General Contractor in Campbell

Campbell is a small city with its own building department and a lot of older housing stock. On homes of that age, what we find once walls are open — knob-and-tube remnants, undersized panels, unpermitted prior work — drives the budget more than the finishes do.

Going up in Campbell is a public hearing, and the size threshold is lower than people assume. A new two-storey house or a second-storey addition generally needs a Site and Architectural Review Permit, and the City's own Planning Commission notices show additions in the 500 to 600 square foot range being heard. So “it is only a small second storey” is not a reason to expect an over-the-counter permit here. Build the hearing into the schedule from the start rather than discovering it at submittal.

Check whether your house is on the Historic Resource Inventory before you design anything. Plenty of Campbell owners are on it and do not know. The good news, from the City's own FAQ: being listed does not stop you remodelling or adding on, it costs you nothing to be listed, and it does not raise your property taxes. There may even be a property tax benefit tied to a remodel, which is worth asking the City about directly.

What listing does change is the review path, and it is a two-step one. At building permit application, Planning checks the drawings against the City's Historic Design Guidelines. If the Community Development Director finds them consistent, that is the end of it and the permit can issue. If the Director finds them inconsistent, the project goes to the Historic Preservation Board for a decision. Interior work is largely unaffected, provided it does not alter the architectural character. The practical read: design in the style of the house from the first sketch and you stay on the fast path. Design against it and you will be in front of a board explaining why.

We work throughout Campbell — whether you're in Downtown Campbell on Campbell Avenue, The Pruneyard, West Campbell, or San Tomas, the build is the same standard.

Permits. Work in Campbell is permitted through the City of Campbell Community Development / Building Division. We carry the submittal and the plan-check corrections — that is our job, not yours.

Every Campbell permit application goes through MyGovernmentOnline, and you need an account on that platform before you can submit anything at all.

Pre-approved ADU plans. Campbell publishes a gallery of pre-approved ADU plans that homeowners can build from. 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.