Note: Whether Commercial Alteration or Tenant Build-Out, a Commercial Building Permit (PDF) is typically required.
The following is a partial list of the most common conditions requiring a permit:
- Where there is no current valid Certificate of Occupancy for the building or space
- Any change of occupancy type is proposed
- (Examples: the previous use and the new use are changing Mercantile to Business, Office to Restaurant, etc.)
- There are walls removed or added
- There are structural alterations
- There are revisions, repairs, or replacement of fire-rated assemblies
- There are alterations to any required means of egress
- (Examples include a change to an aisle-way or means to an exit, relocation of exit doors, addition of walls, etc.)
- There are alterations or new installations to the water supply and distribution systems, sanitary drainage system, or vent system
- There are alterations or new installations to electrical wiring
- There are alterations or new installation to fire-protection system, mechanical systems, or fuel-supply systems
- There are alterations or new installations of any other equipment regulated by the Virginia Uniform Statewide Building Code (VUSBC)
- (An example would be above-ground or below-ground storage tanks.)
- There is an increase to allowed occupancy load reflected on the C.O.
- (The allowed occupancy load is based on Table 1004.1.1 in the IBC International Building Code. A restaurant, for example, may have 3 different occupant loads because of the use of the different areas i.e. kitchen, seating, and waiting areas.)
- See allowed occupancy load
Note: The requirements above are the most common, yet are not representative of all the conditions when preparing tenant build-out drawings.
The City of Chesapeake classifies alterations / build-outs by levels of complexity of the project. There are four (4) different levels ranging from 0 to 3.