Clallam County Community Development Director Rob Robertsen proposes increasing residential building permit fees in unincorporated areas to support a new building permit technician.
His proposal, he said, is an attempt to live up to his campaign promise to reduce the time it takes to get a building permit at the county’s Department of Community Development.
Robertsen said he proposes bringing Clallam County’s permit structure in line with comparable counties such as Jefferson, Kitsap and Mason, and the cities of Port Angeles and Sequim.
“We’ve had such a great increase in (building) plans,” Robertsen said this week.
“And we are shorthanded in the building department.”
Robertsen said Clallam County’s building permit fees are substantially lower than those in neighboring counties and cities.
For example, a 1,500-square-foot home with a 500-square-foot garage is now charged $991 for a permit and building plan review.
That compares with $1,732 charged in Mason, Kitsap and Jefferson counties, $1,109.75 in Sequim and $1,502 in Port Angeles.
Robertsen said actual fees would later be proposed to county leaders for review and comments.