- Riverton modified building fee table
- Riverton building codes and design criteria
- Riverton accessory structure requirements
- Riverton residential basement requirements
- Riverton Certificate of Occupancy residential checklist
- Riverton monthly issued building permit report
Inspections are where schedules slip.
Get a free quote →Riverton building permit FAQs
Who issues building permits in Riverton?
The Riverton City Building Department at City Hall, Room 105, 12830 S Redwood Road (801-208-3138, building@rivertonutah.gov). Mark Smith is the Chief Building Official.
How much is a building permit in Riverton?
It comes from the City’s fee table. A project valued at $400,000 pays $2,815, and a new house adds a 45% plan check fee plus impact fees.
How do I apply?
Email the Building Permit Application with digital plans, engineering and specifications to building@rivertonutah.gov.
Do I need a permit for a shed or fence?
Not for a one-story shed up to 200 sq ft and 16 feet tall, or a fence up to 6 feet. Any electrical, plumbing or gas line in a shed needs a permit.
How much is a re-roof permit?
$50 under the fiscal year 2026-27 schedule.
When must I call for an inspection?
Before 1:00 p.m. on the working day before, at 801-208-3138.
Can a homeowner pull a permit?
Yes, for residential work, using the Owner/Builder Certification. It cannot be used on commercial projects.
Simplify Riverton permitting with Alliance Permitting
Alliance Permitting is a permit documentation and submission company in Utah. 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.
Ready to break ground in Riverton sooner?
Let Alliance prepare, file, and track your Riverton permits while your crew stays on the job.
More Utah permitting guides
This guide is provided by Alliance Permitting for general information about Riverton permitting. Requirements, fees, and procedures change; confirm details with the permitting authority before relying on them.