May 29, 2020 – The City of Midland is providing guidance to property owners whose homes or buildings have been condemned due to structural damage sustained during the recent flooding event.
Condemnation of a structure means that the structure is no longer safe for human occupancy. It is unsafe for these structures to be occupied for extended periods of time, including overnight stays. After a property has been condemned, the only construction work permissible without a building permit is temporary shoring or structurally reinforcing the structure.
In line with the 2015 Michigan Building Code, the City will allow temporary access into condemned structures to access items only after shoring up or reinforcement of the structure has taken place and authorization has been given by the City of Midland Building Department. To schedule an inspection of temporary shoring or reinforcement that will allow for temporary access to the structure, please call the Building Department at 989-837-3381.
Property owners are reminded that they will need to apply for and receive the necessary building permits and City inspections as they make these repairs and replace infrastructure in their homes and businesses. Until building permits have been issued and building inspections have been conducted following rehabilitation and repair, condemned structures will not be deemed safe to reoccupy.
All properties located within the 100-year regulatory floodplain will require the Substantial Improvement/Substantial Damage (SI/SD) assessment to be completed prior to building permits being issued. For more information on this assessment, please visit www.cityofmidlandmi.gov/building or contact the Building Department at 989-837-3381.
Properties outside the 100-year floodplain will not be required to go through the SI/SD assessment.
Owners of condemned properties are advised that this process will take some time to complete and that condemnation of a structure does not mean that their ownership of the property is absolved.
To schedule a building inspection or apply for a building permit related to the recent flooding event, residents should call the Building Department at 989-837-3383 and leave a voicemail message regarding their project or email the appropriate staff member.
Individual inspectors can be reached as follows:
For fire safety inspections and other plans related to fire safety, please contact Midland Fire Department Fire Marshal Tony Lelo at 989-837-3413 or alelo@midland-mi.org.
To find building permit applications forms, building permit and inspection information, and more, please visit www.cityofmidlandmi.gov/building. For fire department permit and inspection information, visit www.cityofmidlandmi.gov/fire.
All City facilities remain closed to the public through June 12, 2020; however, Building and Midland Fire Department personnel are working remotely to process building permits and inspections as quickly as possible to provide service for flood-impacted residents.
Fees will be waived for all City permits related to flood damage.
For continued updates related to the recent flooding event, please monitor the following resources:
- www.midland911.org
- www.cityofmidlandmi.gov
- Facebook channels for the following entities:
- Midland County Emergency Management (MI)
- Midland County 911
- City of Midland, Michigan – Municipal Government
- Twitter: @CityofMidlandMI
- Twitter: @MidlandCountyMI
- Call 2-1-1
- Sign up for 911 text and email alerts through Nixle.com
