TOWN OF GREENBURGH
BUILDING DEPARTMENT
914-993-1562






John Lucido, Building Inspector
Anthony S. Zacarolli, Deputy Building Inspector

Mission Statement

The Building Department is committed to ensuring the quality of life of those who live, work and visit the Town of Greenburgh by ensuring compliance to both State and local regulations in the construction, use and occupancy of buildings.

The Town of Greenburgh requires building permits for all swimming pools (above and in-ground).  All applicants must comply with both New York State and local regulations regarding the installation of the pool.  Please review Section 285-36G of the Town of Greenburgh Zoning Ordinance below:

G.    Swimming pools. Except as provided hereinafter, no swimming pool shall be located, constructed or maintained on any lot or land area, except in conformity with the following requirements: 

(1)         Said pool may be installed or maintained in any residential district or in any nonresidential district where specifically permitted. 

(2)         Said pool shall be used as an accessory use to a dwelling or group of dwellings or as part of the recreational facilities of a camp, club or similar use. 

(3)         When accessory to a single-family residence, such pool shall be located in a rear yard only. 

(4)         The portion of the premises upon which such pool is located shall be entirely surrounded and enclosed with a good quality security fence which shall have a height of not less than four feet, notwithstanding any other provisions of this chapter. Said fence shall be of a type approved by the Building Inspector of the Town of Greenburgh. All enclosures shall have railings and posts within the enclosure which shall be capable of resisting a minimum lateral load of 150 pounds applied midway between the posts and at the top of the posts, respectively. Enclosure, fence material or fabric shall be capable of withstanding a concentrated lateral load of 50 pounds applied anywhere between supports on an area 12 inches square, without failure or permanent deformation.  [Amended 4-12-2000 by L.L. No. 3-2000] 

(5)         Every gate or other opening in the fence enclosing such pool shall be self-closing and self-latching and shall be kept securely locked at all times when said pool is not in use. The latch handle on every gate shall be located within the enclosure and at least 40 inches above grade and shall be securely locked with a key, combination or other childproof lock sufficient to prevent access to the swimming pool through such gate when the swimming pool is not in use or supervised. [Amended 7-8-1987 by L.L. No. 3-1987; 4-12-2000 by L.L. No. 3-2000] 

(6)         Such pool shall be not located less than 15 feet from the side and rear lot lines. Any patio surrounding such pool shall not be located less than 10 feet from any lot line. Any deck surrounding such pool shall be subject to all the otherwise applicable yard requirements for buildings or structures, as applicable. There shall be no required setback between a pool and any building. [Amended 7-8-1987 by L.L. No. 3-1987] 

(7)         Such pool shall be chemically treated in a manner sufficient to maintain the bacterial standards established by the provisions of the New York State Sanitary Code relating to public swimming pools. 

(8)         No loudspeaker or amplifying device shall be permitted which can be heard beyond the lot lines of the lot on which said pool is located. 

(9)         No lighting or spotlighting shall be permitted which will project light rays beyond the lot lines of the lot on which said pool is located. 

(10)       Where the proposed pool is of such height or design that protective fencing is not required or is impractical, the Building Inspector may, at his discretion, issue a permit for the erection of said pool without such fencing. The Building Inspector shall, however, first make a finding to the effect that, in his opinion, said pool has protection from entry equivalent to that afforded by the erection of a fence as provided for in Subsection F(4) of this section. 

(11)       Such pool shall be equipped with an integral filtration system and filter pumps or other mechanical devices which shall be so located and constructed as not to interfere with the peace, comfort and repose of the occupant of any adjoining property. 

(12)       No permission shall be granted for the installation of any swimming pool unless the plans thereof meet the minimum Town of Greenburgh construction requirements. The plans shall show the method of disposal of filter backwash material and the method of draining the pool, and such methods and points of discharge shall be satisfactory to the Town of Greenburgh Department of Public Works and to the Westchester County Health Department, Division of Environmental Health Services. 

(13)       If unenclosed, the area of the swimming pool shall not be included within the limitations of percentage of coverage of land allowed for permitted accessory buildings. 

(14)       A wall of a dwelling is permitted to serve as part of the enclosure under the following conditions: [Added 4-12-2000 by L.L. No. 3-2000] 

(a)         Windows in the wall shall have a latching device at least 40   inches above the floor. 

(b)         A swimming door in the wall shall be self-closing and self-latching. 

(c)         A sliding door in the wall shall have a self-latching device.   

(15)       Where an aboveground pool has a deck which abuts or is adjacent to a dwelling and direct access to the deck is through the exterior wall of the dwelling, such access shall be in accordance with § 285-36G(14). [Added 4-12-2000 by L.L. No. 3-2000] 

(16)       Aboveground pools with at least 46 inches between pool decking or pool top and adjoining grade are exempt from the requirements of § 285-36G(5), (14) and (15), provided that their access ladder or steps can be blocked in an approved manner when not intended for use. [Added 4-12-2000 by L.L. No. 3-2000; amended 4-29-2003 by L.L. No. 3-2003]    

Please visit New York State Code Division website http://www.dos.state.ny.us/code/pools.htm for State regulations on pools alarms, fences, etc. 

 Decks

All decks (including those on grade) require a building permit for new construction, "in-kind" replacement or repair.   Decks, if designed and installed incorrectly, can lead to collapse resulting in serious injury or death.  This is why the we require either a New York State licensed Architect or Engineer to prepare detailed drawings of proposed decks for plan examination submission. 

Some helpful hints to those homeowners who already have an existing deck

-          Replace weak supports and rusty fasteners

-         Perform visual inspections of primary supports, fasteners and joist hangers annually and make repairs immediately

SIDING

A Building Permit is required for re-siding, and/or brickwork.   If the proposed re-siding requires the removal of any meters (electric, gas) an electrical or plumbing is required and the removal must be performed only by a by a Westchester county licensed tradesperson. 

KITCHEN REMODEL


Remodeling a kitchen (including the replacement of cabinets) requires a building permit and a sketch (to scale) of the kitchen layout showing applicances/fixture locations.  Any electrical and plumbing work must be filed by a Westchester County licensed tradesperson. 
If any structural alterations are proposed (removal and/or construction of walls, windows, doors, etc. ) architectual/engineered drawings are required. 

ELECTRIC

Electrical work can only be performed by a Westchester County Licensed Electrician.  An electrician can obtain a permit by filing:  an electrical permit application, a copy of the electrician's Westchester County license, an application for New York Electrical Inspection Services or State Wide Inspection Services (SWIS).  Fees are $15 per $1,000 and can be paid by check or credit card.

To check if your electrican is licensed, please visit the the Westchester County Town Clerk's website at
http://www.westchesterclerk.com/


Plumbing


Plumbing work can only be performed by a Westchester County Licensed Plumber and a plumbing permit must be filed and approved by the Town of Greenburgh Building Department prior to commencement of work. 

To check if your plumber is licensed to do work in Westchester County, please visit the Westchester County Clerk's website at http://www.westchesterclerk.com

Energy Star

ENERGY STAR® was created to help consumers easily identify products, homes, and buildings that save energy and money, and help protect the environment.  As the government-backed, trusted symbol for energy efficiency, the ENERGY STAR label identifies highly efficient products and designates superior energy performance in homes and buildings.  With ENERGY STAR, money isn’t all you’re saving-you are also making a difference in protecting the environment.  For more information visit the ENERGY STAR website, http://www.energystar.gov/  or phone the Town Energy Conservation Specialist at 914-993-1649.

Below, please find our most frequently requested information and as always, please contact the Building Department with any questions or concerns building@greenburghNY.com   

To review the New York State Building Code, please click on the link below:
http://ecodes.iccsafe.org/iccf/gateway.dll?f=templates&fn=default.htm&vid=icc:ny

Hiring a Contractor/Design Professional

The Town is precluded from recommending contractors or design professionals, however, we urge residents to perform their due diligence in making selection.  Below are some helpful links in making those decisions:

American Institute of Architects

http://www.aia.org/  

Better Business Bureau:

www.newyork.bbb.org 

Westchester County Home Improvement License Search https://wro.westchesterclerk.com/Login/Login.aspx

EPA Certified Lead Certfied Renovation Firms
http://cfpub.epa.gov/flpp/searchrrp_firm.htm 

Swimming Pools