Chelan County, the lake
Handyman in Chelan, WA
Chelan runs hard for a few months and then sits, and that on and off pattern is harder on a house than steady use. Decks, exterior repairs, and turnover work for the homes and rentals that take a hard season and need to be ready for the next one.
Chelan By The Numbers
Inside the incorporated city limits the published frost depth is 18 inches. That is the depth your footings get measured against in town.
Unincorporated Chelan County runs a 24 inch frost line, 6 inches deeper than the city figure. The same footing detail is not legal on both sides of the city line.
The city design criteria sheet lists roof snow load at 40 psf and ground snow load at 50 psf, with wind at 85 mph and 110 mph, exposure C, and seismic category C for residential. Ground snow outside the limits starts higher, at the county default of 57 psf.
Outside the limits the county default is 57 psf, but only for a site at 950 feet elevation or less. Above 950 feet you read the parcel elevation off the Chelan County GIS map and multiply it by the nearest snow load isoline, so a hillside lot above the lake carries a higher number than the lot below it.
Inside the city a deck skips a building permit only if it does all four at once: stays at 200 square feet or under, sits no more than 30 inches above grade at any point, is not attached to a dwelling, and does not serve the exit door required by Section R311.4.
In town a front yard fence tops out at 42 inches, and 36 inches on a corner lot for 15 feet from the intersection of the property lines abutting the street. Out in unincorporated Chelan County the front yard limit is 4 feet instead.
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Permits In Chelan
This counter covers building, electrical, mechanical, plumbing, tree and grading permits and every inspection inside the incorporated limits, plus the separate short term rental operating license. The threshold worth knowing is that a re roof needs a permit here. It sits on the city permits required list next to carports, decks more than 30 inches above grade, window replacement where the frame or the opening changed, and rockeries or retaining walls over 4 feet.
Everything past the city limits reports to Wenatchee: most of the shoreline, the orchard benches, Manson, and the lots above the 950 foot line where snow load stops being a single number. Out here fence height depends on where the fence sits, not only how tall it is. CCC 11.88.170 allows 7 feet in side and rear yards and 4 feet in the front except on corner lots, a fence outside the building setback or required yard areas has no height restriction at all, and anything over 7 feet needs a building permit.
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Based in Quincy, serving nine towns across Grant, Douglas, and Chelan counties
What Breaks Around Chelan
- Ice shield belongs at the eave. Outside the city limits the county design criteria require ice shield underlayment, so the first few feet of roof is where we start looking after a hard winter.
- Deck posts over 4 feet need knee braces. The city basic deck sheet calls for knee braces on any post over 4 feet tall and guards on any deck more than 30 inches above grade.
- Wind loosens the trim first. City design criteria put wind at 85 mph and 110 mph with exposure C, and it shows on fascia, screens and storm doors before it shows anywhere else.
Questions
Chelan Questions
The questions Chelan callers ask most, and where the city and the county part ways.
Am I inside Chelan city limits or in the county?
The city line decides which counter you stand at and which numbers apply to your job. The City of Chelan Building Department issues permits and runs inspections inside the incorporated limits. Chelan County Community Development in Wenatchee handles everything outside them.
The gap is concrete: frost depth is 18 inches in the city and 24 inches in the county, and a front yard fence tops out at 42 inches in the city and 4 feet in the county. Most of the shoreline, the orchard benches and Manson sit outside the limits.
How deep do footings have to go in Chelan?
Eighteen inches inside the city limits, 24 inches in unincorporated Chelan County. Same lake, two numbers. Which one applies comes down to which side of the city line the lot sits on.
The city design criteria sheet also sets ground snow load at 50 psf, roof snow at 40 psf, wind at 85 mph and 110 mph, exposure C, and seismic category C for residential and D for all others. Your footing and framing get checked against those.
How tall can I build a fence in Chelan?
Inside the city, 42 inches in the front yard and 6 feet in the side and rear. The side and rear fence steps down to 42 inches at the front setback line, and a corner lot drops to 36 inches for 15 feet from the intersection of the property lines abutting the street.
In unincorporated Chelan County the front yard limit is 4 feet. A corner lot fence sitting in the building setback for either street is capped at 4 feet, or 3 feet where the clear view triangle in CCC 11.88.090 takes over.
Do I need a permit to replace my roof in Chelan?
Yes, inside the city limits. A re roof sits on the City of Chelan permits required list, and outside the limits the county design criteria call for ice shield underlayment.
The same list catches jobs people assume are exempt. Carports, dock repairs and additions, exterior doors, windows and skylights that need a new opening, window replacement where the frame was replaced or the opening enlarged, and rockeries or retaining walls over 4 feet all land on it.
Do I need a permit for a shed in Chelan?
Inside the city, a one story tool or storage shed of 200 square feet or less is exempt from a building permit. Tree supported play structures and playhouses at 200 square feet or under are exempt as well.
Exempt from a building permit is not exempt from zoning. In the R-L single family district, other accessory buildings together cannot exceed 25 percent of the floor area of the principal structure, excluding basement, and are capped at 600 square feet.
Can I replace the deck boards without pulling a permit?
Inside the city, yes, as long as no other structural member comes out with them. Replacing decking on a deck or a dock without replacing any other structural member is exempt from a building permit.
Once a joist, beam, post or the ledger comes out, the exemption is gone. A permit is required for any deck more than 30 inches above grade, and the city designs decks for 60 psf live load over 10 psf dead load on 1500 psf soil bearing.
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