Dickinson County, Michigan Building Permit Guide

In Dickinson County one office handles the construction code everywhere: the Dickinson County Construction Code Commission (DCCCC), 1200 Woodward Avenue, Kingsford (906-774-4885), issues building, electrical, plumbing and mechanical permits in Iron Mountain, Kingsford, Norway and all seven townships. Its Building Official is Dane Rossato. Before the building permit, the owner collects sign-offs in a set order: zoning, energy check, health department, road commission and soil erosion. Each trade permit costs at least $150, the $75 application fee plus the $75 final inspection.

What requires a building permit in Dickinson County?

The commission enforces the state construction code for new construction and renovations of existing buildings, and inspects footings, foundations, electrical, plumbing and structural work before it issues occupancy permits. Its procedures sheet adds the local layers that decide which sign-offs a project needs:

Trade work is permitted separately: the commission’s electrical, plumbing and mechanical forms each ask whether a building permit was obtained, with a “not required” box for stand-alone jobs.

What the county decides and what the state holds

The construction code is written by the state and cannot be changed locally. Dickinson County decided to enforce all four parts of it through the commission, which works under the general supervision of the County Commissioners, sets the local procedures and collects the fees. Zoning stays with each city and township, and septic and well permits with the district health department.

Dickinson County building department: who handles permitting

The state’s Statewide Jurisdiction List (Bureau of Construction Codes, revised November 6, 2026) marks Dickinson County and every one of its local units as COUNTY for building, electrical, mechanical and plumbing: the cities of Iron Mountain, Kingsford and Norway and the townships of Breen, Breitung, Felch, Norway, Sagola, Waucedah and West Branch. No unit in the county runs its own construction code program or sends a trade to the state.

The three cities are the largest places: Iron Mountain had 7,469 residents in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate, Kingsford 5,096 and Norway 2,815. Each city has its own zoning department, while the township zoning administrators are listed on the commission’s procedures page.

Besides permits and inspections, the commission says it enforces building ordinances, inspects buildings found in violation, investigates complaints and keeps the records of ordinance violations, and it helps other offices with new subdivisions, annexations and rezonings.

Dickinson County permit types and what comes first

The commission’s building permit packet combines an Application for Plan Examination and Building Permit with a Construction Permit Procedures sign-off sheet. The application asks for the type of improvement (new building, addition, alteration, repair, wrecking, moving or foundation only), proposed use, cost of the work with electrical, plumbing and heating listed separately, frame type, sewage and water supply, floor area and, for houses, bedrooms and bathrooms. The location block wants the street address, the nearest cross streets, the subdivision, lot and block, and the zoning district, and the building section asks about central air, elevators and off-street parking spaces, so have the site plan and zoning permit at hand when you fill it in.

Residential permits

• New homes and additions: zoning permit, REScheck energy report, health department signature where there is a private well and septic, road commission signature for a new driveway, and soil erosion approval near water.
• Garages, sheds and decks: a zoning permit from the city or township comes before the county building permit.
• Mobile and manufactured homes: the trade forms include setup lines for state-approved premanufactured homes and HUD mobile homes, with service, feeder and connection items.

Building or remodeling a home here? Alliance handles residential permit applications, so the crew isn't waiting on the counter.

Commercial permits

No commercial building permit is issued until the building, plumbing and mechanical, and electrical reviewers have each approved the plans. The application records a plan review fee for each trade, and the office-use section notes use group, fire grading, live loading and occupant load. Electrical plans are needed unless the service is 400 amps or less and the building is 3,500 square feet or less.

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

What comes before the building permit

• Zoning: Iron Mountain zoning 906-774-8530, Kingsford zoning 906-774-3526, Norway (city) zoning 906-563-9961 ext. 204; the townships’ zoning administrators are listed on the procedures page.
• Health department: the Dickinson-Iron District Health Department signs off on well and septic (906-774-1868).
• Road commission: sign-off for a new driveway (906-774-1588 on the printed sheet).
• Soil erosion: the commission itself issues Part 91 soil erosion permits; the application names the landowner or a designated agent and may require a performance deposit.

The commission’s soil erosion packet explains what goes in that application. A permit is needed for any earth change of one acre or more, or within 500 feet of a lake or stream, including clearing a site for a single house; normal maintenance and landscaping are exempt. Attach a map at no smaller than 1 inch to 200 feet with the legal description, distance to lakes and streams and the slopes, a soil survey or written soil description, and a plan giving the limits and timing of each earth change, the temporary and permanent controls, and who will maintain them. The commission approves or denies the application within 30 days. Permanent controls must be in place within 15 days after the earth change is finished; where that is not possible, temporary controls go in within 30 days. A landowner can name a representative on the packet’s letter of authorization. The packet’s sample sketch shows the expected detail: the size and depth of the basement dig, where spoil is piled, when the septic field goes in and is seeded, where the footing drain discharges, a driveway culvert built before other earth work, and a date by which the site will be stabilized.

Dickinson County permit costs and fees

The commission does not post a building permit fee schedule; the building application only records the building permit fee, plan review fee, drain tile and certificate of occupancy charges when the office fills them in, so call 906-774-4885 for the amount. Trade fees are printed on the commission’s electrical, plumbing and mechanical forms, which use the state’s fee tables (forms revised November 2015) with checks payable to DCCCC:

A worked example from the electrical form: a homeowner adding a 200-amp service and four new circuits pays $75 + $10 + (4 × $5) + $75, or $180. The forms keep the state’s note that inspections may be billed at $75 an hour in special circumstances.

Trade permits and who may pull them

All three trades are filed with the commission on its own copies of the state forms, which ask for the state license or registration number and expiry, the federal employer number, workers’ compensation carrier and unemployment insurance number, or the reason for an exemption.

• Homeowners: each form has a homeowner affidavit for work installed by the owner in a home the owner lives in or is about to occupy; the owner then arranges the inspections and keeps work uncovered until it is approved.
• Electrical: the commission’s electrical inspector reviews plans and inspects. Its minimum electrical requirements sheet lists points checked on house services, including a 100-amp minimum service for a dwelling unit, two ground rods at least 6 feet apart where there is no metal water line, bonding of corrugated stainless steel gas tubing to the service ground, and lighting circuits sized by floor area.
• Plumbing and mechanical: one code official covers both trades and reviews commercial plumbing and mechanical plans. The plumbing form notes that installing domestic water treatment or filtering equipment needs no license if a permit is secured, the inspections are done and the work meets the code; the fee is the $75 application fee plus $5 per device and the piping.
• Contractors: residential and trade work for hire needs the right state license, and the application records the builder’s license number.

How to apply for a permit in Dickinson County

Review, corrections and what causes delay

Signatures must be gathered in the order on the procedures sheet, and a missing one (marked “N/A” where it does not apply) holds the permit. Commercial jobs wait for all three plan approvals. Each trade form’s total must already include the $75 application and $75 final inspection fees, so add both before you send the check.

Inspections and occupancy in Dickinson County

Call each inspector directly when the work is ready; the building, electrical, and plumbing and mechanical inspectors each have their own line on the commission’s home page, and the office line is 906-774-4885. Give the job location and permit number, and do not cover any work before it is inspected. The commission inspects footings, foundations, electrical, plumbing and structural work during construction; if you are unsure which inspector covers a stage, call the office line first.

A trade permit stays valid while work and inspections continue, but it is closed if no inspection is requested and done within 180 days of issue or of the last inspection; closed permits are not refunded and cost $75 to re-open. The certificate of occupancy is issued on request once all permits are finaled and paid in full.

Michigan building code in Dickinson County

The commission enforces the state code for all four disciplines as the county enforcing agency on the state list. No Michigan county is a National Flood Insurance Program community; each city and township joins on its own, so ask the local zoning office whether a parcel lies in a mapped flood area.

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

Dickinson County permit search and official resources

For copies of permits, plans or inspection results, file the commission’s Freedom of Information Act application with the office in Kingsford, or call 906-774-4885 to ask about a permit’s status.

• Dickinson County Construction Code Commission
• Building permit procedures and zoning contacts
• Building permit application and procedures sheet
• Electrical permit application and fees
• Plumbing permit application and fees
• Mechanical permit application and fees
• Minimum electrical requirements
• Soil erosion and sedimentation control permit application
• FOIA application
• Commission contact page
• Dickinson-Iron District Health Department
• State Statewide Jurisdiction List (Bureau of Construction Codes)

Dickinson County building permit FAQs

Does Iron Mountain have its own building department?

No. The county commission handles building and trade permits in Iron Mountain, Kingsford and Norway; each city keeps its own zoning department.

Do I need a permit for a shed or deck?

The procedures sheet requires a zoning permit for storage sheds and decks; call the commission about whether the shed or deck also needs a building permit.

How much does an electrical permit cost?

At least $150: the $75 application fee and $75 final inspection, plus items such as $10 for a 200-amp service and $5 per circuit.

Can a homeowner pull trade permits?

Yes, for work in a home the owner lives in or is about to occupy, by signing the homeowner affidavit on the form.

When is a soil erosion permit needed?

Within 500 feet of any body of water or when more than one acre is excavated; the commission issues it.

Does a commercial project need plan review?

Yes. The commission issues no commercial building permit until its building, plumbing and mechanical, and electrical reviewers have all approved the plans, each with its own plan review fee.

Who issues septic and well approvals?

The Dickinson-Iron District Health Department; its signature goes on the procedures sheet before the commission issues the building permit.

How do I get a certificate of occupancy?

Ask for it once every permit on the job has passed its final inspection and all fees are paid.

Simplify Dickinson County 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 Dickinson County permitting. Requirements, fees, and procedures change; confirm details with the permitting authority before relying on them.