As a property owner, it is your responsibility to ensure that a building permit is obtained prior to new construction, additions, alterations, renovations, relocations, demolitions, and repairs or rehabilitation of a building or structure. Building permits may also be required if you are changing the use of a building whether any structural changes are being made to the building or not.
Building without a permit is against the law and could result in you and/or your contractor being subject to fines or penalties as set out in the Building Code Act.
Before beginning any construction work or site alteration, you must obtain all necessary permits and/or clearances from the appropriate approval authorities, ensure compliance with all applicable by-laws and consider floodproofing and environmental review requirements.
You need to apply for and obtain a building permit if you are:
- Building a detached accessory structure larger than 15 square meters (161 square feet).
- Building a detached accessory structure, including shed of any size that has plumbing;
- Constructing an agricultural building (storage buildings, silo, grain dryer or elevator etc..)
- Making any size of addition to an existing building
- Covering or enclosing an existing deck or patio
- Changing the primary use of a building, for example:
- converting a garage into living space;
- converting a building used for a non-residential purpose (commercial use, institutional use etc..) to a dwelling unit;
- converting a building from an existing commercial use to new commercial use
- Making changes to a building that affect:
- The structure (removing or adding walls)
- Plumbing, electrical, or heating systems
- Fire safety features (ie. firewalls or alarms)
- Emergency exits
- Creation of bedrooms
- Construction new sewage system or repair existing.
- Decks greater than 24” above grade or serving the single entrance/exit to the building.
Even if the project seems small, a building permit and other approvals may still be required if it affects safety systems or the building’s use and operation. If you’re not sure, please contact Leamington Building Services before starting any work.
REMINDER: Buildings that do not require a building permit must comply with the Zoning By-law and must obtain permits or clearances from other approval bodies such as the Essex Region Conservation Authority, Department of Fisheries and Oceans, Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks. Please contact the Township to review compliance with municipal regulations and other required approvals. Communityservices@pelee.ca
Steps to Obtain a Building Permit on Pelee Island
The Township is here to assist in navigating the building permit process. The building permit process on Pelee Island is the same as other mainland municipalities in Ontario, however extra diligence is required by property owner
- Contact the Township with preliminary details of your proposed construction, work, project or development proposal. The Township will provide the applicable zoning regulations and discuss additional approvals you may need to obtain. Preliminary information you should have available to initiate the consultation includes:
- Municipal address or legal description of the property
- Details regarding the nature of your proposal.
- A preliminary sketch of the proposed development.
- The Township will review the proposed development with respect to zoning and other regulations and identify the necessary consultations which will be required prior to the submission of a building permit application. It is the responsibility of the applicant/owner to obtain all required approvals, permits and/or clearances from other agencies when required. Required consultations may include, but are not limited to:
- Essex Region Conservation Authority with respect to safe ingress and egress, floodproofing elevations, shoreline setbacks, etc..
- Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks with respect to species at risk habitat and other environmental review requirements.
- Township of Pelee Drainage Superintendent for connections to municipal drains and lot grading requirements.
- Township of Pelee Operations Manager for new driveway accesses and road crossing applications.
- Other private consultants including but not limited to surveyor, biologists, engineer, archaeologists etc..
- Once it is confirmed that the use is permitted or that the proposed construction would generally in compliance, you may want to consult with Leamington Building Services with respect to required drawings, process, signatures, fees etc.
- Submit final site plan, building drawings, building permit application and required agency comments, permits or clearances to the Township for review.
- Township will provide a final clearance and all necessary applications and plans electronically to Leamington Building Services to start the building permit application process.
- Once the application has been approved by the Township of Pelee, building permits applications and plans are submitted to and reviewed by the Deputy Chief Building Official for the Corporation of the Municipality of Leamington.
- Prior to the issuance of a building permit, applicants will be required to submit payment to Leamington Building Services based on the Township of Pelee approved Fees and Charges By-law. A copy of the Fees and Charges By-law can found under the Applications, Forms, Fees and Resources tab below. PLEAST NOTE: Payments are made directly to the Municipality of Leamington by cheque or debit. Credit Card and e-transfer are not accepted at this time.
- Once approved, applicants will be required to attend the Leamington Municipal Office (111 Erie St. North, Leamington Ontario N8H 2Z9) to obtain copies of the approved permits for posting as required by the Building Code Act and applicable regulations.
- Your building permit and plans must be posted available on your construction site.
- Property owners are responsible for adhering to the terms of any mitigation plans for the protection of species at risk and habitat.
- Your building permit will identify the required inspections based on the project. On island inspections are conducted by the Deputy Chief Building Official and must be scheduled directly with Leamington Building Services based on the posted inspections dates for Pelee Island.
Applications, Forms, Fees and Resources
MMAH Building Permit Application 02-16-26
MMAH Building Permit Application 02-16-26 Fillable
Building Permit Fees Schedule A to By-law 2026-10.
Please note the following regarding fees and charges:
- Fees and charges are subject to change and will be in accordance with the applicable Townships Fees and Charges By-law in effect.
- Additional fees and charges may be due to the Township upon processing a building permit, including but not limited to Greater Essex County District School Board Development Charges, Water Connection Charges and Signage Fees. Township fees and charges are collected prior to the issuance of a clearance to Leamington Building Services to accept and review any building permit application.
- Township of Pelee Community Services Manager – Danielle Truax Danielle.truax@pelee.ca
- Municipality of Leamington Deputy Chief Building Official – Greg Amaral gamaral@leamington.ca
- Essex Region Conservation Authority Development Services – regs@erca.org
- Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks Species at Risk – sarsontario@ontario.ca
Resources
Essex Region Conservation Authority Development Services – Fees, Mapping, Applications, Regulations
Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing – Land Use Planning, Building Code, Housing
