Stark County, Ohio - Building Department

Unincorporated Stark County, Ohio, plus contracting villages. For RESIDENTIAL work the County's own jurisdiction directory covers the townships of Bethlehem, Canton, Jackson, Lake, Lawrence, Lexington, Marlboro, Nimishillen, Osnaburg, Paris, Perry, Pike, Plain, Sandy, Sugarcreek, Tuscarawas and Washington, and the villages of Brewster, East Canton, Harmon, Hills and Dales, Magnolia, Meyers Lake, Minerva and Waynesburg. Alliance, Beach City, East Sparta, Hartville, Louisville, Navarre and Wilmot are listed for COMMERCIAL work only, so residential roofing in those seven is not this authority's. Canal Fulton, Canton, Massillon and North Canton are outside the County's jurisdiction entirely and run their own building departments.

county

7235 Whipple Ave NW, Suite A, Canton, OH 44720

Required

Not required

Residential Code of Ohio, Ohio Administrative Code Chapter 4101:8, effective July 1, 2019. Ohio adopts its residential code as a statewide administrative rule rather than leaving the edition to each jurisdiction: the Ohio Board of Building Standards promulgates it under Ohio Revised Code section 3781.10 and it governs one, two and three family dwellings throughout the state. Roof assemblies are Chapter 4101:8-9-01, and its section numbers carry no "R" prefix, so the reroofing rule is section 908. Stark County enforces that text as written, and unusually it proves it in its own document: the County's Residential Guidelines for Reroof form reprints Section 908 in full, and the reprint matches the state rule word for word, including the ice barrier provision and its exception. Ohio law does permit a local addition to the state code where it does not conflict, under Ohio Revised Code section 3781.01(B) and subject to a Board of Building Standards conflict review, but Stark County publishes none touching roofing.

Not required — Ohio does not prescribe a drip edge, and this is a genuine departure from the model code. The International Residential Code sets a drip edge requirement at R905.2.8.5 with dimensions, an overlap and a fastening schedule. Ohio replaced that text entirely, and the whole of Residential Code of Ohio section 905.2.8.5 now reads: "Drip edge. Refer to Sections 903.1 and 905.1." Neither of those sections carries drip edge language; what they do is make the manufacturer's instructions binding. Section 903.1 requires roof assemblies to "be designed and installed in accordance with this code and the approved manufacturer's instructions," and section 905.1 that "Roof coverings shall be applied in accordance with the applicable provisions of this section and the manufacturer's installation instructions." So the state code imposes no drip edge of its own, while the shingle manufacturer's published installation instructions do carry code force, and most asphalt shingle instructions require one. Omitting a drip edge against those instructions remains a violation in Ohio, by way of 903.1 and 905.1 rather than by way of a drip edge section. Stark County publishes no drip edge requirement of its own on its reroof form. About drip edge

Required — Required, and required across the whole state rather than in a mapped zone. Residential Code of Ohio section 905.1.2 conditions the ice barrier on a local history of ice damming "as designated in Table 301.2(1)", and Ohio's own Table 301.2(1) makes that designation statewide: the ICE BARRIER UNDERLAYMENT REQUIRED column reads "Yes", and note h to the table states that "all jurisdictions in Ohio have a history of local damage from the effects of ice damming." Stark County reprints the requirement on its Residential Guidelines for Reroof form, so it is the County's published expectation and not merely a state rule. The barrier "shall consist of not fewer than two layers of underlayment cemented together, or a self-adhering polymer-modified bitumen sheet shall be used in place of normal underlayment and extend 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," measured along the slope from where the projected outside face of the wall meets the deck. On roofs of 8:12 or steeper it "shall also be applied not less than 36 inches (914 mm) measured along the roof slope from the eave edge." One exception travels with it and the County prints it too: "Detached accessory structures and roof assemblies terminating at a vertical wall over unconditioned floor areas." It applies to asphalt shingles, metal roof shingles, mineral surfaced roll roofing, slate and slate-type shingles, wood shingles and wood shakes. About ice & water barrier

Not required — No mid-roof or in-progress roofing inspection stage is published. The County's required-inspection schedule is written around new construction and names underground electrical, footer, foundation, rough electric and plumbing, rough building and heating, and insulation; for residential work it states "All above inspections, except footer inspection." None of those stages is a roofing stage, and neither the schedule nor the Residential Reroof Form sets an inspection point partway through a reroof. Inspections must be requested by the permit holder, and the County warns that the permit card has to be posted: "The absence of a permit card will result in a 'NOT APPROVED' for the requested inspection." Two fees are worth budgeting for because they land on the roofer's schedule: $35.00 for a re-inspection where work is not approved because it is incomplete or does not meet code, and $75.00 where the inspector cannot get access, which the County calls a "No Show." The County also asks that animals be restrained for the inspection to go ahead.

Not required

NO THRESHOLD. A permit is required for residential reroofing outright, with no dollar figure, square footage or number of squares to cross first. The County's Development Review and Permit Procedures page carries a list headed "The following is a list of projects that require a permit to be obtained," and under Residential 1, 2, and 3 Family it names "Roof Replacement / Reroofing" as its own line item, alongside new homes, decks, additions and fire repair. Reroofing is separately listed under Commercial as well. The County publishes a dedicated Residential Reroof Form for the application, so a reroof is handled as its own permit type rather than folded into a general alteration permit. The penalty for skipping it is steep and the County states it in the same place: "If work is started and no permit is obtained, you will be fined a 200% penalty on the application and permit fees." Where a homeowner rather than a contractor does the work, the County publishes a Homeowner Exemption Form, which is an exemption from contractor requirements and not from the permit. Before bidding, confirm the address is in this authority's residential jurisdiction, because seven Stark County villages are covered by the County for commercial work only and four cities run their own departments.

115 mph ultimate design wind speed, set statewide. Ohio fills in the wind column of Table 301.2(1) of the Residential Code of Ohio once for the whole state rather than leaving it to each jurisdiction, and the WIND DESIGN Speed (mph) entry is 115. Exposure category is not fixed by the table; note d directs that "Wind exposure category shall be determined on a site-specific basis in accordance with Section 301.2.1.4." Ohio has struck three of the model table's wind entries outright, recorded in notes k, l and m: topographic wind speed-up effects, unusual wind conditions and wind-borne debris zones are all deleted, so no wind-borne debris protection applies in Ohio. For the shingles themselves, section 905.2.4 sets wind resistance by ASTM D7158, with an exception that "Asphalt shingles not included in the scope of ASTM D7158 shall be tested and labeled in accordance with ASTM D3161." Both are wind standards; neither speaks to impact.

Two total layers. The default is a full tear off, and a recover over one existing layer is the exception; a recover over two or more layers is not allowed. Stark County prints the governing text on its own reroof form and it matches the Residential Code of Ohio exactly. Section 908.3, Roof replacement: "Roof replacement shall include the removal of existing layers of roof coverings down to the roof deck," with an exception permitting an existing ice barrier membrane adhered to the deck to stay and be covered with an additional layer of ice barrier membrane. Section 908.3.1 then permits a recover in four listed situations, the first being where the new covering is installed in accordance with the roof covering manufacturer's approved instructions. Section 908.3.1.1, Roof recover not allowed, sets the bar: "A roof recover shall not be permitted where any of the following conditions occur: 1. Where the existing roof or roof covering is water soaked or has deteriorated to the point that the existing roof or roof covering is not adequate as a base for additional roofing. 2. Where the existing roof covering is slate, clay, cement or asbestos-cement tile. 3. Where the existing roof has two or more applications of any type of roof covering." Ohio's rule has three conditions and none is a hail exposure condition, so unlike the older model code editions still in force in some states there is no case here in which a single existing layer must come off on hail grounds alone. Under section 908.5 aggregate surfacing "shall not be reinstalled," and existing flashings, edgings, outlets and vents "shall be replaced where rusted, damaged or deteriorated."

Solid sheathing is required under asphalt shingles. Residential Code of Ohio section 905.2.1, Sheathing requirements: "Asphalt shingles shall be fastened to solidly sheathed decks." Ohio writes this without the plank-width alternative some states allow, so spaced or skip sheathing will not carry an asphalt shingle roof here. Two reroofing rules work alongside it, and Stark County reprints both on its own reroof form. Section 908.2 requires that "The structural roof components shall be capable of supporting the roof covering system and the material and equipment loads that will be encountered during installation." Section 908.3.1.1 bars a recover "Where the existing roof or roof covering is water soaked or has deteriorated to the point that the existing roof or roof covering is not adequate as a base for additional roofing," which is the provision that catches deteriorated sheathing found once the old covering is off.

6.50% combined, which is the Ohio state rate of 5.75% plus a Stark County rate of 0.75%. That is among the lowest combined rates in Ohio. The state levies its local sales tax at county level with no separate municipal add-on, so 6.50% applies throughout Stark County, inside its cities and villages as well as in the unincorporated area. Read from the Ohio Department of Taxation's own Sales and Use Tax Rates by County table, county code 76. That published table is the one effective October 1, 2026, and it marks a changed county with an asterisk against the county name; Stark carries no asterisk and Warren is the only Ohio county changing on that date, so 6.50% is also the rate in force now.