Construction Services in Norfolk, VA

Both. In Norfolk we take on interior remodeling — kitchens, bathrooms and room additions — and exterior remodeling — siding, windows and doors, and roofing — as one contractor rather than a separate company for each trade, alongside residential framing and ground-up custom homes. A remodel in the early-1900s housing of Ghent, Colonial Place, Larchmont or Lafayette-Winona usually starts with what is behind the plaster, so we open up and assess the existing framing before the scope is fixed rather than discovering it mid-job. Whether that work then needs a building permit or only a zoning certificate turns on whether framing is added or exposed, which the questions below cover.

Norfolk issues a zoning certificate when a building permit is not required, and the two are separate instruments. Zoning certificates are free, carry a free initial inspection, and City Planning asks for 5 to 10 business days to review one. Projects that require new framing or expose existing framing fall on the building-permit side and go through the permit portal with construction drawings. If you are unsure which applies, the city's zoning staff will screen the request before you apply.

256 square feet is the dividing line. A zoning certificate can only be issued for an accessory structure of 256 square feet or smaller — a shed, pergola or greenhouse, for example. If the structure is larger than 256 square feet, or is attached to the main building, it requires a building permit instead. Structures in a flood zone or an environmental area may also carry additional specifications, which Norfolk staff flag during review.

Yes. Norfolk states that a deck of any size or height requires both zoning approval and a building permit, so there is no small-deck or low-deck exemption the way there is for a small shed. The submission includes a survey or aerial photograph showing distances to all property lines, plus footing, foundation and framing plans, a deck cross-section, joist and beam sizes and spacing, and stair, handrail and guardrail details where they apply.

Six months. The certificate arrives by email with instructions for scheduling the final inspection, and that inspection has to be completed within six months or the certificate expires. It is worth scheduling the final inspection as soon as the work is finished rather than at the end of a wider project, because a lapsed certificate leaves an open record against the property that tends to surface at resale.

Often not on its own. After the zoning certificate is issued, the Department of Right-of-Way determines separately whether a right-of-way apron permit is also needed — a different permit from a different department, handled after the zoning certificate rather than alongside it. Norfolk also does not allow gravel or loose rock as a driveway surface, so the material is settled before the work is scheduled.