Roofing Permit: An Hour of My Life I'll Never Get Back

[legion]

I called the Building Safety department back in June to figure out how to get a roofing permit. I got step-by-step instructions.

Step 1: Go to city government building at 115 E. Washington St. between 7:00 and 9:30 a.m..

Result: Went to city government building at 115 E. Washington St. at 7:00. This is the only step that was this easy.


Step 2: Go to Building Safety department on second floor of city government building.

Result: Walked into building. Walked up ONE flight of stairs. Stood outside Building Inspection department for half an hour. No one is there. The door is locked. See, there is no department currently called “Building Safety”, so this was my closest guess. Gave up and decided to take a different stairwell down, while approaching said stairwell, see a sign (printed backwards) that says “Building Safety is UP one floor on the second floor”. Realized that the floor directly above the 1st floor is NOT the 2nd floor, but the mezzanine floor. The 2nd floor is really the 3rd floor... Realized that no stairs actually seem to go to the “2nd Floor” and find an elevator. Walked around aimlessly until I stumbled on the Building Code Enforcement and Zoning department (which is separate and distinct from the Building Inspection department). Walked in. Paid fee. Got permit. Walked out. Saw a city inspector truck parked outside and noted that it says “City Engineering Department” on it—which is also a department name, like “Building Safety”, that no longer exists.

[TechnoViking]

I've had to go to the Social Security office about 4 times in the last few years after adopting kids. There's ALWAYS an hour wait. Being in that place makes my skin crawl.

They have an armed guard in there, and after being there you'll understand why. Last time I went in, the government douche told me my son was not a citizen of the US because he didn't have a passport. She then said I should contact the Dept of Homeland Secutiry to get an alien work authorization card, which would allow her to issue a social security number. He's 2.

So I then tried to explain federal law to the federal government....

[legion]

To their credit, the Building Code Enforcement and Zoning department people were very pleasant and the process was smooth once I found them. I'm sure another department has jurisdiction over signage in the building--which was the real problem.

As for the SSA, yeah, I've been there. I walked up to the counter one afternoon when I was the ONLY non-employee in the building. I was scolded for not taking a number and told to sit down. That's right. I sat down and waited 20 minutes while the two ladies at the counter continued their conversation and finally called me.

[MRM]

I used to be a city attorney so I actually have clients who pay me to guide them through this maze. It's not my usual practice, but it's a helpful side service.

Explaining federal law to the federal government is big business. One of the first on line businesses to make money was some guy who put the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) on line in an indexed and searchable format. He sold subscriptions like hotcakes - mostly back to federal agencies. I guess private firms had access to to the CFR through pay per use services like Westlaw and Lexis. I once heard the guy who did it interviewed on the radio. It wasn't the market he was going for at all and he was amazed at the need in the government for access to government statutes, rules and regulations.

[URY914]

I deal with building department folks all the time. Just be nice, ask for thier help and take your time. They don't like being pushed.

[look 171]

Think health care reform.

I am not a big fan of the doing thing over the net when it comes to my construction business. Now, when I have to get a simple permit for little things, I do it over the net. There's no waiting, and you don't have to get $hit from from the building and safety guys who are always to cover their $ss and wouldn't issue a permit.

[Gogar]

Just wait until your doctor visits are a similar experience!

[cgarr]

Are you just replacing the old roof? if so why do you need a permit??

[legion]

Originally Posted by cgarr

Are you just replacing the old roof? if so why do you need a permit??

Because bureaucracy is self-perpetuating?

[T77911S]

Originally Posted by cgarr

Are you just replacing the old roof? if so why do you need a permit??

i did not get/need(?) a permit when i did mine. i pulled tin off of about 60 ft of rough and replaced it with shingles.

no one cought the "no stairs" in a building that has the Building Code Enforcement office in it?

i am in the process of tearing down my old shop, 20x32, because i have this HUUUGE concrete bunker in the middle of it that keeps me from utilizing the shop as i need.once down i can build a new one. i am not looking forward to getting the permits.

your story reminds me of getting new tags. i called the highway department and asked what all i needed so i could get it done in one trip. sure enough, there was still something else i needed to do so i had to leave and go do that then come back.

[URY914]

Permit requirements vary greatly from one State-County-City to another. What is required to be permitted in one location isn't even considered in others. Always best to ask first.

It is also best sometimes to get pass the dingbat working the counter. Sometimes they know the least. Which of course pisses of people like me that know it all.

[Tobra]

Be very thankful you are not in California.

[Heel n Toe]

Originally Posted by T77911S

i called the highway department and asked what all i needed so i could get it done in one trip. sure enough, there was still something else i needed to do so i had to leave and go do that then come back.

That has happened to me more times than I care to think about. It's like they must have a list and they purposely leave one item off so they can have a laugh at your expense as they see you going out to go get that missing item.

Around here, at least they've always let you cut the line when you get back with it.

In the last 5 or so years, they have streamlined our DMV to the nth degree... it is so good that if your state's DMV is a nightmare, you should tell your state representative to come look at it.

Many, many windows and only a very few of them close at lunch... and after you take a number, you can look at a big screen hanging from the ceiling showing what numbers are being served and when your number comes up, it tells you which window to go to, and they're all numbered with huge, red digits.

It's not a cringe-worthy experience any longer, I'm happy to report.

Chris, great story about the 2nd story. Amazing no one has ever taken the initiative to put clarifying signs up all over the place to prevent what you went through.

A friend related a story about when he got a job working at the huge central post office here when it was new; due to some unfinished construction or uninstalled chutes, when someone went to the wall where you put your mail in a slot marked IN-TOWN or OUT-of-TOWN...

Yep, you guessed it; it all went in the same roll-around bin and had to be sorted.

For months.

[john70t]

I'm fighting the taxes on the condo I used to live in.
-They denied a pro-rated homestead exemption when I moved in.

-Over the last 4 years, they've illegally raised my taxes over 30% in a divebomb market. The maximum increase is 4.4%/year by law.
Forget that! The only sale in the building has been a foreclosure at one-third its original price, that is "fair market value" bizotches.

-The City has been doing everything in its power to stop businesses from occupying the vacant historic houses, or local brewries from developing a cultured nightlife area, while at the same time it approves a new $20million house for the university president.