Building Code

Contact Us

LICKING COUNTY BUILDING CODE DEPARTMENT
675 Price Road
Newark, OH 43055
Phone: 740.349.6671
Fax: 740.349.6672
(directions)

For inquiries, you may email [email protected]

Office Hours
7:00 AM to 4:00 PM
Closed on Holidays

SPECIAL NOTE 8/26/26: Commercial Plan Review – Response Times and Staff Availability

Due to the current high volume of commercial plan submittals, telephone calls, and email inquiries, response times may be longer than usual. Please allow up to one week for a response to email inquiries.

To help keep active projects moving through the review process, staff are currently prioritizing questions and communications related to projects that have an active application or plan submittal on file with our office. General questions regarding projects that have not yet been submitted will be addressed as staff availability permits.

Consultation Meetings

At this time, due to current workload and staffing demands, we are unable to schedule consultation or pre-submittal meetings. Questions may be submitted by email and will be addressed as staff availability permits.

Role of the Building Code Department

The Building Code Department's role is to review submitted construction documents for compliance with the applicable building codes.

Our staff cannot serve as a project consultant, designer, or advisor. This means we cannot determine what a proposed project requires, develop a code-compliance strategy, design a solution, or provide step-by-step direction on how the building code applies to a specific project.

It is the responsibility of the owner and, when applicable, the project's architect, engineer, or other qualified design professional to evaluate the project, determine the applicable code requirements, and prepare construction documents that demonstrate compliance.

Once documents are submitted, our staff will review the proposed design and identify items that do not demonstrate compliance with the applicable codes.

Follow-Up Calls and Emails

If you have already contacted our office, please allow staff time to respond before sending additional emails or making follow-up calls.

Repeated calls or emails requesting the status of a response do not expedite the request and can increase overall response times. Each duplicate inquiry requires staff time that would otherwise be spent reviewing plans, responding to pending questions, and processing active projects.

We understand that timely communication is important and appreciate your patience and cooperation as we work to provide thorough and consistent commercial plan review services.

Welcome to the Licking County Building Code Department Webpage Last Updated 1/29/26

The Licking County Building Code Department is responsible for the enforcement of building codes for all residential and commercial projects throughout the majority of Licking County. We are located in the lower east wing of 675 Price Rd., Newark (old TB Sanitarium). Our office hours are 7:00am to 4:00pm, Monday through Friday. Our office phone number is (740) 349-6671; our office fax number is (740) 349-6672.

If you are interested in performing a residential project, you may need a permit from our office. For a list of residential projects that do or do not require a permit, please see the "Summary of residential work that does or does not require approval" document under the Applications and Forms menu. If you are not sure if a permit is required, please contact our office.

Before obtaining approval from our office, you must first obtain a Zoning Certificate from your local Zoning Inspector. If your project is located in a township that does not have zoning enforcement, you must obtain approval from the Licking County Health Department. There are some jurisdictions that have additional notification requirements. Our office has information packets regarding those jurisdictions available in our office and on this website under the “Additional Forms” drop-down menu. For information regarding whom to contact for zoning approval, please click on the “Zoning Contact List” available under Building/Development tab located on the main page.

To submit for a building permit, please provide a completed Application, a copy of the Zoning Certificate (or Health Department Approval for areas without zoning) and two complete sets construction plans and specifications for the project. Please be aware that some fire departments require construction documents for commercial projects. Please contact the local Fire Department for the area of the project location to discuss any submission requirements they may have.

For further explanation of the above, or additional information, please select the appropriate drop-down box located above. These attachments include an Application for Permit, Fee Schedule, various checklists and procedures for obtaining permits and plan approvals, and supplemental handouts that you may find useful.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Permit Inquiry

Online permit inquiry will be available in the near future. Please check back.