Charter Township of Garfield - Building Department

Charter Township of Garfield, Michigan (Grand Traverse County)

city

3848 Veterans Drive, Traverse City, MI 49684

Not required

Required

In Garfield Township the Building Department draws the permit line at structural work. Its FAQ says of a reroof: "No, unless there are structural repairs such as replacing sheathing or the repair of trusses or rafters. Please note that only a maximum of two layers of shingles are allowed." That no-permit line is the department's stated practice: no enacted text names roof work either way, state law requires a permit "before construction of a building or structure" and relieves "ordinary repairs" without defining them, and this record does not decide whether the department's line is its reading of that relief. Where a permit is needed, the residential permit packet asks for a completed and signed building permit application and two sets of plans, and the application asks the contractor for a builder's license number. On cost the department says "Fees vary from project to project, so please give us a call." Inspections are arranged by phone at 231-941-1620; the department says "we do not accept building permit inspection requests via email." Electrical, plumbing and mechanical permits are handled by the Grand Traverse County Building Codes Office, not the township. The department also notes a snow load of sixty pounds per square foot. The Building Department is at the township offices, 3848 Veterans Drive, Traverse City, MI 49684, phone 231-941-1620, open Monday to Thursday, 7:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., and closed Friday.

2015 Michigan Residential Code. This is state law and it is the same in every Michigan city, village, township and county: the state construction code act says "This act and the code apply throughout the state," and the Michigan Residential Code rule adopts "the international residential code, 2015 edition" with the state amendments in R 408.30500 to R 408.30547g. A 2021 edition was filed with the secretary of state in 2025 but has not taken effect. On July 7, 2025 the Michigan Court of Claims entered a stipulated order in Home Builders Assoc et al. v LARA et al., and the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA) says that while that order remains in place "the 2015 versions of the IRC and residential provisions of the IECC standards currently adopted, in part, by each rule set will remain valid and in effect." LARA's Statewide Jurisdiction List names the Charter Township of Garfield (Grand Traverse County) as its own building code enforcer, with electrical and mechanical work enforced by the county, and the township Building Department says it uses the "2015 Residential Code when reviewing residential plans."

Required — Required on asphalt shingle roofs by state law. Michigan makes no amendment to the drip edge rule of the 2015 International Residential Code, Section R905.2.8.5, which applies as published: "A drip edge shall be provided at eaves and rake edges of shingle roofs." Segments overlap by at least 2 inches, the drip edge extends at least 1/4 inch below the roof sheathing and at least 2 inches back onto the deck, it is fastened at no more than 12 inches on center, and underlayment goes over it at the eaves and under it at the rakes. A reroof is held to the same rule, because "Materials and methods of application used for re-covering or replacing an existing roof covering shall comply with the requirements of Chapter 9" (R908.1). Garfield Township's Ordinances No. 36 and No. 55 (read in full) state nothing further on drip edge. About drip edge

Required — Required everywhere in Michigan by state law. Michigan fills in the climatic design table of the 2015 code once for the whole state (Rule 516, Table R301.2(1)), and its ice barrier underlayment column reads Yes. The state footnote calls for Yes "for areas where the average daily temperature in January is 25 degrees Fahrenheit" or less, or where ice damming has caused damage. The base code then requires an ice barrier "for asphalt shingles, metal roof shingles, mineral-surfaced roll roofing, slate and slate-type shingles, wood shingles and wood shakes," running "from the lowest edges of all roof surfaces to a point not less than 24 inches (610 mm) inside the exterior wall line of the building" (R905.1.2). Detached accessory structures without conditioned floor area are exempt. On a tear-off, an existing ice barrier that is adhered to the deck may stay and be covered with an additional layer (R908.3, Exception). The Garfield Township Building Department's 2015 Michigan Residential Code booklet lists the same item, an ice barrier "consisting of at least two layers of underlayment cemented together or a self-adhering polymer modified bitumen sheet" running from the lowest roof edges to at least 24 inches inside the exterior wall line, and the township's Ordinances No. 36 and No. 55 (read in full) add nothing. About ice & water barrier

Not required — No impact-resistance requirement under state law. The 2015 Michigan Residential Code was searched in full and has no hail or impact rating rule for roof coverings: the words hail, impact and UL 2218 do not appear in it, and none of them appears in the roof assemblies chapter of the base 2015 International Residential Code either. Michigan applies one code statewide ("This act and the code apply throughout the state."), and the act gives the power to amend it to the state director, who adopts the model codes "with amendments, additions, or deletions as the director determines appropriate." Garfield Township's Ordinances No. 36 and No. 55 (read in full) add no roof-covering rule, and no UL 2218 or Class 4 impact requirement appears in them or in the Building Department's Michigan Residential Code booklet.

A reroof needs no permit unless it includes structural repairs, in the department's own words. The Garfield Township Building Department FAQ asks "Do I need a permit to reroof my house?" and answers: "No, unless there are structural repairs such as replacing sheathing or the repair of trusses or rafters. Please note that only a maximum of two layers of shingles are allowed." No enacted text names roof work either way. State law requires a building permit "before construction of a building or structure," defines construction to include repair, and also says "A building permit is not required for ordinary repairs of a building or structure" without defining ordinary repairs or capping them by size or cost. Michigan's list of work exempt from permit (Section R105.2 of the residential code, as Michigan amends it) names no roof work. The township adds no permit rule of its own: its Ordinances page lists no building code ordinance, and the two building-related ordinances it lists, Ordinance No. 36 (Construction Board of Appeals) and Ordinance No. 55 (Property Maintenance Code), were read in full. The township Building Permit Fee Schedule has no roofing line, and its building permit application lists no roofing category among the types of improvement. The no-permit line is the department's stated practice; this record does not decide whether it is the department's reading of the ordinary-repairs clause.

Two layers at most, under state law. Michigan builds one- and two-family homes to the 2015 Michigan Residential Code, which adopts the 2015 International Residential Code and makes no amendment to its reroofing section, Section R908; the Michigan rule set was searched in full and R908 does not appear in it. The base section therefore applies as the International Code Council publishes it. Section R908.3.1.1 lists the conditions under which a new roof may not be laid over an existing one, and the third is "Where the existing roof has two or more applications of any type of roof covering." One existing layer may be covered once; a roof that already carries two layers is torn off to the deck. The same section also bars covering a roof that is water soaked or too deteriorated to serve as a base, and covering "slate, clay, cement or asbestos-cement tile." Garfield Township's Ordinances page, read in full, lists no building code ordinance; the township's ordinance under the state construction code act, Ordinance No. 36 (Construction Board of Appeals, 1996, with Amendment 1 of 2009), and its Property Maintenance Code, Ordinance No. 55, were read in full and neither touches the reroofing section, so the state limit applies unchanged. The Building Department FAQ agrees: "Please note that only a maximum of two layers of shingles are allowed."

State law, from the base code. Michigan makes no amendment to the roof sheathing section of the 2015 International Residential Code, Section R803, which does not appear in the Michigan rule set, so it applies as published. Lumber roof sheathing follows Table R803.1: over rafters or beams 24 inches apart it must be at least 5/8 inch net thick. Wood structural panels must be identified "for grade, bond classification and performance category by a grade mark or certificate of inspection issued by an approved agency," and their spans may not exceed "the values set forth in Table R503.2.1.1(1), or APA E30." For a shingle roof the base code adds that "Asphalt shingles shall be fastened to solidly sheathed decks" (R905.2.1), and on any reroof "The structural roof components shall be capable of supporting the roof covering system" (R908.2). Garfield Township's Ordinances No. 36 and No. 55 (read in full) state nothing further on roof sheathing; the Building Department FAQ treats a reroof with "structural repairs such as replacing sheathing or the repair of trusses or rafters" as permit work.

6%, statewide, with no local add-on. This is state law: the General Sales Tax Act sets the tax "equal to 6% of the gross proceeds of the business," the Use Tax Act sets "a total combined rate equal to 6%," and the Michigan Department of Treasury says "Michigan does not allow city or local units to impose sales tax." On a roofing job the roofer is the taxpayer on materials, because the Use Tax Act counts as a consumer "A person acquiring tangible personal property if engaged in the business of constructing, altering, repairing, or improving the real estate of others." The Charter Township of Garfield adds no sales tax of its own, so 6% is the whole rate on a job there.