Building Permits for Large Projects

Building Codes

Design Criteria

The following design criteria are applicable to all Emeryville projects:

• Wind zone - 85 mph
• Wind exposure 'B' - East of the freeway
• Wind exposure 'C' - West of the freeway
• Seismic loads - ASCE 7-10 (Note: ASCE is a referenced document of the CBC and thus is adopted by Emeryville.) 
• Rain intensity - 3" per hour
• 2022 California Building Codes

The City of Emeryville lies between 2 km-10 km from the Hayward Fault. Projects in the City of Emeryville will be significantly affected by seismic events.

Expedited plan check service may be available under the following guidelines:

• Expedited Plan Review is a 3-5 Business Day review period for Building Division and/or Fire only.
• The fee for expedited plan review is a 50% surcharge on the Building and/or Fire Plan Review and Title 24 Energy review fees as specified in the current City of Emeryville Master Fee Schedule(PDF, 428KB).
• ALL requests for Expedited Plan Check must be made in advance and submitted in writing to the Chief Building Official.
• Requests made at the time of submittal will not be granted.
• Complex R&D and larger tenant improvement scope of work is 7-10 business day review as determined by the Chief Building Official.
• In your request you must provide: the project address, name of the project, scope of work, approximate submittal date and reason for the request.
• Expedited plan review requests may be denied due to cause of staff availability.
• Please allow up to 5 days for a response to your request.
• Permits that require approval from other Departments such as Planning & Public Works are not covered by the 3-5 business day turn around.
• Expedited Plan Check is not available in conjunction with the fixed fees available for Photovoltaic (Solar) Permits. The City of Emeryville MFS prohibits additional charges as a result of established flat fee rates.
• When expedited plan check requests are granted the permit application shall be submitted within 15 business days of approval.
• Subsequent revisions, deferred submittals or requests made after the initial submittals are not subject to expedited requests and will not be considered.

Fees

Additional fees may be applicable.

Outside Consultants

For the review of large projects, the city contracts with outside consultants.

Whom to Contact

Architects and engineers may contact the assigned consulting plan check engineer directly to discuss technical questions pertinent to the project.

Project owners, developers, and plans expediters may request updates on plan review status from the Building Division Plan Check / Permit Technician.

Requesting the Partial Permit

An applicant may request a partial permit before the plans and specifications for the entire building have been submitted or approved. If a partial permit is issued, the permit holder shall proceed at his or her own risk, without assurance that the permit for the entire building or structure will be granted. For any questions, contact the Building Division Plan Check / Permit Technician at cbarrett@emeryville.org or by telephone 510-596-4310.

Requirements

Applications for foundation-only permits shall include the following:

• Complete plans for site grading
• A current soils report
• • Any special mitigation required by this report shall be addressed.
  • Soils report shall also assess corrosiveness of the soil.
• Foundation plans shall include underground electrical and plumbing layouts.
• Structural plans and calculations that are 85% complete shall be submitted with the foundation package.
• The information in the foundation package must be adequate to verify the following:
• • All loading must be examined
  • Lateral system must be fully developed
• Architectural plans that are 15% complete shall be submitted with the foundation plans. Architectural plans shall include:
• • A dimensional site plan showing building location and required parking
  • Basic building code data, such as proposed occupancies, types of construction, number of stories, building height, allowable floor area calculations, proposed floor areas, etc.
  • All site accessibility issues, including accessible route of travel from public way of the building entrances
  • Complete schematic design drawings showing the occupancies of all areas
  • Complete exiting plan, including stair enclosures and exit ways

• A stormwater pollution prevention plan shall be submitted prior to permit issuance.
• Compliance with the Art in Public Places Ordinance shall be demonstrated at the time of application for the first building permit.
• Final clearances for soil or water contamination mitigation and/or special conditions for workers at the site shall be demonstrated.
• A letter from the soils engineer indicating that the foundation plans are in conformance with the recommendations of the soils report is required prior to issuance of the permit.
• Additional fees will be required for this service per the current Master Fee Schedule(PDF, 428KB).
• Guidelines for Partial Building Permits

Resources

• Inspection Services
• Inspector Work Hours
• Scheduling of Inspections

Special Inspection Requirements

• Recognized Special Inspection and Testing Agencies
• Special Inspection and Testing Program

Fire Inspection

Inspections of fire suppression systems or fire alarm systems shall be made by the Alameda County Fire Department Code Compliance Officer, Terrence Spencer. To schedule inspections, please send request by email: terrence.spencer@alamedacountyfire.gov or call (925) 833-3473 x 1211

Issuing Partial Building Permits

The Building Division may issue partial building permits other than foundation permits. Sometimes it is expedient to issue separate structural permits as well. If an applicant wishes to subdivide a building permit in this manner, the first permit application must be accompanied by a schedule of all planned submittals for the project. Additional fees will be required.

For more information, view the Guidelines for Partial Building Permits.

Limitations on Partial Building Permits

Partial permits for plumbing, electrical, and mechanical work will not be issued for a single project. Underground and site utilities shall be shown on foundation plans and shall be a part of that permit.

Schedule a Meeting

Project design teams are encouraged to meet with the Chief Building Official and the plan check engineer in the early stages of the project in order to discuss significant code issues that will impact the project. By working out potential problems early, applicants can usually proceed more efficiently through the plan review stage of a project.

Meetings may be scheduled with the Building Division Plan Check / Permit Technician. For more information, please call 510-596-4310 or send an email to cbarrett@emeryville.org Additional fees may be assessed per the current Master Fee Schedule.

Plan Check Submittal Requirements

• PDFs of drawings or a fileshare link shall be sent by email at time of application to cbarrett@emeryville.org
• Once approved hard copies of the drawings shall be printed per scale as specified by the designer and delivered to City Hall
• All drawings shall be stamped and signed by the architect and/or engineer of record. Digital stamp and signatures are acceptable.
• One additional set of floor plans is required by the County Assessor for projects creating new floor area.

Contact

For more information, call the Building Division at 510-596-4310 or send an email to Courtney Barrett, Permit Technician cbarrett@emeryville.org

Communication

Typically, the magnitude of the project determines whether the applicant provides the use of a trailer, a secured area, and phone access, whereas field inspection and special inspection staff can communicate, retain, and secure pertinent information regarding the project.

For example, approved plans, RFIs, correspondence between special inspectors, project manager, sub-contractors, etc. must be placed in a secured area on the site for immediate reference. These projects are typically complex in design and large in magnitude whereby we can expect a large amount of correspondence throughout construction phases.

Expectations

The inspection process, specifically scheduling, correspondence, consistency, and timing of inspections, is critical for the success in projects of this nature. It would be unreasonable to expect field staff to carry this type of documentation with them and return to the office for verification or clarification of issues, taking into consideration the fact that more than one field inspection staff is expected to provide consistent building services for this project.