Bonner County, ID Building Safety: Building Permits (2026)

Section 11-101 of the Bonner County Revised Code requires the permit for any structure subject to Title 11, and applications go on forms provided by the planning department. The Planning Director, designated by the Board of County Commissioners under § 11-101.1, administers the title.

The code defines structure broadly in chapter 2: a combination of assembled materials providing shelter or support, including buildings, signs, towers, tanks, decks, platforms, porches, walls, pools and roofed storage areas. Exceptions from the definition include detached tool and storage sheds, playhouses and similar uses not exceeding 400 square feet of floor area, platforms, walks and driveways not more than 30 inches above grade, and reroofing not affecting the structural roof framing. Those exceptions remain subject to the land use standards of Title 12. Section 11-104 adds a separate application for small structures: detached non-habitable accessory structures up to 1,080 square feet with no sewage disposal utilities that are not a place of employment, other than agricultural direct marketing.

Under § 11-105 the applicant provides a site plan showing distances from the building's greatest architectural projections to each property line and to environmental features such as wetlands, shorelines and slope, a copy of the recorded deed, and a description of the intended use with diagrammatic plans. Plans need not come from a licensed engineer or architect unless the title says otherwise, but plans in a mapped floodplain or floodway must be certified by an Idaho registered engineer or Idaho licensed architect. Section 11-110 requires access agency approval, fire district and sewer district approval for commercial, residential, industrial, public and multi-family buildings, and a Panhandle Health comment letter, which Panhandle Health provides within ten working days.

Fees follow an official schedule set by Board resolution under § 11-108. A permit expires if work is not commenced within one year of issuance or is suspended or abandoned for more than one year (§ 11-122). A denial can be appealed to the Board of County Commissioners within thirty days of the final decision (§ 11-116).