City of Ripon

Fond du Lac County, Wisconsin

Last verified September 17, 2026

City of Ripon is a jurisdiction in Fond du Lac County, Wisconsin, with an online portal for searching and pulling active or historical building permits. Use the contact information below to reach the local building department, or the mailing address if the jurisdiction needs to be listed as a certificate holder on a contractor's insurance documentation.

Contact

Phone: 920-226-1030
Email: sfederwisch@msa-ps.com
Department Site: Building Inspection & Zoning Department (opens in a new tab)

Source: cityofripon.com (opens in a new tab)

Permit Search

MSA Professional Services ePortal (opens in a new tab)

Certificate Holder Mailing Address

Steve Federwisch (MSA Professional Services)
alternate: Stephanie Potter (MSA), 608-617-5691, spotter@msa-ps.com

Use this address when the jurisdiction needs to be listed as a certificate holder on a contractor's insurance documentation.

Additional Notes

City Hall: 100 Jackson St, Ripon, WI 54971; office hours Mondays 9-11am or by appointment. Building inspection is contracted to MSA Professional Services; the city's own site lists inspector Steve Federwisch (sfederwisch@msa-ps.com) with Stephanie Potter (spotter@msa-ps.com) as alternate/backup contact. The Wisconsin DSPS UDC delegated-agent list instead names Adam Sonntag, City Administrator (920-748-4914, asonntag@cityofripon.com) as municipal contact and Stephanie Potter (608-617-5691) as the delegated inspector — both Federwisch and Potter are included since the two sources differ slightly, likely due to update timing. This is the well-known City of Ripon (Ripon College; birthplace of the Republican Party) — DISTINCT from the small Town of Ripon, also Fond du Lac County, verified separately in the next record; its info is not attributed to the town.

What You Need Before Applying for a Permit

Most building departments ask for the same core package before they'll issue a permit: a completed application naming the property owner and contractor, the contractor's state license number and proof of insurance (general liability, and workers' comp if employees are on the job), a notice of commencement or equivalent recorded filing for larger jobs where the state requires one, and scaled plans or a site plan for anything beyond minor repairs. Roofing, fence, pool, and solar permits typically have their own simplified checklists — City of Ripon's department (above) can confirm exactly what applies to your project.

Why this matters for insurance: permit history is one of the first things an underwriter or adjuster checks. Unpermitted work — a finished basement, an added bedroom, a rebuilt roof — can complicate a claim or even void coverage for that portion of the loss, and it routinely surfaces during a home inspection. Pulling the right permit up front, and keeping the closed-permit record on file, protects both the property's value and its insurability at resale.

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