Bangor Charter Township, Michigan Building Permit Guide

In Bangor Charter Township, Bay County, the township’s own Building & Zoning Department reviews plans, issues building, electrical, mechanical and plumbing permits and carries out the inspections, from the township offices at 180 State Park Drive, Bay City (989-684-8931, Monday to Thursday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.). Bay County has no building program of its own. Fences and small sheds need a $30 zoning permit, trade permits start at a $60 base fee, and contractors register with the township each year for $15.

What requires a building permit in Bangor Charter Township?

The township tells owners that most home improvements need at least one permit: building, electrical, mechanical, plumbing, zoning, or a mix of them. The general building permit form covers new buildings, additions, alterations and repairs, barndominiums, demolition, foundations, moved buildings, and manufactured or modular homes, and lists garages, pole buildings, pools and hot tubs, lean-tos, porches and decks.

The roofing form adds detail for tear-offs: install ice guard along every overhang to 2 feet past the exterior wall and in all valleys. A changed door header or window opening is inspected before it is covered, and an enlarged bedroom opening must meet egress rules. New homes also need an address, requested through the township’s online address application.

What the township decides and what the state holds

Under Ordinance #302 (effective November 17, 2005) the township took on administration and enforcement of the State Construction Code Act inside its boundaries, and the state’s jurisdiction list shows it enforcing all four codes. The township cannot change the state code, but it writes its own zoning ordinance (Ordinance #409, as amended), sets its own permit fees, registers contractors, and keeps its own fire code: Ordinance #413 adopted the 2024 International Fire Code, effective October 17, 2025.

Bangor Charter Township building department: who handles permitting

The Building Official reviews plans, issues and approves permits and inspects work in progress for compliance with the state code and township ordinances. Ordinance #302 names the officers who enforce the code: the Township Supervisor, the Zoning Administrator and the building, electrical, plumbing and mechanical inspectors. The same department runs zoning, so a fence or shed permit and a building permit come from one counter.

The mailing city on many Bay County addresses is Bay City, but the City of Bay City is a separate government with its own building department. Check the property tax bill or the parcel’s unit name before you file: a Bangor Township parcel is permitted at State Park Drive, not at Bay City Hall.

Bangor Charter Township permit types

Each discipline has its own form: building, electrical, mechanical and plumbing, plus the residential roofing, siding, windows and doors form and an annual permit. Applications can be filed in person at the township offices or online through the township’s permit link, where permits can also be paid. Contractors must be registered with the township before they pull a permit.

Residential permits

• New homes and additions. The building form asks for total square footage, garage size, bedrooms and baths, the foundation type (slab, crawl space or basement) and the value of construction.
• Manufactured and modular homes. Homes in a park and double-wides or modular homes on a private lot carry a $125 building fee; on a private lot the Building Official also prices the foundation.
• Roofing, siding, doors and windows. A separate residential form, with roofing priced at $50 or $75.
• Fences and small sheds. A $30 zoning application. A shed may not exceed 18 feet to the peak, and one closer than 10 feet to a property line needs eaves troughs that send water toward the middle of the lot.
• Fences. Section 5.18 keeps fences taller than 4 feet behind the front wall of the house, requires front-yard fences to be non-obscuring and at least 5 feet from the road right-of-way, bans razor and barbed wire, and puts the finished side facing out.

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Commercial permits

Commercial buildings use the same building permit form, which lists assembly, business, mercantile, storage, factory, institutional, educational and motel uses. Contractor registration is required for commercial work too. Any use other than a single-family home, and any building with two or more dwelling units, goes through site plan review before permits are issued.

For tenant improvements and new commercial builds, Alliance handles commercial permit filing through issuance. More on this: commercial building permits explained.

What comes before the building permit

• Site plan review. Article 18 of the zoning ordinance (effective February 19, 2025) requires Planning Commission approval for multi-family buildings, non-residential uses, special uses, parking lots and most earth moving. Sealed prints, digital and paper, are due at least 15 days before the meeting, prepared by an engineer, architect or landscape architect. Single-family homes, their accessory buildings and farm buildings are exempt.
• Planning Commission and ZBA. The Planning Commission normally meets the fourth Wednesday of the month and the Zoning Board of Appeals the third Tuesday, both at 6:00 p.m. in the Township Administration Building.
• Other agencies. The building form asks whether a soil erosion, driveway, septic, sewer, wetlands or floodplain permit, a variance or an elevation certificate applies; those approvals come from the agencies that issue them and are attached to the application.
• Sewer connection. Township sewer permits effective June 2, 2026 cost $1,520 or $2,970 including a $70 inspection, depending on the connection and district; rates rise each June 2, and existing homes may pay 10% down.

Bangor Charter Township permit costs and fees

The township posts a separate fee schedule for each permit type. The building permit fee schedule was approved July 11, 2017 and last amended October 10, 2023; the trade schedules were revised in 2020 (plumbing), April 2021 (electrical) and September 2023 (mechanical). The posted building schedule lists flat fees for small jobs; for anything else, such as a new house or an addition, the township asks you to call ext. 23 for the fee.

The residential roofing form (revised 2020) prices roofing by size of job, $50 under 2 squares and $75 over 2 squares, while the 2023 fee schedule prices it by building size; the dollar amounts match. Mechanical and plumbing permits may add an administration fee of up to $200, plumbing inspections outside normal hours cost $33 an hour with a 2-hour minimum, and the electrical and mechanical schedules charge $44 for each inspection beyond the third. Planning Commission fees are $275 for site plan review, $385 for a special use, $440 for rezoning and $1,000 for a PUD; ZBA appeals cost $165 for decks, fences, sheds and above-ground pools and $275 for other requests.

Trade permits and who may pull them

The township enforces the electrical, mechanical and plumbing codes as well as the building code, so all three trade permits are issued at State Park Drive and inspected by township inspectors. Contractors pay the $15 yearly registration and attach a copy of their state license; plumbers also attach the master plumber’s license and electricians the journeyman’s license.

• Electrical. Plans sealed by an architect or engineer are needed unless the system is 400 amps or less and the building is no larger than 3,500 square feet. The permit lapses if work does not start within six months, and it is cancelled if no inspection is requested and made within six months of issue or of the last inspection; cancelled permits are not refunded.
• Mechanical. A boiler up to 199,000 BTU may be permitted only by a plumbing and mechanical contractor; a larger boiler needs a state permit.
• Plumbing. Fees run per fixture and per piping item, with gas and process piping charged by the number of outlets.
• Homeowners. The building, electrical and roofing forms carry a homeowner affidavit: the owner certifies the work will be installed by the owner, in the owner’s home that the owner lives in or is about to occupy, and will not be covered until inspected.

How to apply for a Bangor Charter Township building permit

Review, corrections and what causes delay

Missing prints, an unpriced value of construction or an unregistered contractor hold up an application. Projects that need site plan approval cannot start grading or construction until the plan is approved, and a late submission misses the 15-day deadline for that month’s Planning Commission meeting. A building permit becomes void if work does not start within 180 days or stops for 180 days.

Inspections and certificates in Bangor Charter Township

By signing a permit application the owner or contractor accepts that the inspector may inspect the work until a final inspection sticker or certificate of occupancy is issued, and that it is the applicant’s job to tell the inspector when work is ready. The forms give 989-684-5427 as the inspection number. Electrical work may not be concealed until inspected, and the inspector needs the job address and permit number when you call.

Every electrical permit carries a $25 final inspection fee, and extra inspections cost $44 under the building, electrical and plumbing schedules. A fence or small shed gets one final inspection after it is built. An expired permit that never had its final inspection carries a $32 fee.

Michigan building code in Bangor Charter Township

Ordinance #323, as amended by Ordinance #407 effective June 19, 2024, designates the Building Official as the township’s enforcing agency, enforces Appendix G of the Michigan Building Code, and adopts FEMA’s Flood Insurance Study for Bay County and flood maps effective July 31, 2024. FEMA’s Community Status Book lists the township (community 260019) as participating in the National Flood Insurance Program, with current maps dated July 31, 2024.

Michigan enforces one statewide construction code under the Stille-DeRossett-Hale Single State Construction Code Act (1972 PA 230); local units cannot amend it, and enforcement sits with the city, village or township, a county program or the state Bureau of Construction Codes, sometimes split by trade. Michigan rules

Bangor Charter Township permit search and official resources

For copies of permits, inspection records or plans, file a Freedom of Information Act request with the township using its FOIA Request for Public Records form; the township posts its FOIA procedures, public summary and cost worksheet. Zoning questions and fee questions go to the Building & Zoning Department at 989-684-8931.

• Bangor Township Building & Zoning: forms and contacts
• Applications and fee schedules
• Building permit fee schedule (amended October 10, 2023)
• Plan review fee schedule
• Electrical fee schedule (revised April 13, 2021)
• Mechanical fee schedule (revised September 12, 2023)
• Plumbing fee schedule (revised June 9, 2020)
• Building permit application
• Electrical permit application
• Residential roofing, siding, windows and doors application
• Contractor registration form
• Zoning application for fences and small sheds
• Zoning Ordinance Section 5.18, fences and walls
• Zoning Ordinance Article 18, site plan review
• Planning Commission fee schedule
• Zoning Board of Appeals fee schedule
• Ordinance #302, state construction code enforcement
• Ordinance #323, floodplain management
• Sewer permit rates effective June 2, 2026
• Freedom of Information Act requests
• Michigan Statewide Jurisdiction List (Bureau of Construction Codes)
• FEMA Community Status Book, Michigan

Bangor Charter Township building permit FAQs

Does Bay County issue building permits in Bangor Township?

No. Bay County runs no building program; the township enforces the building, electrical, mechanical and plumbing codes itself.

Do I need a permit for a fence in Bangor Township?

Yes, a zoning permit from the Building Official before any fence or wall goes up. The fee is $30, and fences in front of the house are limited to 4 feet and must be non-obscuring.

How much is a shed permit?

A shed of 200 square feet or less needs the $30 fence and shed zoning permit; it may be no taller than 18 feet to the peak.

How much does a new roof permit cost?

$75 for a house or attached garage or a building over 700 square feet, and $50 for a building of 200 to 700 square feet.

Can a homeowner pull permits?

Yes. The building, electrical and roofing forms carry a homeowner affidavit for work the owner installs personally in the home the owner lives in or is about to occupy.

Do contractors have to register?

Yes. Builders and electrical, mechanical and plumbing contractors register yearly for $15 with a copy of their license, for residential and commercial work.

Where do I find the fee for a new house?

The posted building schedule lists only flat fees, so call the Building Department at 989-684-8931, ext. 23; building plan review adds 10% of the permit fee.

When does the Planning Commission meet?

Normally on the fourth Wednesday of the month at 6:00 p.m.; sealed site plans are due at least 15 days before the meeting.

Simplify Bangor Charter Township permitting with Alliance Permitting

Alliance Permitting is a permit documentation and submission company in Michigan. We prepare your paperwork, file it correctly and coordinate with the permitting authority through issuance. We are not a contractor and we do not perform licensed plan review or inspections; that work stays with your licensed team and the jurisdiction.

This guide is provided by Alliance Permitting for general information about Bangor Charter Township permitting. Requirements, fees, and procedures change; confirm details with the permitting authority before relying on them.