Milwaukee building department

The City of Milwaukee Department of Neighborhood Services (DNS) issues building, trade, and occupancy permits and inspects construction inside the City of Milwaukee. Its Permit & Development Center, on the first floor of 809 N. Broadway, is where plans are reviewed and permits are issued. Wauwatosa, West Allis, Oak Creek, and the other suburbs in Milwaukee County run their own permit offices, so a Milwaukee County address alone does not mean DNS has jurisdiction.

What needs a permit

DNS’s “Do I need a permit?” checklist and info sheets cover the common residential cases:

Project	Milwaukee rule
Shed or storage building	No building permit if 150 sq ft or smaller and at least 3 ft from property lines. Larger or closer sheds need a permit.
Fence	Permit required for new and replacement fences
Deck or porch	Permit and plan review required, new or replacement
Plumbing fixture swap	No permit to replace faucets, toilets, sinks, tubs, or showers without altering supply, drain, or vent piping. All other plumbing work needs a permit.
Electrical device swap	No permit to replace switches, dimmers, or light fixtures. All other electrical work needs a permit and a licensed electrician.
Furnace, air conditioner, water heater	Permit required

See also our guides on fence permits and electrical permits.

Fences

Under DNS’s fence requirements for one- and two-family homes:

• Front-yard fences may be no taller than 4 feet. An ornamental fence, such as wrought iron, may reach 6 feet if it is at least 50% open.
• Opaque fences near street and alley intersections are limited to 3 feet in the vision area.
• The whole fence must sit on your own property, with posts and supports facing inward.

The residential fence permit is $60.40: a $25.00 permit fee, a $35.00 processing fee, and a $0.40 IT and training surcharge.

Decks and porches

Deck and porch plans are checked against the Wisconsin Uniform Dwelling Code and Milwaukee’s building and zoning codes. Bring a certified survey or a scaled site plan showing the deck’s location, plus three sets of scaled plans. The plans must show:

• Size and height
• Beam sizes and spans, joist size and spacing, and decking
• Footing size and placement
• Steps, guards, and railings

Decks 24 inches or more above grade need guardrails. The plan examination fee for decks is $50.

Homeowners, contractors, and licensing

Owners who live in the property, and are not renting it out, may apply for permits to do their own work. Plumbing is narrower. A homeowner may pull a plumbing permit only for an owner-occupied single-family home. For a two-family home or any non-owner-occupied property, a licensed plumber must pull the permit and do the work.

Milwaukee also requires a city Home Improvement Contractor license (Code of Ordinances Chapter 95). It applies to anyone in the business of remodeling, repairing, or installing in single-family homes, duplexes, and apartment buildings of six units or fewer. The License Division of the City Clerk’s Office issues the license: City Hall, 200 E. Wells Street, Room 105, (414) 286-2238.

Applying: LMS and the Development Center

Milwaukee’s online permit system is the Land Management System (LMS), an Accela Citizen Access portal at milwaukee.gov/LMS. It is available 24/7. In LMS you can:

• Apply and pay for many permits
• Upload drawings and plans
• Check review status
• Schedule inspections

For in-person plan review, check in through the city’s QLess system or call (414) 286-8210. The city encourages uploading your submittal online before the appointment. The Development Center is open 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, and does not schedule appointments on Wednesdays.

Fee highlights

From the Development Center’s plan review and permit fee schedules for one- and two-family dwellings:

Item	Fee
Plan examination (construction and alterations)	$0.25/sq ft; minimum $175 for new construction and additions, $125 for alterations
Building permit, new construction and additions	$0.55/sq ft, $200 minimum
Footing and foundation only	$0.25/sq ft of first-floor area, $300 minimum
Permit processing fee	Typically $20 or $25 per permit, set by permit type in MCO 200-33

Inspections

To schedule online, log in to LMS and open Advanced Search, then Search Records/Applications, then Building. Find the permit by address, record number, or tax key. Open Record Info, then Inspections, and choose Schedule or Request an Inspection. Pick a date and time and note the inspection type you need, such as framing, insulation, or final. If you don’t know who your inspector is, call the Construction Section at (414) 286-2513. Keep the permit and approved plans on site.

Certificates of occupancy

Every commercial business, use, and structure in Milwaukee needs a certificate of occupancy before opening, including when an existing space changes use. Apply at the Development Center. The application usually triggers plumbing, construction, and electrical inspections, and sprinkler, elevator, hazardous-materials, or boiler inspections when they apply. The certificate cannot issue until all of them are done. A Change-of-Use Analysis is required in some cases:

• The new use is a higher hazard under the International Existing Building Code tables
• The occupant load increases
• The space will have combustible storage over 12 feet or high-hazard storage over 6 feet

Zoning, historic, and records

The Development Center decides zoning-code compliance. Special uses and variances go to the Board of Zoning Appeals. Exterior work on a locally designated historic property needs a Certificate of Appropriateness. For permit history, newer records are in the city’s permit systems; older building plans and permit archives are handled through the City Clerk’s records service.

Contact

• Permit & Development Center (DNS): 809 N. Broadway, 1st Floor, Milwaukee, WI 53202
• Phone: (414) 286-8210
• Email: [email protected]
• Hours: Monday–Friday, 8:00 a.m.–4:30 p.m.
• Construction Section (inspections): (414) 286-2513