DCRA Releases Series of Initiatives to Make Permitting Easier

• February 15, 2017

by Nena Perry-Brown

Today, the District’s Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs (DCRA) unveiled a series of changes and releases to make the process of acquiring a building permit more convenient.

The first two changes will allow people to schedule appointments online for the city’s Permit and Licensing Centers, giving them access to services from DCRA, the Office of Planning and the District Department of Transportation, among others; and to schedule preferred days for on-site permit-based inspections online.

These tools will ostensibly allow homeowners and developers the ability to avoid long wait times at permitting offices, on the phone or at work sites. “DCRA does a lot of different things from licensing to permitting to inspections. But improving the way we serve the public really comes down to making processes simpler and District residents and businesses safer,” director Melinda Bolling said in a statement.

Today, DCRA is also releasing a step-by-step guide to constructing a deck addition, making it easier for homeowners to acquire a permit for a deck as quickly as within one business day of applying. The document should enable homeowners and contractors to prepare an application that will be compliant with any construction codes and zoning stipulations. Guides for other common home improvements will also be released throughout this year.

This article originally published at http://dc.urbanturf.com/articles/blog/dcra_releases_series_of_initiatives_to_make_permitting_easier/12202