Town of Woodside

A city address is usually permitted by the city, not the county — but not always, and some authorities keep building and hand electrical to someone else. Getting this wrong costs the whole submittal, because every requirement below belongs to whoever actually holds jurisdiction. Check the overlays in the same pass: an HOA, a historic district, a windstorm certification or a system-size cap can reshape the design, and all of them are cheaper to find now than after the array is laid out.

• Is this authority the AHJ for residential solar at this address? Yes 95% · department page
• What does this authority permit itself, and what does it delegate? Both 88% · department page + fee schedule
• Is a permit required for a residential rooftop PV system? Yes 96% · department handout
• Is there a separate electrical permit, or is it combined? Either 88% · department handout + fee schedule
• Is a wind or windstorm certification required? No separate wind/windstorm certification process; wind loading is folded into the Structural Criteria's built-in wind-uplift/anchor-fastener check 78% · department handout
• Is a Specific Use Permit or Council approval ever required? No, for the ordinary case 80% · department handout
• Is there a system-size cap on residential generation? 10 kW AC CEC rating (or 30 kW thermal) is only the ceiling for the Town's EXPEDITED roof-mounted permitting path; larger residential systems are not banned, they route to the standard >10kW/ground-mounted/commercial submittal and fee track (fee schedule item 21b prices systems above 15kW by the kW). No hard citywide cap on residential system size was found. 88% · department handout + fee schedule

Several authorities require the electrical permit to be pulled by a licensed electrician, or require the contractor to be registered with them BEFORE applying. Registration is not same-day. This is second on the list rather than fourth because it is the step most likely to stop the job before the drawings matter.

• Who is allowed to pull the electrical permit? Either 60% · permit application form
• Must the contractor be registered with this authority before applying? Yes 62% · department page
• Is a homeowner permitted to self-install and self-permit? Yes 58% · department page

Almost everywhere wants a site plan, a one-line or three-line electrical diagram, equipment cut sheets with listings, and a structural attachment detail. Build it against the published checklist rather than the last jurisdiction you worked in — the checklist is what the reviewer marks against.

• What documents make up a complete submittal? Per the Town's own submittal-requirements bulletins: a completed Building Permit Application; for roof-mounted PV ≤10kW: a completed Eligibility Checklist for Expedited Solar Photovoltaic Permitting, a completed Solar PV Standard Plan (or full electrical plan with one-line diagram, module/string counts, inverter/combiner make & model, conductor/conduit sizing, grounding/bonding), a roof plan showing panel layout, disconnects, roof access point, code-compliant access pathways, PV fire classification and label locations, UL 1703/UL 2703 Class 'A' fire-classification listing documentation for the module+racking assembly, and a completed Structural Criteria form (stamped engineering only if any item fails); for PV >10kW/ground-mounted/commercial, or any system with battery storage, additional structural, electrical (CEC 690.12 rapid-shutdown compliance), and (for ground mount) topography/septic/slope-stability documentation is required; battery/ESS systems separately require a dedicated Battery Backup/ESS submittal package (site plan, line diagram, UL 9540 documentation if units are within 3 ft of each other, rapid-shutdown-integration details). 92% · department handout (Submittal Requirements)
• How many copies, and in what format? Minimum plan size 11"x17", minimum font size 10 point. For PV >10kW/ground-mounted/commercial: 3 complete sets of plans + 1 complete set of supporting documentation. For battery/ESS submittals: 3 full sets of plans + 2 sets of supporting documents. The ≤10kW roof-mounted expedited bulletin restates the paper-size/font rule but does not separately restate a copy count. 78% · department handout
• Is a site plan required, and what must it show? Yes — a roof plan/site diagram showing the arrangement of panels on the roof (or ground), location of electrical service and any sub-panels, north arrow, lot dimensions, distance from property lines to adjacent buildings/structures, roof access point, code-compliant access pathways, PV system fire classification, and locations of all required labels/markings. Ground-mounted systems additionally must show distance of equipment from the property line, topography, septic system location, stream corridors, easements, tree drip lines, and a required 10 ft brush-free clearance. 93% · department handout
• Is a one-line / three-line diagram required? Yes 95% · department handout (Solar PV Standard Plan)
• Are string and conductor calculations required? Yes 88% · department handout
• Is a structural PE stamp required, and at what threshold? A CA-licensed Civil or Structural Engineer's stamped drawings/calculations are required only if any item on the Town's own 'Structural Criteria for Residential Flush-Mounted Solar Arrays' checklist is answered 'No' (roof condition, rafter span/spacing/framing type, anchor horizontal spacing vs. Table 1, wind-uplift fastener spec). If every item is 'Yes,' no additional stamped calculations are required. Separately, the Town's general 'Licensed Professional-Designer Requirements' bulletin lists 'roof mounted mechanical equipment' among work requiring an architect/engineer stamp, though this is a general provision not written specifically for PV. 92% · department handout (Structural Criteria)

Most authorities now take the whole application through a portal, and several states cap or constrain what a residential solar permit may cost. Check whether plan check is billed separately before you quote the job.

• Which permit portal does this authority use? eTRAKiT (wood.csqrcloud.com/community-etrakit/) for building-permit application, payment, and inspection scheduling; SolarApp+ (gosolarapp.org) for the code-compliance/eligibility check step on eligible residential PV systems 90% · department page
• Can the whole application be completed online? No 82% · department page
• What does a residential solar permit cost? $450 flat for 15kW or less; $450 base fee plus $15/kW for each kW above 15kW, above that 96% · published fee schedule (current Council resolution)
• How is the fee calculated? Tiered 90% · published fee schedule
• Is there a separate plan-check fee? Yes, likely — but the fee schedule is internally ambiguous on this specific line 58% · published fee schedule

Interconnection is a separate process from the permit and usually the longer pole. Where the utility does not depend on the permit being issued, running both at once is the single biggest saving available on a residential job.

• How long is an issued permit valid before it expires? Approximately 1 year from issuance (or from the last inspection activity), inferred from the reactivation-fee structure 72% · published fee schedule (inference)
• Which utility handles interconnection here? Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) 58% · reliable secondary source (utility territory description)

The NEC edition a jurisdiction enforces is often a cycle behind the newest one published, and local amendments sit on top of it. Rapid shutdown, conductor sizing and labelling all change between editions, so the edition in force is the first thing to establish, not the last.

• Which NEC edition is in force? 2023 (via the 2025 California Electrical Code, CEC Part 3, which is based on the 2023 NEC) 92% · department page
• Which building code edition is in force? 2025 California Building Code / California Residential Code (Title 24, based on the 2024 IBC/IRC cycle) 92% · department page
• Which fire code edition is in force? Inferred: 2025 California Fire Code — adopted and enforced by the Woodside Fire Protection District (WFPD), a separate special district, not directly by the Town 50% · inference (primary source blocked this run — see why)
• Are there local amendments to any of the above? Yes 82% · permit application form + department handouts
• What is the installation judged against? The 2025 California Building Standards Code (Title 24) — Building, Residential, Electrical, Plumbing, Mechanical, Energy, WUI, Green Building, and Reference Standards — as amended by the Town's own local WUI/Class-A-roof rule and fire-safe design checkbox, PLUS the Woodside Fire Protection District's independently adopted California Fire Code (with NFPA 70 Article 690 formally accepted per WFPD's own 2007 Policy Intent Notice, still linked from the Town's current 2026 solar handout) and WFPD's own additional local PV/battery safety standards. 78% · department page + department handouts

Ridge setbacks and roof access pathways are fire-service requirements and they constrain the array layout. They are the most common cause of a redesign after the fire department comments on a plan set.

• What ridge setback and access pathways are required? 36 inches minimum walking-space clearance around the perimeter of roof-mounted solar arrays (Woodside Fire Protection District's own 'Policy Intent Notice,' item 1, still linked from the Town's current 2026 solar-submittal bulletin). Beyond that specific dimension, the Town's own bulletins do not restate their own ridge-setback figures — they instead point applicants to 'examples of clear path access pathways' in WFPD's requirements and to the general Class "A" roof-covering/fire-classification rule (UL 1703, CRC R902.4/CBC Table 1505.1) rather than a numeric ridge setback. 78% · district handout (retrieved via Wayback Machine, primary site 403'd this run)

Which rapid-shutdown rule applies follows directly from the NEC edition in force, and the initiation device has to be at a location the fire service can reach and identify. This is inspected, and it is labelled.

• Is rapid shutdown required, and to which NEC edition? Yes — the Town's own submittal-requirements bulletin for PV systems over 10kW/ground-mounted/commercial states explicitly: 'Provide documentation demonstrating compliance with CEC 690.12 Rapid Shutdown for PV systems on buildings.' This is under the currently-adopted 2025 CEC, which is based on the 2023 NEC. 92% · department handout

The NEC sets a baseline for permanent markings at the service equipment and the disconnecting means. On top of that, an authority may specify its own wording, and the utility may specify more again. Where any of them writes its own text, a generic off-the-shelf label set will not pass — this is the detail most often fixed on a return visit.

• Which placards does this authority require at the service equipment? At minimum: (Town/CEC-required, per the Solar PV Standard Plan and inspection checklist) an inverter-output-connection overcurrent-device warning, a dual-power-sources warning at the PV AC disconnect, a PV-power-source warning marked on junction/combiner boxes and along conduit every 10 ft, a CEC 705.10 permanent plaque/directory of all power sources, and (per the Town's own inspection checklist) signs identifying the PV power source at the DC disconnect, the AC point of connection, and any alternative-power-system switch. SEPARATELY (WFPD-required, per its Policy Intent Notice, independent of the Town): conduit caution labels every 20 ft, a permanent placard on both the exterior and interior of the main electrical panel, an 'Emergency Disconnect' label on the roof-mounted emergency disconnect, and a placard on any enclosed battery-storage cabinet. 90% · department handout + district handout
• Does the authority specify placard wording of its own? Yes 90% · department handout + district handout
• Does it specify letter height, colour or material? Yes, but the Town's own documents CONFLICT on colour. (1) The Town's inspection checklist (submittal-requirements bulletins) states signage must be 'permanent type placards, with engraved / etched lettering, RED BACKGROUND WITH WHITE LETTERING' (stickers not allowed). (2) The Town's own Solar PV Standard Plan cites ANSI Z535.4 and calls for '20 point (3/8in)' minimum lettering on 'a phenolic plaque with contrasting colors.' (3) WFPD's separate Policy Intent Notice specifies the opposite colour scheme for its own conduit/panel caution labels: 'WHITE BACKGROUND WITH RED LETTERING.' I report all three rather than resolve the Town-vs-WFPD contradiction. 70% · department handout (conflicting with district handout, both cited)
• Is a site plan / facility map placard required, and what must it show? Yes — CEC §705.10/705.12 requires 'a permanent plaque or directory denoting all electric power sources on or in the premises' (per the Town's own Standard Plan), and a roof/site plan showing panel layout, north arrow, lot dimensions, access pathways, and disconnect/roof-access-point locations is separately required at submittal. 85% · department handout
• Where must the labels be placed? Per the Town's own Standard Plan (CEC-derived): marked on junction/combiner boxes and on conduit at intervals of every 10 feet. SEPARATELY, per WFPD's own Policy Intent Notice: conduit caution labels installed every 20 feet (with at least one label at eye level on vertical conduit runs), plus placards at the main electrical panel (exterior and interior) and at the roof-mounted emergency disconnect. 88% · department handout + district handout

Where the AC disconnect must sit relative to the meter is usually the utility's rule, not the building department's. Battery storage frequently carries its own permit, its own inspection and its own fire conditions.

• Must equipment be on a specific approved list? No Town-specific approved-equipment list; equipment must simply be listed/labeled per CEC Articles 690 and 705 (standard NRTL listing), and roof-mounted PV modules/racking must carry Class "A" fire-classification test-report documentation to UL 1703 & UL 2703 (manufacturer brochures do not suffice) because Woodside is in the Wildland-Urban Interface. 75% · department handout
• Are batteries permitted, and under what conditions? Yes, subject to conditions. Batteries disqualify a system from the Town's EXPEDITED roof-mounted ≤10kW path (Eligibility Checklist item D: system must be 'utility interactive and without battery storage'), routing it instead to the standard process with a dedicated Battery Backup/ESS submittal package. Per the Town's own ESS handout (citing 2019 CRC R327.3/R327.4/R327.5): individual ESS units max 20 kWh, aggregate ratings capped at 40–80 kWh depending on location (utility closet/basement vs. garage/exterior/outdoor), 3 ft separation between units (or UL 9540A/9540 large-scale fire-test documentation if closer), ESS allowed only in detached garages/accessory structures, attached garages separated per CRC R302.6, exterior walls ≥3 ft from doors/windows, or finished/fire-rated interior utility spaces — never in sleeping rooms. WFPD separately requires indoor batteries be mounted a minimum of 18 inches off the floor (WFPD's own annotation on the Town's ESS handout). 92% · department handout
• Is there a separate ESS permit or inspection? Yes 85% · fee schedule + department handout
• Is a ground mount treated as a structure? Yes 90% · department handout
• Is there a local rule on service upgrades or busbar sizing? For the Town's expedited/standard-plan path: the PV system must interconnect to a single-phase AC service panel of nominal 120/220 (or 120/240) Vac with a bus bar rating of 225A or less, connected on the load side of the utility distribution equipment; the combined main + inverter-output overcurrent-protective-device rating must not exceed 120% of the bus bar rating per CEC 705.12(D) (Table 5 in the Town's own Standard Plan). A separate Electrical Permit and fee applies if the service panel itself is replaced or upgraded ($272 up to 200A, $379 above 200A per the current fee schedule). 90% · department handout
• Is a specific mounting system or attachment spacing required? Yes — detailed flush-mount rules: modules must be parallel to the roof plane with a 2–10in gap underneath, must not overhang roof edges, weigh no more than 4 psf (PV) or 5 psf (thermal), and cover no more than half the total roof area; maximum horizontal anchor spacing is set by a table keyed to roof slope and rafter spacing (e.g. 5ft-4in max at flat-to-6:12 slope, 16in o.c. rafters), with a minimum 5/16in-diameter lag screw with 2.5in rafter embedment (or manufacturer-equivalent) for wind-uplift resistance. 95% · department handout

Booking is a portal, a phone call or an email depending on the authority, and the notice required is rarely zero. Book before the work is finished rather than after — the lead time, not the work, is usually what sets the date.

• How is an inspection booked? Phone (also Portal/eTRAKiT and email available per the general Building Department page) 85% · department handout
• How much notice is required? Conflicting figures across the Town's own documents: the general Building Department page states a 72-hour advance-notice requirement, while the solar-specific submittal bulletins state 'Inspection requests received within business hours are typically scheduled within the next 48 hours. If this is not available, inspection should happen within a five-day window.' 65% · department page (conflicting with department handout, both cited)

Some authorities inspect their own solar work; some delegate it, and a few do not inspect the PV equipment itself at all. Who is coming determines what they will look at.

• Does this AHJ perform its own final solar inspection? Yes 85% · department handout
• If delegated, to whom? Woodside Fire Protection District (WFPD) — but as an independently-authorized fire-safety inspection under its own California Fire Code jurisdiction, not a delegation FROM the Town. The Town's own bulletins instruct the applicant to call WFPD directly, before scheduling with the Building Department, for WFPD's own separate inspection. 85% · department handout

A rough-in or mid-roof inspection, where one is required, has to happen before the work it covers is closed up. Missing a stage means opening something back up, and it is the most expensive kind of correction.

• Which inspections are required, and in what order? (1) WFPD reviews/approves the solar plans under its own authority; (2) Town issues the Building/electrical permit; (3) system is installed; (4) applicant calls WFPD (650-851-6206) for WFPD's own fire inspection, required before the Town inspection is scheduled; (5) applicant calls/schedules the Town Building Department's final building/electrical inspection. 82% · department handout
• Is a rough-in or mid-roof inspection required? No (inferred) 55% · department handout (inference — code text unreachable, see why)

The approved plan set, the permit, and the equipment listings should be on site and reachable. Inspectors routinely verify that installed equipment matches what was approved, and that the labels are the ones the plan set promised.

• Is there a published inspection checklist? Yes 80% · department handout
• What must be on site at inspection? The approved plans and all technical requirements described in them, in the field; the contractor/installer must be present for the final inspection. 75% · department handout
• Does the inspector verify labels and listings? Yes 88% · department handout

Passing gives you a final or an equivalent sign-off. That is not the same as permission to operate: PTO comes from the utility, and who tells the utility the inspection passed varies. A system left switched off for weeks is usually waiting on this handover.

• Is there a re-inspection fee? $162 (applies after the first re-inspection); a separate $162 'Missed Inspection Fee' also applies 92% · published fee schedule
• How are corrections issued and cleared? Not explicitly described as a formal 'correction notice' process; the closest Town-stated rule is: 'All changes from the town approved job set of plans shall be submitted to and approved by the Town of Woodside prior to the change being made in the field.' 55% · department handout