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City approvals required for your renovation
Written by Administrator
Wednesday, 06 May 2009 18:36
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Renovation will often require one or more permits and approvals from local authorities before any work commences at your home. While requirements vary from municipality to municipality, the following criteria will help determine if your project requires a building permit or other approvals.When is a building permit not required?As a rule, a building permit is not normally required for re-roofing, painting and decorating, installation of kitchen cabinets (not including plumbing fixtures), re-pointing brick veneer, installation of air conditioners or heat pumps, sundecks not more than 600 millimetres (24 inches) in height from grade, garden or tool sheds 10 square metres (108 square feet) or less in building area. Very occasionally, there may be a zoning by-law, Heritage or Design Committee requirement that applies to the property so that a permit is required even though the scope of work will not exceed this list.When is a building permit required?A building permit is required for projects such as new buildings, additions, most alterations, garages, carports, porches, decks, finishing basements, adding a washroom or the installation of a fireplace or wood stove and for swimming pool enclosures. A plumbing permit is required to add, extend, alter, renew or repair any plumbing system. City staff will do a review of your permit application to ensure that building code standards and zoning by-law requirements, etc. are met, providing for life safety and for fire protection of your property. Apart from the safety risk, work that is done without a permit could negate your household insurance policy.What information needs to be submitted?To apply for a permit, the owner or the renovation contractor is required to complete an application form and file it with the appropriate fee and 2 or 3 sets of drawings. The required drawings will vary from project to project depending on the scope of work and generally include a plan of survey, a site plan, floor plans, elevation, a cross section and details. The submission must be drawn to scale and fully dimensioned, must be of sufficient quality and contain adequate information that any competent person/builder could carry out the construction based on the information provided on the plans. If you find that you cannot prepare the drawings yourself, you must obtain the services of a qualified person.To facilitate the processing of your application, a variety of processing streams are usually available. For example, many municipalities offer a 24 hour permit service for certain types of applications (e.g., where no other approvals such as heritage, zoning variances or Design Committee are required). When are "other approvals" required and what are they?The buildings department of most area municipalities have technically trained staff available to receive and assist you with your application through the development approval process and they are best able to explain the detailed submission requirements and tell you which other permits or approvals may be necessary. Most cities encourage you to discuss your proposal with city staff before you prepare and submit your application.Gary Holtz is a Plans Examiner with the City of Ottawa Department of Planning & Development. |
