Hartland Township, Michigan Building Permit Guide

Hartland Township does not run its own building department. Its Planning Department at Township Hall, 2655 Clark Road (810-632-7498, Planning Director Troy Langer), reviews each project against the township’s ordinances and issues a land use permit ($40 to $100) or a free waiver, allowing about a week. The Livingston County Building Department in Howell (517-546-3240) then takes the township-stamped plans, issues the building and trade permits on BS&A Online and does all inspections.

What requires a building permit in Hartland Township?

Hartland’s checklist calls the township the first step for any home project, from a new house to a pool, patio or fence. The question at the counter is whether your work needs a full land use permit or only a waiver, and the county then decides which construction permits follow.

For the construction permit, the Livingston County Building Department’s project examples treat a shed or similar building under 200 square feet and 10 feet high as permit-free, and a re-roof laid over the old shingles as permit-free; tearing off and re-shingling needs a permit. Those county exemptions do not remove the township step: a small shed or a fence still needs Hartland’s $40 land use permit.

The land use form also prices a private driveway that leaves a private road or easement at $35 and sets its culvert: a 12-inch culvert where the road slope is 2% or less and a 14-inch culvert on steeper grades. Every land use permit request must include a survey, and the form asks whether the site lies in a flood zone and on which flood map panel.

What Hartland decides and what the state holds

Hartland adopts and applies its own zoning ordinance, design and engineering standards and fees, and its Planning Commission and Zoning Board of Appeals decide site plans, special uses and variances. The construction codes themselves are enforced by the county: the state’s Statewide Jurisdiction List shows Livingston County holding building, electrical, mechanical and plumbing enforcement in Hartland Township, and the township’s checklist says it uses the county for the review, issuance and inspection of all building and construction activity.

Hartland Township building department: who handles permitting

Two offices, in order. The Hartland Township Planning Department handles land use permits and waivers, property history, ordinances and zoning compliance certificates; the Livingston County Building Department, led by Building Official Jim Rowell, handles plan review, construction permits and inspections. Hartland’s Public Works staff deal with water and sewer meters, and the Hartland Deerfield Fire Authority serves the township.

Township Hall keeps a Monday-to-Thursday week, so plan Friday visits for the county building in Howell instead.

Hartland Township permit types

Hartland uses one combined Land Use Permit and Waiver Request form for every category, with the fee picked by project type. The county uses its building permit application and separate electrical, mechanical and plumbing applications.

Residential permits

• Land use permit packet. The completed form and fee, a warranty deed with the legal description, a certified survey (a current, detailed mortgage survey may be accepted) showing the property and building dimensions, distances to every lot line and existing building, recorded easements, abutting roads, drives and sidewalks or safety paths, three sets of construction plans drawn to county requirements, the parcel number and new county address, and a neighborhood association’s signed acceptance where one applies.
• Land use waiver packet. The form, proof of ownership and three sets of plans; no survey and no fee.
• County building permit. The approved township permit or waiver, the building application, two plan sets stamped by the Planning Department (floor plan, elevations, framing details), the building specification worksheet, the energy code worksheet, health department and Drain Commissioner permits or waivers, a driver’s or builder’s license copy and, for an owner acting as builder, the homeowner policy affidavit.

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

Commercial permits

Commercial projects go to the Planning Commission, which meets on the second and fourth Thursday of the month when it has business. Hartland charges $1,600 for a preliminary site plan, $2,000 for a final site plan ($1,200 once a preliminary plan is approved), $2,750 for a special use permit including site plan review, $1,200 to amend an approved final plan and $450 for a public hearing, and may require a development account starting at $500. Interior commercial build-outs that need no zoning review use the free commercial waiver. The county then requires plans by an architect or engineer, sealed structural calculations, a soil boring report and the trade designs, with its commercial plan review fee paid at application.

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

What comes before the building permit

• Road Commission. Driveway approaches onto county roads need a $75 residential permit or a free waiver, and a sight distance review costs $50 per approach where required.
• Township land use. The Planning Department’s review and stamp; the county will not issue a building permit without them.
• County address. The GIS office assigns new addresses before the township and county files can be completed.
• Soil erosion. A Drain Commissioner permit for earth moving within 500 feet of water or over an acre, or a $60 waiver issued at the counter for sites farther from water.
• Well and septic. County Health Department permits or waivers, or sewer and water permits on public utilities with proof of paid taps.
• Variances. If the plan breaks a setback or other zoning limit, the Zoning Board of Appeals hears it at 7 p.m. at Township Hall on the third Wednesday, only in months with applications.

Hartland Township permit costs and fees

The township prints its fees on the forms themselves; the county posts a plan review schedule and prices trade permits on each application. A township application becomes valid once the Treasurer’s Office cashier signs it to confirm payment.

Worked example from the county’s commercial worksheet: a building valued at $3,000,000 pays $3,750 plus 0.0005 × $500,000 ($250), or $4,000, in plan review, rounded up to the dollar and subject to adjustment once the county checks the value. A new house in Hartland starts with $100 to the township and $150 in county plan review; ask the county for the building permit fee on your plans.

Trade permits and who may pull them

The county holds all three trades in Hartland, and none of them is included in the building permit. Each trade has its own application with a $30 non-refundable application fee, a $50 final inspection and $50 for any extra inspection. Sample items: electrical circuits at $8 each and light fixtures at $8 per 25; a furnace or other gas or oil unit at $30, a heat pump at $30 and ductwork at 15 cents a foot ($25 minimum); a water heater at $35 and a sump, ejector or backflow preventer at $10.

Licensed contractors register each state license with the county for $15 and must sign their own trade applications; anyone else signing needs a notarized letter naming them. Hartland’s checklist asks an owner who builds without a licensed builder to sign the county’s homeowner policy affidavit. That policy, quoting the state licensing law, lets an owner act as general contractor on a single-family home built for their own use, and warns that the owner then answers for code corrections, job-site injuries, workers’ compensation and payroll taxes. The trade forms add a homeowner affidavit for electrical, mechanical and plumbing work done for the owner’s own use and occupancy.

How to apply for a building permit in Hartland Township

Review, corrections and what causes delay

Hartland says the more complete the submittal, the easier its compliance review. The office section of its form records whether property taxes are paid to date and any special assessment district, and everything on the form is confirmed before a permit is issued. At the county, residential drawings over 3,500 square feet, log homes, wood foundations and other unusual construction need an architect’s or engineer’s seal, and the Drain Commissioner wants required silt fence up and inspected before it issues the erosion permit.

Inspections and occupancy in Hartland Township

County inspectors carry out every building, electrical, mechanical and plumbing inspection on Hartland permits. Schedule them on BS&A Online or by calling the automated line at (517) 546-3830, choosing the permit type, entering the permit number and the inspection code, and keeping the confirmation number. The scheduling cut-off is midnight, cancellations close at 5:00 a.m., and the same line reads back results, which may take 24 hours to post. Re-inspection fees are paid online after a rejection before a new visit is booked.

Before occupancy the county needs all inspections approved, any township zoning compliance inspection passed and filed, the cellulose insulation certificate, health department final approval for a well or septic system and every fee paid; the certificate generally takes 48 hours, and a temporary one costs $100. Permits expire if work does not begin within 180 days or stops for 180 days, and one 180-day extension can be requested in writing for $75.

Michigan building code in Hartland Township

Because the county enforces the codes here, there is no Hartland-specific building code; Hartland’s rules are its zoning ordinance and its design and engineering standards. The township land use form asks whether the site is in a flood zone, and FEMA’s Community Status Book lists Hartland Township (community 260784) as participating in the National Flood Insurance Program, with flood maps dated September 17, 2008.

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

Hartland Township permit search and official resources

Permit status, inspection results and fee balances for county permits are on Livingston County’s BS&A Online; copies of older county permit files are requested through the county’s FOIA portal. For land use permits, surveys on file and property history, ask the Hartland Planning Department, which lists property history among its services.

• Hartland land use and building page
• Land use permit and waiver request form
• Residential land use checklist
• Planning Department applications and forms
• Zoning compliance certificate form
• Zoning Board of Appeals
• ZBA application
• Site plan and special use application
• Planning Commission
• Livingston County Building Department
• County residential permit sequence
• County commercial permits
• County plan review fees
• County forms
• County homeowner permit policy
• County inspections
• BS&A Online, Livingston County
• Soil erosion permits for homes
• Environmental Health fees
• Road Commission permits
• County FOIA portal
• Michigan Statewide Jurisdiction List

Hartland Township building permit FAQs

Who issues building permits in Hartland Township?

The Livingston County Building Department, after Hartland’s Planning Department issues a land use permit or waiver.

Do I need a township permit to finish my basement?

A land use waiver, which is free, plus the county building permit and a $100 county plan review.

How much does a land use permit cost in Hartland?

$40 under 200 square feet, $75 over 200 square feet and $100 for a new house or demolition.

Do I need a survey?

Yes for a land use permit: a certified survey, or a current, detailed mortgage survey if the township accepts it. Waivers need none.

How long does Hartland take to review?

The township asks you to allow one week before going to the county.

What does a variance cost?

$700, with a survey for dimensional requests; the ZBA meets on the third Wednesday when applications are pending.

Who inspects my work?

County inspectors; book on BS&A Online or at (517) 546-3830 by midnight.

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