Permits / Authority
Long Beach permits
Long Beach Community Development publishes an unusually explicit ADU path: historic district properties need a Certificate of Appropriateness, Coastal Zone properties need an administrative Local Coastal Development Permit before the building permit, and over-the-counter review is not available for historic, coastal or major-structural projects.
Official starting points
Historic district?
A Certificate of Appropriateness is required in a Historic District.
Coastal Zone?
An administrative (no-hearing) Local Coastal Development Permit comes before the building permit application.
Pre-approved ADU program
Building and Safety handles questions about pre-approved ADU plans, fees and permit records.
Who reviews what, and where to start
Planning review (land use, overlays, design) and building review (drawings, permits, inspections) can be separate offices. The current checklist lives on each office's official page; the links below are the starting point, not the checklist itself.
- Building permits and plan check
- Official resource: Long Beach · Building & Safety
- ADU guidance
- Official resource: Long Beach · ADUs
Before you contact the agency
Have the address, parcel number, past permits and a short scope description ready. The printable list on this page summarizes what to bring. Go to the list
What stays parcel-specific
- Zoning and overlays that touch your address
- Whether the work qualifies for a particular path
- Fees calculated on the submitted project
- How many correction rounds follow
What is specific to this authority
The shared stages (authority, planning check, plan check and inspections) are explained once on the permits index; this page records only what differs. See how review usually proceeds
Over-the-counter eligibility
Some ADU projects may qualify for over-the-counter review; historic, coastal or major-structural ones do not.
Checklist to bring
- Property address
- Historic district and Coastal Zone check
- Structural scope summary
Questions
- Can my Long Beach ADU be reviewed same-day?
- Only if it qualifies for over-the-counter review; the City excludes historic, coastal and major-structural projects.
Planning a new home or rebuild? Custom home planning in Long Beach
Official sources
- Long Beach · ADUs
Historic/coastal prerequisites and over-the-counter limits.
Official page reached · 2026-10-13 - Long Beach · Building & Safety
Plan review, online permitting, inspections and pre-approved ADU program.
Official page reached · 2026-10-13
Sources show where to look; they do not confirm what applies to a parcel.
Service pages in these communities
KB Remodeling · Greater Los Angeles
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