Change of Use / Certificate of Occupancy in Red Lodge, Montana

Red Lodge requires a change of use / certificate of occupancy permit for: No separate/standalone Change of Use application exists — the City's own 'Applications and Petitions' page (Planning & Zoning Division) lists only Use of City-Owned Land, Temporary Use Permit, and Sign Permits as standalone applications; a change of use or occupancy classification is processed as a Building Permit Application; Per Zoning Regulations §12.4.1.64: 'No building permit shall be issued except in compliance with the terms, procedures and standards of these Zoning Regulations. A certificate-of-occupancy/final inspection shall not be issued for any structure except when said structure is compliant with the applicable section of the City-adopted International Building Codes; and both said structure or development and property it is on is in compliance with the terms, procedures and standards of these Zoning Regulations'; Where an existing building's use or occupancy classification is changing, review is conducted against the 2021 International Existing Building Code (IEBC) as adopted by Municipal Code §9-1-1(B), applied by City Building Inspector Brian Hanna under Red Lodge's DLI Building-only certification; The Building Permit Application's class-of-work and use-of-building fields must reflect the new use; subject to the Building Official's discretion, plans may need to be stamped/certified by a licensed design professional; A City Business Registration is required before a permit is issued, consistent with all other Building Permit Application-based permit types in this file; If the change of use also alters a building's fire-protection design requirements (e.g., a new occupancy classification needing different sprinkler or alarm coverage), a separate Red Lodge Fire Rescue Commercial Building Construction Permit may additionally be required — see this file's fire-sprinkler-alarm-permit entry. If your project isn't listed, confirm with City of Red Lodge Building Division — Building Inspector Brian Hanna; city-certified for Building (B) permits only. Electrical, Plumbing, and Mechanical permits within Red Lodge city limits are issued directly by the Montana Department of Labor & Industry Building Codes Bureau, not the City. at (406) 446-1606 before starting work.

Red Lodge does not publish a plan-review timeline for this permit. Contact City of Red Lodge Building Division — Building Inspector Brian Hanna; city-certified for Building (B) permits only. Electrical, Plumbing, and Mechanical permits within Red Lodge city limits are issued directly by the Montana Department of Labor & Industry Building Codes Bureau, not the City. at (406) 446-1606 for current turnaround.

You'll need: Building Permit Application. Depending on your project, Red Lodge may also ask for: Construction Drawings / Plans. See the required-documents checklist on this page for details on each.

Red Lodge requires 1 inspection(s) for a change of use / certificate of occupancy permit, in order: Final. Schedule each through City of Red Lodge Building Division — Building Inspector Brian Hanna; city-certified for Building (B) permits only. Electrical, Plumbing, and Mechanical permits within Red Lodge city limits are issued directly by the Montana Department of Labor & Industry Building Codes Bureau, not the City. ((406) 446-1606).

Apply through City of Red Lodge Building Division — Building Inspector Brian Hanna; city-certified for Building (B) permits only. Electrical, Plumbing, and Mechanical permits within Red Lodge city limits are issued directly by the Montana Department of Labor & Industry Building Codes Bureau, not the City. at 1 South Platt Avenue, PO Box 9, Red Lodge, MT 59068. Phone: (406) 446-1606. Office hours: City Hall: contact (406) 446-1606 x8 to reach Building Inspector Brian Hanna directly; applicants should call the building official to schedule an appointment for application submittal, per the City's Building Division page.. Official information: https://www.cityofredlodge.net/com-dev/page/building-division.

Red Lodge, Montana has adopted: Montana has a mandatory statewide building code administered by the Montana Department of Labor & Industry (DLI) Building Codes Bureau, amended by the Administrative Rules of Montana (ARM) Title 24, Chapter 301. Cities, counties, and towns may become 'certified' to locally administer permitting and inspection for all or part of the code; non-certified trades in a partially-certified jurisdiction fall under direct state administration by the DLI Building Codes Bureau. Source: Montana DLI Building Codes Bureau, Certified City, County and Town Programs list (bsd.dli.mt.gov/building-codes-permits).; Red Lodge is a Montana DLI-certified jurisdiction for Building (B) ONLY within city limits; certified building official on file with DLI: Brian Hanna, (406) 446-1606. Source: Montana DLI Building Codes Bureau, 'Montana Certified Local Government Program' roster, updated 04/22/2026, https://bsd.dli.mt.gov/_docs/building-codes-permits/certified-city.pdf (verified directly: roster row reads 'Red Lodge | B | Brian Hanna | 446-1606 | City Limits'); City of Red Lodge Municipal Code Title 9, Chapter 1 (Building Codes), Section 9-1-1 (Adoption): the City adopts by resolution (A) the most recent edition of the International Building Code adopted by the Montana DLI, (B) the most recent edition of the International Existing Building Code adopted by the Montana DLI, (C) the most recent edition of the International Residential Code adopted by the Montana DLI, and (D) other Montana DLI-adopted codes deemed appropriate by City Council including the Uniform Plumbing Code, International Mechanical Code, International Fuel Gas Code, National Electrical Code, and International Energy Conservation Code, plus (E) Montana administrative rules modifying/clarifying those codes. Source: City of Red Lodge Municipal Code § 9-1-1 (Ord. 869, 3-13-2007; Ord. 886, 9-14-2010; Ord. 914, 5-26-2015), via eCode360, https://ecode360.com/42581916; Per the City of Red Lodge Building Division page: in 2022 the City Council adopted the 2021 family of International Codes (I-Codes). Source: City of Red Lodge Building Division page, https://www.cityofredlodge.net/com-dev/page/building-division; Per the Montana DLI Building Codes Bureau's Current Codes page (statewide effective date June 11, 2022, applicable to all certified and state-enforced jurisdictions alike): 2021 IBC, 2021 IRC, 2021 IEBC, 2021 IMC, 2021 IFGC, 2021 IECC, 2021 ISPSC, 2021 UPC, 2020 NEC, 2017 ICC A117.1 Accessibility. Red Lodge's own Building Division page and Design Criteria document reference the 2021 IBC and 2021 IRC by name specifically, consistent with a small B-only-certified jurisdiction enforcing the state-adopted editions. Source: bsd.dli.mt.gov/building-codes-permits/current-codes; City of Red Lodge design_criteria.pdf; Municipal Code § 9-1-2 (Applicability): the exemption optionally provided to Montana communities under M.C.A. Section 50-60-102(1)(a) does NOT apply in Red Lodge — the IRC applies to residential buildings with fewer than 5 dwelling units, attached structures, any farm/ranch building of any size, and any private garage/storage structure of any size for the owner's own use, within city limits. Source: City of Red Lodge Municipal Code § 9-1-2 (Ord. 854A, 2-23-2003; Ord. 914, 5-26-2015), via eCode360; Municipal Code § 9-1-3 (Agreement to Comply): per M.C.A. Section 7-5-4202, a permittee agrees as a condition of permit application to be bound by all state-adopted building codes referenced in § 9-1-1. Source: City of Red Lodge Municipal Code § 9-1-3 (Ord. 869, 3-13-2007). Local amendments apply — see the Red Lodge overview page for the full list.

No. Red Lodge processes a change of use or occupancy classification through its standard Building Permit Application (reviewed under the 2021 International Existing Building Code for existing structures), and issues a certificate-of-occupancy/final inspection as part of that same permit once the structure and property comply with the City-adopted Building Codes and Zoning Regulations (RLZR §12.4.1.64). There is no dedicated 'Change of Use Permit' product or fee schedule published separately by the City.

City Building Inspector Brian Hanna, under Red Lodge's Montana DLI Building (B)-only certification, applying the 2021 International Existing Building Code as adopted by Municipal Code §9-1-1(B).