Zoning, building permits and septic rules in Olean, New York

Olean’s own rules

• Certificate of occupancyLimited

  Foreclosure conveyances of property inside the City of Olean (certificate of continued occupancy); general new-construction CO not confirmed

  • Applies to property conveyed under RPAPL Art. 13 or RPTL Art. 11
  • Assessor will not record the conveyance without a certificate dated within 30 days
  • General new-construction certificate of occupancy rule in chapter 6 was not opened

  certificate validity before conveyance: <= 30 days

  “it shall hereafter be unlawful for a property conveyed directly or indirectly under article 13 of the new york real property actions and proceedings law or article 11 of the new york real property tax law without having first been inspected and issued a certificate of occupancy under chapter 26 of the city of olean code of ordinances.”

• Local zoningPresent

  All land inside the City of Olean (Cattaraugus County)

  • Chapter 28 was amended by Res. No. 124-25, adopted 2025-11-25 (listed on the ecode360 page).

  “this law shall be known and may be cited as the "zoning law of the city of olean, ny."”

• Zoning districtsPartial

  Zoning districts inside the City of Olean

  • Dimensional requirements are in the section 6.1 density control schedule, which was not opened
  • Use regulation table is an attachment to the chapter and was not read

  “the dimensional requirements for this district are specified in section 6.1 entitled "law density control schedule", which is part of this law.”

Still unanswered

We looked and could not find an official answer yet. Silence is not permission; ask Olean or Cattaraugus County directly.

• Building permit — Building permits inside Olean city
• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder exemption inside Olean city
• Building code adopted — Building code inside Olean city
• Inspections — Construction inspections inside Olean city
• Minimum dwelling size — Minimum dwelling size, R1 district, Olean city

Each answer was extracted from an official source and independently re-checked against that source by a second reviewer. That is an evidence check, not legal advice. Rules change; confirm with the authority before you buy or build.