General Contractor in Atherton

Atherton is San Mateo County jurisdiction, not Santa Clara, so the process differs from most of our service area. It is large-lot, heavily treed, and the review is exacting — which suits us. This is estate-scale new construction and whole-home renovation.

The thing that actually controls an Atherton schedule is the trees, and not in the way people assume. The Town states it plainly in its own FAQ: if your submitted plans show removal of a heritage tree, the heritage tree removal permit is a separate permit that has to be approved and issued BEFORE the building permit can issue. It is not a condition you clear later and it is not something that runs in parallel. It is a gate.

Three consequences worth budgeting for. Every heritage tree has to be shown and designated on the plot map submitted with the building permit, so a tree survey is an input to design rather than a document you produce afterwards. The Town Arborist can require a heritage tree protection and preservation plan, and the Building Department can require a written report from a certified arborist at your expense. And each protected tree carries a Tree Protection Zone you may not build inside — the Planning Commission does grant exceptions, routinely at six to eight times trunk diameter, but an exception is its own application on its own calendar.

One more that catches people on estate lots: anything from your gate to the street is a separate encroachment permit from Atherton Public Works. Driveway approaches and frontage landscaping both count. On a long Atherton driveway that is not a footnote, and it is a different department from the one reviewing your house.

Permits. Work in Atherton is permitted through the Town of Atherton's building department. We carry the submittal and the plan-check corrections — that is our job, not yours.

Atherton submits through an ePlan portal, and it also requires a Town business license for the general contractor before the permit is issued and a subcontractor list before final inspection. Menlo Park Fire District sign-off is separate.

Pre-approved ADU plans. Atherton runs a pre-approved ADU plan program and is still building out its public gallery. Since AB 1332 took effect on January 1, 2025, California cities have had to run a pre-approved ADU plan program and post the approved plans publicly. Where a usable plan exists it can take real time and design cost out of a project, because the design has already been reviewed and only the site-specific work is left.