Welcome to Building Division

COVID-19 UPDATE 6/17/21

Due to the lifting of COVID-19 restrictions across California, Planning & Development Services (PDS) is pleased to announce the re-opening of our Permit Center to walk-in customers. No special appointments will be required as of June 15th, 2021 for in-person service. Customers with existing appointments for permit intake or issuance can either come in during their scheduled appointment date and time, or come in at an earlier date as a walk-in. Both options will require in-person processing as we phase out our drop-off services. Priority will be given to those with existing appointments (on their scheduled date and time), but walk-in traffic is allowed if a customer wishes to come to the office sooner than their scheduled appointment. Please allow sufficient time to process your pre-intake while at the office. Customers with existing appointments will receive an email to provide guidance on the next steps for their project.

If you have an existing appointment, please click here for complete, up-to-date process guidance.

We appreciate your patience and understanding as we transition our services back into the office located at 5510 Overland Avenue. Our doors are open to the public Monday-Friday at 7:30 AM and our counter services are available from 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM with a break at 11:45 AM to 12:30 PM for lunch.

We will continue to provide appointments for plan pick up each day to allow for faster plan pick up services. If you make an appointment for plan pick up, we will locate your plans the day before and have them ready for you at the counter on the day of your appointment. An appointment to pick up plans is not required but is highly recommended to save time and effort. Appointments made after 1PM on the business day prior to pick up date may not be included in the next day’s preparation.

 

 

Overview

The County reviews plans to the most recently adopted California Building Code, County of San Diego Amended Building Code, the County of San Diego Zoning Ordinance and General Plan. We understand that staying current with all of these requirements can be challenging and that there are portions of each referenced code that can be left to interpretation. That is why it is our goal to offer all of our customers an opportunity for a second opinion on any correction or interpretation that we have made during plan review or over the counter. If you as our customer feel that your interpretation of a requirement could be interpreted a different way, please ask for a second opinion.

Second Opinion

A second opinion is available on any interpretation or correction provided and will not affect the level of customer service you receive. We ask you to provide your interpretation of the code along with any health and safety concerns that the interpretation may cause and how this will affect your project. The second opinion will come from one of our senior staff or a supervisor who will have a chance to take a deeper look at supporting documentation on both sides of the issue. This may occur at the counter or require a few days for proper research and understanding of the intent of the code in question. After your second opinion you can always follow up with our Building Official for a final opinion.

The Project Issue Resolution (PIR) Conference

This is yet another opportunity for our customers to have interpretations reviewed and heard by Executive Management. A Project Issue Resolution Conference is a meeting that includes an applicant, our Executive Management team, and County Project Staff to discuss issues and identify solutions that were not able to be resolved with County Supervisors due to interpretations of code or other unique circumstances related to a project. Please click here for more information.

Important Building Division links:

New! Property Summary Report

Check out this CTN.org video about how building codes and inspections keep County residents safe!