Home Remodeling in
Tenino, WA

This is the Tenino rule worth knowing before you spend anything on design. Under the city's land development regulations, an accessory dwelling unit must closely match the principal building's design, color scheme and roof materials.

That is a real constraint, and it is not one that Lacey, Tumwater or Yelm impose. A modern flat-roofed studio in the backyard of a 1920s gabled house is not going to clear it. Plan the ADU as an extension of the existing house architecturally, not as a separate contemporary building.

It also has a cost implication. Matching roof materials and color on an older house can mean sourcing to match rather than buying the cheapest current product, and that belongs in the budget from the start rather than as a surprise at submittal.

Tenino allows one accessory dwelling unit per lot of record, with a maximum of 1,000 square feet of habitable floor area.

That 1,000 square foot figure is worth noting, because it already matches the floor state law sets. HB 1337 prohibits jurisdictions from capping an ADU below 1,000 square feet, so on size Tenino is not behind the way some larger neighbors currently look on paper. The state also requires two units per lot inside urban growth areas, and that has applied since 30 June 2026, so a second unit is allowed under state law even though Tenino's code still says one. Confirm how the city is processing it before you plan.

ADUs are permitted alongside detached single-family units and open space uses. In the West Tenino zone there is an extra condition: an accessory dwelling may not be subdivided separately from the agricultural operation.

Building permits are required unless the work is specifically exempt, and applications are either mailed in or brought to City Hall at 149 Hodgden Street S. Payment goes with the application according to the current Consolidated Fee Schedule.

Once it is in, the Building Official reviews the application and comes back to you on anything still outstanding. That is a genuinely different experience from a larger city portal. It is more direct, and it means a clear, complete submittal is worth more here than anywhere else we work, because you are dealing with one person rather than a queue.

City Hall can be reached on (360) 264-2368.