Chapel Hill, NC Sidewalk & Pedestrian Rules: Encroachment Permits (2026)

Article IV of Chapter 17, Construction Permits, governs any private encroachment into the Town's streets and sidewalks. Section 17-42 requires a construction permit from the town manager before starting construction of any public street, paving, curb and gutter, sidewalk, storm drainage structure, water or sewer facility, or other public improvement that the Town will ultimately maintain, and before cutting any pavement, curb or sidewalk in an existing public street. To get the permit, the applicant must submit construction plans and cost estimates, have the town manager approve those plans, pay the fees set in the Town's current fee schedule resolution, and post the required bonds.

Section 17-45 sets the bond amounts: a performance bond of one hundred twenty-five percent of the estimated construction cost, and, once work is complete, a one-year warranty bond of twenty-five percent of the project cost or fifty thousand dollars, whichever is less; the town manager may waive both bonds for a project under ten thousand dollars if the contractor has no outstanding obligations to the Town. Section 17-43 lets the town manager suspend or revoke a permit for noncompliance, stopping all work until the permit is reinstated and a reinstatement penalty is paid.

Franchised utility companies are exempt from the permit itself under Section 17-42(3), but must still notify the town manager's office twenty-four hours before construction that will damage a public street or significantly obstruct traffic, and must pay street cut assessments. Anyone cutting into a state-maintained street must also obtain the North Carolina Department of Transportation's own encroachment agreement in addition to the Town's permit. Willful violation of the article, including working without a permit, is a misdemeanor under Section 17-49.