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Certificate of Occupancy / Change of Use (Zoning Clearance & Tenant Occupancy Permit) in Cottonwood, Arizona

Cottonwood's closest equivalent to a stand-alone 'change of use permit' is a two-part process: a Zoning Clearance (Zoning Ordinance Section 303) confirming any change of use of an existing property complies with the Zoning Ordinance, and -- for a new tenant/business moving into a previously-occupied space with no or only minor cosmetic work -- a Tenant Occupancy Permit (TOP) that results in a new Certificate of Occupancy for that space. This is distinct from the City's separate, bonded Temporary Certificate of Occupancy (TCO) process (documented in this file's localAmendments and residential-building-permit entries) used to occupy part of a new, still-under-construction building before the whole project is complete.

Verified 2026-07-23 · Source

When you need this permit

  • A Zoning Clearance is required before any change of use, occupancy change, or structural alteration on an existing property (Zoning Ordinance Section 303.B, 303.E.2), reviewed at the staff level by the Zoning Administrator/Community Development Department; fee $100.00 (2025 Community Development Fee Schedule, 'Land Use & Permitting')
  • A Tenant Occupancy Permit (TOP) is required prior to opening a business in existing tenant space, except U occupancies (added as IBC Section 105.1.3 by Ordinance 761); where the change of use alters the existing occupant load, a new Certificate of Occupancy is also required; fee $100.00 plus review time, minimum 1/2 hour (2025 Fee Schedule, p.9)
  • The TOP applies only where no work, or only minor cosmetic work, is needed before occupancy -- allowed work is limited to floor-finish replacement, interior paint/wallpaper, and display counters/shelving 8 feet high or less; electrical, plumbing, framing, and mechanical work each require their own separate permit, and modifications to an existing fire sprinkler or alarm system require a separate permit (per the City's Tenant Occupancy Permit application form)
  • TOP submittal requires 2 copies of an 11-inch x 17-inch floor plan, Yavapai County Department of Health approval if the tenant involves food storage or a food-related service, and proof of a current City of Cottonwood Business License
  • Minimum required inspections for a TOP are a Fire Final Inspection and a Building Inspection (Life/Safety); any other trade permits pulled for the space require their own separate inspections
  • If non-life-safety code deficiencies are identified during a TOP's inspections, the Fire and Building inspectors may approve a 30-day Temporary Occupancy while corrections are made -- a distinct, shorter, unbonded process from the City's separate Temporary Certificate of Occupancy (TCO) used for partial occupancy of new, still-under-construction buildings (fee $200 residential/$500 commercial plus a bond equal to 100% of unfinished work)
  • A full/standard Certificate of Occupancy is required at completion of any building permit project under the 2024 IBC/IRC as adopted by Ordinance 761; Certificates of Occupancy are not issued on Fridays

Required documents

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Fee schedule

Zoning ClearanceCity of Cottonwood 2025 Community Development Fee Schedule, p.11, 'Land Use & Permitting' -- visually verified against a rendered page image
$100.00
Tenant Occupancy Permit (TOP)City of Cottonwood 2025 Community Development Fee Schedule, p.9; minimum 1/2 hour -- visually verified against a rendered page image
$100.00 plus review time
Temporary Certificate of Occupancy (TCO) — cross-reference only; a separate process from the TOP's own 30-day temporary occupancyCity of Cottonwood 2025 Community Development Fee Schedule, p.9; see this file's localAmendments and residential-building-permit entries for the full TCO process
$500.00 Commercial / $200.00 Residential, non-refundable, PLUS a bond equal to 100% of the value of unfinished work

Review timeline

Plan review
Not published — contact the department

How long did your Certificate of Occupancy / Change of Use (Zoning Clearance & Tenant Occupancy Permit) permit actually take in Cottonwood?

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Inspection process

  1. 1

    Fire Final Inspection

    Required minimum inspection for a Tenant Occupancy Permit, per the City's TOP application form

  2. 2

    Building Inspection (Life/Safety)

    Required minimum inspection for a Tenant Occupancy Permit, per the City's TOP application form

  3. 3

    Final / Certificate of Occupancy Issuance

    Certificate of Occupancy issued once all required inspections and department approvals (Planning, Building Safety, Fire) are complete; not issued on Fridays

See the full Cottonwood inspection guide — scheduling & re-inspection fees →

Tips

  • A Tenant Occupancy Permit only covers minor cosmetic work -- anything electrical, plumbing, framing, mechanical, or touching an existing fire sprinkler/alarm system needs its own separate permit(s) in addition to the TOP.
  • A change of use also generally requires a $100 Zoning Clearance under Zoning Ordinance Section 303.E.2, independent of and in addition to the Tenant Occupancy Permit fee -- signs are NOT exempt from Zoning Clearance, but fire sprinkler plans and fire alarm permits ARE exempt from it (Section 303.F).
  • Don't confuse the TOP's built-in 30-day temporary occupancy (issued when only non-life-safety deficiencies remain after inspection) with the City's separate, bonded Temporary Certificate of Occupancy (TCO) process for new construction -- they have different fees, different bonding requirements, and are documented on different application forms.
  • A change of occupancy to certain higher-risk classifications (H, I, R, mixed-use-with-R, F-1/S-1 over 1,500 sq ft, or A-1/A-2/A-3 with an occupant load over 100) can trigger a fire-sprinkler retrofit requirement under amended IFC Section 903.2 -- confirm this with the Fire Prevention Division and Building Division before assuming a tenant change is fee-only.

Frequently asked questions

Generally yes -- a Tenant Occupancy Permit ($100 plus review time) is required prior to opening, except for U occupancies, plus a $100 Zoning Clearance if the use is changing. The TOP covers only minor cosmetic work and requires a Fire Final Inspection and a Building Life/Safety Inspection before a Certificate of Occupancy is issued for the space.

In Cottonwood, the published Zoning Clearance is: $100.00. Additional published fees: Tenant Occupancy Permit (TOP) — $100.00 plus review time; Temporary Certificate of Occupancy (TCO) — cross-reference only; a separate process from the TOP's own 30-day temporary occupancy — $500.00 Commercial / $200.00 Residential, non-refundable, PLUS a bond equal to 100% of the value of unfinished work. These are the jurisdiction's own published figures — see the fee schedule table and source citations on this page.

Cottonwood does not publish a plan-review timeline for this permit. Contact City of Cottonwood Community Development Department — Building Division at 928-634-5505 for current turnaround.

You'll need: Tenant Occupancy Permit Application; Zoning Clearance Application; Business Registration Application. See the required-documents checklist on this page for details on each.

Cottonwood requires 3 inspection(s) for a certificate of occupancy / change of use (zoning clearance & tenant occupancy permit), in order: Fire Final Inspection, Building Inspection (Life/Safety), Final / Certificate of Occupancy Issuance. Schedule each through City of Cottonwood Community Development Department — Building Division (928-634-5505).

Apply through City of Cottonwood Community Development Department — Building Division at 111 North Main Street, Cottonwood, AZ 86326 (Building Division counter also referenced at 827 N. Main St., Cottonwood, AZ 86326 in the City's online directory). Phone: 928-634-5505, email: building@cottonwoodaz.gov. Office hours: Community Development Office: Monday-Thursday, 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. (closed Fridays). Building Inspection Hours: Monday-Thursday, 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Certificates of occupancy are not issued on Fridays. Permits are applied for and tracked online via CloudPermit (us.cloudpermit.com/gov/login); inspections may be requested through the online portal ('MY INSPECTION') or by calling (928) 340-2724 — inspection requests submitted before 4:00 p.m. are scheduled for the next business day, and final inspections require 48 hours' notice.. Official information: https://cottonwoodaz.gov/158/Building-Division.

Cottonwood, Arizona has adopted: Arizona has NO statewide mandatory building code floor for general construction — code adoption is a per-city/county authority under state enabling statutes (e.g., A.R.S. Title 9 for municipalities). The City of Cottonwood's Community Development Department (Planning Division, Building Division, and Ordinance Enforcement Division) independently adopts and administers its own construction codes under Title 15 (Buildings and Construction) of the Cottonwood City Code. Source: City of Cottonwood Building Division page (cottonwoodaz.gov/158/Building-Division).; 2024 International Building Code (IBC), including Appendices C, G, H, I, and J, adopted by reference as the City's building code (Cottonwood City Code § 15.08.020), with City of Cottonwood amendments (§ 15.08.021), effective July 1, 2025. Source: City of Cottonwood Ordinance No. 761, '2025 Technical Code Update,' adopted by City Council and approved by the Mayor May 20, 2025, effective July 1, 2025.; 2024 International Residential Code (IRC), including Appendices A, B, C, G, H, J, O, P and Q (with Appendices BB, BD, BF, BH, BO, CA, CB, CD, CE, and CF also adopted), adopted by reference as the one- and two-family dwelling code (§ 15.08.060), with City of Cottonwood amendments (§ 15.08.061), effective July 1, 2025. Source: City of Cottonwood Ordinance No. 761 (2025 Technical Code Update).; 2024 International Fuel Gas Code (IFGC), including Appendices A and B, adopted by reference (§ 15.08.070), with City of Cottonwood amendments (§ 15.08.071), effective July 1, 2025. Source: City of Cottonwood Ordinance No. 761 (2025 Technical Code Update).; 2024 International Existing Building Code (IEBC), including Appendices A, B, C, and E, adopted by reference (§ 15.08.080), effective July 1, 2025. Source: City of Cottonwood Ordinance No. 761 (2025 Technical Code Update).; 2018 International Energy Conservation Code (IECC) — NOTE: unlike the other ICC codes, the City's energy code was NOT advanced to the 2024 edition in the 2025 Technical Code Update; it remains the 2018 IECC (Cottonwood City Code § 15.10.010), with City amendments at § 15.10.011 (including a residential building-thermal-envelope air-leakage-test field-verification exception). The IRC's own Chapter 11 (Energy Efficiency) is separately deleted and replaced with Chapter 11 of the 2018 IRC per the Ordinance's IRC amendments. Source: City of Cottonwood Ordinance No. 761 (2025 Technical Code Update); City of Cottonwood Building Division page (confirms '2024 International Codes' adopted effective 7/1/2025 without listing IECC among the upgraded editions).; 2024 International Plumbing Code (IPC), including Appendices B, C, D, and E, adopted by reference (§ 15.12.010), with City of Cottonwood amendments (§ 15.12.011), effective July 1, 2025. Source: City of Cottonwood Ordinance No. 761 (2025 Technical Code Update).; 2023 National Electrical Code (NEC), as published by the National Fire Protection Association, adopted by reference (§ 15.16.010), effective July 1, 2025 (electrical code cycle is one edition behind the 2024 ICC set, consistent with typical Arizona NEC adoption lag). Source: City of Cottonwood Ordinance No. 761 (2025 Technical Code Update); City of Cottonwood Building Division page.; 2024 International Mechanical Code (IMC), including Appendix A, adopted by reference (§ 15.20.010), with City of Cottonwood amendments (§ 15.20.011, including a mandatory third-party test-and-balance report requirement for altered ventilation/exhaust systems where required to verify code compliance), effective July 1, 2025. Source: City of Cottonwood Ordinance No. 761 (2025 Technical Code Update).; 2024 International Fire Code (IFC), including Appendices B through O, adopted by reference (§ 15.24.010) as the City's uniform fire code, with City of Cottonwood amendments (open-flame/aerial-fireworks restrictions in high fire-risk areas; automatic fire sprinkler requirements per NFPA 13/13-R/13-D expanded beyond the base IFC thresholds; fire-permit surety-bond amounts), effective July 1, 2025. Administered by the City of Cottonwood Fire Prevention Division. Source: City of Cottonwood Ordinance No. 761 (2025 Technical Code Update).; 2024 International Property Maintenance Code (IPMC), adopted effective July 1, 2025. Source: City of Cottonwood Building Division page (cottonwoodaz.gov/158/Building-Division).; ICC A117.1-2017 Accessibility Standard, plus the Arizonans with Disabilities Act (A.R.S. Title 41, Chapter 9, Article 8) and its implementing rules ('Americans with Disabilities Act Accessibility Guidelines for Buildings and Facilities,' declared a public record by Resolution No. 1610), adopted as an amendment to the IBC (Cottonwood City Code § 15.08.050) applying to public entities, public accommodations, and commercial facilities; also incorporated into IBC Chapter 11 (§ 1102.1) alongside the 2010 ADA Standards (Title II and Title III regulations, 28 CFR 35.15 / 36 subpart D, and the 2004 ADAAG). Source: City of Cottonwood Ordinance No. 761 (2025 Technical Code Update).; Effective July 1, 2025 the City also adopted its 2025 Community Development and Fire Department Fee Schedule, which governs all building/fire permit, plan review, and inspection fees; the base valuation-per-square-foot cost tables in that schedule are labeled 'August 2018' (carried forward unchanged from the prior fee-schedule cycle) while the general Schedule of Building Permit Fees (dollar-valuation brackets) and all mechanical/plumbing/electrical/miscellaneous fee line items were updated for 2025. Source: City of Cottonwood 2025 Community Development Fee Schedule (cottonwoodaz.gov/DocumentCenter/View/8316).. Local amendments apply — see the Cottonwood overview page for the full list.

The Tenant Occupancy Permit (TOP, $100 plus review time) is for a new tenant moving into a previously-occupied space with no or only minor work, and can itself result in a 30-day temporary occupancy if only non-life-safety issues remain after inspection. The Temporary Certificate of Occupancy (TCO) is a separate, bonded process (fee $200 residential/$500 commercial plus a bond equal to 100% of unfinished work) for occupying part of a NEW, still-under-construction building before the entire project is finished.

Sources & verification

Verified against official sources. Last reviewed 2026-07-23.

Fees, timelines, and adopted codes are researched from each jurisdiction's published records — see how we verify. Requirements change and vary by project, so always confirm the current details with the Cottonwood building department before you submit. PermitBase is an independent reference and is not affiliated with any government agency.

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