By Adam Swift
At last week’s meeting, the city council unanimously approved Ward 5 Councillor Angela Guarino-Sawaya’s motion for the building department to develop a checklist for residents wanting to do work on their property.
“Just in the last month alone, I’ve had four residents come to me irate that they had gone to the building department to see information on permitting,” said Guarino-Sawaya. “Although they were given the proper information, they were not given the various departments that they may also need to seek information from. When they began the work, they didn’t realize that they may need to seek other approvals, such as a negative determination from the conservation commission because they live in a flood zone or the Rumney Marsh.”
Guarino-Sawaya said she has talked to the building department, and that they are in the process of creating a checklist, but said she wanted to make sure the council stayed on top of the issue.
She said some residents are concerned because they have started projects on their property once they’ve received a building permit, not realizing they needed additional approvals.
“This should not be happening in this day and age, we should be able to inform residents of the proper procedure that needs to be taken to complete their projects,” said Guarino-Sawaya. “Therefore, I am requesting that once a resident comes to the building department seeking a permit – and particularly for fencing, walls, or driveways – they are given a list with other phone numbers and emails that they may be required to contact in respect to their residential areas.”
Guarino-Sawaya said the information is especially important when it comes to conversation laws in areas where there is strict enforcement, such as floodplains and flood zones, as well as near rivers and marshes.
Arcadia Street resident Anthony Parziale said there have been a number of issues regarding the permitting process in his Oak Island neighborhood.
“Five of my neighbors have pavement driveways that they shouldn’t have had, and they had to work out deals … to make conservation happy,” he said.
Parziale said the city should consider a process where a building permit is not issued until all permits and approvals that may be required by the city are issued.
Councillor-at-Large Juan Pablo Jaramillo praised Guarino-Sawaya’s motion, and said he would also like to see the permitting checklist posted to the city’s website.