Permits – Pelican River Watershed District

Water Management Rules

The District’s PRWD Water Management Rules – Effective 4/19/2025 requires property owners to obtain a permit for certain actions.

Pre-application meetings are highly recommended for all applications. A pre-application meeting request form is available on the District website and can be submitted in person or via email. If at any point in the process you have questions, please do not hesitate to contact PRWD at: 218-846-0436; prwdpermit@arvig.net; or stop at the office located on the second floor of the Wells Fargo Bank building. (211 Holmes St. West, Suite 201, Detroit Lakes, MN).

Completing your application. A District permit application, and District checklist of permit submittal requirements, all associated exhibits, and fees, must be submitted in order for the application to be deemed complete. Applicants may obtain forms from the District office or from the links below.

1 – Permit Application Form: Permit Application_2025 form fillable. Permit application requires property owner’s signature. An Authorized Agent Form may be used, however it requires a notarized signature.

2 – Permit Application Checklist.

3 – Permit Fees. The District will charge applicants permit fees in accordance with a schedule that will be maintained and revised from time to time by the Board of Managers to ensure that permit fees cover the District’s actual costs of administering, inspecting, and enforcing permits. The current fee schedule may be obtained from the District office or the District website at: https://prwd.org/resources/permit-information-and-guidance-documents/

An applicant must submit the required permit fee to the District at the time it submits its permit application. Permit fees will not be charged to the federal government, the State of Minnesota, or a political subdivision of the State of Minnesota. At this time, only checks are accepted as payment.

Permit Application Materials can be:

Mailed to Pelican River Watershed District, 211 Holmes Street W, Suite 201, Detroit Lakes, MN 56501
Emailed to prwdpermit@arvig.net (please note that if you email your application materials, the fee will still need to be mailed or dropped off)
Dropped Off at the district office, Pelican River Watershed District, Wells Fargo Building – Second Floor, 211 Holmes Street W, Suite 201, Detroit Lakes, MN 56501

Action by District. The District will act on complete applications in accordance with timing requirements established under Minn. Stat. § 15.99, as amended. A complete permit application includes all required information, exhibits, and fees. An application will not be considered unless all substantial technical questions have been addressed and all substantial plan revisions resulting from staff and consultant review have been completed. Permit decisions will be made by the District Administrator, or a designated representative, unless Board action is deemed necessary.

Amended Permit. If changes are made to the permitted project plans, the project plan changes must be submitted to the District for review prior to installation or completion occurs. If changes are approved by the District, an amended permit will be issued.

Permit Extension Request. Permits are valid for twelve (12) months from the date of issuance unless otherwise stated within the permit, or due to it being suspended or revoked. To extend a permit, the permittee must apply to the District in writing, stating the reasons for the extension. Plan changes, and related project documents, must be included in the extension application. The District must receive this application at least thirty (30) days prior to the permit expiration date. The District may impose different or additional conditions on a renewal or deny the renewal in the event of a material change in circumstances. On the first renewal, a permit will not be subject to change because of a change in the Rule.

City of Detroit Lakes Ordinance
Becker County Zoning Ordinance
Minnesota Stormwater Manual