Menomonie, Wisconsin Building Permit Guide

Inside the City of Menomonie, permits come from the Building Inspection/Zoning office at City Hall, 800 Wilson Avenue (715-232-2221, ext. 3), headed by Chief Building Inspector Dave Kowieski. One- and two-family projects can be filed online, other applications by email or mail, and the city allows 10 to 15 business days for review. Under the fee schedule effective January 1, 2025, a new house costs $0.25 per square foot of house and garage, plus a $135 plan examination and a $36 state seal, with separate trade permits.

What requires a building permit in Menomonie?

Building permits are required under Title 9 of the City Code, and the city’s fee schedule and form list show which projects that covers. Zoning rules sit in Title 10, and the same office answers zoning questions.

The city has no posted list of exempt work, so ask the office about anything not shown. A certificate of zoning, a site inspection consultation and gas piping alterations are also priced on the fee schedule. Dunn County’s shoreland, floodplain, land division and sanitary ordinances are listed on the county’s zoning page as applying to the towns.

What Menomonie decides and what the state holds

Menomonie holds Uniform Dwelling Code delegation from DSPS and runs its own building, zoning and rental inspection programs; Dunn County’s zoning page confirms the city enforces its own zoning code. Land use, improvements and capital spending must conform with the Plan Commission’s plans and win its approval before the City Council adopts them. Construction standards come from the state dwelling and commercial codes, which the city enforces but cannot change.

Menomonie building department: who handles permitting

Building Inspection/Zoning is a city department with its own staff: a Chief Building Inspector, an Assistant Building Inspector and an office manager. DSPS’s delegated-agent list, current as of September 24, 2026, shows the City of Menomonie as delegated for the Uniform Dwelling Code with the Chief Building Inspector as its inspector. The department also handles zoning, the Board of Zoning Appeals and rental property inspections.

The Town of Menomonie is a separate government: it is under Dunn County zoning and has its own DSPS delegation and contracted inspector, so a town address is not permitted at City Hall; county zoning, shoreland and sanitary permits there come from Dunn County Planning & Land Use (715-231-6520).

Menomonie permit types

The office posts fillable PDF applications for nearly every permit, and one- and two-family projects can be filed through the city’s online application. Paper applications can be mailed with a check to the City of Menomonie Inspection Department at 800 Wilson Avenue or emailed to inspection@menomonie-wi.gov.

Residential permits

• New one- and two-family homes. Use the online application or the Wisconsin Uniform Building Permit Application. A footing and foundation (early start) permit is available for $110 before the full plans are approved.
• Remodeling and additions. The residential remodeling/addition form asks for the project cost, the general contractor and the Dwelling Contractor and Qualifier certification numbers, and the owner signs the state cautionary statement about unbonded or uninsured contractors.
• Group U buildings. Garages, sheds and similar structures use the miscellaneous permit form with one full-size printed plan set.
• Mobile homes, signs, demolition, right of way, stormwater and turf sprinklers. Each has its own form on the city’s forms page.
• Rentals. Landlords register rental property on a form updated February 16, 2026, and tenants or owners can ask for a voluntary or complaint-based rental inspection.

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

Commercial permits

Commercial and multifamily buildings of three or more units use the commercial building permit application with two full-size printed sets of plans. The estimated cost on the form leaves out land, furniture, equipment and the plumbing, mechanical, electrical and sprinkler subcontracts, which are permitted separately. The fee schedule prices commercial work with and without state plan approval, so tell the office whether DSPS has approved the plans.

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

What comes before the building permit

• Zoning. A certificate of zoning is $45; zoning questions go to the Building Inspector’s office, which administers Title 10.
• Plan Commission. Reviews plans and ordinances affecting growth, and must approve land uses and improvements before the City Council adopts them.
• Board of Zoning Appeals. Hears zoning appeals, grants special permits for specified uses and grants variances, meeting at 1 p.m. on the first Thursday of each month in the Council Chambers.
• Certified survey maps. The city posts a CSM approval process form for land divisions.
• Site work. Excavation and grading, erosion control (including riprap) and stormwater permits come from the same office.
• Private wells. The City Clerk’s office handles private well permit applications.

Menomonie permit costs and fees

Fees come from the Building Inspection Department Permit Fee Schedule effective January 1, 2025. Each trade is priced separately, and the reinspection fee applies only after the first inspection and one follow-up.

Worked example from the schedule: a new single-family home of 2,000 square feet including the garage is 2,000 × $0.25 = $500 for the building permit, plus the $135 plan examination and the $36 seal, or $671. Adding the new one-family mechanical ($110), electrical ($120) and plumbing ($110) permits brings the total to $1,011. Commercial remodels are charged at half the new-construction rate for each group, with a $45 minimum. Communication towers are $250 to collocate and $500 for a new tower, and Group U tanks, silos and similar structures are $75 up to $10,000 of value and $200 above that. Moving a building costs $500, or $250 for an accessory building under 14 feet tall.

Trade permits and who may pull them

Electrical, plumbing, HVAC, fire alarm and fire sprinkler permits each have their own city form and fee, and the city’s inspectors handle the inspections.

• Electrical. The form (reviewed August 10, 2026) asks for the electrical contractor’s license number and the master electrician’s Wisconsin license number, and has a section for a new meter or reconnect from Xcel Energy. Commercial electrical permits run from $60 for a small remodel to $250 for a new building, and PV plan review is $75.
• Plumbing. Commercial plumbing is priced by fixture count ($85, $135 or $285) or by whether the plans carry state approval ($275) or not ($125).
• HVAC and gas. New commercial HVAC is $220 with state approval and $110 without, a Class I grease hood $135, and a gas piping alteration $50.
• Fire protection. New fire alarm $200, alteration $100; new sprinkler system $175, addition or alteration $75.
• Dwelling contractors. The residential forms take the state Dwelling Contractor and Qualifier certification numbers; an owner-occupant building their own home is exempt from that requirement.

How to apply for a Menomonie building permit

Review, corrections and what causes delay

The city says both residential and commercial applications take 10 to 15 business days to process, so file well before a contractor’s start date. Commercial plan review costs $235 when the plans already carry state approval and $310 when they do not. A street opening for a sewer or water lateral adds a city repair charge that depends on the season and the surface, so include it in the budget before the plumber digs.

Inspections in Menomonie

Inspection appointments are made by phone at least 24 hours in advance on 715-232-2221, ext. 3. The first inspection and one follow-up are covered by the permit; each reinspection after that is $45, or $100 for commercial electrical work.

The application forms say inspection appointments must be made by phone, even when the application itself was emailed, and the electrical form collects the service size, voltage and overhead or underground details Xcel Energy needs when a new meter or reconnect is required. The fee schedule also lists a $100 temporary occupancy permit. The department offers a $50 site inspection consultation and performs voluntary and complaint-based inspections of rental units, which tenants or landlords request on the city’s form.

Wisconsin building code in Menomonie

Menomonie enforces the state dwelling and commercial codes through its own inspectors under Title 9 of the City Code, with zoning under Title 10. FEMA’s Community Status Book lists Menomonie (community 550123) as participating in the National Flood Insurance Program, with flood maps effective December 2, 2011.

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

Menomonie permit search and official resources

The city does not post a public permit search. Permit files are public records held by the city: request copies from the City Clerk, the official records custodian, in person, by mail to 800 Wilson Avenue or by email to clerk@menomonie-wi.gov, using the city’s records request form.

• Building Inspection/Zoning department
• Online one- and two-family permit application
• Permit fee schedule, effective January 1, 2025
• City forms (building inspection and clerk)
• Commercial building permit application
• Residential remodeling and addition application
• Electrical permit application
• Miscellaneous (Group U) permit application
• Wisconsin Uniform Building Permit Application
• Building inspection FAQs
• Board of Zoning Appeals
• Plan Commission
• City Clerk and public records
• DSPS Uniform Dwelling Code delegated agents
• FEMA Community Status Book, Wisconsin

Menomonie building permit FAQs

How much is a building permit for a new house in Menomonie?

$0.25 per square foot of house and garage, plus $135 for plan examination and $36 for the state seal; trade permits for a new single-family home add $340.

How long does a permit take?

The city allows 10 to 15 business days for residential and commercial applications.

Do I need a permit for a shed?

Sheds of 64 to 239 square feet are $60, and garages or accessory buildings of 240 square feet or more are $75.

Do I need a permit for a deck?

Yes. Decks up to 6 by 6 feet are $45 and larger decks $75, plus a $50 plan examination for decks over 6 by 6.

Can I email my application?

Yes. The city’s forms say applications may be emailed to inspection@menomonie-wi.gov or mailed with a check.

Who handles permits in the Town of Menomonie?

Not the city: the town is under Dunn County zoning and has its own DSPS-delegated inspector.

Do I need a permit for a driveway or sidewalk?

Yes. A driveway, parking pad or sidewalk permit is $45, and work in the street right of way needs a separate right of way permit at $85 plus $0.25 a foot.

Do rental properties need anything from the city?

Landlords register rental property on the city’s form, and the inspection office will inspect a rental unit on request from a tenant or owner.

When does the Board of Zoning Appeals meet?

At 1 p.m. on the first Thursday of each month in the City Hall Council Chambers.

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