Design
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Service area · Delaware County
Design-Build Remodeler in Muncie, Indiana
1874 Design Studio is a design-build remodeler, and our studio is in Muncie. That means we take on both the design and the build of a remodel. During construction, our trusted trade professionals work alongside our design and project management teams. In Muncie we offer kitchen, bathroom, basement, addition and whole-home remodeling. We provide your design, the structural engineer and the building permits.
A division of Knapp Supply Co.Full-service remodelingStructural remodels & additionsDesign, selections & 3D renderings
Delaware County
Remodeling in Muncie
Muncie is the county seat of Delaware County. The Census Bureau estimated the city's population at 65,466 on July 1, 2025. The 2025 Census Gazetteer puts its land area at 27.404 square miles. Our studio is at 420 S Ohio Ave, Suite 1874. The Census Bureau's geocoder places that address inside Muncie city limits.
Some Muncie projects also come under historic or floodplain rules. The city's Historic Preservation and Rehabilitation Commission oversees exterior changes to designated local landmarks. The city's floodplain chapter, rewritten in 2025, applies to special flood hazard areas and known flood-prone areas in its jurisdiction.
1874 Design Studio projectPermits and codes
Permits, codes and inspections in Muncie
Inside city limits, building permits come from the City of Muncie Building Commissioner's Office at 300 N. High Street. That office enforces local and state codes and handles inspections. The Delaware County Building Commissioner's Office issues permits for projects in the county's unincorporated areas.
City code requires a permit before construction, alteration or repair of any building or structure. All permits are issued by the building director. An application needs a plat or sketch showing the lot boundaries. It also needs plans and specifications showing the work. The city takes permit applications in person, by mail or by email.
The 2020 Indiana Residential Code took effect on December 26, 2019. It is the International Code Council's 2018 International Residential Code for One- and Two-Family Dwellings, with Indiana amendments. The state says the code is in effect everywhere in Indiana, and local governments must require compliance. Muncie's building code takes in the state's Title 675 building rules by reference, with later amendments.
Inside Muncie city limits, a homeowner cannot pull HVAC, electrical or plumbing permits. The city says a licensed or registered contractor must pull them.
The city's Building Department inspects footers, foundations, framing and insulation. Its list also covers electrical, plumbing and HVAC rough-ins, demolition and occupancy. The city's posted inspection sheet, dated July 13, 2009, sets the order for several of them. A footing inspection comes before concrete is placed. A foundation inspection comes before framing on or backfilling a basement or crawl space. A rough inspection of all trades comes before insulation or wallboard goes in.
The Delaware-Muncie Metropolitan Plan Commission is the planning agency for the city and unincorporated Delaware County. It oversees comprehensive planning, zoning and land use regulation. The City of Muncie Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance sets standards for setbacks, height limits, lots and accessory structures. The county's page on that ordinance says owners should review zoning before building new or expanding a structure.
Local guide · Muncie
Historic districts and local landmarks
Muncie's Historic Preservation and Rehabilitation Commission was established in 1976. Its main duty is overseeing exterior changes to buildings and sites designated as local landmarks. City code establishes three local historic districts: Emily Kimbrough, the Old Federal Building and the Boyce Block. As of October 1, 2026, the city's undated Historic Resources page counts 175 locally designated historic landmarks.
In a designated historic district, site or landmark, certain work needs a Certificate of Appropriateness from the commission first. The list includes demolition, moving a building, and exterior additions, alterations or material changes. It also includes exterior color changes and new buildings visible from a public street. A building permit application in a historic district counts as an application for the certificate. The rule does not prevent ordinary maintenance and repair that leaves exterior features unchanged. It also leaves room for work the building director certifies as needed for public safety.
The Emily Kimbrough district has its own design guidelines, dated 2017. They call for a certificate before any exterior change to a building in the district. Exterior repairs made with similar materials do not need one. Under the guidelines, an addition should relate to the existing structure in proportion and height. It should not add height or new stories, alter the facade, or change the building's scale and architectural character.
Local guide · Muncie
When Muncie's housing was built
Census Bureau survey estimates for 2020-2024 put the median year built for Muncie housing units at 1963. That estimate carries a margin of two years either way. Of an estimated 30,715 housing units, about seven in ten were built before 1980. An estimated 6,204 units date from 1939 or earlier. An estimated 19,230 units are one-unit detached structures. Owners live in about half of the city's occupied units.
The city's Building Commissioner's Office says structures built before 1978 must follow state lead and asbestos abatement rules when renovated or demolished. Lead removal follows Indiana Department of Health rules, and asbestos abatement follows IDEM rules. If your home was built before 1978, we would coordinate and provide appropriate EPA services in that instance.
1874 Design Studio projectLocal guide · Muncie
The August 2026 flood and floodplain rules
As of October 1, 2026, the National Weather Service listed a preliminary crest of 18.64 feet on the Muncie gauge on August 13, 2026. That gauge height was the highest there since 1937, though it is not a water depth at any home. The gauge record is 22.6 feet, set on March 25, 1913. Indiana's August 2026 disaster page says Delaware County residents became eligible for FEMA Individual Assistance for the August 2026 disaster on August 25, 2026. Delaware County's flood page lists places near the White River, Buck Creek and Prairie Creek among possible flood-prone areas. It also names York Prairie Creek, Truitt Ditch, and low-lying roads, ditches and drainage areas.
Muncie rewrote its floodplain chapter in full in February 2025. The city defines a special flood hazard area as land with a 1 percent or greater chance of flooding in any year. It includes FEMA Zones A, AE, AH, AO, A1-30, A99 and VE. It also takes in flood-prone areas identified from other federal, state or local data. As of October 1, 2026, FEMA's flood maps for Muncie are dated 2011, with 2017 revisions. FEMA listed no pending maps for the city that day.
Development wholly or partly within, or touching, an identified special flood hazard area needs a floodplain development permit. The application goes to the city's zoning administrator, who serves as floodplain administrator. In Zones A, AH and AE, the plans must show the elevation of the planned lowest floor, including basement. For this purpose, city code defines the lowest floor as the lowest of several elevations, including the basement floor and the floor of a garage connected to the building.
Muncie's flood protection grade is the regulatory flood elevation plus two feet. In a special flood hazard area with base flood data, a new or substantially improved home's lowest floor must be at or above that grade. Under city code, a substantial improvement is any reconstruction, rehabilitation, addition or other improvement of a structure. It qualifies when its cost equals or exceeds 50 percent of the structure's market value before construction starts. The term also covers repetitive-loss and substantially damaged structures, whatever repair work is done. It leaves out the minimum work to correct health, sanitary or safety code violations a local official has identified.
Local guide · Muncie
Water, sewer and septic
As of October 1, 2026, EPA records list Indiana American Water - Muncie as a privately owned community water system, and its geographic-area record names Muncie as the city served. Its primary source is surface water. That record names the city it serves, not which addresses it serves. Delaware County's permit page routes residential sewer service to the City Engineer's Office. Septic system permits, in the city and the county, come from the Delaware County Health Department.
Services
Remodeling services for Muncie homes
In Muncie we take on kitchens, bathrooms, basements, laundry rooms, mudrooms and home offices. We also offer whole-home renovations, home additions and custom on-your-lot new construction. Inside city limits, building permits come from the City of Muncie Building Commissioner's Office.
Structural changes are part of our work when they belong to a home remodel. We do not take on standalone structural jobs.
Fireplace remodels and built-ins are part of our work too. They can include gas inserts, surrounds, mantels, chimney work, millwork and flanking built-ins.
Kitchen remodeling
A kitchen project can take in a butler's pantry, a coffee bar or a pantry wall. Cabinet lines include WW Wood Products' Shiloh, Eclipse and Aspect. Countertop brands we offer include MSI, Cambria and Cosentino. We plan and supply the lighting. We plan appliance locations, sizes and look but do not supply appliances. Muncie's residential permit packet lists kitchen 'working wet areas' as structural work. It lists replacing cabinetry as non-structural, without saying which jobs need a permit.
Bathroom remodeling
A bathroom project can be a tub-to-shower conversion or a zero-entry shower. It can also include accessibility and aging-in-place planning. The city's permit packet lists bathroom 'working wet areas' as structural work and tiling as non-structural. That list does not say which jobs need a permit. Under the city's 2009 inspection sheet, a rough inspection of all trades comes before insulation or wallboard, when that inspection applies.
Whole-home renovations
Inside city limits, a whole-home renovation is permitted and inspected through the city's Building Commissioner's Office. In a locally designated historic district, the building permit application also counts as the application for a Certificate of Appropriateness. In a special flood hazard area, a renovation can be a substantial improvement as city code defines it above. Development wholly or partly within, or touching, an identified special flood hazard area needs a floodplain development permit from the city's zoning administrator, who serves as floodplain administrator.
Basements, laundry, mudrooms and home offices
Our basement projects are complete finishes or remodels, with egress and a bathroom as typical parts. We also remodel laundry rooms, mudrooms and home offices. For floodplain purposes, city code counts a basement floor as a home's lowest floor. In a special flood hazard area with base flood data, a substantial improvement must put that floor at or above the flood protection grade.
Home additions
Home additions, inside and out, include a primary suite, family room, in-law suite, bump-out, second story or garage. Inside city limits, the permit packet requires prints for an addition or attached garage. The county's page on Muncie's zoning ordinance says to review zoning before expanding a structure. In the Emily Kimbrough local district, the 2017 guidelines say an addition should not add height or new stories.
Custom on-your-lot new construction
We offer custom on-your-lot new construction from our own plans. Inside city limits, a new home needs a detailed plan set covering design, materials, HVAC, plumbing and electrical. The city's packet says a footprint sketch alone will not do. In a local historic district, a new building visible from a public street needs a Certificate of Appropriateness. Where a lot needs a septic system, the Delaware County Health Department issues the permit.
Working with us
Working with 1874 Design Studio in Muncie
Our studio is in Muncie. Your initial consultation can be an in-home site visit or a showroom visit.
Design begins with measurements. From there come one to three design concepts, 3D renderings and curated selections. You finish with an all-inclusive total cost. You can explore material selections, including name brands and boutique lines, with guidance on finishes. We also help prepare zoning-review and HOA-approval materials when a project calls for them.
Most clients live at home while the work goes on. We protect the work area, run air scrubbers and clean up every day.
Installation work carries a one-year workmanship warranty, and the products you select carry their manufacturers' warranties. To request a consultation about your Muncie project, call the studio at (765) 288-1874.
Design. Discover. Deliver. Difference.
Discover
Explore material selections, including name brands and boutique lines, with guidance on finishes.
Deliver
Review the project details and proposed total cost.
Difference
Design, project management and trade professionals come together for the build.
Other communities we serve
1874 Design Studio also works with homeowners in these communities.
All service areasMuncie remodeling questions
Who issues building permits for a remodel in Muncie?
Inside city limits, the City of Muncie Building Commissioner's Office, at 300 N. High Street. In unincorporated Delaware County, the county Building Commissioner's Office issues them instead.
Can a homeowner pull a plumbing, electrical or HVAC permit in Muncie?
Not inside city limits. The city says those permits must be pulled by a licensed or registered contractor.
Which building code applies to homes in Muncie?
For one- and two-family dwellings, the 2020 Indiana Residential Code. Indiana put it in force statewide on December 26, 2019.
Do I need approval to change the outside of a house in a Muncie historic district?
Yes, for the exterior work city code lists, in a locally designated district, site or landmark. That list includes demolition, additions, alterations, material changes and exterior color changes. The code still allows ordinary maintenance and repair that changes no exterior feature. Work the building director certifies as necessary for public safety is also not prevented.
How do Muncie's floodplain rules treat a large remodel?
Development wholly or partly within, or touching, an identified special flood hazard area needs a floodplain development permit from the city's zoning administrator, who serves as floodplain administrator. City code defines a substantial improvement as any reconstruction, rehabilitation, addition or other improvement costing at least half the structure's market value before construction starts. Repetitive-loss and substantially damaged structures count too, whatever the work. Minimum fixes for identified health, sanitary or safety violations are excluded. Where base flood data exist, a substantially improved home's lowest floor must sit at or above the flood protection grade. That grade is two feet above the base flood elevation.
How high did the White River get in Muncie in August 2026?
The National Weather Service lists a preliminary crest of 18.64 feet on the Muncie gauge on August 13, 2026. No crest at that gauge had been higher since 1937, and a gauge height is not the water depth at a home. The record there is 22.6 feet, from March 25, 1913.
Do lead and asbestos rules apply when remodeling a pre-1978 Muncie home?
Yes. The city's Building Commissioner's Office says renovation or demolition of a structure built before 1978 must follow Indiana's lead and asbestos abatement rules. We would coordinate and provide appropriate EPA services in that instance.
Do you offer design services for Muncie homes?
Yes. As a design-build remodeler, we handle the build as well as the design. Design covers measurements, one to three concepts, 3D renderings, curated selections and an all-inclusive total cost. Our trusted trade professionals work alongside our design and project management teams during construction.
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(765) 288-1874420 S Ohio Ave, Suite 1874Muncie, IN 47302