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Board of Appeals reverses building official, allows treehouse at 1620 Hill Ridge with conditions
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Summary
After a staff recommendation to deny, the Building Board of Appeals granted the homeowner’s appeal for an accessory treehouse at 1620 Hill Ridge Boulevard, subject to conditions including additional supports, flexible electrical conduit, stair anchorage and resubmitted stamped plans.
The Building Board of Appeals voted to reverse a building official’s denial and grant relief for an accessory treehouse at 1620 Hill Ridge Boulevard, with several conditions intended to address structural and electrical safety.
Mike Lemieux, the building official, opened the hearing with a staff report saying the structure was constructed without permits and was found nonprescriptive during an initial site visit on 03/11/25. “The structure was constructed without permits and it was brought to the building department’s attention through a complaint,” Lemieux said, citing sections of the 2015 Michigan Residential Code that he said require engineered review for the elements used. Staff told the board the department could not verify the fasteners’ allowable loads from raw lab data alone and recommended denial without an evaluation report that translates lab results to code-compliance values.
The homeowner, who identified himself as the property owner and designer, told the board plans had been stamped by an engineer and that the design included four supplemental steel posts bearing most of the load, dynamic connection details, and a backup cable rated at about 5,000 pounds. “Based on the fact that this hardware is rated for at least a 4 to 1 safety factor in the worst case scenario, and the presence of the posts, which back that up even more,” the homeowner said, “I think we’re well within any kind of margin of safety.” He also said the platform interior measures about 118 square feet with an additional 79-square-foot deck and that stairs and railings have been added since the initial complaint photos.
Board members pressed staff and the applicant on specific issues: the nature and origin of the complaint (staff said it was a complaint for work without permits), whether the supplemental supports would be installed (the applicant confirmed they would), how loads would be redistributed by the posts, how the spiral staircase is supported and anchored, and whether the flexible conduit or an RV-style plug would serve the electrical needs. Staff reiterated that while small, low platforms can be exempt from permits under the code, the height and occupiable features on this structure require engineered documentation when prescriptive attachment tables do not apply.
After discussion, a board member moved to overturn the building official’s decision in case BBA-2602 and accept the applicant’s proposal as an equal-or-better form of construction, subject to conditions. The board’s motion required the applicant to: provide additional documentation for tree-appropriate fasteners and secondary timber supports; extend grade beams and add supports to relieve the load on the western tree adjacent to the curved stair; demonstrate an electrical connection flexible enough to accommodate movement; and provide anchorage of the stair to the platform to ensure stability. The motion was seconded and passed by voice vote with no opposition.
The board’s approval is conditional on the applicant submitting revised, engineer-stamped plans and the additional supporting documentation required by the board. The chair said the building department will follow up on submission and permit issuance. The meeting then returned to routine business and adjourned.
What happens next: the applicant must file the revised and supplemental documentation identified in the board’s motion so the building department can review and, if the conditions are met, issue a permit.
