The Town of Brunswick's Department of Planning and Development, at 85 Union Street, issues sign, building, plumbing and electrical permits and enforces the town's zoning ordinance for a town of around 23,000 on the Androscoggin, home to a liberal arts college and to Brunswick Landing, the business and aviation campus built on a former naval air station. Permits are filed through the town's citizen portal, where each resident and contractor holds a registered profile and can apply, upload documents and check status at any hour.
Brunswick states its overlay triggers in measured distances, which makes them checkable before design rather than after. A steep slopes permit is required for any proposed activity within 75 feet of a 15 per cent slope in the rural protection districts. A shoreland permit is required for building replacement or expansion, land clearing, new roads, septic systems and shoreline stabilisation within 250 feet of the normal high water line of a river or the upland edge of a coastal or freshwater wetland, or within 75 feet of the normal high water line of a stream. An electrical permit is required whenever electrical work is done, and a licensed Maine electrician must do it unless the homeowner occupies the building.
This guide covers the Town of Brunswick in Cumberland County. Topsham across the river, Freeport, Harpswell and Bath are separate municipalities with their own code enforcement officers, and no Maine county issues building permits.
Three distances decide most Brunswick projects. 250 feet from a river or the upland edge of a wetland; 75 feet from a stream; 75 feet from a 15 per cent slope in the rural districts. Those three measurements trigger the shoreland and steep slopes permits, and they cover clearing, roads, septic and shoreline work as well as buildings. Measure before you design.
What requires a building permit in Brunswick?
Maine draws its line in an unusual place: the code applies everywhere, but enforcement depends on how many people live in the municipality. The Technical Building Codes and Standards Board adopts the Maine Uniform Building and Energy Code — the MUBEC — under Title 10 of the revised statutes, and all building construction in the State is governed by it whatever the town does. What Title 25 adds is the enforcement duty: a municipality with a population over 4,000 must enforce the MUBEC, while a smaller one may choose to and many do not. The design obligation does not move with that choice — a house in a town of 800 is still meant to be built to the MUBEC; there may simply be no local officer checking. The current edition rests on the 2021 international building, residential, existing building, mechanical and energy codes, in force since the seventh of April 2025. So in Brunswick the questions are whether the municipality enforces, which officer holds which certification, and the measured shoreland and steep slopes triggers the town publishes.
Short on time to read all of this?
Get a free quote →Typically permit required
- A shoreland permit for building, clearing, roads, septic or shoreline work within the stated distances
- A steep slopes permit within 75 feet of a 15 per cent slope in the rural protection districts
- An electrical permit whenever electrical work is done, by a licensed Maine electrician unless the homeowner occupies the building
- New buildings, additions and structural work, under the MUBEC as the municipality enforces it
- Alterations, renovations and repairs beyond ordinary repair, and any change of use or occupancy
- Work inside the shoreland zone, which needs its own permit under the municipal shoreland ordinance
Often exempt
- Ordinary repairs that do not alter structure, egress, fire protection or building systems
- Painting, papering, flooring, cabinets and similar finish work
- Ordinary repairs that do not alter structure, egress, fire protection or building systems
- Painting, papering, flooring, cabinets and similar finish work
- Building permits in a municipality under 4,000 people that has not chosen to enforce the code — though the code still governs the work and other requirements still apply
Who enforces, and what the state certifies
Locally, what stands out is the measured shoreland and steep slopes triggers, the citizen portal with its registered profiles, and the village review district design review in the town centre.
Maine’s adopted code applies statewide, but permits are required where the town’s ordinance says so; shoreland zoning applies statewide near water, fees and appeals are local, and code enforcement officers must be certified by the state. Maine rules
Who handles permitting in Brunswick?
The Department of Planning and Development is the permitting authority inside the town, enforcing the Maine Uniform Building and Energy Code and the town's zoning ordinance through a state-certified codes enforcement officer who may also grant a written permit extension for justifiable cause. The department handles comprehensive and neighbourhood planning, development review, village review district design review and natural resources, and the Department of Professional and Financial Regulation licenses electricians and plumbers statewide.
Not sure this scope needs a permit?
Get a free quote →| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Department | Brunswick Department of Planning and Development |
| Office | 85 Union Street, Brunswick, ME 04011 |
| Phone | (207) 725-6660 — Inspections (207) 721-4059 |
| Portal | The town's citizen permitting and planning portal, with a registered profile |
| Hours | Monday to Thursday, 7:30 am to 4:30 pm; closed Friday |
| Trade licences | Department of Professional and Financial Regulation, statewide |
Permit types
Residential permits
A Brunswick house project measures the three distances first, files through the citizen portal with the trades on their own permits, and observes the standard conditions of permit the town publishes. A homeowner occupying the building may do their own electrical work; anyone else must be a licensed Maine electrician. Where the schedule slips, the codes enforcement officer may grant a permit extension for justifiable cause, but the request must be in writing.
Commercial permits
Commercial work in Brunswick — Brunswick Landing on the former air station, the Maine Street commercial district, Cooks Corner and the college campus — runs through the same department with development review and, in the village review district, design review. At the Landing, any site work or construction that disturbs soil or may touch groundwater needs a Brunswick Landing Construction Permission Request approved by the Navy before the town will issue permits, and some parcels carry Navy land use restrictions. The Landing’s redevelopment of large former military buildings makes change of occupancy and the existing building provisions a recurring feature, and the town's own historic commercial core adds a design layer along Maine Street.
Shoreland zoning, wastewater and the unorganized territory
In Brunswick the Androscoggin, the coastal wetlands towards Merepoint and the streams through the rural districts trigger shoreland permits at published distances, the rural protection districts add the steep slopes permit, and the village review district brings design review to the town centre.
Rather talk it over?
Call 1-855-478-4290 →Maine has no general contractor licence: home construction contracts above the statutory threshold must be in writing, and electricians, plumbers and oil and solid fuel technicians are licensed by the state. Maine rules
Brunswick permit costs and fees
Brunswick charges building permits by the square foot — 60 cents for residential and 65 cents for commercial new construction and alterations, with a $75 minimum — measured on the exterior of the building for new work and on the affected area for alterations. Electrical and plumbing permits carry their own fees, a shoreland overlay permit is $200, the steep slopes permit has no fee, and development review fees apply where the project reaches the planning board. Payment is due before the application is reviewed.
| Item | Fee or rule |
|---|---|
| Building permit | 60 cents a square foot residential, 65 cents commercial; $75 minimum |
| Shoreland permit | $200, within the published distances |
| Steep slopes permit | No fee; in the rural protection districts, within 75 feet of a 15 per cent slope |
| Electrical permit | Required whenever electrical work is done |
| Plumbing permit | On the state's form through the same department |
| Development and design review | Planning board and village review district fees |
An extension is possible, but only in writing. Brunswick's codes enforcement officer may grant a building permit extension for justifiable cause, and the request must be submitted in writing. A permit expires if work has not started within six months of issue, or once started is abandoned for six months or longer. The extension is not automatic, so a permit approaching expiry needs the letter before the date, not after. The town says most permits are processed within 7 to 10 business days, longer for commercial new construction.
Rather not deal with the building department?
Get a free quote →Trade permits and who may pull them
Permit required
- Internal plumbing — the state's own permit form, issued by the certified local plumbing inspector
- Subsurface wastewater — a licensed site evaluator's design, filed with the local plumbing inspector
- Electrical — a permit from the state Electricians' Examining Board (or the town, where it runs its own electrical inspection), except a licensed electrician's work in a single-family home
- Heating, oil and solid fuel appliances — installed by a technician licensed by the Maine Fuel Board; a permit where the town requires one
Typically exempt
- Replacing a plumbing fixture with a similar one in the same place, with no change to the pipes, and sealing leaks in an existing line
- Minor electrical repairs such as replacing lamps, fuses, light fixtures, switches and sockets, and installing or repairing outlets
Trade work is permitted separately and done by state-licensed tradespeople, though owners may do their own trade work in a single-family home they live in; internal plumbing is permitted by the local plumbing inspector on the state’s own form. Maine rules
How to apply for a Brunswick building permit
Enforcement is mandatory above 4,000 people and optional below; the code governs the work either way.
Within 250 feet of most water bodies the shoreland ordinance governs setbacks, clearing and expansion.
A licensed site evaluator's subsurface design on the state form, filed with the municipality.
Electricians and plumbers hold state licences; there is no general contractor licence, so the written contract carries the terms.
Reviewed against the MUBEC as the municipality enforces it, with the local zoning ordinance alongside.
Footing to final, plumbing on its own permit through the local plumbing inspector, then the certificate of occupancy.
Want this handled start to finish?
Get a free quote →Review, corrections and what actually causes delay
The Department of Planning and Development reviews for the MUBEC, the zoning ordinance and the overlays together, with development review and design review where the project reaches them. What delays a Brunswick project is a design drawn before the three distances were measured, an electrical permit attempted by a party who is neither the occupying homeowner nor a licensed electrician, and an expiring permit with no written extension request.
Inspections in Brunswick
Where the municipality enforces, inspections follow the code's sequence — footing, foundation, framing, rough trades, insulation and final — requested from the code enforcement officer by permit number, with plumbing inspected by the local plumbing inspector on its own permit. Work that passes final receives a certificate of occupancy where the municipality issues one, and a shoreland or wastewater condition closes with the officer certified in that area rather than with the building inspector. Brunswick inspections are requested through the citizen portal against the permit number, with each trade on its own permit and internal plumbing inspected on the state's form; the standard conditions of permit govern how the work is carried out.
Brunswick permit search and official resources
- Brunswick permits and applications — the shoreland and steep slopes triggers, extensions and the electrical rule
- Brunswick Planning and Development — the department's remit and contacts
- Brunswick citizen portal — applying, uploading documents and checking permit status
- Maine Office of the State Fire Marshal, building codes — the MUBEC, its chapters and the enforcement threshold
- Maine Office of Community Affairs, code enforcement — code enforcement officer certification and the specialty areas
- Maine Land Use Planning Commission — permitting in the unorganized and deorganized territories
Inspections are where schedules slip.
Get a free quote →Frequently asked questions
Who issues building permits in Brunswick?
The town's Department of Planning and Development at 85 Union Street, through the citizen permitting portal. No Maine county issues building permits.
When do I need a shoreland permit?
Within 250 feet of the normal high water line of a river or the upland edge of a coastal or freshwater wetland, or within 75 feet of the normal high water line of a stream.
What is the steep slopes permit?
A permit required for any proposed activity within 75 feet of a 15 per cent slope in the rural protection districts.
Can I do my own electrical work?
Only if you are the homeowner occupying the building. Otherwise a licensed Maine electrician must do the work, and an electrical permit is required whenever electrical work is done.
Can my permit be extended?
Yes, for justifiable cause, at the codes enforcement officer's discretion. The request must be submitted in writing.
Which code applies?
The Maine Uniform Building and Energy Code, on the 2021 model codes in force since the seventh of April 2025.
Simplify Brunswick permitting with Alliance Permitting
Brunswick publishes the distances that decide the project. We measure them against the parcel before design and file the shoreland or steep slopes permit alongside the building set rather than behind it.
Ready to break ground in Brunswick sooner?
Send us the scope and the parcel. We confirm the review path with the Brunswick Department of Planning and Development, assemble the submittal, file it, and track it through issuance — corrections included.
More Maine permitting guides
More Maine permitting guides
This guide is provided by Alliance Permitting for general information about Brunswick permitting. Requirements, fees, and procedures change; confirm details with the permitting authority before relying on them.