Kittitas County, Washington Building Permit Guide

Outside city limits, Kittitas County Community Development Services (CDS) issues building, mechanical, plumbing and fire permits from 411 N Ruby Street in Ellensburg. Before an application goes in, the lot needs an approved Preliminary Site Analysis and a water supply answer, and snow loads are set site by site by the building official. As of October 26, 2026, CDS quoted about nine weeks for a full plan review.

What requires a building permit in Kittitas County?

CDS asks for a permit before anyone builds, enlarges, alters, repairs, moves or demolishes a building, changes its use, or installs or changes gas, mechanical or plumbing systems. Its permit list runs from new buildings through manufactured and modular home placement, fireplaces and woodstoves, re-roofs, pools and hot tubs, fences over 7 feet, relocations, fire damage repair, changes of occupancy, fire sprinklers and alarms, fuel tanks, gas piping and conversions, and signs.

Kittitas County counts shed area to the outside of walls or posts, plus any roof overhang deeper than 24 inches and roof space higher than 36 inches; two buildings closer than 10 feet are treated as one. Exempt buildings still have to meet setbacks, the critical areas code and the flood damage prevention chapter. That is the adopted text of KCC 14.04; the CDS permits page words the shed exemption more narrowly, as at least 10 feet from any other structure and not in a floodway.

What the county decides and what the state holds

Kittitas County Code Title 14, last updated by Ordinance 2025-001 on January 7, 2025, adopts the current state codes, which CDS lists as the 2021 editions in force since March 15, 2024, plus the Wildland-Urban Interface and pool and spa codes. CDS says it is weighing what Initiative 2066 means for the codes and will keep enforcing the adopted state codes until the State Building Code Council or the courts say otherwise. Local choices are mostly about climate: snow load is site-specific and set by the building official, and a Washington-licensed architect or engineer must prepare the plans for any house above a 70 psf ground snow load and any commercial building above 50 psf. Electrical work, and any alteration to a manufactured home, goes to the Department of Labor and Industries instead.

Kittitas County building department: who handles permitting

CDS combines the building division, planning, code enforcement and the county fire marshal. Public Works handles access, address, stormwater, water metering and floodplain permits, and the Public Health Department’s environmental health staff handle septic systems, wells and water supply determinations.

The cities

CDS works in the unincorporated county only. Shoreline rules show how the jurisdictions separated: Ellensburg, Cle Elum and South Cle Elum used the county Shoreline Master Program from 1975 until a 2011 interlocal agreement led each to write its own. Each city now handles permits inside its own limits:

Permit types and what comes first

Residential permits

Houses, additions and outbuildings start with the General Building Application, the Residential Submittal Checklist and a Unified Site Plan, uploaded electronically. A Design Criteria and Snow Load Request gives the loads for the exact site, and a Foundation Only Application has its own two-week review. Manufactured homes have their own checklist and an installation manual declaration; homes in a wildland-urban interface area must also meet that code. The county also keeps a Building Plans Pre-Approval Policy and a list of qualified pre-approval consultants.

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

Commercial permits

Commercial submittals follow bulletin B-005 and add a code summary worksheet, an intended use form, a special inspection agreement, any deferred submittal agreement and a pre-construction meeting (B-015). A licensed architect or engineer must prepare plans for any building over 4,000 sq ft, except homes of up to four units and their accessory garages, sheds and barns. Fire and life safety permits come from the county fire marshal inside CDS.

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

What comes before the building permit

• Parcel basics: the lot must have a parcel number and address, and an approved Preliminary Site Analysis ($160) goes in with the plans.
• Water: an Adequate Water Supply Determination comes first; mitigation and metering are handled by Public Works.
• Critical areas: the new Critical Areas Ordinance took effect July 1, 2025; a critical areas determination is $340.
• Shorelines: the county Shoreline Master Program, approved by Ecology in 2016 and reviewed in 2021, governs work near regulated waters; a shoreline exemption is $600 and a substantial development permit $2,380.
• Floodplain: Public Works issues a floodplain development permit before any work in the 100-year floodplain, and FEMA flood maps updated on September 24, 2021 apply.
• Airport: in the Bowers Field overlay, the airport director must approve the project before you apply.
• Data centers: the county’s emergency moratorium on data centers, first imposed in August 2026, was extended for another six months by a resolution the commissioners approved 3-0 after a hearing on September 15, 2026; the minutes do not give the new end date, so ask CDS.
• Septic: environmental health must approve the septic system; see the trades section.

Kittitas County building permit fees

The CDS fees page still carries the “2023 Fees” adopted by the commissioners in Resolution 2023-028 on February 21, 2023. New construction is charged by valuation from the August 2022 ICC Building Valuation Data multiplied by 0.0068, with a 5 percent technology and equipment surcharge on building permits; most other work has a flat fee.

Worked example: a new building valued at $300,000 under the ICC table comes to $300,000 × 0.0068 = $2,040 before the 5 percent surcharge and the separate flat fees. The fees page has no line for the State Building Code Council fee. Lifting a stop work order costs $280.

Planning charges that often travel with a building permit include $660 for a pre-application meeting, $1,570 for an accessory dwelling unit and $600 for SEPA review. The fire marshal’s own fee list adds $770 for a residential sprinkler system, $300 for a residential fire alarm, $200 for a propane tank and piping, and $175 for a wildland-urban interface permit plus $130 for its inspection.

Trade permits and who may pull them

CDS issues mechanical and plumbing permits as well as building permits in the unincorporated county, priced per fixture or appliance on the 2023 schedule.

• Electrical: L&I sells the permit and inspects. The CDS inspection page gives its Yakima-area line as 509-454-3798 and asks for the electrical rough-in to pass before the framing inspection. No Kittitas County city appears on L&I’s list of cities with their own electrical programs.
• Manufactured homes: any alteration to a mobile or manufactured home itself is permitted by L&I; an addition beside it is a county permit.
• Septic: a county environmental health specialist does the site evaluation in two test holes 6 feet deep and 3 feet wide, then a licensed designer prepares the design; a homeowner may design a system after a pre-design meeting. The installation permit lasts one year. Homeowners may install their own system, while contractors need a Kittitas County installer license.

State law decides who may be paid to build and when owners may wire or plumb their own homes; the Washington licensing part of our state guide covers it.

How to apply for a Kittitas County building permit

Review, corrections and what causes delay

CDS posts its review times: two weeks for foundation-only permits, five weeks on the Fast Track for remodels, additions, detached residential accessory buildings, pools, manufactured homes, fences, decks and retaining walls, and nine weeks for full review (October 26, 2026 update). The building official may grant one written extension of up to 365 days for either deadline; after expiry the application is void and the deposit forfeited. Plan changes go through the plan and permit revisions policy.

Inspections

Call the inspection request line at (509) 962-7694, email cds@co.kittitas.wa.us or use the online request form, giving the permit number, owner, address, parcel number, inspection type and directions. Requests in by 2 p.m. on a business day are done the next business day; later requests take two business days. Inspectors cannot add or reschedule inspections in the field, and the daily schedule is posted online.

Typical stages are forms, pole holes for pole buildings, under-floor framing, exterior shear wall nailing before wrap or siding, plumbing and mechanical rough-in, framing, insulation and final. Keep the approved plans and permit card on site. In winter, driveways must be plowed: inspectors will not ride in owners’ vehicles or snowmobiles. Before CDS issues a certificate of occupancy, Public Works must approve any access, stormwater, water metering and flood permits and environmental health must approve the septic and well.

Washington building code and flood maps

Kittitas County enforces the 2021 Washington codes through KCC Title 14. FEMA’s Community Status Book lists the county in the National Flood Insurance Program with a Community Rating System class of 6, along with Cle Elum, Ellensburg, Kittitas, Roslyn and South Cle Elum.

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

Kittitas County building permit FAQ

How long does a Kittitas County building permit take?

CDS posted nine weeks for full review, five weeks for Fast Track projects and two weeks for foundation-only permits as of October 26, 2026.

How is the permit fee for a new house calculated?

The ICC valuation for the building is multiplied by 0.0068, so $300,000 of valuation gives $2,040, plus the 5 percent technology surcharge and flat fees.

Do I need a permit for a shed?

Not for a one-story residential shed of 200 sq ft or less with no plumbing, mechanical or living space. Another building within 10 feet counts toward the 200 sq ft, and the shed must still meet setbacks and the critical areas and flood rules.

What is a Preliminary Site Analysis?

A $160 county review of the lot that must be approved before a building application is submitted.

How do I find my snow load?

Send CDS the Design Criteria and Snow Load Request form; the building official sets loads site by site.

Who issues building permits in Ellensburg?

The City of Ellensburg Building Division, under the city fees adopted in March 2026.

Who inspects electrical work?

Washington L&I, throughout the county.

Permit search and official resources

Permit holders track applications and inspections in SmartGov, CDS posts building permit reports, and older records can be requested through the county’s public records request process.

• Kittitas County CDS building division
• Permits required and exempt work
• Required inspections and how to request them
• CDS fee page
• Resolution 2023-028, CDS fees
• Kittitas County Code Title 14, Buildings and Construction
• Kittitas County SmartGov permit tracking
• Public Health on-site sewage permits
• Water banking and water for building permits
• Critical Areas Ordinance
• Shoreline Master Program
• Floodplain management and permits
• Notice of hearing on extending the data center moratorium (September 15, 2026)
• City of Ellensburg Building Division
• City of Cle Elum Building Department
• Town of South Cle Elum building permits
• City of Kittitas forms and permits
• L&I list of cities with their own electrical inspections
• FEMA Community Status Book, Washington

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