Thurston County, Washington

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Thurston County Washington

What's New in Thurston County Permitting and Development: March 2026

March 5, 2026
Aerial view of a residential conservation subdevelopment with multiple buildings arranged along a central road, surrounded by evergreen trees and adjacent to a large green field under a blue sky.

New Hours

The Thurston County Planning and Building Desks at the Building Development Center (BDC) have changed their hours for free walk-ins. Building permits are still being accepted until 3:45 PM.

Monday-Friday, (8:00 AM-1:00 PM)

Appointments outside of those hours can be made on the Community Development scheduling page.

 

Appointments

Wherever you are in planning your project, there's an appointment to match. Learn more and schedule your appointment.

What Service Do You Need? Service Type Cost Time How Do I Schedule
  • Ask basic zoning questions.
  • Get forms.
  • Find out next steps.

Walk-In

8:00AM-1:00PM

 Free 15 min No appointment needed
  • Understand how code relates to your project.
  • Identify major project issues.
 Planner Consultation $30 + 5% tech fee 30 min Come in person. Be prepared with questions.
  • Find out if your project is feasible.
  • Help with key project decisions like square feet and location.
  • Learn requirements.
 Concept Review $120 + 5% tech fee 30 min + staff prep

Come in person, one week in advance, and bring your application with:

  • Early concepts.
  • Square footage of project.
  • General locations.
  • In depth-review.
  • Confirm all permits, reviews, and submittal expectations.
 Presubmission Conference $1,372 + 5% tech fee 1 hr + staff prep

Come in person and bring application with:

  • Engineer/architect drawings of proposal
Illustrated diagram showing a primary home and a detached accessory dwelling unit (ADU) connected by one shared driveway. A dashed arc and measuring tape graphic indicate the ADU must be within 100 feet of the main house (“<100 feet max”). Labels identify “Primary Home,” “Detached ADU,” “One Shared Driveway,” and the street in front. Trees and landscaping surround both buildings.

Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs)

The Board of County Commissioners approved some recent changes to county code on ADUs. Here's what's changed:

  • Family Member Units are no longer permitted.
  • One ADU per lot is permitted in rural areas.
  • Detached ADUs are permitted in rural areas and do not require additional land.
    • Size cap of 1,000 square feet. Transferable development rights may be used to increase the size to 1,200 square feet.**
    • Must be within 100 ft from the primary home, unless there are limiting circumstances.
    • Must share the main driveway.

**Additional standards may apply. Learn more: www.thurstoncountywa.gov/departments/community-planning-and-economic-development/permitting/adu-accessory-dwelling-unit-information

 

Permit Application Expiration Timeline

Title 14 is the section of Thurston County Code that covers permits and inspections for construction and development. It explains when permits are needed, how long they stay valid, and what steps are required before building can begin.

Title 14 includes two expiration timelines for permits:

  • Application Timeline: If there is no activity on an application for one year, the application expires.
  • Issued permit Timeline: Once a permit is issued, construction must begin within one year or the permit may expire.

In the past, some projects reached the “ready to issue” stage but were not finalized because applicants did not pick up the permit and pay the required fees. These projects fell into a gray area between the application timeline and the issued permit timeline.

After reviewing Title 14, the County clarified that an application remains an application until payment is made and the permit is officially issued. Once payment is received, the permit moves to issued status, and the one-year issued permit timeline begins.

To address older projects that reached the ready-to-issue stage more than one year ago, CPED will create a process for applicants to extend their permits. Applicants will be able to request a one-year extension from the date the permit would have been issued.

This approach gives applicants time to move forward with their projects while recognizing that economic conditions have changed in recent years. It also brings permit timelines back into alignment with Title 14.

Going forward, once a permit is issued, applicants will have one year to begin work or request an extension to keep the permit active.

 

New Staff

A warm welcome to our new staff members you might see at the Building Development Center!

Professional headshot portrait of AJ who has short brown hair and green eyes wearing a blue collared shirt against a blue background.

AJ Stern

AJ graduated from San Francisco State University in 2023 with a degree in Environmental Studies and previously worked supporting restoration and construction projects with environmental permitting and compliance. Outside of work, you’ll most likely find him fly fishing, cooking something new, playing guitar, or working on his photography and videography.
Nym in a teal hooded jacket and burgundy beanie taking a selfie on a rocky shoreline, with forested hills and water in the background.

Nym Veach

Nym recently moved here from North Dakota, where she worked as an environmental scientist for the ND Department of Environmental Quality. She loves hiking, traveling, reading, and writing; while enjoying life with her husband and three cats.
Comic-style filtered photo of John wearing a beanie and orange safety vest sitting in a vehicle with a light-colored dog. John and dog are facing each other inside the car.

John Moore

A Thurston County native, John attended Tumwater High School/New Market Vocational Skills Center and studied Building Inspection Technology at Butte College. He started as a Building Inspector with the County in 2002, moved to Public Works in 2008, and—after a "short" 18 years—is happy to be back home in the Building Department. Outside of work, John enjoys hunting, fishing, and hiking from the mountains to the coast with his Weimaraner, Tripp. He and his family also stay busy supporting their daughter at high school, where she is heavily involved in sports, especially fastpitch.
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