Kelso, Washington Building Permit Guide

The City of Kelso’s Building & Planning office issues permits for all new construction inside the city limits, reviews plans for compliance with the building, plumbing and mechanical codes and inspects the work. You can apply in person at Kelso City Hall or online through the City’s PermitTrax portal, and the City says approval usually takes about three to five weeks. Kelso does not sell electrical permits or perform electrical inspections; those come from the state Department of Labor and Industries (L&I), whose regional office is in Kelso itself, at 711 Vine Street.

Building & Planning is at Kelso City Hall, 203 South Pacific Avenue (P.O. Box 819), open Monday to Thursday from 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., with the permit counter closing at 5 p.m. The office line is 360-423-9922 (the permit specialist is extension 3324 and the Building and Planning Services Manager extension 3321), and staff aim to return calls within one business day. Kelso had 12,801 residents in the Census estimate for 2025; Cowlitz County Building & Planning permits the unincorporated land around it.

What requires a building permit in Kelso?

The City says permits are required for most construction and asks anyone who thinks a project is exempt to contact the building department before starting. Kelso has not amended the residential code’s exemptions in Kelso Municipal Code (KMC) chapter 17.48, but its own handouts send several exempt-sized jobs through a planning permit instead.

Two common jobs need a planning permit even when no building permit applies. A one-story shed under 200 sq ft needs a planning permit so the City can check setbacks, typically 20 feet from the front line, 5 feet from the side (7 feet on a corner lot) and 5 feet from the rear. Every fence needs a planning permit: residential fences may be 42 inches tall in the front setback and 6 feet elsewhere, barbed and razor wire are not allowed, and sight-obscuring fences are kept out of corner sight triangles. Shipping containers may not be placed in residential neighborhoods.

What the city decides and what the state holds

KMC chapter 17.48 (Ordinances 4008 and 4009 of 2024) adopts the 2021 International Building Code with its flood, sign and grading appendices, the 2021 International Residential Code with the manufactured housing appendix, the 2021 Mechanical, Fire and Wildland-Urban Interface codes, the Uniform Plumbing Code, the 2021 Washington State Energy Code and the International Property Maintenance Code. Kelso’s local choices are its grading rules, a hearing examiner in place of a board of appeals, its design values (20 psf ground snow, 95 mph wind, seismic category D1, 12-inch frost depth) and its fee schedule.

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

Kelso building department: who handles permitting

Building & Planning combines plan review, inspections, zoning and right-of-way questions; the City asks applicants to call 360-423-9922 with any building, planning or right-of-way question. Fire and life safety permits, such as small fire sprinkler systems, are issued on the City’s Building and Fire / Life Safety Master Application.

Permit types

Residential permits

Residential applications use the Building and Fire / Life Safety Master Application with the City’s residential building plan requirements and site plan requirements, and the City publishes example site plans and handouts for decks, driveways, fences, sheds, stairs and guardrails, and siding, windows and roofing. Houses that meet the code’s prescriptive rules can be built without an architect or engineer, and the City links the Southwest Washington ICC example plans for basic residential projects.

Exterior work is closely inspected. A siding job is inspected when installation starts, to confirm the water-resistive barrier and the manufacturer’s fastening, and again at the end for caulking and flashing. A window permit needs plans showing every window’s size, type and operation and where safety glazing is required, plus structural details for new headers, and gets framing and final inspections. A roof is inspected at the start for underlayment and flashing and again at the end.

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

Commercial permits

Commercial projects use the commercial building plan requirements, and new commercial buildings or additions over 4,000 sq ft, and multifamily buildings of more than four units, must be designed by an architect. Plan review for permits under the International Building Code, which covers commercial buildings, is 70% of the permit fee, compared with 65% for residential code permits. Fire sprinkler systems of 10 heads or fewer use the City’s fire sprinkler affidavit ($156).

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

Pre-application conferences are free. Depending on the site, a project may need a residential site plan review ($65), SEPA review ($500), a shoreline exemption ($115) or substantial development permit ($1,000), a critical areas permit ($250 per critical area), or a floodplain development permit ($250); the building code’s flood-resistant construction appendix applies in mapped flood areas. Grading needs a permit unless it is one of KMC 17.48’s exemptions, such as an excavation under 2 feet deep, or a cut or fill of 50 cubic yards or less that meets the slope and depth limits; grading over 5,000 cubic yards must be engineered. Sewer and water connections need their own permits, and a septic system or private water supply is approved by the Cowlitz County Environmental Health Unit.

Kelso permit costs and fees

Building fees are in Schedule D of the City’s Master Fee Schedule. The posted schedule prints no date, but the council minutes trace it: Resolution 24-1287, passed on January 2, 2024, set the current Schedule D building table, and the council’s March 17, 2026 resolution restating the whole schedule changed only animal control, police and water and sewer fees. Plan review fees are separate from and in addition to the permit fee, and are paid when plans are submitted. The schedule states the state fee this way: “For Each Building Permit: $6.50”, “For Residential Multi-Unit Structures: $6.50 for each permit issued PLUS $2.00 per Dwelling Unit after the first” and “Projects permitted under the IBC or IEBC: $25.00”.

For houses the City sets valuation per square foot: $94 for a new house or duplex, $75 for an addition, $36 for a garage, $15 for a carport, patio cover or wood deck, $25 for a covered deck, $24 for a pole building, and $10 for a small storage shed of up to 200 sq ft; fences over 7 feet carry a $500 minimum value. These are values used to figure the fee, not fees. The bands of the fee table do not chain, so each value is priced inside its own band.

Worked example. A 2,000 sq ft new house is valued at 2,000 × $94 = $188,000, in the $100,001 to $500,000 band: $1,310 plus 88 × $7.60 ($668.80) gives a permit fee of $1,978.80. Residential plan review at 65% adds $1,286.22 and the state fee $6.50, for $3,271.52 before mechanical, plumbing and L&I electrical permits.

Trade permits and who may pull them

Mechanical and plumbing permits can be combined with the building permit or issued separately, at $28 each plus unit fees. The City states plainly that it does not sell electrical permits or perform electrical inspections: Kelso is not on L&I’s list of cities with their own electrical program, so all electrical permits and inspections go through L&I. How state contractor registration and trade certificates work is covered in the licensing section of our Washington guide.

How to apply for a Kelso building permit

Review, corrections and what causes delay

The City puts typical approval at three to five weeks, longer for complex projects and busy seasons. Changes after submittal are billed at $65 an hour, and work started before a permit is issued pays double. A permit expires if work does not start within 180 days of issuance or if no inspection is requested for 180 days; a written extension request can keep it alive, and an extension costs half the original permit fee.

Inspections in Kelso

Schedule inspections in the PermitTrax portal: find the permit by number or address, open it and use its inspection section. The FAQ also lists the inspection request line, 360-577-3320. Inspections take place Monday to Thursday from 10 a.m. to noon, with none on Fridays; requests received by 4:30 p.m. are done the next day, and final inspections need 48 hours’ notice. The portal shows the week’s scheduled inspections and the results.

Typical inspections for a house are the water line, sewer line, footings, foundation wall, underfloor, shear wall, rough-in plumbing and mechanical, framing, insulation, sheetrock nailing and the final. A shed over 200 sq ft needs foundation, framing and final inspections, while a smaller shed or a fence needs only a final; staff will also meet owners on site for a courtesy inspection.

Kelso permit search and official resources

Anyone can see what permits were issued for an address in the PermitTrax portal by searching the street number and street name only, without the direction or street type (for example “203 Pacific”). Older records are available through the City’s public records request page. Kelso participates in the National Flood Insurance Program as community 530033; its FEMA map is dated December 16, 2015, and a City floodplain development permit costs $250.

• Kelso Building & Planning: permits, exemptions, contacts
• Kelso PermitTrax online permit center
• Inspection schedule and how to request
• Building and permit frequently asked questions
• Forms and handouts
• Master Fee Schedule (PDF)
• Residential shed requirements (PDF)
• Residential fence requirements (PDF)
• Siding, windows and roofing (PDF)
• Building and planning codes adopted
• KMC chapter 17.48, Building and Construction
• Cowlitz County Environmental Health utility review
• L&I list of cities with their own electrical permits

Kelso building permit FAQ

Who issues building permits in Kelso?

The City’s Building & Planning office at City Hall, 203 South Pacific Avenue (360-423-9922), in person or through PermitTrax.

Can I get an electrical permit from the City of Kelso?

No. Kelso does not sell electrical permits or do electrical inspections; L&I does.

Do I need a permit for a shed or fence in Kelso?

A shed over 200 sq ft or more than one story needs a building permit; a smaller shed and every fence need a planning permit to check location and height.

Do I need a permit to replace windows, siding or a roof?

Yes. Each needs a building permit, $75 under the fee schedule, with inspections at the start of the work and at the end.

How long does permit approval take?

The City says about three to five weeks, depending on the project and the time of year.

When are inspections done?

Monday to Thursday, 10 a.m. to noon. Request by 4:30 p.m. for the next day; finals need 48 hours’ notice.

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