Marquette County, Michigan Building Permit Guide

In Marquette County one office covers the whole county: the Resource Management/Development Department’s Building Codes office at the County Courthouse, 234 W. Baraga Avenue, Marquette ((906) 225-8180), issues building and electrical permits in Marquette, Ishpeming, Negaunee and all 19 townships, with Paul Knox as Building Official and Codes Manager. Since March 9, 2026 the county no longer handles plumbing and mechanical permits; those come from the State of Michigan. Zoning stays with each city and township, and fees follow the county schedule effective January 1, 2026, starting with a $165 application fee.

What requires a building permit in Marquette County?

The county’s “What You Need Before You Build” page lists the work that needs a permit, and it reminds applicants in capitals that a building permit does not include plumbing, mechanical or electrical work, which need their own permits.

Private subdivision covenants can limit a building’s size, placement or features, and the county notes that no government agency enforces them; the Register of Deeds can say whether a covenant applies. Airport zoning may also apply, depending on where the property is, and the county links a map showing where.

What the county decides and what the state holds

The state’s Statewide Jurisdiction List gives the county the building and electrical codes in every local unit and gives plumbing and mechanical to the state, matching the county’s own notice. The county sets its own fees and inspection rules and appoints a Building Code Board of Appeals for two-year terms. It does not zone: each city and township enforces its own zoning ordinance, and written zoning approval from that unit must come before a county building permit. Ewing and Turin townships are listed as requiring no zoning.

Marquette County building department: who handles permitting

The same county office serves the three cities and every township, so the address question here is about zoning, not about the building office. Plumbing and mechanical work goes to the state Bureau of Construction Codes: apply through the state’s online permit system and use the state’s main line, (517) 241-9313 (press 2), which the county page lists.

The county’s zoning administrators page lists the zoning contacts for the other townships.

Marquette County permit types

Applications can be emailed to buildingcodes@mqtco.org, brought to the courthouse or mailed. The residential packet (revised May 18, 2026) lists the items most often missed: the parcel number, signatures, the cost of construction, square footage, a site plan (a rough drawing is fine) and the plans and spec sheets.

Residential permits

• Plans: a plot plan with distances to lot lines and roads, a floor plan, a specification sheet, a footing and foundation plan and a cross-section; owners may draw these, though blueprints are preferred, and engineered truss drawings are required.
• Owners: the application has a box for an owner who will do the work personally in the single-family home the owner lives in or is about to occupy; a contractor certifies a residential builder license instead.
• Accessory buildings, decks, pole buildings and garages: spec sheets for each are on the forms page; detached buildings use their own square-foot rate.
• Manufactured and HUD homes: moving or setting a home needs a permit; HUD homes have a flat $205 fee.

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

Commercial permits

Commercial projects need a Plan Review Application with a $100 deposit and one electronic copy of stamped, signed plans (add a paper copy if you want a stamped set back). Plan review is charged at $0.00272 times the value up to $200,000 plus $0.00175 times the value above that, with a $100 minimum, and fire suppression reviews are priced by sprinkler head count.

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

• Zoning: written approval from the city or township.
• Well and septic: Marquette County Health Department, Division of Environmental Health, 184 US 41 East, Negaunee (906-475-4195); public water and sewer approvals come from the local unit.
• Soil erosion: the county’s own soil erosion program in the same department. Its packet (revised February 13, 2026) defines an earth change broadly, from excavating and filling to stockpiling, clearing and stumping, and counts ditches and ravines that carry water as streams. Some work needs no permit but must still follow the rules: minor earth changes stabilized within 24 hours, normal road and driveway maintenance that does not widen or lengthen the road, plowing for crops, mining and logging. Those exemptions end when the work prepares a site for another use that needs a permit, mining and logging access roads and staging areas are not exempt, and digging topsoil, sand, gravel, peat, clay or marl does not count as exempt mining.
• Driveway: Marquette County Road Commission, (906) 486-4491, for work in the county road right-of-way.
• Wetlands: a state wetland permit where the site has wetlands; the county page still lists the former DEQ Marquette office, (906) 228-4853.

Marquette County permit costs and fees

Fees follow the county’s Building Permit Fee Schedule effective January 1, 2026 (revised January 16, 2026). Plan review fees and the first $100 of any application fee are non-refundable, and an administrative fee is added when work starts before a permit.

Square footage for houses counts basements, attached garages, porches and decks. For a 2,000-square-foot house, the square-foot charge is 1,000 × $0.158 plus 1,000 × $0.078, or $236, on top of the $165 application fee, with plan review added at 20% of the calculated permit fee. Work that needs sealed prints, and all alterations, are priced on the cost table instead, which already includes plan review and the application fee: a $50,000 remodel is $271 plus 40 × $2.49, or $370.60.

Trade permits and who may pull them

Electrical permits stay with the county. A single-family house pays one flat fee that includes the $165 application fee: $296 for a 100-amp service or $335 for over 100 up to 200 amps, while larger services and other buildings are itemized (services from $14, circuits $10 each, EV charging stations $5). The electrical form has a homeowner box as well as a contractor section with the state license number.

• Plumbing and mechanical: since March 9, 2026 these are State of Michigan permits, applied for in the state’s online system and inspected by state inspectors.
• Certificate of occupancy: before the county issues one on a job with plumbing or mechanical work, you must show the state permits with an approved final inspection, carrying the county permit number, state permit number, a matching address and description, and the status “inspections finaled”.
• Plan review without a building permit: electrical, plumbing, mechanical or commercial kitchen projects may still owe a county plan review fee set by the Building Official, with a $100 minimum.

How to apply for a Marquette County building permit

Review, corrections and what causes delay

The county says a complete application moves through much quicker, and names the gaps that slow it down: a missing parcel number, signature, cost or floor area, or plans left out of the package. A permit is not issued without the zoning, well and septic and soil erosion approvals. Office staff cannot answer technical questions, so plan to reach an inspector during the morning or late-afternoon call hours.

Inspections in Marquette County

Schedule county inspections with the front office at (906) 225-8181, in advance and with the permit number ready. Dates are given first call, first served; if you need a time window, call the inspector between 8 and 9 a.m. on the day.

• Footing and forms: after excavation and forms, with any reinforcing in place, before concrete; plumbing that the pour will hide needs inspecting too.
• Foundation: walls, tie-downs and damp-proofing in place, before backfill or framing.
• Framing and rough electrical: framing, fire-stopping, rough wiring and plumbing, roofing and flooring done, before insulation or wallboard.
• Final: when all work is complete and before anyone moves in.

The department can reject concealed work and make you remove insulation or wallboard so it can be inspected. Soil erosion permits are valid for two years, and earth work near water without one can bring a fine of up to $2,500; jobs moving more than 1,000 cubic yards may need a $1,000-per-acre performance bond.

Michigan building code in Marquette County

The county posts the code editions it enforces on a “Codes Currently Enforced” page. Building code appeals and variance requests ($400) go to the Building Code Board of Appeals, which meets on the second Thursday of each month at 4 p.m. in Room 41 of the Henry A. Skewis Annex, 234 W. Baraga Avenue, unless another place is posted. No Michigan county takes part in the National Flood Insurance Program itself; each city and township joins on its own.

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

Marquette County permit search and official resources

County building permits and inspection results can be looked up on BS&A Online by address, name, parcel number or permit number. For copies of files, use the county’s Freedom of Information Act request form; the FOIA Coordinator is the county’s Civil Counsel.

• Marquette County Building Codes
• What you need before you build
• Building codes permit fees
• Building permit fee schedule, effective January 1, 2026
• Building codes applications and forms
• Residential building permit packet
• Electrical permit application
• Soil erosion permit application and fees
• 225-square-foot soil erosion exemption letter
• Policies regarding inspections
• Township and city zoning administrators
• Building permit and inspection lookup
• Building Code Board of Appeals
• Marquette County FOIA

Marquette County building permit FAQs

Does the City of Marquette issue its own building permits?

No. The county Building Codes office issues building and electrical permits in the city and in every other unit; the city handles zoning.

Who issues plumbing and mechanical permits?

The State of Michigan, since March 9, 2026, when the county stopped administering them.

How much is a permit for a new house?

$165 plus $0.158 per square foot for the first 1,000 square feet and $0.078 after that, plus plan review at 20% of the calculated fee; a 2,000-square-foot house has $236 in square-foot charges.

Can I do the work on my own house?

The building application has an owner box for work you install yourself in the single-family home you live in or are about to occupy.

Can I apply by email?

Yes. The county accepts applications at buildingcodes@mqtco.org, in person or by mail.

Do I need a soil erosion permit for a lakefront project?

Yes, for earth changes within 500 feet of a lake or stream; a change under 225 square feet that will not send sediment into the water can use the $24 exemption letter instead.

How do I schedule an inspection?

Call (906) 225-8181 with your permit number; for a time window, call the inspector between 8 and 9 a.m. on the inspection day.

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