Do You Need a Permit for Concrete Work in Erie County?

Permit rules for concrete work vary by municipality across the Buffalo area, and they matter: work that should have been permitted can cause problems when you sell. Here is a general guide, with the important caveat that the City of Buffalo and each town in Erie and Niagara County set their own rules, so we always confirm with your specific building department.

Concrete work that usually needs a permit

• New driveways and driveway aprons that touch the public right-of-way or change the curb cut.
• Structural work: foundations, footings, and structural slabs.
• Retaining walls above a set height, commonly around four feet, which often also require engineering.
• Anything that changes site drainage or adds significant impervious surface.
• Work in the public right-of-way, including sidewalk and curb work.

Concrete work that often does not

• Replacing an existing driveway or patio in the same footprint on private property, in many towns.
• Small residential slabs and walkways under a certain size, away from property lines.

Even where a permit is not required, setbacks, property lines, and impervious-surface limits still apply, and a call to the building department is cheap insurance.

How CIT Concrete handles permits

As part of your free quote, we check the permit requirement for your specific project and municipality. When a permit is needed, we pull it and coordinate any inspections, so the work is documented and done to code. That paperwork protects you at resale and confirms the job was built to the standards Buffalo's climate demands, including proper frost-depth footings. When you are comparing contractors, be cautious of anyone who waves off permits on work that clearly needs one.