What it actually takes to re-roof a house in Webster Groves — 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.
Webster Groves runs to about 5.91 square miles and roughly 24,010 people. It sits about 10 miles southwest of downtown St. Louis. There are around 9,951 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 63119.
We have not logged a completed roof in Webster Groves yet. We would rather say so than put a number on this page that is not real.
The typical home in Webster Groves dates to around the mid-1940s. 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.
Developers marketed the original Webster Park subdivision in 1892 as the 'Queen of the Suburbs', and housing here is predominantly prewar and immediate-postwar single-family homes on tree-lined streets.
We work across Webster Groves rather than one corner of it — Webster Park, Tuxedo Park, Old Orchard, Selma and North Webster 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.
Formed in 1896 from the merger of five communities: Webster, Old Orchard, Webster Park, Tuxedo Park, and Selma; North Webster was a historic Black community within the city.
Houses of this age in Webster Groves were sheathed with solid board decking rather than plywood, and boards move. Plank gaps open up, nails back out, and a shingle fastened into a gap has nothing holding it. We also expect original step and counter-flashing at chimneys and walls — often the real leak while the shingles look fine — and more than one house on a street like this has two or three roofs stacked on it because someone went over rather than tore off. That matters: layers hide the decking, add weight, and void most manufacturer warranties. If there is original slate or tile anywhere on the property, it wants a different conversation than an asphalt tear-off.
Webster Groves does not publish a clear answer either way on whether a like-for-like roof covering replacement needs a permit. We confirm it with the department before we start, every time, and we pull whatever is needed as part of the job. We would rather write that here than guess on your behalf.
Webster Groves enforces the 2015 IBC family. 2015 International Building Code and related 2015 I-Codes, plus the 2014 National Electrical Code. The specific IRC edition was not separately stated on the city's permits page.
The published number is 314-963-5300. Webster Groves 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.
Webster Groves borders Shrewsbury, Maplewood, Brentwood, Rock Hill, Glendale and Oakland. These are the ones we also cover, each with its own permit rule and code edition:
Elsewhere in St. Louis 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. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Affton | Yes | Not published | 314-615-5184 |
| Ballwin | Yes | 2015 I-Codes (2024 I-Codes proposed for 2026) | 636-227-2129 |
| Brentwood | Not published | 2024 IRC | 314-963-8602 |
| Chesterfield | Not published | 2015 IBC / 2015 IRC | 636-537-4000 |
| Clayton | Not published | 2021 IRC | 314-290-8463 |
| Creve Coeur | Not published | 2009 IRC | 314-872-2500 |
| Des Peres | Not published | 2018 I-Codes | 314-835-6100 |
| Ellisville | Not published | 2015 IRC | 636-227-9660 |
| Eureka | Not published | 2018 IRC | — |
| Florissant | Not published | 2021 IRC | 314-839-7648 |
| Kirkwood | Not published | 2021 IRC | 314-822-5823 |
| Manchester | Not published | Not published | 314-615-5184 |
| Maryland Heights | Yes | 2021 IRC | 314-291-6550 |
| Mehlville | Yes | Not published | 314-615-5184 |
| Oakville | Yes | Not published | 314-615-5184 |
| Richmond Heights | Not published | Not published | 314-646-7658 |
| Unincorporated St. Louis County | Yes | Not published | 314-615-5184 |
| Town and Country | Yes | 2018 I-Codes (2024 I-Codes pending) | 314-587-2820 |
| University City | Not published | 2018 IRC | — |
| Wildwood | Not published | Not published | — |
Free inspection, a written scope, and photos you keep either way.
Webster Groves does not publish a clear answer either way. We confirm it with the building department before starting and pull whatever is required.
Webster Groves enforces the 2015 IBC family. 2015 International Building Code and related 2015 I-Codes, plus the 2014 National Electrical Code. The specific IRC edition was not separately stated on the city's permits page.
The typical home in Webster Groves dates to around the mid-1940s, 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.
It can. Webster Groves has Old Webster Historic District. Inside a designated district, changing a visible roof material or colour can need preservation review before the permit is issued. Like-for-like replacement usually raises fewer questions, but we check before quoting.
Not yet. We have no completed roof logged in Webster Groves, and we would rather say so than put a number on this page that is not real.
Missouri has no state-level roofing contractor licence. Licensing and registration are imposed municipally, and several St. Louis metro cities require it. Illinois does licence roofers statewide, so a contractor working the Metro East needs an IDFPR roofing licence.
Permit and code details for Webster Groves 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.webstergrovesmo.gov · www.webstergrovesmo.gov · www.webstergrovesmo.gov · www.webstergrovesmo.gov · en.wikipedia.org · www.city-data.com. Municipal staffing, phone numbers and adopted code editions change — confirm with the jurisdiction before relying on anything here.