Edgewood, Washington Building Permit Guide

The City of Edgewood’s Community and Economic Development department takes applications for building, fire, mechanical and plumbing permits, along with land use and civil permits, through the online Edgewood Permit Portal, and its Development Review team checks them against the Edgewood Municipal Code (EMC). An application is complete only when every required document is uploaded and the review fees are paid. Electrical permits and inspections belong to the Washington Department of Labor and Industries (L&I).

The front counter is at Edgewood City Hall, 10440 Dom Calata Way East, open Monday to Thursday from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., and answers 253-952-3299 and permit@cityofedgewood.org. Edgewood’s population was 13,548 in the 2025 Census estimate.

What requires a building permit in Edgewood?

Title 15 of the EMC, rewritten by Ordinance 24-660, adopts the 2021 International Building Code, International Residential Code, Washington State Energy Code and Wildland-Urban Interface Code and replaces the codes’ administrative chapter with the City’s own (chapter 15.10). Section 15.10.090 requires a separate permit for each building, structure or piece of building service equipment unless the title exempts it, and chapters 15.20 and 15.30 write Edgewood’s exemption lists in full.

What the city decides and what the state holds

The technical codes are the state’s; Edgewood’s own choices start with the exemptions, which do not apply at all on land regulated as wetlands, fish and wildlife habitat, volcanic, flood, landslide, seismic or erosion hazard areas. The City also adds the residential code appendices on radon, tiny homes and fire sprinklers, sets one-year limits for applications, writes its own inspection and occupancy rules, and requires accessory buildings in mapped wildland-urban interface areas to stand more than 50 feet from the nearest structure to stay exempt.

Washington has a mandatory statewide building code under chapter 19.27 RCW that every city and county enforces and may make stricter; electrical permits come from the Department of Labor and Industries unless the city runs its own program or Tacoma Power serves the site. Building codes in Washington

Edgewood building department: who handles permitting

The front counter in City Hall takes questions and applications, staff run a completeness check, and complete applications go to the Development Review team for planning, engineering, building and fire review. The code official issues permits and certificates of occupancy, and appeals of a revocation or suspension go to the hearing examiner. EMC 15.40.020 leaves electrical enforcement with L&I.

Permit types

Residential permits

For a house, the building permit is a combined permit: footnote 16 of the fee schedule requires mechanical and plumbing work for one- and two-family dwellings to be included in the main permit for new homes, additions and remodels. For new one- and two-family construction the schedule prices that work at 12% of the building permit fee, and repairs or replacements at $135 plus $15 a fixture. Flat permits cover re-roofing a house ($175), solar panels ($500), placing a manufactured home ($1,000), demolishing a house ($240) and a residential vehicle gate ($420). Gates fall under the City’s fire code amendments, and the fee schedule notes that new gated communities are prohibited except in limited cases under EMC 16.06.110. ADUs are priced from the valuation table and pay no more than half of the main home’s impact fees.

The City publishes target review times for its Building Division: five weeks for the first review of a new single-family house or an addition or alteration over 500 sq ft, then two weeks for each revision; fast-track projects take ten working days and express projects three. A new house in the MR or MUR zones gets a ten-week first review.

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

Commercial permits

Multifamily, commercial and other non-residential projects need separate mechanical and plumbing permits, priced from the valuation table; the City does not issue combination permits for them. New commercial, mixed-use, institutional and shell buildings have a ten-week first review, tenant improvements five weeks (ten working days on the fast track), demolitions 15 working days and signs ten. New construction and additions that create floor area also pay a fire code review fee, from $160 for work up to $50,000 to $300 between $50,000 and $300,000 and more above that.

Commercial sites face construction-site standards that houses do not (EMC 15.10.280): except for a single detached one- or two-family dwelling, a work site must be enclosed by a continuous fence at least 6 feet high, anchored against a 30 psf wind load and covered full height in fabric mesh that holds dust and dirt, with one truck gate that may stay open only while crews are working. Energy code review for non-residential work is priced on value, from $150 up to $20,000 of value to a cap of $1,150, and a commercial demolition permit is $400.

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

The City asks applicants to start on its GIS map with the zoning, critical areas and water purveyor layers. Critical areas (wetlands, fish and wildlife habitat, volcanic, flood, landslide, seismic and erosion hazard areas) are regulated in EMC Title 14, and work inside them loses the building permit exemptions and may need critical areas review first. Land use decisions, SEPA, grading and right-of-way work have their own permits, and a pre-application conference costs $500 for a written comment letter or $650 for a one-hour meeting with staff.

Edgewood permit costs and fees

The City Council adopted a new fee schedule with Ordinance 26-0713 on July 14, 2026, effective July 22, 2026. Review fees are due when you apply and the rest at issuance; review fees cover up to two reviews and inspection fees up to two inspections per required inspection, with anything beyond billed at the $160 hourly staff rate. The schedule lists the state fee in its own words as “State Building Code Council Fees”.

Worked example. Ordinance 26-0713 prices a $60,000 house remodel at $1,266: the $1,146 base for $50,000 plus $120 for the next ten thousands. Plan review (65%) is $822.90, energy code review $150 and the state fee $6.50, so the total is $2,245.40 before any mechanical or plumbing charges.

New homes also pay impact fees. School fees go straight to the Fife, Puyallup or Sumner-Bonney Lake school district, with the receipt shown before issuance: $3,063 for a house with up to two bedrooms or $4,595 with three or more. The park fee is $1.433 per sq ft of living space, between $1,295.29 and $3,325.15, and the 2026 traffic impact fee is $12,426 per new PM peak-hour trip plus $250 per unit. Low-income housing can ask for an exemption from all three.

Trade permits and who may pull them

Mechanical and plumbing permits are Edgewood permits, folded into the building permit for new homes, additions and remodels and issued separately for everything else. Electrical work is L&I’s under EMC 15.40.020, and the fee schedule sends electrical applicants to L&I; Edgewood is not on L&I’s list of cities with their own programs and sits outside Tacoma Power’s service area map.

How to apply for an Edgewood building permit

Review, corrections and what causes delay

A fully complete building permit application vests under EMC 15.10.200: it is reviewed under the building and zoning rules in force on the day it was complete, although the City can still condition or deny it under the State Environmental Policy Act. Approved plans are binding, and any later change is reviewed the same way as a new application (EMC 15.10.310); a revision to an issued permit adds a $120 administrative fee for a one- or two-family dwelling, or $240 for other buildings, plus hourly review.

Under EMC 15.10.240, an application expires if no permit is issued within one year of the complete application. The code official may grant one 90-day extension when asked in writing at least 10 business days before expiry, and may cancel an application if the applicant does not answer a written request for corrections within 90 days. Longer extensions are possible only while SEPA review, a related project permit review or litigation is in progress.

Inspections in Edgewood

Request inspections through the Edgewood Permit Portal by 4 p.m. one business day before the day you want. Approved plans must be on site, the work must be accessible and complete, and anything not ready means a reinspection, which must be paid before a new inspection is booked. L&I inspects the electrical work.

A permit expires if work does not start within 180 days of issuance or stops for 180 days, and the code official may grant one extension of up to 180 days on a written request made 10 business days before expiry. For one- and two-family dwellings and their accessory structures, the approved final on the inspection record serves as the certificate of occupancy.

Edgewood permit search and official resources

Applicants follow review status and corrections in the Edgewood Permit Portal, and the City’s public records request page covers older permit files. Edgewood takes part in the National Flood Insurance Program; its current FEMA flood maps date from March 7, 2017.

• Edgewood: how to apply for a permit
• Edgewood Permit Portal
• Permit forms and checklists
• Fee schedule, Ordinance 26-0713, effective July 22, 2026 (PDF)
• Building Division review timelines (PDF)
• Edgewood Municipal Code, Title 15
• L&I list of cities with their own electrical permits

Edgewood building permit FAQ

How much is a permit for a $60,000 remodel?

$1,266 for the building permit, $822.90 for plan review, $150 for energy review and $6.50 in state fees under the July 2026 schedule.

Do I need a permit for a shed?

Not for a shed up to 10 feet tall and 200 sq ft, or 120 sq ft on a lot under half an acre, that meets setbacks and is outside critical areas.

Do I need a permit for a fence?

Only above 6 feet, and the fence must still meet the City’s fence standards and sight-line rules.

How long does review take?

The City targets five weeks for the first review of a new house and two weeks for each revision.

Are mechanical and plumbing separate permits for a house?

No. For new homes, additions and remodels they are part of the building permit; for a new house the charge is 12% of the building permit fee.

Who issues electrical permits in Edgewood?

L&I, under EMC 15.40.020.

What happens if I build without a permit?

Under EMC 3.35.090 the City may charge double the land use and construction permit fees, with a $500 minimum, plus an hourly fee for inspecting the unauthorized work and, in critical areas, an investigation fee.

When is City Hall open?

Monday to Thursday, 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., at 10440 Dom Calata Way East.

Simplify Edgewood permitting with Alliance Permitting

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