Caledonia, Wisconsin Building Permit Guide

In the Village of Caledonia, construction permits come from the village Building Department at Village Hall, 5043 Chester Lane (262-835-4451), whose staff includes building, electrical and plumbing inspectors for both residential and commercial work. Since November 19, 2019, every new home application has started in the State of Wisconsin’s online building permit system; once the state accepts it, the village package of plans, energy worksheets, survey and site forms follows. Plumbing and electrical permits are pulled separately.

What requires a building permit in Caledonia?

The village’s forms page groups permits into new residential dwellings, new commercial buildings with commercial alterations and additions, zoning permits and engineering permits, and warns that its list is partial: other activities may also need a permit. The Building Department’s own page describes the work it reviews and inspects.

Which side of the village a lot sits on matters. The Caledonia Utility District provides sanitary sewer service to the eastern and southern halves of the village; elsewhere a new home may need a private onsite system, and the village requires a sanitary permit from Racine County Planning & Development in its new home package when a mound is needed. Water service comes from the utility district, which buys Lake Michigan water from the Racine and Oak Creek water utilities.

What the village decides and what the state holds

The technical rules for homes come from the state Uniform Dwelling Code, and for commercial buildings and apartments of three or more units from the state commercial code. The village adds its own layers: its zoning code (the Planning & Zoning Department was created in May 2019 to take over planning, zoning and zoning enforcement from Racine County), the 2035 Comprehensive Plan, land disturbance and erosion control enforcement, storm water management, site grading and the protection of wetlands, conservation areas and floodplains, which the Engineering Department monitors.

Caledonia building department: who handles permitting

The Building Department’s staff are a Senior Building Inspector, a Building Inspector, a Residential Electrical Inspector, a part-time Commercial Electrical Inspector, a Residential Plumbing Inspector, a part-time Commercial Plumbing Inspector and an Administrative Coordinator. They review and issue permits and carry out all inspections, and residents can call or stop in with questions about application procedures and codes. DSPS’s list of UDC delegated agents, current as of September 24, 2026, shows the Village of Caledonia as delegated for new one- and two-family dwellings, with the village clerk as contact and no outside inspection firm named.

The Village of Caledonia in Racine County is not one of the three Towns of Caledonia that DSPS lists separately, in Columbia, Trempealeau and Waupaca counties (the Trempealeau County town is covered by that county’s delegation); check the county before searching for forms.

Caledonia permit types

Applications are made with the Caledonia Building Permit Application, and the village takes plans, energy worksheets and surveys as PDF files by email to the Building Department staff named on its Building / Inspections page.

Residential permits

• New homes. Start in the State of Wisconsin online building permit system. After the state accepts the application, the village package is: the Caledonia Building Permit Application; two sets of scaled house plans; two energy worksheets from the heating contractor; two scaled copies of a parcel survey showing setbacks, elevations and the drainage plan; a copy of the portable toilet contract required by section 15-1-31 of the village code; specifications for any prefabricated fireplace; and the completed Site Grading Certificate of Compliance, Erosion Control Maintenance Agreement, Footing and Culvert Certification and Land Disturbance Permit Application.
• Plumbing and electrical. Required as separate permits, but not needed with the initial new home application.
• Other residential projects. The Building Department serves all residential construction, and the forms page says its permit list is partial, so call before starting an addition, remodel or accessory building.

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

Commercial permits

For new commercial buildings, dwellings, additions and alterations the village asks for its building permit application, a commercial plumbing permit and an electrical permit, two sets of complete state-approved plans to scale (electrical, plumbing, HVAC and structural), two professional-engineer-stamped, village-approved storm water management plans, two stamped and village-approved site grading and drainage plans, and a completed land disturbance permit. The village’s page notes that DSPS plan review is required for commercial, industrial and other public buildings of 25,000 cubic feet or more, for schools and high-hazard occupancies of any size and for residential buildings of three or more units, and that heating and ventilation, fire alarm and suppression, industrial exhaust, elevator and plumbing plans for public buildings also need state review.

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. Planning & Zoning reviews site plans, subdivisions and condominium plats, rezonings, conditional and temporary uses, planned unit developments, variances and zoning compliance; the Plan Commission and Zoning Board of Appeals each have a published deadline calendar.
• Grading, drainage and erosion. Every new home needs a survey with a drainage plan, the site grading certificate and the erosion control maintenance agreement; commercial sites need engineer-stamped grading, drainage and storm water plans approved by the village. The Caledonia Utility District reviews and approves storm water management plans for all developments on behalf of the Village Board, checking them against the village ordinances, and the village itself operates under a DNR municipal storm sewer (MS4) permit.
• Culverts and ditches. The footing and culvert certification is part of every new home package; Engineering inspects culverts and Public Works maintains ditches and road right-of-way.
• Septic. On lots outside the sewer service area, a Racine County sanitary permit for a mound system.
• Floodplain and wetlands. Engineering monitors floodplains, wetlands and conservation areas during development review.

Caledonia permit costs and fees

Caledonia lists its building, zoning and engineering permit documents on the Building & Engineering Forms page, and the Building Department calculates the fee for each permit when the application is reviewed. The amounts are set in the village’s 2026 Master Fee Schedule, marked approved October 28, 2025, which is posted in the document viewer on the village’s Finance page; open it there or ask the Building Department at 262-835-4451 for the current building, electrical, plumbing and zoning fees before budgeting.

For commercial projects the state charges its own plan review fees when DSPS reviews the plans, and the village’s storm water and grading plan approvals come first.

Trade permits and who may pull them

Caledonia keeps its own trade inspectors on staff: residential and commercial electrical inspectors and residential and commercial plumbing inspectors work alongside the building inspectors. Plumbing and electrical permits are separate from the building permit; on a new home they can follow the initial application, while a commercial building permit application must include the commercial plumbing permit and the electrical permit from the start.

• Electrical: village permit and inspection, residential or commercial inspector by project type.
• Plumbing: village permit and inspection; commercial plumbing plans for public buildings also need state review, as the village’s page notes.
• HVAC: heating and air conditioning plans form part of the state-approved commercial plan set; on new homes the energy worksheets come from the heating contractor.
• Septic: installed under the Racine County sanitary permit where a mound is needed.

For new one- and two-family homes state law requires the builder to hold Dwelling Contractor and Dwelling Contractor Qualifier certifications unless the owner will live in the home. Electricians and plumbers need their state licenses to take out trade permits.

How to apply for a Caledonia building permit

Review, corrections and what causes delay

The village package can only be sent after the state accepts the new home application, so a rejected state submission delays everything behind it. The package must include a survey with setbacks, elevations and the drainage plan, the signed site grading certificate and erosion control maintenance agreement and, on a lot that needs a mound, the county sanitary permit. Commercial projects depend on the village’s prior approval of the engineer-stamped storm water and grading plans.

Inspections and occupancy in Caledonia

All inspections are made by the village’s own Building Department staff, including the residential and commercial electrical and plumbing inspectors; call 262-835-4451 to arrange them. On a new home, several of the site checks are tied to forms filed with the permit:

• Footing and culvert certification, filed with the application
• Site grading certified on the Site Grading Certificate of Compliance
• Separate electrical and plumbing inspections by the trade inspectors

Engineering staff also inspect culverts and work in the right-of-way, and enforce the village’s erosion control standards on construction sites. A mound system is inspected under the county sanitary permit.

Wisconsin building code in Caledonia

Caledonia enforces the state codes as the delegated UDC agency, with state review for the larger commercial plans the village lists. FEMA’s Community Status Book lists the village (community 550628) as participating in the National Flood Insurance Program, with flood maps effective January 11, 2024.

Wisconsin's Uniform Dwelling Code covers one- and two-family homes. Its Commercial Building Code covers public buildings, workplaces and buildings of three or more units. Local ordinances must conform to both. Wisconsin rules

Caledonia permit search and official resources

The village’s interactive zoning portal lets the public track development projects as they move through review and sign up for email alerts when a new development application is filed. For building permit files, contact the Building Department; agendas and minutes for the Plan Commission and Village Board are posted on the Agendas & Minutes page.

• Building / Inspections: submittal requirements
• Building and engineering forms
• All new residential dwellings: new home requirements
• Forms and permits
• Finance page (2026 Master Fee Schedule)
• State of Wisconsin online new home permit
• Planning and zoning
• Engineering
• Caledonia Utility District
• Agendas and minutes
• Village Hall contact
• DSPS UDC delegated agents list
• FEMA Community Status Book, Wisconsin

Caledonia building permit FAQs

Where do I start a new home permit in Caledonia?

In the State of Wisconsin online building permit system; once the state accepts the application, send the village package to the Building Department.

Do I need a septic permit?

If the lot needs a mound system, yes: a Racine County sanitary permit is part of the village’s new home requirements. Sewer service covers the eastern and southern halves of the village.

Are electrical and plumbing permits separate?

Yes. They are pulled separately and inspected by the village’s own electrical and plumbing inspectors; for commercial work they go in with the building application.

Does the village review commercial plans?

The village issues the permit, but DSPS reviews commercial and public buildings of 25,000 cubic feet or more, schools, high-hazard uses and buildings of three or more units, and the village needs the state-approved plans.

Who handles zoning?

The village’s Planning & Zoning Department, created in May 2019 to take over planning and zoning from Racine County.

What are the Village Hall hours?

Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.; the main number is 262-835-4451.

Where can I find Caledonia’s permit fees?

In the 2026 Master Fee Schedule (marked approved October 28, 2025) on the village’s Finance page; the Building Department works out each permit’s fee when it reviews the application.

Simplify Caledonia permitting with Alliance Permitting

Alliance Permitting is a permit documentation and submission company in Wisconsin. 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 Caledonia permitting. Requirements, fees, and procedures change; confirm details with the permitting authority before relying on them.