Building permits in the Town of Hempstead

First, check whether you are in a village

The Town of Hempstead includes incorporated villages, and its own rules draw the line: its rental registration program covers the Town "exclusive of its incorporated villages". Nassau County's permit page tells residents to call their city, town or village directly. If your house is in a village, the village building department is usually where your permit starts. Revival's request form checks your street address against U.S. Census records, which name the village if there is one.

How to apply

The Town sends building permits, building forms and related information to its Online Permit Center. The Town says residents can submit permits there, follow the status of an application, request inspections, look up their previous permits, message Town staff, and print permits from home.

• Plans examiners take calls at 516-812-3073 from 9 am to noon. To meet with one, call the day before the day you want to come in.
• Building inspectors take calls at 516-812-3088 from 8:30 to 10 am, before they head out to field inspections.
• Questions can also go to TOHBuildingQuestions@hempsteadny.gov.

The Town abandons and destroys, without notice, any application left dormant by the owner or the owner's agent for 90 days. Keep an application moving once it is filed.

A second kitchen for family: mother-daughter use

A second kitchen for a family member is its own application in the Town of Hempstead. The Town requires a plumbing permit for the second kitchen's fixtures and the approval of the Board of Appeals. For this application the Town lists:

• A completed building permit application, filled out in full and signed by the property owner, not a tenant.
• Three complete, unaltered surveys by a licensed land surveyor.
• Two sets of complete floor plans showing every floor, room use, deck, awning, entrance, window, door and stair.
• A recent Building Department record search, with a $25 fee, and a $150 filing fee payable to the Town of Hempstead.

When the answer is no: the Board of Appeals

The Board of Appeals holds public hearings and issues written decisions. Its cases come from people whose permit applications the Department of Buildings denied, from people who contest a permit that was issued, and from requests for variances and special exceptions to the Town's Building Zone Ordinance. New Board of Appeals applications are filed online, and the Board's secretary gives future hearing dates at 516-812-3005.

Fees

The Building Department's fee schedule is posted as a PDF on the Town's Fees page. Confirm the fee for your project with the department before you file, and ask each contractor whether the estimate includes permit fees.

Before anyone prices the job

For a Town of Hempstead project, the free call settles which office issues your permit (Town or village), the documents that office asks for, and whether a Board of Appeals hearing is likely, so the schedule you discuss with contractors is real.