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Sign Placement Permit (Streets and Alleys) in Colstrip, Montana

Colstrip has no dedicated general commercial sign-permit ordinance or Title 8 zoning sign chapter (Title 8 Zoning contains only Chapter 1 Administration and Enforcement and Chapter 3 General Requirements sections, with no standalone sign-standards chapter). The one genuine, codified sign-permitting provision in Colstrip's Municipal Code is narrower: Municipal Code 6-1B-2.D.1, within Title 6 Public Ways and Property, requires a permit from the CITY COUNCIL before any sign, billboard, or similar structure is placed or maintained on a street or alley (i.e., the public right-of-way) within city limits. This does not by its terms cover a sign mounted on private property/a building facade outside the public right-of-way -- no separate permit requirement for that scenario appears in the Municipal Code, on the City's Building and Zoning page, or among the 21 downloadable forms on the City's own Forms page.

Verified 2026-07-22 · Source

When you need this permit

  • Per Municipal Code 6-1B-2.D.1: obtain a permit from the Colstrip City Council before placing or maintaining any shaft of wood, iron or other material, billboard, sign, fence, pole, rod, or cable on a street or alley of the city
  • No standard published application form exists for this permit on cityofcolstrip.com -- request must be made directly to the City Council, via City Hall, (406) 748-2300
  • This provision governs signage placed IN the public right-of-way (streets/alleys); no separate codified permit requirement exists for signage on private property outside the right-of-way

Required documents

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Fee schedule

Sign Placement Permit (streets/alleys)
No fee amount for this permit is codified in Municipal Code 6-1B-2 or published anywhere on cityofcolstrip.com. Show full citationNo fee amount for this permit is codified in Municipal Code 6-1B-2 or published anywhere on cityofcolstrip.com. Unlike Title 7's building-permit fees (set by council resolution per 7-1-5 — see the residential-building-permit entry), Title 6 does not even reference a fee-setting mechanism for this permit. This is a genuine publication gap. Contact City Hall, (406) 748-2300, for current requirements.
Not published — contact the department

Review timeline

Plan review
Not published — contact the department

How long did your Sign Placement Permit (Streets and Alleys) permit actually take in Colstrip?

Anonymous — one question, no email. Answers are combined and only shown once at least 5 people have reported.

Inspection process

    See the full Colstrip inspection guide — scheduling & re-inspection fees →

    Tips

    • This permit applies specifically to signs, billboards, fences, poles, or similar structures placed IN the public right-of-way (streets and alleys) -- Municipal Code 6-1B-2.D.1, Title 6 Public Ways and Property -- and is granted by the City Council directly, not by the Code Enforcement/Building and Zoning office.
    • A dedicated Title 8 zoning sign-standards chapter (governing e.g. private-property commercial signage, size/height limits, illuminated signs) does not exist in Colstrip's Municipal Code as currently published on codelibrary.amlegal.com -- if your sign project is on private property rather than the public right-of-way, confirm requirements directly with the Code Enforcement / Building and Zoning office, (406) 748-2300 ext. 2305, since this may fall under the general Zoning Permit requirement (see change-of-use-permit entry) rather than a sign-specific ordinance.
    • No fee schedule or published application form exists for this permit -- request must go to the City Council directly through City Hall.

    Frequently asked questions

    If the sign will be placed on a street or alley (the public right-of-way), Colstrip Municipal Code 6-1B-2.D.1 requires a permit from the City Council first. No dedicated ordinance or published form governs signs placed entirely on private property; contact the Code Enforcement/Building and Zoning office at (406) 748-2300 ext. 2305 to confirm requirements for a private-property sign.

    Colstrip does not publish a plan-review timeline for this permit. Contact City of Colstrip Code Enforcement Office / Building and Zoning Department (a division of the Colstrip Police Department) — city-certified with the Montana DLI for Building (B), RESIDENTIAL ONLY, per the certified official on file, Russell Murphy. Commercial building permits, and Electrical, Plumbing, and Mechanical/HVAC permits of ANY project type, within Colstrip city limits are issued directly by the Montana Department of Labor & Industry Building Codes Bureau, not the City. at (406) 748-2300, ext. 2305 (Code Enforcement / Building and Zoning); general City Hall line (406) 748-2300; fax (406) 748-2303 for current turnaround.

    You'll need: Written Request/Application to City Council. See the required-documents checklist on this page for details on each.

    Apply through City of Colstrip Code Enforcement Office / Building and Zoning Department (a division of the Colstrip Police Department) — city-certified with the Montana DLI for Building (B), RESIDENTIAL ONLY, per the certified official on file, Russell Murphy. Commercial building permits, and Electrical, Plumbing, and Mechanical/HVAC permits of ANY project type, within Colstrip city limits are issued directly by the Montana Department of Labor & Industry Building Codes Bureau, not the City. at 12 Cherry St., Colstrip, MT 59323. Phone: (406) 748-2300, ext. 2305 (Code Enforcement / Building and Zoning); general City Hall line (406) 748-2300; fax (406) 748-2303, email: Not published on the City of Colstrip website; use the general Contact page web form (cityofcolstrip.com/contact). Office hours: City Hall, 12 Cherry St., Colstrip, MT 59323. Code Enforcement Office handles Building and Zoning permitting; per the City's own Building and Zoning page, allow 2-3 days' advance notice when calling the Code Enforcement Office to schedule a building inspector site visit. No individual staff name/email for the current code enforcement/building inspector position is published on the City's site (the Montana DLI certified-jurisdiction roster lists Russell Murphy as the certified official on file, phone 853-5084).. Official information: https://www.cityofcolstrip.com/building-zoning.

    Colstrip, 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 — and, where a city's Building certification is itself partial (e.g. residential-only), non-certified project types — fall under direct state administration by the DLI Building Codes Bureau. Source: Montana DLI Building Codes Bureau, Certified City, County and Town Programs (bsd.dli.mt.gov/building-codes-permits).; Colstrip is a Montana DLI-certified jurisdiction for Building (B), RESIDENTIAL ONLY, within city limits; certified official on file with DLI: Russell Murphy, (406) 853-5084. Per the DLI Building Codes Bureau's 'Montana Certified Local Government Program' roster PDF: 'Colstrip | B (residential only) | Russell Murphy | 853-5084 | City Limits'. As with Hardin and Anaconda-Deer Lodge, this residential-only certification does NOT cover commercial building work, meaning commercial building permits in Colstrip route to the state DLI Building Codes Bureau exactly as they would in a non-certified jurisdiction, in addition to Electrical/Plumbing/Mechanical for all project types. Source: https://bsd.dli.mt.gov/_docs/building-codes-permits/certified-city.pdf; Colstrip, MT Code of Ordinances, Title 7 Building Regulations, Chapter 1 Building Codes contains seven sections: 7-1-1 Adoption; 7-1-2 Type Of Structures Governed By Colstrip Building Codes, Type Of Structures Exempted; 7-1-3 Code Enforcement Officer; 7-1-4 Procedures For Administration And Enforcement; 7-1-5 Schedule Of Construction And Inspection Fees; 7-1-6 Appeal Procedure; 7-1-7 Employees Inspecting, Reviewing Plans, Approving Structures And Installation. Source: https://codelibrary.amlegal.com/codes/colstripmt/latest/colstrip_mt/0-0-0-1489; Colstrip Municipal Code 7-1-4.C.1 (Ord. 02-02, 6-25-2002, eff. 7-25-2002): 'the code enforcement officer shall review the application and plans to determine whether the proposed activity complies with the uniform building code, uniform mechanical code, and other applicable codes and regulations... The code enforcement officer shall complete the review and act to issue or deny the building permit within thirty (30) days of submittal of a complete application.' Section 7-1-4.C.2 adds: 'The code enforcement officer may, in certain cases, request the assistance of the Montana building code bureau, or other state agency or professional consultant in reviewing a building permit application. In such a case, the code enforcement officer must act on issuing or denying a building permit within forty (40) days of submittal of a complete application.' This is a genuine, codified LOCAL review-timeline figure for Colstrip's own residential building permit — 30 days standard, 40 days if state/professional-consultant assistance is requested. Source: https://codelibrary.amlegal.com/codes/colstripmt/latest/colstrip_mt/0-0-0-1532; Per the Montana DLI Building Codes Bureau's Current Codes page (statewide effective date June 11, 2022, applicable uniformly to all certified and state-enforced jurisdictions): 2021 IBC, 2021 IRC, 2021 IEBC, 2021 IMC, 2021 IFGC, 2021 IECC, 2021 ISPSC, 2021 UPC, 2020 NEC, 2017 ICC A117.1 Accessibility. Colstrip's own Residential Building Permit Application (a locally-authored one-page form, not a reformatted state BCP-1) does not itself cite specific code-edition years, but Colstrip Municipal Code 7-1-4.C.1 explicitly directs review against 'the uniform building code, uniform mechanical code, and other applicable codes and regulations' — i.e., the state-adopted editions administered under ARM Title 24, Chapter 301. Source: bsd.dli.mt.gov/building-codes-permits/current-codes; Colstrip Municipal Code 7-1-4. Local amendments apply — see the Colstrip overview page for the full list.

    For signs in the public right-of-way (streets/alleys), the Colstrip City Council issues the permit directly under Municipal Code 6-1B-2.D.1. No fee schedule or standard application form for this permit is published on the City's website.

    Colstrip's permit history isn't searchable here yet

    This page covers what the permit requires. What we don't have for Colstrip yet is the record of permits actually issued — the history you'd search by street address. That is a gap in our coverage, not a statement about any particular property.

    Your email, and the place — never an address. We only use it to tell you when Colstrip lands. Privacy.

    Other permits in Colstrip

    Residential Building Permit (New Construction / Addition / Alteration / Repair / Move)Commercial Building Permit (State-Issued)Electrical Permit (State-Issued)Plumbing Permit (State-Issued, incl. Water Heater)Mechanical / HVAC Permit (State-Issued)Solar PV / Alternative Energy Permit (State-Issued)Electric Vehicle (EV) Charger / EVSE PermitFire Sprinkler / Fire Alarm Permit (State-Administered)Zoning Permit (Change of Use / Occupancy)

    Sign Placement Permit (Streets and Alleys) in other cities

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