Home remodeling in Maple Bluff

Badger Remodel has built and remodeled homes around Madison since 1974. In Maple Bluff we take kitchens, bathrooms, basements, additions, decks, floors, windows and doors.

Maple Bluff is a village of about 1,400 people with Lake Mendota on its west side, and it runs its own building permits, inspections and design review. Anything that changes the outside of a house goes through that review before a permit is issued.

The houses we work on in Maple Bluff

U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates, tables B25034, B25035, B25003 and B25024 (data).

Maple Bluff has the oldest housing of any town we serve. The Census puts the median home at 1947, and roughly 4 in 10 homes were built before 1940. The village is small, so treat the exact shares as approximate. Nearly every house is a single-family home lived in by its owner. Work on houses that age means plaster walls, original millwork worth matching, older wiring and plumbing, and Wisconsin's lead-safe rules (DHS 163) for any work that disturbs paint in a pre-1978 house, which the village's permit application calls out (application).

Exterior work goes through design review first

The village rewrote its zoning code in June 2025 (source). Anything that changes the outside of a house needs design approval before a building permit:

• Minor changes go to the Zoning Administrator: same-size windows and doors, a roof in similar materials, similar siding, a deck replacement or enlargement of 100 sq ft or less that meets setbacks.
• Everything else goes to the Building Board: new or larger windows, switching between single and divided panes, additions, elevated decks, new siding styles. It meets at 5:15 p.m. on the second Tuesday of each month. Complete materials are due two weeks ahead (three for major changes), and the owner or a representative has to present.

So an exterior job in Maple Bluff starts with drawings and a date on the Building Board calendar, not a demolition date. We put the approval step in the schedule when we quote.

Interior work and permits

• Kitchen, bathroom and basement remodels need a building permit but no Building Board review. Cabinets alone, new flooring and painting need no permit.
• Applications are emailed to the village with plans and a site plan. There's no online portal. The village's contracted inspector does the inspections, and the owner or contractor calls them in.
• 2025 fees: remodels $0.38 per sq ft ($188 minimum) plus mechanicals, $63 plan review, windows, roofing and siding $63, decks $0.75 per sq ft ($219 minimum). Starting early costs $313 (fee schedule).
• A project worth $50,000 or more on a house fed by overhead power lines needs a signed agreement to put the utility wires underground. Demolishing 200 sq ft or more needs a demolition permit.

Living with a job in the village

Maple Bluff sets construction hours of 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. A dumpster can sit in the driveway no more than 30 days a year, and a trailer 10 days, without a $25 permit, and anything placed in the street needs a $25 street obstruction permit (source). On a long kitchen or addition job, we pull those permits up front.

Lake Mendota lots

Each lakefront lot's setback is a line drawn on the village zoning map, and decks, patios and other hard surfaces have to stay behind it like the house. In a required setback, no deck or terrace can be more than 2 ft above grade. One open-sided structure up to 200 sq ft, at least 35 ft from the water, can be approved by the Building Board if it doesn't unreasonably block the neighbors' lake views. See the Maple Bluff lakefront rules.

Maple Bluff doesn't allow accessory dwelling units. The closest legal option is an in-house family suite with its own kitchen and bath, connected to the rest of the house by an interior door that doesn't lock.

What we do in Maple Bluff

• Kitchen remodels: layout changes, cabinets, counters, tile, lighting
• Bathroom remodels: tubs and tiled showers, vanities, tile floors, fans
• Basement finishing: framing, egress windows, bathrooms, ceilings
• Additions and whole-house renovation
• Deck repair and new decks, docks and patios
• Hardwood, laminate and tile floors
• Window replacement and door repair

Electrical, plumbing and HVAC work is done by licensed trades we schedule and supervise, and permitted where the Village of Maple Bluff requires it.

How a job in Maple Bluff starts

1. You send the quote form with a few lines about what you want done. Photos help.
2. We come out for a walkthrough, measure, and look at what's behind the work: the framing, the plumbing, the panel, any water in the basement.
3. You get a written quote with the scope, any village approvals it needs, and a schedule.
4. We pull the permits, order materials, and book the inspections the Village of Maple Bluff requires.

Get a quote for your Maple Bluff project

Questions we hear in Maple Bluff

Do I need Building Board approval to replace my windows?

Not if they're identical. Same-size windows of similar design need a building permit and Zoning Administrator sign-off. New or larger openings, or switching between single and divided panes, go to the Building Board.

Does a kitchen remodel in Maple Bluff need design review?

No. Interior remodels need a building permit but no Building Board review. Replacing cabinets alone needs no permit.

How far ahead do I need to plan an exterior project?

Building Board materials are due two weeks before the second-Tuesday meeting, three weeks for major changes. Add drawing time before that, and the permit after approval.