What it actually takes to re-roof a house in Granite City — whether the city wants a permit, which code edition applies, who to call at the building department, and how old the housing here really is. No sales copy dressed up as local knowledge.
Granite City runs to about 20.58 square miles and roughly 27,549 people. It sits about 6 miles north of downtown St. Louis. There are around 13,130 housing units here, and every one of them has a roof with a clock on it. The community dates back to 1896. We cover ZIP code 62040.
We have not logged a completed roof in Granite City yet. We would rather say so than put a number on this page that is not real.
The typical home in Granite City dates to around the early-1960s. A house of that vintage has usually been through two or three roofs. It is also old enough that what is under the shingles matters as much as the shingles: plank decking, older flashing details, and layers someone went over rather than tore off.
Housing includes an early-1900s steel-industry-era layer in neighborhoods like Wilson Park ("turn-of-the-20th-century" homes) and Lincoln Place (first populated around 1906 by immigrant steelworkers, once called "Hungary Hollow"), plus later 20th-century construction.
We work across Granite City rather than one corner of it — Downtown, East Granite, West Granite, North Granite, Nameoki Strip, Bellemore, Wilson Park, Lincoln Place and Granite Park included. Age and construction change between them, sometimes by thirty years and a whole different framing method, which is why we look before we quote rather than after.
A "massive flood" in 1903 covered all of West Granite while the rest of the city stayed relatively dry; the city was protected from the 1993 Great Flood by its levee system. Could not confirm formal NRHP/local historic-district status for Lincoln Place or Wilson Park despite their age.
The postwar housing in Granite City is mostly straightforward to roof, which is why it gets done badly so often. Decking is usually 1x6 boards or early plywood, still sound but worth walking rather than assuming. The recurring problems are the low-slope sections — porch roofs, carport tie-ins, the flat bit over an addition — where a shingle was installed below its rated pitch and has been failing quietly ever since. Attic ventilation on houses of this era is also routinely short of what current shingle warranties require, and under-venting cooks a roof from underneath. We measure intake against exhaust before we quote rather than just nailing on a ridge vent and calling it solved.
The city states 'anyone wishing to renovate, remodel or add onto their business or home will need to apply for a building permit when making significant changes to the structure,' but does not name roofing.
Granite City enforces the 2012 IRC. Per the Building & Zoning FAQ: 2018 International Building Code; 2012 International Existing Building Code and Residential Code; 2012 International Property Maintenance Code; 2006 International Fire Prevention Code; current Illinois State Plumbing Code and Illinois Accessibility Code. Note the internal inconsistency — a 2018 IBC alongside a 2012 IRC — and that a separate page states the IBC was 'adopted by the Granite City, City Council by ordinance in 2005.' The published information conflicts.
The published number is 618-452-6218. Granite City does not publish the building official's name, so this page does not name one. Plenty of sites will show you one anyway. The department page is here.
Permitting is on us, not on you.
Unlike some states, Missouri does not assign each municipality its own wind and snow numbers — these are metro-wide.
| Criterion | Figure | What it drives |
|---|---|---|
| Ultimate design wind (Vult) | 115 mph | Fastener schedule and the manufacturer wind rating we specify |
| Nominal design wind (Vasd) | 89 mph (derived, not published locally) | The allowable-stress figure older specs quote |
| Ground snow load | 20 psf | Structure, and how much the eaves hold in a freeze-thaw |
| Frost depth | 30 in | Footings, not roof covering |
| Seismic design category | C residential / D commercial | Lateral bracing and structural connections — not shingles |
What each of these actually does to a roof, why New Madrid does not change how shingles go on, and the difference between the code minimum and the manufacturer minimum on nails per shingle, are all in the St. Louis roofing code guide.
Elsewhere in Madison County we also cover:
Missouri sets none of this at state level, so a specification that was right one municipality over is not automatically right here.
| City | Permit for a re-roof | Adopted code | Building dept. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alton | Not published | 2021 IRC | 618-463-3500 |
| Collinsville | Yes | 2021 I-Codes | 618-346-5200 |
| Edwardsville | Not published | 2021 IRC | — |
| Glen Carbon | Not published | Not published | 618-288-2603 |
Free inspection, a written scope, and photos you keep either way.
The city states 'anyone wishing to renovate, remodel or add onto their business or home will need to apply for a building permit when making significant changes to the structure,' but does not name roofing.
Granite City enforces the 2012 IRC. Per the Building & Zoning FAQ: 2018 International Building Code; 2012 International Existing Building Code and Residential Code; 2012 International Property Maintenance Code; 2006 International Fire Prevention Code; current Illinois State Plumbing Code and Illinois Accessibility Code. Note the internal inconsistency — a 2018 IBC alongside a 2012 IRC — and that a separate page states the IBC was 'adopted by the Granite City, City Council by ordinance in 2005.' The published information conflicts.
The typical home in Granite City dates to around the early-1960s, so most roofs here are on their second or third covering rather than their first. That figure is an ACS-derived median republished by housing-data services, not a survey of individual roofs.
Not yet. We have no completed roof logged in Granite City, and we would rather say so than put a number on this page that is not real.
Illinois licenses roofing contractors statewide under 225 ILCS 335, so any roofer working here needs a current IDFPR roofing licence. Missouri, across the river, does not licence roofers at the state level at all.
Permit and code details for Granite City come from the jurisdiction's own published pages and codified ordinances. Population, housing and neighbourhood detail come from census data and the sources below; housing-age figures are ACS-derived medians republished by housing-data services, so treat them as approximate. Sources: www.granitecity.illinois.gov · www.granitecity.illinois.gov · www.granitecity.illinois.gov · library.municode.com · en.wikipedia.org · en.wikipedia.org. Municipal staffing, phone numbers and adopted code editions change — confirm with the jurisdiction before relying on anything here.