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Storm Recovery Information

The County is here to support all of our residents, but we wanted to reach out to those residents who are located within the unincorporated areas after these unprecedented weather events. High levels of rain along with flooding have caused damage to many structures in our communities and you may find yourself in need of structural repair or rebuilding after the recent floods. The County team is here to support you in those efforts and the Board of Supervisors has provided additional support in the permit process that may apply to your project.

If you have suffered damage or need to do repairs after the recent rain events please make sure to report the damage through our Crisis tracking application or online with our building services email. If you send us an email make sure to include “Flood damage reporting” in the subject line of the email. If you have already started the cleanup and have photos please provide those to the team when we make contact. We will send out a building inspector to collect some basic information and record the damage in our system.

If you are located in the unincorporated County we have a program called the Home Owner Relief Act that will cover the cost of the building permits for the repairs to your home. The Board of Supervisors has also made available funds for waiving the permitting fees associated with repairing or replacing a retaining wall that failed during the rain event or that failed after due to the rain event. The recent event did not seem to cause enough damage to replace any of our homes, but if the damage caused by the rains does result in a tear-down rebuild, there are funds to cover the plan check and permit for your rebuilding efforts.

Many times after a flood you will need to replace drywall, insulation, dry out framing with bleach, and possibly replace an outlet. If you are just repairing these items it does require a permit but that permit is a no-cost, no-plan permit that we can process for you online through email. We understand that these are trying and costly times to repair your home, and your health and safety are the number one priority for our team. Please reach out by email or phone if you have any questions about the process or if you want to discuss options.

PDSBuildingPermitCounter@sdcounty.ca.gov

(619) 380-3055

Please see the links below for access to additional resources that were provided at our Local Assistance Centers that may help you in the process of rebuilding and repairing damage from the floods. We are here to support our communities and will be ready to help you as you start the process.

ADU Fee Waiver Program Notice:

The County of San Diego trial impact fee waiver went into effect on January 9, 2019. This was a five-year trial waiver that ended on January 9, 2024.

Plan check fees were waived for qualifying projects that started before January 9, 2024. Fees that are collected at permit issuance will not be waived if the permit is issued after January 9, 2024. 

 

 

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!