City of Wisconsin Rapids

Wood County, Wisconsin

Last verified September 18, 2026

City of Wisconsin Rapids is a jurisdiction in Wood 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: 715-421-8225
Email: kkearns@wirapids.org
Department Site: Community Development Department (Building Inspection) (opens in a new tab)

Source: wirapids.gov (opens in a new tab)

Permit Search

MyGov Permit Portal (opens in a new tab)

Permit Center (ZoningHub) – unverified, could not confirm access (opens in a new tab)

Certificate Holder Mailing Address

Ben Grimm, UDC Inspector (contract)
715-305-8814 / bgrimm1977@gmail.com
City Hall, 444 West Grand Ave.
Wisconsin Rapids, WI 54495

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

Additional Notes

Confirmed via DSPS delegated-municipality PDF, line 126: City of Wisconsin Rapids holds UDC Delegation Authority level 2. Municipal contact is Kyle Kearns, Community Development Director (715-421-8225); UDC inspector is Ben Grimm (715-305-8814, bgrimm1977@gmail.com). General Community Development line is 715-421-8228. Commercial plan review is also handled via a third-party e-plan review service (E-PlanExam) per the city website. The ZoningHub 'Permit Center' link appeared in search results referencing this city but returned HTTP 403 on fetch and could not be independently verified — included as a hedge rather than omitted.

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 Wisconsin Rapids'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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