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What the City of
Chicago is trying to do for local builders is similar to what
financial institutions have done for their Internet-savvy
customers. However, the city is banking on its new online
“e-permitting” system to help users save money rather
than spend it.
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| UNDER
REVIEW Authorities hope e-permitting will free
up resources. (Illustration by Guy Lawrence for ENR) |
The system promises to save time
for city employees and project teams. “We’ve tried
to create a mechanism for contractors who do large-volume
work to get their permits 24/7,” says John A. Roberson,
director of Chicago’s Dept.
of Construction and Permits. Through an Internet connection,
the department is allowing contractors and homeowners to apply
for routine building permits and check status with a click.
“I’ve heard customers
say, ‘I can print my permits at 10:00 P.M.—and I’m
not even at work,’” says Tony Dawson, DCAP project
manager who is in charge of the new online-permit program
and has led its development since November 2002. The city
began pursuing the concept in 2000.
Like most cities, Chicago is clogged
with an inordinate amount of basic permits that largely affect
the speed at which more complex projects are processed. Government
authorities across the U.S. are looking at e-permit systems,
with a handful of software suppliers competing for the design
work (ENR 11/5/01 p. 27).
In January, DCAP officially launched
its online portal and made it available
for users needing permits fast to add or change hot-water
heaters, residential garages or simple electrical systems,
at a surcharge of $1 per request.
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| DAWSON |
There has been little feedback
so far because few people have used it. Last year, the city
received 70,830 permit applications. Dawson says only a few
of the permits required extensive plan reviews (9,631), while
a much larger portion did not (54,789). The city wants to
drive more of these routine applications on line, he says.
During a test last April, the e-permit system brought in a
total of 6,410 requests.
Officials say the changeover will
take time, but it promises cost-savings in the future. Says
Roberson, “If on average it took 12 to 18 months to get
a permit, and the average cost of a review is $20,000, then
just ask anyone how much they spend in loan interest in a
month.”
Photos by Tudor Hampton
for ENR
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