Building Permit Renewal Required?

Question

I have a building permit on my SFR that was issued 9/22/2016 and it's supposed to remain active for a year. We should be wrapping up our project in a few weeks, hopefully by the end of this month or beginning of next month.

Now, according to the vacant building registration department, our permit will expire in a little over a week from now, on 7/17—three whole months early.

I'm told that even if we expect to finish before the actual permit expiration (in late Sept), we'll have to reapply for a permit by 7/17 so we'll have a new permit before our original one expires. It takes 90 days for the city to process permit renewals, so that's why they want us to reapply 3 months before the expiry date.

This sounds ridiculous to me. Why should I be required to extend my permit, when I'm going to finish before it expires? Do building permits in Chicago actually only cover 9 months?

If they make us reapply, will we have to go through the same process as before, going back and forth with the city to get them to approve the plans? Can they force us to change our building plans to meet whatever codes have changed in the 9 months since they approved the original permit? Is it going to cost the same as the original permit (almost $2,000)?

What can I do to get out of this?

Jerry N. · Answer

@Dee Bee How did this turn out for you?

Crystal Smith · Answer

If you're confident the project will be completed before the end of the permit I would

• Alert your attorney about the request to apply for a permit early so the attorney is prepared to go to court on your behalf.  (By the way who is "they")
• Finish the project before the end of the permit
• Coordinate w/ your architect & GC on a backup plan such as applying for an Easy permit at an appropriate point to facilitate completing the work.

Dee Bee · Answer

@Mike Garrett Yes, the "registration requirements" for the building are "waived" so we don't have to pay the registration fees. I think what they're saying is they're going to apply all those requirements if we don't have an "active permit" (meaning more than 90 days before expiration).

@Jerry N. I haven't spoken with my architect yet because I discovered this issue late on Friday.

Meanwhile, I'm anxious about what they're going to do. We've been delayed multiple times because the inspectors keep adding more and more work to do, and it's costing more and more money.

At this point, we're definitely going to lose money on this project and we just want to wrap this up and recoup whatever we can from the sale, but we just keep getting hit with one thing after another.

Mike Garrett · Answer

This sounds crazy to me. But this sounds like a whole other department from the planning and development department (the expiration date of your building permit should be stated on the permit) and no doubt they do not talk to each other. After a little digging the Vacant Building Registration Department's website has this to say:

"For a construction site, if permitted construction operations have stopped, the construction site must be registered as a vacant building within 30 days"

(https://ipiweb.cityofchicago.org/VBR/Help.aspx#gen...) in their FAQ section. If your workers have been on site and you do not meet this criteria, yet are still being hounded by this department, I would talk to an attorney. Buildings under construction are not vacant, and while SFH take less than a year to build, many projects require a permit extension from the planning department, but that is no big deal (just go in and pay- no plan review should be required as the project met code at time of issuance). This sounds like a nuisance department!

Jerry N. · Answer

Are you hearing this from the building department?  What does your architect say?

Dee Bee · Answer

Chicago requires owners of vacant buildings to register and we have to maintain the property up to their standards. This is not the first of their inane rules we've come across. I'm told we need an active permit to maintain our vacant building registration or we'll be in violation, and they'll slap us with violations and fines.

They won't allow us to just keep working until Sept. They also want payment for reapplication upfront at least 90 days before the original permit expires.

Thomas S. · Answer

How do they intend to force you to reapply. Your permit is for a year and I would assume most people would simply allow it to run out/expire. You will have a problem if your work does not get completed but if you do not reapply and you do get finished in time what can they do. If you do apply for an extension tell them you will pay the fee Sept 21 if you still need it.