Permitting Authorities / City of Three Rivers - Building Department
Do you need a permit to replace a roof in Three Rivers, MI?
Adopted code
City of Three Rivers - Building Department
Yes, a permit is required to replace a roof in Three Rivers, MI, issued by City of Three Rivers - Building Department. A reroof in Three Rivers is permit work. The city's Building Department Forms folder carries a Building Permit & Plans Examination Application, issued by SAFEbuilt, that lists "Metal Roofing Only", "Roofing Re-Deck & Shingles" and "Roofing Shingles Only" among its types of improvement and says "BUILDING PERMIT FEES ARE CALCULATED BY THE BUILDING INSPECTOR.", "ISSUED PERMITS EXPIRE 180 DAYS FROM THE ISSUED DATE" and "MAKE CHECK PAYABLE TO THE MUNICIPALITY IN WHICH YOUR PROJECT IS LOCATED". The city's Building & Zoning page says "Building permits, as well as trade permits for plumbing & mechanical applications, are processed through the City of Three Rivers" and calls SAFEbuilt "city-contracted for permits, inspections, and offices of the City Zoning Administrator and Building Official." Section 6-7 of the city's Code of Ordinances says "City contracts with SAFEbuilt for inspection services and fees are established in accordance with the contractual agreement between the City and SAFEbuilt." Applications are available at City Hall, 333 W. Michigan Avenue, Monday through Friday except holidays, and SAFEbuilt's phone for permit and ordinance questions is 269-729-9244. Read October 11, 2026.
Roof code checklist: Three Rivers, MI
Each row comes from the sourced record on this page; full wording is in the table below. "Not published" means no official source for that item was found when the record was last verified.
Jurisdiction
City of Three Rivers, Michigan
Address
333 West Michigan Avenue, Three Rivers, MI 49093
Contact
- url: https://www.threeriversmi.org/building-permit/
- phone: 269-729-9244
Roofing permit required
Required
Contractor registration required
Required
Registration details
- state_level: Michigan licenses residential maintenance and alteration contractors under the Occupational Code, and that licence "includes the following crafts and trades" among which it names roofing (MCL 339.2404(3)); "A person shall not engage in or attempt to engage in the practice of an occupation regulated under this act" without the licence (MCL 339.601(1)). MCL 339.2403 lists who may work without one, including a project whose "aggregate contract price for the labor, material, and any other items for the undertaking or project is less than $600.00". This record does not decide whether a given roofer falls inside an exemption.
Permit process note
A reroof in Three Rivers is permit work. The city's Building Department Forms folder carries a Building Permit & Plans Examination Application, issued by SAFEbuilt, that lists "Metal Roofing Only", "Roofing Re-Deck & Shingles" and "Roofing Shingles Only" among its types of improvement and says "BUILDING PERMIT FEES ARE CALCULATED BY THE BUILDING INSPECTOR.", "ISSUED PERMITS EXPIRE 180 DAYS FROM THE ISSUED DATE" and "MAKE CHECK PAYABLE TO THE MUNICIPALITY IN WHICH YOUR PROJECT IS LOCATED". The city's Building & Zoning page says "Building permits, as well as trade permits for plumbing & mechanical applications, are processed through the City of Three Rivers" and calls SAFEbuilt "city-contracted for permits, inspections, and offices of the City Zoning Administrator and Building Official." Section 6-7 of the city's Code of Ordinances says "City contracts with SAFEbuilt for inspection services and fees are established in accordance with the contractual agreement between the City and SAFEbuilt." Applications are available at City Hall, 333 W. Michigan Avenue, Monday through Friday except holidays, and SAFEbuilt's phone for permit and ordinance questions is 269-729-9244. Read October 11, 2026.
Adopted code
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 City of Three Rivers as its own building code enforcer. Section 12-1.1 of the city's Code of Ordinances provides that "the Building Code Official of the City is designated as the enforcing agency" and names no residential code edition. The city's Building & Zoning page, read October 11, 2026, says "The State Building Code, MRC 2009, is the adopted Building Code for the City of Three Rivers."; this directory has not read that 2009 text, and whether that reference has any effect today is not decided here. This record states the 2015 Michigan Residential Code, which the state construction code act applies throughout the state ("This act and the code apply throughout the state," MCL 125.1508a) and which LARA says remains in effect while the Court of Claims order of July 7, 2025 stands. Three Rivers has published no statement that it enforces the 2015 edition, and the base 2009 and 2015 editions are known to differ on the layer limit, so this record leaves out the drip edge, ice barrier and impact answers and states both editions' text on the layer limit.
Repair permit threshold
Three Rivers publishes no size, square or dollar point below which roof work needs no permit. The building permit application the city lists in its Building Department Forms folder offers "Metal Roofing Only", "Roofing Re-Deck & Shingles" and "Roofing Shingles Only" as types of improvement, and the city's "Do I Need a Building Permit?" handout restates the code's permit clause, "Any owner or authorized agent who intends to construct, enlarge, alter, repair, move, demolish or change the occupancy of a building or structure", and says "If you are not sure your project requires a permit, please call SAFEbuilt (formerly Cornerstone) at 269-729-9244 for a free telephone consultation." Under state law, "before construction of a building or structure, the owner, or the owner's builder, architect, engineer, or agent, shall submit an application in writing to the appropriate enforcing agency for a building permit" and "A building permit is not required for ordinary repairs of a building or structure," (MCL 125.1510), without a definition of ordinary repairs, and the city has published nothing applying that relief to roof work.
Roof layer limit / recover
Not stated here as a single layer count, because the record does not settle which of two code editions answers the question in Three Rivers, and the two differ. 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. Under that code, Section R908.3.1.1 bars a new roof over an existing one in three cases, 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." The City of Three Rivers' Building & Zoning page, read October 11, 2026, says "The State Building Code, MRC 2009, is the adopted Building Code for the City of Three Rivers." The base 2009 text, Section R907.3 (Recovering versus replacement), carries the same three conditions, its second also naming wood shake, and a fourth: "For asphalt shingles, when the building is located in an area subject to moderate or severe hail exposure according to Figure R903.5." Under that text a single existing layer of asphalt shingles can call for a tear-off where the hail condition is met, so no layer count states the 2009 rule. The 2009 Michigan amendments to that code were not read, and whether that reference has any effect today is not decided here (see adopted_code). Chapter 12 of the Three Rivers Code of Ordinances, the city's permit pages and its building permit application state no layer rule of their own. Ask SAFEbuilt (269-729-9244) before planning an overlay.
Deck & sheathing requirements
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). Chapter 12 of the Three Rivers Code of Ordinances, the Building & Zoning and Permits pages, the "Do I Need a Building Permit?" handout and the city's building permit application were read for a local rule and state nothing further on roof sheathing. The Building & Zoning page says "The State Building Code, MRC 2009, is the adopted Building Code for the City of Three Rivers." (see adopted_code); this field states the 2015 Michigan Residential Code, which the state act applies throughout the state; Three Rivers has published no statement that it enforces the 2015 edition; the 2009 text was not read (see adopted_code).
Sales & use tax
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." Nothing on the City of Three Rivers Building & Zoning page changes this.
Local roofing hub
More roof permit pages in Michigan
Related guides
The City of Three Rivers' building permits are processed through City Hall at 333 W. Michigan Avenue, and the city contracts with SAFEbuilt, in its Athens office, for permits, inspections and the Building Official. Section 12-1.1 of the city's Code of Ordinances designates the Building Code Official as the enforcing agency under the state construction code act, and the State of Michigan's jurisdiction list names the City as its own building code enforcer. Michigan's single state construction code applies, and for houses that is the 2015 Michigan Residential Code.
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Roofing questions: Three Rivers, MI
Do you need a permit to replace a roof in Three Rivers, MI?
Yes, a permit is required to replace a roof in Three Rivers, MI. Three Rivers publishes no size, square or dollar point below which roof work needs no permit. The building permit application the city lists in its Building Department Forms folder offers "Metal Roofing Only", "Roofing Re-Deck & Shingles" and "Roofing Shingles Only" as types of improvement, and the city's "Do I Need a Building Permit?" handout restates the code's permit clause, "Any owner or authorized agent who intends to construct, enlarge, alter, repair, move, demolish or change the occupancy of a building or structure", and says "If you are not sure your project requires a permit, please call SAFEbuilt (formerly Cornerstone) at 269-729-9244 for a free telephone consultation." Under state law, "before construction of a building or structure, the owner, or the owner's builder, architect, engineer, or agent, shall submit an application in writing to the appropriate enforcing agency for a building permit" and "A building permit is not required for ordinary repairs of a building or structure," (MCL 125.1510), without a definition of ordinary repairs, and the city has published nothing applying that relief to roof work.
Can you roof over an existing roof in Three Rivers, MI?
Not stated here as a single layer count, because the record does not settle which of two code editions answers the question in Three Rivers, and the two differ. 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. Under that code, Section R908.3.1.1 bars a new roof over an existing one in three cases, 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." The City of Three Rivers' Building & Zoning page, read October 11, 2026, says "The State Building Code, MRC 2009, is the adopted Building Code for the City of Three Rivers." The base 2009 text, Section R907.3 (Recovering versus replacement), carries the same three conditions, its second also naming wood shake, and a fourth: "For asphalt shingles, when the building is located in an area subject to moderate or severe hail exposure according to Figure R903.5." Under that text a single existing layer of asphalt shingles can call for a tear-off where the hail condition is met, so no layer count states the 2009 rule. The 2009 Michigan amendments to that code were not read, and whether that reference has any effect today is not decided here (see adopted_code). Chapter 12 of the Three Rivers Code of Ordinances, the city's permit pages and its building permit application state no layer rule of their own. Ask SAFEbuilt (269-729-9244) before planning an overlay.
Do roofing contractors need a license or registration in Three Rivers, MI?
Yes.
What building code does Three Rivers, MI use?
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 City of Three Rivers as its own building code enforcer. Section 12-1.1 of the city's Code of Ordinances provides that "the Building Code Official of the City is designated as the enforcing agency" and names no residential code edition. The city's Building & Zoning page, read October 11, 2026, says "The State Building Code, MRC 2009, is the adopted Building Code for the City of Three Rivers."; this directory has not read that 2009 text, and whether that reference has any effect today is not decided here. This record states the 2015 Michigan Residential Code, which the state construction code act applies throughout the state ("This act and the code apply throughout the state," MCL 125.1508a) and which LARA says remains in effect while the Court of Claims order of July 7, 2025 stands. Three Rivers has published no statement that it enforces the 2015 edition, and the base 2009 and 2015 editions are known to differ on the layer limit, so this record leaves out the drip edge, ice barrier and impact answers and states both editions' text on the layer limit.