Projectdox has been in the roll out phase over the past year. Currently if you have any project with 25,000 square feet or larger you are required to submit through the online system. That will be changing very soon. Effective June 28, 2015 ALL FILE JOB will be required to be submitted via Projectdox. The only exception will be if the project will not require architectural seal. Here at DC Permit Solutions have done many projects through DC's online system. If you have any upcoming projects that you would like a proposal for please reach out to us. There are several tips we can offer to make your project move through the system efficiently.

Projectdox- Part 4

Over the last three blogs we have been discussing details of DCRA’s online software system called Projectdox. If you have missed any of those posts check them out on our blog web page at www.dcpermitsolutions.com. By this point you should have an over view on the system how to start a project, system requirements and how to upload and submit a file. So what happens next? Once a file is submitted through Projectdoxs it goes through a preliminary prescreen review. During this review the reviewer verifies all documents are properly submitted. After the review a project is approved, rejected or canceled. If the project gets rejected and email will be sent to the applicant along with a list of requirements that need to be fixed in order to move the project forward. The applicant will have 30 days to complete the resubmittal of required documentation and upload them to the system. In order to resubmit a drawing online you will need to resubmit the corrected file with the exact SAME FILE NAME as the original submission. If you upload a corrected drawing with the different file name it will be rejected and must be done again. While you are going through the process with projectdox you can email the DCRA staff at anytime in the system. From the project list screen there is an email icon that will allow the applicant to contact the plan review coordinators and the plan reviewers. You can also send general questions to [email protected].

Throughout the process the applicant can follow the progress online progress of their project through DCRA online Building Permit Application Tracking program.  In order to access the program go to DCRA.DC.GOV click the permit status icon. You will need to enter either the permit number or the property address. The system displays the status of each review that has been completed with any comments from each reviewer. When your project has gone through all the appropriate reviews and it has been approved the applicant will receive an email indicating it is approved and the permit is ready to be picked up.

Once your project is approved and is ready to be picked up you must come to the DCRA office in person to obtain the official permit. The DCRA permit center is at 1100 4th ST SW DC on the 2nd floor. You will be required to pay all remaining permit fees. Once the fees are paid the permit will be issued and the approved drawings and supporting documents move to the approved documents folder online.

Projectdox has created quite a bit more work and responsibility pushed onto the client in order to submit your files. Even though it should help cut down on the time frame for having approvals done and eliminate communication problems since everyone has access to the same date it is very time consuming. The team at DC Permit Solutions has submitted several applications through projectdox. If you have a deal that is required to go this route we highly recommend you use an experience permit expeditor and DO NOT attempt to do it on your own. Understanding the finite details of the systems is extremely important. Trying to do it on your own or working with a inexperience person could cost you a lot of time and your guaranteed to have headaches along the way. Since the process has put more responsibility on the client pricing for from a permit expeditors end must be taken into account. On average we are seeing it take anywhere from an additional 2-5 hours of work upfront in preparation to submit a file and 5-10 hours over the entire process.  Our company offers a free proposal and consultation for any large project coming up. We are available to come in and meet with your team upfront to discuss the process, fees and cost you will be required to pay to DCRA along with the time frame and issues that may arise.

 

We hope you have found this over view of Projectdox to be helpful in having a broad overview of the process. If you are looking for additional details DCRA has a 52 page booklet available online that you can access at DCRA.GOV.