Our Fees Are Changing
As of January 16, 2023, our hourly rate and permit fees were updated. For more information about these changes, view How to Estimate and Pay Fees.
Right-of-way (ROW) Construction
Permit Counter Temporary Closures
To protect the health and safety of our staff and customers, and to help mitigate the impact of COVID-19, we closed our public-facing customer service counters on Monday, March 16, 2020. Our counters remain closed until further notice. This includes both the Street Use and the Traffic and Parking permit counters at the Seattle Municipal Tower on floors 23 and 37. We are still processing permit applications.
You can submit applications for all permit types online through the Seattle Services Portal.
Our staff will be available to provide application coaching and assist with issuing permits by phone or e-mail.
How to Estimate Permit Timelines
The Targeted for date found on each permit step on the Seattle Services Portal represents the "typical" time it takes to process that step only and does not account for total time of a review cycle. For most Street Use permits, a review cycle includes multiple permit steps.
Current permit timelines can be found on our Street Use Permitting Timelines and Updates website. Information on our permit steps and how we estimate the Targeted for dates can be found in our Understanding the Street Use Permit Process, Status, Target Dates, and Permit Timelines help article.
We teamed up with Rooted in Rights to create a video to educate contractors and other people working in the right-of-way on the importance of maintaining a safe space for people to travel through construction sites. These tips aren't only useful for wheelchair users, they make sites safer for everyone!
You can learn more about how to set up safe access through a construction site in How to Plan, Document, and Implement Pedestrian Mobility In and Around Work Zones (CAM 2110).
Permitting for Stay Healthy Streets
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Step 1: Confirm that this is the right permit for your work
Step 2: Prepare the documents required for your submittal
Step 3: Determine if other documents may be required
Step 4: Apply for your permit!
Step 5:Check the status on your permit in review
Step 6: Responding to Corrections in review
Step 8: Notification, Job Start, and Temporary No-Park Permit Requirements
Step 9: Apply for an Amendment to modify/extend your permit
Step 1: Confirm that this is the right permit for your work
This permit type is for staging materials and/or equipment for construction related purposes, such as:
- construction-related deliveries
- temporary material and/or vehicle staging
- public safety buffers from construction
- scaffolding and/or temporary structures
If you are unsure if you qualify for this permit type, call (206) 684-5253 or e-mail us at sdotpermits@seattle.gov.
Step 2: Prepare the documents required for your submittal
The following documents will be required to submit the Application:
| ROW Construction Permits (SUCONST) |
|
| Document Type | Document Description |
| Right-of-Way Impact Plan (ROWIP) | Right-of-way closures with details per CAM 2116 |
| Site Plan | For some uses such as scaffolding and transit facility. Location details per CAM 2116 |
| Letter of Authorization | Required if the Applicant or FRP contact is different from the Owner contact |
ROWIP and Site Plan templates can be found here.
Step 3: Determine if other documents may be required
Documents not required to submit the ROW Construction permit application may be required later in the permit process. Below is a list of documents that may be required based on the project scope, location and permit type.
ROW Construction permits follow the below permit steps. Document requirements are set to one of the below referenced permit steps.
| Document Type | Document Descritpion | Permit Step When the Document is Required |
| Technical Plan | Detail drawing or calculations based on the use per CAM 2116 | Screening |
| Traffic Control Plan (TCP) | Temporary Traffic Control Plan per CAM 2111 and the City of Seattle Traffic Control Manual for In-Street Work | Either at Application if the street category is manually set to Arterial or at Screening when the reviewer verifies work is on an arterial or any street in a Hub and pedestrian, bicycle and/or vehicle mobility is impacted |
| Temporary No Parking Confirmation (Paid Parking Permit) |
If paid parking is impacted by the project, some sort of proof that a parking permit has been submitted | Review Evaluation |
| Other Documents | Based on project location and impact; Historic District CoA, Holiday Moratorium Waiver per CAM 2107, Pavement Moratorium, etc. | Review Evaluation |
| Corrections Response | Street Use comments Sheet with Responses | Screening - cannot submit Corrections Submitted if this is required |
If an application is submitted in error, you can withdraw the application by clicking on the Make Changes button on the record and selecting ROW Withdrawal and clicking the Continue Application button. How to instructions on how to withdraw an application can be found here.
You are not able to make any changes to the application once it is submitted. If application and/or document changes need to be made during the review process, email those change requests to the assigned reviewer or SDOTPermits@seattle.gov if the record is unassigned.
Step 4: Apply for your permit!
ROW Construction applications must be submitted through the Seattle Services Portal. One you are logged in, you can apply for your utility permit by following the how to instructions here.
Step 5: Check the status on your permit in review
Current timelines can be found on our Street Use Permitting Timelines and Updates website. You can find more information on the following topics in the Understanding the Street Use Permit Process, Record Status, Target Dates, and Permit Timelines help article.
- What are the Street Use permit process steps?
- What happens at each permit step and how does it get assigned?
- How do I check and understand the status of the SDOT Street Use record?
- What does Targeted For date mean and how is it determined?
- How long does the overall permit process take?
Step 6: Responding to Corrections in review
When a revised and/or additional document is required before we can proceed with or complete the review process, an automatic email notification will be sent noting the record status has been changed to 'Awaiting Corrections.'
Required documents will show as a condition of the permit. For details on each condition, click on the View Condition button on the record.
If a Corrections Response condition is required, you will need to upload the Street Use Comments Sheet with your responses added.
To download the Street Use Comments Sheet and marked-up documents (if applicable), go to the Attachments tab of your record and click on the blue hyperlink of each document you want to download. Once revised and/or additional documents are ready to submit, click on the Upload button in the Attachments tab. How to instructions on how to respond to corrections can be found here.
Step 7: Pay for your permit
How to instructions on how to find and pay your permit fees can be found here. If you are unsure how fees are calculated, visit our How to Estimate and Pay Permit Fees website for more information.
If you need to change use information (e.g., dates, square footage etc.), email the assigned reviewer or SDOTPermits@seattle.gov if unassigned.
Once the permit has been paid and issued, you can print your permit and all approved documents found in the Attachments tab of the record. How to instructions on how to find the permit and attached documents on the record can be found here.
Step 8: Notification, Job Start, and Temporary No-Park Permit Requirements
Prior to starting your project, you will need to provide the following notification:
- Public notification in advance of starting your project per CAM 2117
- Job start notification to let the Street Use inspector when you will begin your project per the how to instructions found here. After the initial inspection is passed, additional inspections may need to be scheduled. For more information on inspection types and how to schedule them, visit our Inspections website.
- Non-paid or paid parking notification and permits per our Temporary No Parking Permits website.
Step 9: Apply for an Amendment to modify/extend your permit
Once your permit has been issued, application, scope of work and/or date changes need to be made by submitting an amendment application through the Seattle Services Portal.
Amendments have different (shorter) process steps than an initial application. Documents are not required for an Amendment but can be optionally uploaded.
When an Amendment is issued, it updates information on its Parent (initial) permit record.
The below amendment types will be available once your permit has been issued:
Date Change Amendment - used to request a change to the start date of a use on an issued permit before the start of the use.
- Uses cannot be added or extended and the duration cannot be changed
- Scope of work and/or application changes cannot be requested
- In Hub areas, you will need to coordinate dates outside the initial issued dates and extension periods before proceeding with work (email SDOTConstructionHub@seattle.gov)
- How to instructions on how to apply for a Date Change Amendment can be found here.
Extension Amendment - used to request the extension of an existing use(s) on an issued permit
- Uses cannot be added
- Scope of work and/or application changes cannot be requested
- In Hub areas, you will need to coordinate dates outside the initial issued dates and extension periods before proceeding with work (email SDOTConstructionHub@seattle.gov)
- How to instructions on how to apply for an Extension Amendment can be found here.
Revision Amendment - used to request application information changes (contact, address and/or related information), scope of work changes (change of work zone, add or remove uses) and/or extending an existing use(s)
- Application and scope of work changes can be requested in the Amendment Description
- Uses can be added and extended
- Scope of work changes will require revised documents to be uploaded (e.g. ROWIP, Site Plan, TCP, Project Schedule etc.) and a full review will need to be performed
- How to instructions on how to apply for a Revision Amendment can be found here.