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Who Issues Building Permits in Akron and Summit County?

If you're building in Akron, your permit doesn't come from the City of Akron. Here's how it actually works.

In Akron, your building permit comes from Summit County, not the City of Akron. This surprises nearly everyone, including some contractors, and it's the single most useful thing to know about permitting an Akron project.

What happened

The City of Akron states that in 2009 the City of Akron Building Department was combined with the Summit County Department of Building Standards. Summit County now issues building permits for the City of Akron, and Summit County cannot issue those permits without City of Akron approval.

The practical result: you submit to both

Per the City of Akron, all projects within the City of Akron must be submitted to Summit County as well as the City of Akron. The split of responsibilities:

  • Summit County Division of Building Standards reviews and issues for projects covered by the Ohio Building Code and the Ohio Residential Code, and performs the building, HVAC, electrical, plumbing and structural inspections.
  • The City of Akron reviews and issues for fire prevention, grading and paving, public right-of-way work, public utility conflicts, sewer, stormwater pollution prevention (SWPPP/SWP3), traffic code, water, and the zoning code.

Both tracks have to clear. Neither one on its own gets you building.

Beyond Akron: the rest of Summit County

Summit County's Division of Building Standards provides residential plan review and inspection for most jurisdictions in the county, and issues building, electrical, mechanical and plumbing permits across all phases of construction. That includes the county's townships along with many of its cities and villages. Confirm which office covers your specific address before you plan around it.

Contractor registration

Akron requires contractors to register with the city when the work they're performing requires a permit. See Ohio's licensing framework.

One more Summit County specific

Frost depth requirements are set locally in Ohio rather than statewide, and they are not identical across the region. That difference is real and it affects foundation cost. See footing depth in Northeast Ohio.

Related

Building a custom home in Akron · Building in Summit County · Stark County permits

Procedures and fees change over time. We confirm the current requirements for your address as part of your project.