Business Licensing & Operations in Colonie, NY (2026)
3 verified business licensing & operations rules for Colonie, New York, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Adult Entertainment
Colonie allows adult businesses in any zoning district that already permits their non-adult equivalent, but bars them within 1,000 feet of residential districts, other adult uses, and churches, schools, day-care centers, parks or playgrounds under Town Code § 190-52.
Colonie NY Adult-Use Zoning: 1,000-Foot Separation Buffers
Some RestrictionsTown of Colonie Code § 190-52 (Adult use regulations)
Adult uses, such as an adult bookstore, adult drive-in theater, adult entertainment cabaret, adult massage establishment, adult peep show, adult juice bar, adult theater or any other adult use shall be permitted in any district where the non-adult version of such use is a permitted use. ... A. No adult establishment shall be located within 1,000 feet of any zoning district where single-family d...
Massage Establishments
Anyone who operates a massage business or works as a masseur in the Town of Colonie needs a separate permit from the Police Chief before opening or practicing. Business permits cost $50 a year, masseur permits cost $10, and the Chief can deny, suspend or revoke either one for a disqualifying criminal record, a false application, or an unlicensed practitioner under 18.
Colonie Requires Massage Business and Masseur Permits
Significant RestrictionsTown of Colonie Code § 127-2(A), (B)
A. Business permit required. No person shall engage in or carry on the business of massage unless he has a valid massage business permit issued by the Town pursuant to the provisions of this chapter for each and every separate office or place of business conducted by such person. B. Masseur's permit required. No person shall practice massage as a masseur, employee or otherwise, unless he has a ...
Auto Repair on Residential Property
Colonie's home-occupation ordinance flatly excludes motor vehicle repair shops from the list of businesses residents may run from a house or accessory garage. No permit tier, size limit, or traffic condition can override that exclusion, so at-home auto repair is off-limits townwide outside a properly zoned commercial site.
Colonie Bars Home Auto Repair Shops
Heavy RestrictionsColonie Code § 190-53
Home occupations are permitted in existing and new homes and in accessory outbuildings and garages, subject to the following criteria and standards. Home occupations shall in no event be deemed to include animal hospitals, kennels, clinics or hospitals, mortuaries, nursery schools, private clubs, motor vehicle repair shops, restaurants, hotels, boardinghouses or similar uses.
Looking for Albany County county-wide rules?
County ordinances apply to unincorporated areas and may supplement Colonie city rules.
Business Licensing & Operations in Albany County →