Vienna Charter Township, Michigan Building Permit Guide

The Charter Township of Vienna enforces all four parts of the state construction code through its Building Department at the township office, 3400 W. Vienna Road, Clio (810-686-7676), where Mike Mantei is the Building Official. The office also issues building permits inside the City of Clio and trade permits for Clio, Forest Township and Thetford Township. Applications are mailed, dropped off or emailed, every fee is paid before a permit issues, and fees follow Resolution 04-13-26-08, adopted on April 13, 2026.

What requires a building permit in Vienna Charter Township?

The township’s requirements page lists the work that needs a building permit, with a plot plan where one applies, and it warns that every permit, building or trade, must be pulled before work starts.

Uses rather than buildings go to the Planning Commission: a business in a home or another non-residential use on residential land needs a special land use, a change of zoning district needs a petition for zoning change, and a new business needs site plan review. Ponds and lakes have their own township permit ($200, with a $500 deposit), and a residential solar permit costs $180.

What the township decides and what the state holds

Vienna Township sets its fees by Township Board resolution, writes its zoning ordinance (amended for ponds and private roads with effect from February 25, 2026), and inspects every trade with its own inspectors. The construction rules are the statewide Michigan codes; the township’s FAQ notes that a person engaged in building a residential structure must be licensed as a residential builder by the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, with certain exceptions in the licensing law.

Vienna Charter Township building department: who handles permitting

The Building Department, run by the Building Official with a Building Coordinator, handles permits, plan review and inspections for building, electrical, mechanical and plumbing work. Its reach goes beyond the township line under arrangements the township publishes:

The state’s Statewide Jurisdiction List (Bureau of Construction Codes, revised November 6, 2026) shows Vienna Township, the City of Clio, Forest Township and Thetford Township each as LOCAL for all four codes; it does not show who does the work, and the township’s own permit pages are the source for Vienna’s role in the three neighboring units.

Vienna Charter Township permit types

The township posts separate building, electrical, mechanical and plumbing applications (all updated July 9, 2026), a temporary sign form, a zoning permit form and a homeowner affidavit. The building form asks whether the job is in Vienna Township or the City of Clio, the cost of the project, the contractor’s builder license, workers’ compensation and unemployment insurance details, and the square footage of new work, and it notes that all trades are pulled through Vienna Township. Incomplete forms are not processed.

Residential permits

• New houses need a soil erosion permit or waiver from Genesee County Drain Commissioner Water & Waste Services before the building application, plus a plot plan, plans and the water and sewer or well and septic approvals the department checks off.
• Plans: one- and two-family homes under 3,500 square feet do not need an architect’s or engineer’s seal; plan review is priced by floor area.
• Owner-occupants: the homeowner affidavit is required when an owner does their own electrical, mechanical or plumbing work. It defines a homeowner as someone who lives in, or will live in, the single-family home, and says the inspector must cancel the permit if the owner cannot show the knowledge and competence for the work.

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

Commercial permits

Commercial plan review is 5 cents per square foot, and commercial inspections need a refundable $1,000 deposit. New businesses go through site plan review by the Planning Commission, with a $5,000 escrow for commercial projects (unused funds are returned); a change of occupancy inspection is $300, and a childcare or group home certificate of occupancy $300. The electrical form asks for plans and specifications when the wiring is over 400 amps and the building exceeds 3,500 square feet, and lists the cases in which those plans need no architect’s or engineer’s seal.

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

• Zoning. The Planning Commission meets at 5:30 p.m. on the fourth Monday of the month when there is business; the Zoning Board of Appeals meets on Wednesdays at 5:30 p.m. by appointment. Special land use, rezoning and appeals cost $800 each; a zoning permit is $50.
• Sewer and water. New sewer and water connections need a permit from GCDC-WWS first and then from Vienna Township, whose plumbing inspector checks the line between the curb box and the meter.
• Septic and well. Without public utilities, the Genesee County Health Department issues the septic permit after a perc test ($220 per step for a house) and the private well permit ($200). Where public sewer is available, the Health Department may require the connection and deny a septic permit; septic installers must hold its license unless the owner installs under its supervision.
• Driveways. County-road driveways and new addresses are handled by the Genesee County Road Commission through its Oxcart online permit system, with card payment after staff review (211 West Oakley Street, Flint; 810-767-4920).

Vienna Charter Township permit costs and fees

The Township Board adopted the current fee schedule as Resolution 04-13-26-08 on April 13, 2026; the Planning page links it. Building permit fees are based on the value of construction.

The schedule does not say whether each per-$1,000 rate applies to the whole value or only to the part above the band’s start, and the bands do not join up cleanly, so ask the Building Department to price the job. Other fees: removing a stop work order $100; temporary signs $25 each; zoning verification letter $50; cell tower equipment $200; ponds and lakes $200 with a $100 renewal; natural resource recovery permits $500.

Trade permits and who may pull them

Vienna Township issues and inspects electrical, mechanical and plumbing permits itself and for its neighbors, so the same forms are used whether the job is in Vienna, Clio, Forest or Thetford. Each application has a fee chart that requires at least one application fee and one inspection fee.

• New homes: $300 for each trade, covering the application fee and three inspections.
• Other jobs: a $75 application fee, $75 for each inspection and item fees, such as a service up to 200 amps $10, circuits $5 each, a new furnace (the form’s under-400,000 line) $30, a water heater $25 and fixtures $5 each.
• Who signs: a licensed contractor signs with the state license number, or the owner-occupant signs the homeowner affidavit section.
• Electrical: the township’s FAQ says permits go to a licensed electrical or specialty contractor, or to a homeowner wiring a single-family home and its outbuildings that the owner occupies or will occupy.
• Plumbing: a licensed plumbing contractor, recording both the contractor and the supervising master plumber license numbers, or a homeowner installing their own plumbing, building sewer or private sewer. Permits for a building sewer, private sewer or water service alone may go to others. Repairs to the working parts of a faucet or valve and clearing stoppages need no permit if no piping or fixtures are altered.
• Mechanical: a licensed mechanical contractor in the right classification, or the owner-occupant of a single-family home. Portable heating and cooling units, gas burners under 30,000 Btu per hour, self-contained refrigeration, window air conditioners of 1.5 hp or less and unflued oil stoves need no permit; low-pressure steam boilers in homes and small apartment houses must be permitted by a licensed hydronic contractor.
• Payment: cash, check or card, before the permit is issued; the township’s online payment page takes building and trade permit payments.
• Time limit: a trade permit is cancelled if work does not start within six months or no inspection is made for six months, and cancelled permits are neither refunded nor reinstated.

How to apply for a Vienna Charter Township building permit

Review, corrections and what causes delay

Incomplete forms are not processed and no inspection is scheduled on them. A new house cannot be applied for until the soil erosion permit or waiver is in hand, and sewer connections need the county permit before the township’s. The office is closed on Fridays, so allow for a four-day week.

Inspections in Vienna Charter Township

Inspectors keep set days: building inspections on Mondays and Wednesdays by appointment, electrical Monday to Thursday, and mechanical and plumbing Tuesday to Thursday. Call the Building Department with the job location and permit number, giving as much notice as possible. Extra inspections are $75 each.

Selling a house on public sewer? The township requires a sewer discharge inspection before closing. It costs $50, paid in advance, can normally be done within 24 to 48 hours, and should be requested once an offer is accepted; any violation must be corrected and re-inspected within 10 days. A sale without the inspection carries a $100 charge applied to the sewer account, and the township posts an extension form for cases where the inspection cannot be done in time.

Michigan building code in Vienna Charter Township

Vienna enforces the building, electrical, mechanical and plumbing codes itself. FEMA’s Community Status Book lists the Township of Vienna (community 260665) as participating in the National Flood Insurance Program, with flood maps dated September 25, 2009.

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

Vienna Charter Township permit search and official resources

For copies of permits, plans or inspection records, use the township’s Request for Public Records (FOIA) form on its Forms and Documents page; appeal forms for denials and fees are posted beside it. Questions about a permit in progress go to the Building Department at 810-686-7676.

• Vienna Township Building Department
• Permit applications (building, trades, signs, zoning)
• Requirements for permits
• Fee schedule, Resolution 04-13-26-08 (April 13, 2026)
• Building permit application (July 2026)
• Electrical permit application (July 2026)
• Homeowner affidavit for trade permits
• Online payments for building and trade permits
• Building FAQs
• Electrical FAQs
• Plumbing FAQs
• Mechanical FAQs
• Planning Commission and applications
• Zoning Board of Appeals
• Zoning ordinance amendments effective February 25, 2026
• Forms and documents, including FOIA forms
• GCDC-WWS soil erosion and sewer permits
• Genesee County Health Department septic permits
• Genesee County Health Department well permits
• Genesee County Road Commission permits and addresses
• Bureau of Construction Codes Statewide Jurisdiction List
• FEMA Community Status Book, Michigan

Vienna Charter Township building permit FAQs

Does Vienna Township issue permits in the City of Clio?

Yes. Its Building Department handles building and all trade permits for the City of Clio, and trade permits for Forest and Thetford townships.

Can I email my application?

Yes, to the Building Coordinator; you then call with payment details. Mail and drop-off at 3400 W. Vienna Road also work.

Do I need a permit for a new roof or siding?

Yes. Roofs and siding are on the township’s permit list, along with decks, pools and accessory buildings over 200 square feet.

Can a homeowner do their own wiring or plumbing?

An owner who lives in, or will live in, the single-family home may, by signing the township’s homeowner affidavit with the trade application.

What happens if I build without a permit?

Work started before the permit pays double; work completed without one carries $1,500 per permit that was required.

Do I need an inspection to sell my house?

Yes, if it is on public sewer: a $50 sewer discharge inspection before closing.

When are inspections done?

Building on Mondays and Wednesdays by appointment, electrical Monday to Thursday, mechanical and plumbing Tuesday to Thursday.

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