Building Permit

Our Building Services issues building permits to help create safe, accessible and sustainable buildings in the Town of Saugeen Shores. View when you need to submit an application for a building permit.

How to apply for a building permit

The Town is pleased to offer residents, builders, and the business community an online application system to apply for and track your building permits.

The online building permit system allows you to apply for and to see the status of your application anywhere, at any time. You can start an application and finish it later, and receive email updates on the status of your permit application. You can even request building inspections!

Apply for a building permit

Need help getting started with Cloudpermit? A step-by-step guide to help you from login, to submitting your first application is available.

Guide to Cloudpermit

If you are having difficulty using Cloudpermit, please contact the Building Department for assistance at building@saugeenshores.ca or 519-832-2008 ext. 118. You can also access support through Cloudpermit's online portal.

Cloudpermit Support

Once the application has been reviewed and is ready to be issued, applicants will be notified of application fees owing via Cloudpermit. Cheques can be dropped off at the municipal office (600 Tomlinson Drive, Port Elgin) drop box located to the left of the Plex entrance. Once payment is received, the building permit will be issued on Cloudpermit.

Residential and Commercial Buildings

New Construction

Building permits are required for all new construction projects. Required documents to be uploaded to Cloudpermit include:

Schedule 1: Designer Information Form
Energy Efficiency Design Summary - Prescription Method
Site Plan including location of proposed building, including setbacks to property lines
Lot Grading and Drainage Plan - Prepared by a Professional Engineer (P. Eng), Certified Engineering Technologist (CET) or Ontario Land Surveyor (OLS) as applicable
Construction plans including structural and architectural details (preferably in pdf format)
Roof truss drawings, stamped by an engineer (preferably in pdf format)
Septic system design and permit (if applicable)
Clearance from the Conservation Authority if you plan to build in a regulated area

Guide to applying for a new house permit

Renovations, additions and repairs

Building permits are required for all additions to residential and commercial buildings and some renovations and repairs. Renovations such as finished basements, installing roof mounted solar panels, altering location of or installing new plumbing appliances, etc. require building permits. Required documents to be uploaded to Cloudpermit include:

Site Plan including location of proposed building, including setbacks to property lines and septic system (if applicable)
Drawings specific to the project (construction/building layout plans)
Evaluation of septic system (if applicable)
Roof mounted solar panels will require engineering for the connection system and an evaluation of the supporting building by a professional engineer
Clearance from the Conservation Authority if you plan to build in a regulated area

Guide to applying for an addition or renovation

Additional Residential Units (ARUs)

A building permit is required in the Town of Saugeen Shores for creating an Additional
Residential Unit (ARU) in an existing home. At this time, ARUs are not permitted in
detached structures. ARUs are permitted as renovations or additions to the primary residential unit within the R1, R2, R3 & R4 zones. Please pre-consult with the Building Department at
building@saugeenshores.ca to ensure your property has the correct zoning to allow for such ARU to be created. Required documents to be uploaded to Cloudpermit include:

Site Plan including location of proposed building, including setbacks to property lines
Drawings specific to the project (construction/building layout plans)

Guide to applying for an additional residential unit (ARU)

Accessory Buildings

Accessory buildings, such as garages and sheds, over 15m² require a building permit. Required documents to be uploaded to Cloudpermit include:

Site plan showing the proposed location of the accessory building
Construction drawings
- Cross section
- Floor plan section

Guide to applying for an accessory building

Decks

Building permits are required for all accessory buildings greater than 10 square metres, such as sheds, detached garages and decks. Required documents to be uploaded to Cloudpermit include:

Site Plan including location of proposed building, including setbacks to property lines and septic system (if applicable)
Construction plans including details pertaining to footing, framing, posts, beams, rafters, floor joists and guards (for decks) and building height
Clearance from the Conservation Authority if you plan to build in a regulated area

Guide to applying for a deck permit

Agricultural buildings

Livestock and manure storage

Building permits are required for new and expanding livestock buildings and manure storage. Required documents include:

Schedule 1: Designer Information Form
Minimum Distance Separation (MDS) formula
Letter of approval from OMAFRA, which includes a Nutrient Management Strategy
Site Plan including location of proposed building, including setbacks to property lines, wells, septic systems, buildings and natural areas
Construction drawings (designed by professional engineer for buildings greater than 600 square metres and all manure storage require Engineer’s Commitment to Review)
Truss drawings, stamped by a professional engineer
Clearance from Saugeen Valley Conservation Authority if you plan to build in a regulated area
Drinking Water Source Protection Screening form (if applicable)

Structures not housing livestock (i.e. grain silo, implement shed)

Building permits are required for all farm buildings such as grain bins, silos and drive sheds. Required documents include:

Schedule 1: Designer Information Form
Site Plan including location of proposed building, including setbacks to property lines, wells, septic systems, buildings and natural areas
Construction drawings (designed by professional engineer for buildings greater than 600 square metres require Engineer’s Commitment to Review
Truss drawings, stamped by a professional engineer (preferably in pdf format)
Clearance from the Conservation Authority if you plan to build in a regulated area
Drinking Water Source Protection Screening form (if applicable)

Other permits

Swimming Pool Enclosure

Building permits are required for all swimming pools which are capable of holding more than 0.76 metres of water in depth at any point.

View more information on how to apply for a pool enclosure permit, fees and enclosure requirements.

Tent

You need to apply for a temporary tent permit when you are setting up tents that are:

More than 60 m² in an area (single tent and group of tents)
Attached to a building
Assembled less than three metres from other buildings or structures

View more information on how to apply for a tent permit, fees and design requirements.

Septic Systems

You need to apply for a septic permit if you want to:

Install a new septic system;
Replace an existing septic system;
Repair a leaching bed; or
Demolish or decommission a septic system

View more information on how to apply for a septic system permit, fees and design requirements.

Demolition

Demolition permits are required for all buildings greater than 10 m², except farm buildings.

View more information on how to apply for a demolition permit, fees and professional engineer requirements.

All applications are reviewed for compliance with the Ontario Building Code and Zoning By-law requirements.

Fees

Building Permit Fees

View the following list for fees associated with building permits:

Residential Buildings, Additions & Renovations - finished space: $9.95 per m² with a minimum fee of $145.38
Residential Buildings, Additions & Renovations - unfinished spaces: $6.45 per m² with a minimum fee of $145.38
Plumbing fee
Commercial, Group D and Group E: $10.45 per m² with a minimum fee of $145.38
Assembly/Institutional, Group and B: $11.76 per m² with a minimum fee of $145.38

Institutional or Group A Assembly Occupancies: $11.48 per m² with a minimum fee of $145.38
Industrial, Group F1, F2 and F3: $8.09 per m² with a minimum fee of $145.38
New Accessory Buildings for Small Buildings under Part 9 (non-farm): $6.45 per m² with a minimum fee of $145.38
Demolition: $151.25
Zoning and Building Compliance Letter: $98.09, if required in less than 48 hours - $144.39

View a list of our classes of permits and permit fees.

Additional Fees

In some cases, such as for new home builds, the Building Department is responsible for collecting fees on behalf of other Departments. These fees are as follows:

Water meter; and
Lot grading and drainage plan review

Fee reductions

You may qualify for a reduction in building permit fees for your renovation if the land is located within downtown Port Elgin or downtown Southampton. Fees in these areas are 50 per cent of the calculated required fee. We use our Building and Sign Permit Fee Reduction Policy to help eligible local business thrive in the downtown cores.

Development Charges

In addition to permit fees, we collect development charges to cover the cost of infrastructure, like roads, sewers, water, fire stations, police stations, recreation centres, libraries and more. We usually collect these charges at the time of your permit issue.

How development charges are calculated

View our Development Charges Pamphlet to find out how development charges are calculated.

See our Development Charges By-law for more information.

How to make payment for your permit

We accept the following forms of payment for building permit fees:

Cash
Debit
Money order
Cheque
Visa
Mastercard

Cheques and money orders are payable to the Town of Saugeen Shores. Please note, Visa and Mastercard are not accepted forms of payment for development charges. Visa and Mastercard payments can be taken over the phone at 519-832-2008 ext. 118. Cheques can be left in our drop box located to the left of the Plex entrance (600 Tomlinson Dr, Port Elgin).