Under San Mateo County's Local Coastal Program (LCP), urban Midcoast housing permits are capped at 40 units per year. In 2025, the County issued 102 permits in this area, severely limiting available housing units until 2028. 

Because of this, the County paused acceptance of new building permit applications for new dwelling units, and canceled inactive building permit applications (those with no activity for more than 6 months) in March 2026. 

On November 4, the California Coastal Commission approved the County’s LCP Amendment to address the building permit cap in the urban Midcoast.

With the approval of the LCP amendment, the County is now:

• Reopening the permit portal for the Urban Midcoast for new residential permit applications on Tuesday, November 10. Applicants with an approved CDX or CDP for their residences can apply for a building permit as soon as the portal is open.
• Allowing for the reactivation of any residential building permit application canceled in March 2026. 
  • Applicants can log into the Online Permit Portal to upload missing requirements.
  • Applicants of canceled permit applications are strongly encouraged to submit any outstanding requirements and fees within 30 days (by Friday, December 4) to receive priority processing. 
  • Applicants of canceled permit applications must submit any outstanding requirements and fees within 90 days (by Thursday, February 4) to reactivate their permit. After February 4, permit applications that have not been reactivated will be permanently canceled, and applicants will need to restart a new permit application.

If you have any questions regarding what is missing for your case or assistance with uploading documents, please contact your assigned Building Permit Technician.