ECN Forum Forums General Topics of the Trade General Discussion Area Permit Snafus...AHJs and Contractors Jump in

i don't believe we have any such mechanism, or if we do it's just not utilized.

i have been on jobs where the state has ordered us (et all trades) out

last time wasn't really our fault, we had our individual permits, but the building owner had not obtained his building permit.

This was a reno which,i guess the impression was if the footprint didn't change , local (town) zoning didn't apply

but the state still required a building permit , because of all the life safety concerns

they really need to do lunch more often imho....

~S~

on that note,
i live on the boprder of VT & NH, so i hold a license in both.

dunno if there's any NH sparkies here, if so they can probably commiserate on the 'state of the state' permit process, etc

eastern NH is where all the populance resides, western NH is kinda like the land time forgot

for instance, over in NH you gotta have a license to change a light bulb, no exceptions as in VT

and the individual townships provide the permits for the state, which the state catalogs/ inspects / etc

so i cross the river for a service upgrade, real typical ho hum stuff, appear at T-hall and ask for a permit, to which they insist isn't their job, or necessary (the lady said 'it's nice that you have a license though)

typically, i also call the poco, to which the response was the usual 'call us when it's done' deal

so i rip off the old service, install the new, and tag onto the street w/temp taps....also accepted local practice here

next, calling the poco for the permanent connection, i'm told it needs inspection

so i call the state of NH next. Now the state of NH only has 3 bona fide electrical inspectors. I'm under the impression they try to hit as much as they can in any given area during the day, and this is way out in God's country

So he (the EI) asks "where's your permit?", to which my response was "can't get no, sir" , to which the rebuttal was "Thou shalt permit son!", which i retorted "no permitith township sir"

months later, the EI shows up, passes my work with little ado, and armed with the might and clout of unfunded state mandates , is off to impart his wrath on T-hall

Honest to God, we can wear our best EC halo out there, and still walk smack into the permit crossfire!

~S~

Greg:
The lone house pic is 'priceless'!!

I'm looling for one I had/have which illustrates why 'rated walls' are a good thing, and penetrations of those walls is not a goood thing.

Sparky. I have to say the Lee County people are very good and easy to deal with. They have always showed up for me (and my wife when she was building) right away. The rule is if you get the request in by about 6am they will be out that day but it is usually for "tomorrow" if you call during business hours. Actually you can do the whole thing online. The inspectors all have lap tops and you can usually Email them pictures if you just have a minor thing to fix. That can get the violation/repair cycle down to "same day". It is sure handy when you have concrete coming the next morning.

Overall I am a big fan of the Lee County building department (and I never worked there). They used to be horrible, 25 years or so ago, acting more as a block on development than a building department but now they have become very contractor friendly.

sparky:

"last time wasn't really our fault, we had our individual permits, but the building owner had not obtained his building permit."

Normally, that would not happen here, as only the complete package is released. When a 'partial' release happens,it is usually for footings, foundations; to allow the job to start, while plan review is completed.

If I get a chance next week, I'll scan some of our placards.

I'm amazed that NH has only three EIs. I remember a lot of beautiful, wooded, undeveloped lands, and a lot of miles between outposts.

Around here you need the full array of permits before they release the package. You can come back later with revisions or change the sub contractors with an addendum but they want all the boxes checked on the original application.

Sure, we're told ... get a permit. A permit. Then the job starts....

Every time you turn around there's ANOTHER inspector, with ANOTHER set of rules and changes. Even after you're 'signed off,' you get visits from folks who want to count the trees in the parking lot .....

Good heavens- just how many inspections can there be? Even a simple commercial remodel nearly needs someone there full-time, just to greet the countless inspectors.

At some point, the justifications begin wearing thin. I mean ... having a tree quota for the parking lot is a SAFETY concern?

Naturally, any grievance you may have is YOUR fault. YOUR fault that you didn't give them a larger budget, wider powers, a larger staff, a better stranglehold on you.

Of course .. I AM currently reading "Atlas Shrugged," and that might be winding me up ... a little

point taken HotOne, we could learn a thing or two up here without trying to reinvent the wheel ourselves


please do...., maybe i'll e-mail it to some people i know in the state



Western NH reminds me of northern VT, or maybe western Ma, in the sense that they are displaced (for lack of a better term) of the main body of the state , sort of a land time forgot, despite the predominant buearacracy

Personally, i don't think it makes the people there malicous in any sense to remain (again lack of adjective) politely misinformed of the general gestalt, modus operandi, et all state level zieghiest (someone stop me.........)

But i do sense the strain of those subjected to what is systemic collapse (apply the analogogy of phyisiological insult and towards our trade)

~S~

Reno, that tree thing is not a building department, it is a zoning department thing.
Those people are just nuts.
We wanted to put in a half basketball court here in my little community (47x50)
The building department said no problem, we didn't even need a permit if we were not ever going to put a structure there.
Then the zoning people stepped up. They said we needed a development order ($350) that required a 27 page application, a public hearing and a sign off by the zoning board. Long story short, 4 months later we poured the slab.