I’ve been practicing architecture for over 30 years and have permitted more projects than I prefer to mention. When an architect is asked about permitting and bows his head and shakes it, there are obviously stories to tell. Here are three cautionary tales.

Expect the ridiculous. You will not be disappointed.
We have a client who just signed the lease for a storefront tenant space in a busy strip shopping center. The center has been in existence since I started my firm over 20 years ago. We were hired to design the 2,300 square-foot space, known as a tenant finish-out, and to help with permitting. We told her that permitting should take about a month at most. Our client took it upon herself to contact the city permit department, where the process starts with site plan approval. Remember that I said that the center had been in existence for 20 years.

The city’s planning department proceeded to tell her that she must go through formal “site plan” approval for the entire strip center development and to expect just this process alone to take at least 3.5 months. Can you believe the shock? This means the entire permit process would take five to six months. The center’s developer was then contacted and promptly said that the city’s demands are ridiculous. They would not go through the expense of having the center surveyed and engineered just to show that the development met zoning. Caught in the middle of this tug-of-war is my client, whose business use is within the current zoning requirements.

Many other tenants have come and gone in this center, one of which was a night club. I know; my son used to work there. Apparently no other tenant has had to go through this site plan approval process. As of this article, a meeting has been scheduled with the city site plan review department, developer, and our client to work through this issue.

Bottom line: What is the city thinking? Does it make any sense to have my client shoulder this entire site plan approval burden, which clearly lies with the strip center’s owners? Of course not. I think things will work out, since this issue will certainly travel up the chain of command if need be. The bottom line is to expect some difficulties and time delays when going through permitting, and you may have to address some misplaced expectations.

Love thy neighbor.
In this case, the city permit department has been great – no problems as long as we provide them all that is required. The problem is that our client has an adversarial relationship with the adjacent land owner. This was not made clear to the design team until well into the project. Our client is required to provide an access easement and utility easement through their own property to the neighbor’s property.

We also found out that there had already been a legal battle with a judgment granting an easement that was arbitrarily established. It created a ridiculously wide access road, which almost made our client’s property unusable. The civil engineer and I went through several designs to meet the intent of the easement. The adjacent land owner has rejected each one and made unreasonable demands for my client to improve his neighbor’s property. They are both dedicated to their property for its commercial value, as the daily average traffic count for this location is between 45,000 and 50,000 cars. We finally had a face-to-face meeting between my client and his neighbor, the civil engineer, and the attorneys for both sides to try to resolve things. Ka-ching! Hear the money being spent.

Bottom line: If you plan on building new or renovating a facility, talk to your neighbors, especially if you share easements. Find out if they have concerns before you proceed. This is especially true if you will have to rezone your property. If neighbors know that their development rights and access to their property will be protected or that barking, noise, and smells are not an issue, chances are your neighbors will support what you want to do.

Can you hear me now?
This last story is just as bewildering. We became friends with the owners of a boarding facility in our town. When they bought the facility, the neighborhood was still pretty rural. A landscaping contractor and a plant nursery were next door. The only streets were two lanes. There were no neighbors or noise issues. Over the years, our county has grown up around them. A noise ordinance has been passed.

Now the adjacent property is a high-end residential area housing upper income families. The backs of the homes face the boarding facility. The kennel owners came to me for help, because they wanted to upgrade their facility and add additional indoor dog suites. They needed to get a permit, but the zoning had changed. They approached the county and asked for a variance to add the additional suites.

The people who own the adjoining residences, which were built knowing they were next to an existing dog boarding facility, objected to the variance. One neighbor claimed that the additional dogs would increase the noise level while he was having drinks in the backyard after work (yes, he really said that).

We did a decibel reading along the property line and found that the noise generated by the current facility is (and the new addition would be) less than the limits set in the noise ordinance. This measurable and quantifiable evidence was presented by me at the county zoning board meeting. The zoning variance was denied.

There were only two reasons we could think of for this denial. One is that money talks. The other is that the zoning board really did not want the boarding facility in such a prime location. The kennel owners decided not to pursue it further and did not add the additional suites.

The last time I saw the owners, they told me they were embroiled with the same residential development over some utility and sewer lines. I might add that this facility has a booming business because of its convenient location to the neighborhoods that have grown up around it.

Bottom line: Be proactive and think strategically, especially if you find that your business environment is changing around you. Don’t be afraid to stand up for yourself and be able to demonstrate how you provide a valuable service to the community. The one zoning board member (an elected County Commissioner) who voted in favor of the zoning variance did so because he recognized that the boarding kennel provided a service that residents valued.

Types of Permits
The following is a list of some required permits or approval reviews that you may encounter for your project, whether a new building or renovation. Building codes and environmental protections are important regulations that are there to protect us. Still they present some red tape that must be navigated through. The names may change based on your location.

• Basic building permit from the local jurisdiction
• Site plan approval from the local jurisdiction
• Department of Health (local) and/or Department of Health (state)
• Department of Environmental Protection (DEP)
• U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (especially if the project impacts a “navigable” waterway)
• Water Management District (concerning the use of water and treatment of run-off)
• Department of Transportation (especially if you are located on a state-maintained roadway)
• State agency governing animal care facilities

Bottom line: As you plan to develop a site with a new facility or even what seems to be a simple renovation, do your initial due diligence on permitting. This effort will save a lot of potential headaches. Talk to your neighbors and prepare to address their concerns. This is especially true if you will have to rezone your property.

Go in expecting some delays and surprises. This includes how long the permitting process will take, how many permits will be required, how much each permit might cost, and, lastly, how unreasonable and bureaucratic some permit entities can be.

I have to say that most permit departments are there to help you through the process, and most representatives are very helpful. Don’t be afraid to hire an architect or civil engineer during this due diligence period, because they are familiar with the process and know what questions to ask. It might save you money on legal fees. Fully disclose any previous controversies you have experienced concerning your property.

I could tell you more permitting stories with one that would make you think I was totally making it up. Let’s just leave it with a word to the wise: expect surprises, and if there are none, do a happy dance.

Richard S. Bacon, AIA, is owner and principal architect at Bacon Group, Inc., an architecture firm that specializes in the design of animal care facilities. With over 30 years’ experience, Rick is a registered architect, member of the American Institute of Architects, credentialed by the National Council of Architectural Registrations Boards, a LEED Accredited Professional in sustainable design, and a licensed General Contractor. He is a frequent workshop presenter on a variety of design topics for the boarding, veterinary, and animal humane care communities. He may be contacted by phone at 800-961-1967 or via email at [email protected].

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