All Building Permit Applications available online via OpenGov

Submitted by ashley.brillhart on Wed, 03/25/2020 - 10:35am

In 2017, the City of Wooster Building Standards Division made all of our services available online. While note envisioning a scenario like social distancing, it has proved to be invaluable at this time. 

"OpenGov" is a web-based electronic and document workflow solution that allows homeowner, Architects, Contractors, and City staff to initiate and complete the building permit plan submission, review, approval and inspection process online as opposed to a manual, in-person, telephone or paper-based process. Customers can submit from anywhere, 24 hours 7 days a week.

Building department employees/inspectors will comply to the extent possible with the social distancing requirements of the March 23, 2020, Ohio Department of Health "Stay At Home" order while continuing to provide inspections whenever possible.

The Ohio Building Code and Residential Code of Ohio has always provided building officials with options for making required inspections as long as the provisions for the keeping of records and reports for review by the building officials are met. 

Ohio Building Code and Residential Code of Ohio has always provided building officials with options for making required inspections as long as the provisions for the keeping of records and reports for review by the building officials are met.

Ohio Building Code 2017 108.2.10 Other inspections. In addition to the inspections specified above, the building official is authorized to cause to the made or require other inspections of any construction work to be made to ascertain compliance with the provisions of this code.

The Residential Code of Ohio has similar language. This allows the building official latitude when onsite inspections may not be possible. Options such as video remote inspection where an inspector and contractor can communicate using live video to perform an inspection may be available. Also, in certain pre-approved cases, pictures may be accepted. Our intent is to provide in-person inspections while keeping social distancing requirements whenever possible. When that cannot be done, we will other tools available to us to perform inspections with the goal of allowing code-compliant construction to continue whenever possible.

Tim Monea, Chief Building Official
March 24, 2020