Whether you are a municipal leader or a building official, you may be familiar with the frustrations that go along with building plan review delays. Construction booms can bring an onslaught of permit applications that your staff might not be equipped to handle. Yet the thought of hiring more reviewers during these peak times, only to find your department overstaffed when construction activity wanes, is equally stressful.
But what if you could trade out building plan review backlogs, customer complaints, and vacant lots for faster plan review turnarounds, consistent service, and a thriving community?
Well, you can!
Increasingly, municipalities around the country are leveraging electronic plan review (EPR). EPR can make backlogs a thing of the past and help municipalities better manage the fluctuations of building activities. Using today’s digital technology, municipalities can streamline the traditional permitting process and usher in a future of faster plan review turnarounds—simplifying operations, reducing costs for applicants while simultaneously avoiding budget deficits, and improving overall service.
Municipalities that use EPR to optimize plan review processes not only experience improved efficiency and consistent revenues, but also increased customer service that comes with the accessibility, ease, and transparency that EPR provides. Delivering constant, remote access to plans from any device, EPR promotes project accuracy and transparency throughout each stage of development. In turn, this helps foster a stronger community relationship and builds trust between everyone involved.
Plus, with digital commenting, stakeholders can coordinate and discuss detailed aspects of a project in real time to optimize communication and avoid errors that could lead to delays or failed inspections down the road. Additionally, inspectors in the field can easily pull up plans to ensure the critical compliance components of a project are being met, which minimizes inspection oversights, keeps projects moving, and ensures top-quality development.
In the end, by eliminating the need to print plans, mail them, and wait for review and return, EPR offers a cost-effective option that can help communities like yours boost their bottom line, improve customer service, and get caught up fast.
Learn more by speaking with one of our community development services experts.
SAFEbuilt is a community development services company. We provide comprehensive building department, private provider, and other multidisciplinary professional services to help our customers build better and safer communities.