Tonawanda, NY Building Safety: Building Inspections (2026)

Section 54-7.A requires that authorized work remain accessible and exposed until the Code Enforcement Officer or an authorized inspector has inspected and accepted it, and the permit holder must notify the Code Enforcement Officer when each element listed in § 54-7.B is ready. That list runs through ten stages where applicable: the work site itself before the building permit issues, footing and foundation, preparation for a concrete slab, framing, building systems including underground and rough-in work, fire-resistant construction, fire-resistant penetrations, solid-fuel-burning heating appliances, chimneys, flues or gas vents, Energy Code compliance, and a final inspection once all permitted work is done.

Under § 54-7.C, the Code Enforcement Officer notes each stage as satisfactory or tells the permit holder where the work fails to comply, and noncompliant work must stay exposed until it is brought into compliance, reinspected and found satisfactory. Section 54-7.D requires the Code Enforcement Officer to keep records of every inspection and any violations found. Plumbing work gets its own inspection rule in § 54-7.E: it cannot be covered until inspected or tested and approved, and if it is covered anyway it must be uncovered again for inspection.

Section 54-7.F charges an additional $50 for each reinspection or test made necessary because the work was incomplete, improper, or otherwise at fault of the person performing it, payable by that person, firm or corporation, and § 54-7.G requires the standard permit fee under § 54-20 to be paid before or at the time of each inspection.