Permits and Approvals on a Rye Renovation

This guide covers permits and approvals for a renovation, addition or new house in the City of Rye: which City offices and boards are usually involved, the order approvals tend to follow and the conditions that most often change a project here. Requirements depend on the property and the work, so confirm what applies to your house with the City before the design is settled.

It applies to the City of Rye only. Rye became a city in 1942, when it separated from the Town of Rye. The Town of Rye is a separate municipality that includes the villages of Port Chester and Rye Brook and the Rye Neck section of the Village of Mamaroneck, and the City reviews described here do not apply there.

The City offices and boards involved

• Building Department. The Building Department administers and enforces the New York State Uniform Fire Prevention and Building Code and the City Code chapters on new construction, renovations, additions and alterations. It also covers zoning, construction within FEMA-designated flood zones, and certificates of compliance and occupancy.
• Planning Commission. The Planning Commission decides site plans, subdivisions, wetland permits, tree-removal permits, steep slope permits, coastal consistency determinations and special use permits.
• Board of Architectural Review. The Board of Architectural Review examines exterior building design to safeguard and preserve neighborhood character. The Building Inspector refers permit applications for new structures, and for additions and alterations that would affect a structure's exterior appearance, to the board.
• Board of Appeals. The City's zoning board hears area variances from the bulk and dimensional requirements of the zoning chapter, use variances, and requests for relief from the City's floodplain management chapter.
• Conservation Commission/Advisory Council. Wetland permit applications are referred to it for review, and it reports to the Planning Commission.
• Landmarks Advisory Committee. The committee investigates, documents and makes recommendations to the City Council on historic districts and protected sites and structures.
• New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. DEC regulates tidal wetlands along the Westchester shoreline and their adjacent areas, and it requires a permit for almost any activity that would alter them, including houses, decks, pools, bulkheads and docks.

The usual order of approvals

• The site and the zoning. Start with what the zoning allows, whether a variance would be needed and whether wetlands, watercourses, steep slopes, trees or the flood map affect the lot.
• Board approvals. Planning Commission permits, coastal consistency determinations, any variance and any DEC permit need to be in place before the work they cover begins.
• Architectural review. Where the work affects the exterior, the Building Inspector refers the permit application to the Board of Architectural Review, and must refuse an application the board disapproves.
• Building permit. Only the Building Inspector may approve a building permit application. The same City Code chapter covers plumbing, heating equipment and demolition.
• Inspections. Work is inspected as it proceeds, so inspections belong in the construction schedule before anything is closed in.
• Certificate of occupancy. A building covered by a permit may not be occupied until the Building Inspector issues a certificate of occupancy after a final inspection.

Conditions that change a Rye project

Flood zones. Westchester County's hazard mitigation plan identifies Blind Brook as the greatest flood risk in the city and describes Indian Village as typically the most severely flooded part of Rye. Check the address on FEMA's flood maps before design starts. FEMA notes that local floodplain rules apply to existing buildings undergoing substantial improvement, so a large renovation or addition can bring the whole house under current flood requirements.

The shoreline. The waterfront area in Rye's Local Waterfront Revitalization Program, approved by New York State in 1991, follows the shoreline around Milton Harbor to Milton Point and includes Hen Island, Pine Island and Manursing Island. The Planning Commission makes coastal consistency determinations for the City.

Wetlands and watercourses. The City's wetlands law covers regulated activities in a wetland, a watercourse or the buffer around them, including placing structures, filling, clearing vegetation and altering drainage. The City Naturalist determines whether an area may be subject to the law, and the Planning Commission grants or denies permits.

Smaller exterior projects. An addition or alteration to a one- or two-family house can be exempt from architectural review as a "small project" if the property's certificates of occupancy are in order, there are no open or recent permits, and the work does not change any front or side facade or roof as seen from the street. Small projects that need a variance or involve an accessory structure still go to the board.

Historic properties. The Boston Post Road Historic District, which includes the Jay Estate and the Marshlands Conservancy, is a National Historic Landmark. If a house may lie in a City historic district or be a protected site or structure, ask before the design is set. Our guide to what to keep in an old house covers the decisions that come first.

What a complete submission usually includes

Ask the Building and Planning Departments for current checklists. Most projects need:

• A current survey and a site plan showing the work in relation to the property lines.
• Construction drawings detailed enough for plan review, with structural information where the work is structural.
• Energy code information under the State Energy Conservation Construction Code.
• Exterior elevations and materials if the project goes to the Board of Architectural Review.
• Wetland, flood elevation or coastal information where those reviews apply, and copies of any board decisions.

Planning around the calendar

The Planning Commission, the Board of Architectural Review and the Board of Appeals each work to their own meeting calendars, and a wetland application also waits on the Conservation Commission/Advisory Council's report. Put these reviews in the schedule from the start. We plan City approvals with the design team as part of our design-build process, and pre-construction budgeting runs alongside, so flood and coastal requirements are reflected in the cost early.

Questions about permits in Rye

We live in Rye Brook. Does this guide apply?

No. Rye Brook is a village in the Town of Rye, which is separate from the City of Rye. The City boards described here do not review projects there, so start with the village's own offices.

Will our addition go to the Board of Architectural Review?

Probably, if it changes a front or side facade or the roof as seen from the street. An addition that meets the City's small project definition can be exempt, unless it needs a variance or the Building Inspector refers it. Ask early, because the board's calendar affects the schedule.

Do we need a wetland permit for work near a stream?

Possibly. The City's wetlands law covers work in a watercourse or wetland and in the buffer around it. The City Naturalist can tell you whether an area may be regulated, and permits are decided by the Planning Commission.

We are on the water. Which reviews might apply?

Possibly a coastal consistency determination from the Planning Commission and a DEC tidal wetlands permit. DEC also notes that a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers permit may be needed even where DEC does not require one. Confirm the flood zone at the same time, because together these shape the footprint.

Can we renovate a house in a flood zone?

Yes, but the flood rules come first. A project large enough to count as a substantial improvement brings the existing house under current floodplain requirements. Relief from the City's floodplain chapter is a matter for the Board of Appeals.

What is the final sign-off called in Rye?

A certificate of occupancy, issued by the Building Inspector after a final inspection. Before it is issued, the City Code calls for a sworn statement from the supervising architect, engineer or construction superintendent that the work conforms to the approved plans, and a certificate of compliance from the electrical inspection agency for electrical work.

Next steps

For more on the City and how we work there, see our Rye page. Larchmont, a village with its own architectural review, planning and zoning boards, is covered on our Larchmont page. If an addition is part of the plan, start with our home additions page, and our permits and approvals articles cover other towns. When you are ready, request a free consultation at the house or at our design center at 46 Beatrice St, Unit 2, Bridgeport, by appointment.