Memorandum

City of Lawrence

Planning & Development Services

 

TO:

Diane Stoddard, Interim City Manager

FROM:

Barry Walthall, Building Codes Administrator

CC:

Scott McCullough, Planning & Development Services Director

Kurt Schroeder, Asst. Director, Development Services

Date:

January 8, 2016

RE:

December 2015 Monthly Permit Reports

 

The Building Safety Division issued 153 building permits in December, with total construction for the month valued at $11,944,652.  Total permit fees assessed for the month were $71,651.  Permits were issued for fourteen (14) new residential projects, including thirteen (13) single-family dwellings and one (1) duplex.  Comparisons to previous years were tracked throughout 2015 in the following table:

 

 

One- & Two-Family Permits

Multi-Family Permits

(New Units)

Total Number of Permits

Total Valuation

Permit Fees

Year

Month

YTD

Month

YTD

Month

YTD

Month

YTD

Month

YTD

2015

14

239

0(0)

7(467)

153

2,320

$11,944,652

$227,899,792

$71,651

$1,050,479

2014

15

116

3(60)

6(143)

152

1,930

$8,693,934

$99,707,903

$62,561

$669,545

2013

10

165

0(0)

23(374)

135

1,984

$9,172,804

$171,995,682

$58,458

$850,052

2012

5

126

0(0)

22(184)

165

2,377

$8,853,368

$100,656,131

$42,470

$735,564

2011

6

99

0(0)

19(363)

140

2,172

$7,172,022

$115,736,112

$45,201

$705,173

2010

9

156

0(0)

6(220)

195

2,255

$4,296,103

$101,862,636

$33,733

$633,188

2009

18

126

0(0)

15(172)

172

1,998

$5,510,022

$75,376,444

$46,092

$565,525

 

Permits were issued for eighteen (18) City projects in December, including replacement of a water heater for the Lawrence Douglas County Housing Authority at 2930 Peterson Road #101 with work valued at $500; and seventeen (17) plumbing permits for inflow and infiltration program projects by the Utilities Department at various locations with valuation totaling $54,735.  Additionally, one (1) school district project was classified as a “public project”; an addition and renovations to Deerfield Elementary School, 101 Lawrence Avenue, valued at $3,532,842.  Permit fees were collected for this school district project at fifty percent (50%) of the normal fee rate, in the amount of $6,793.

 

The largest projects for the month were the Deerfield Elementary School addition and renovation, valued at $3,532,842; and a renovation project for the Double Tree Hotel at 200 McDonald Drive, valued at $1,450,000.

 

These statistics are of interest in tracking construction activity in the community, but only partially tell the story for staff workload and performance.  Staff has established performance goals of completing “initial” reviews for residential permits within 5 business days and for commercial permits within 15 business days of the application date.  An initial review is a comprehensive first review of an application and plans for a building project, and may include review work performed by staff from Planning and Development Services, Fire and Medical, Utilities and Public Works Departments, as well as other relevant review agencies (depending on the nature and scope of the project).  Initial and subsequent reviews and comments are tracked in the Innoprise permit tracking system from which reports may be extracted.  Development Services staff is responsible for coordinating review work and disseminating review comments to applicants.

 

During the 2014 calendar year, staff achieved these goals for 95.5% of all residential permits with an average review time of 2.5 days; and 96% of all commercial permits with an average review time of 6.2 days.

 

In December, staff completed 90 of 93 residential reviews within 5 business days (96.7%), and 252 of 254 commercial reviews within 15 business days (99.2%).  The following table tracks performance in meeting these objectives.

 

 

Residential Permits

Commercial Permits

 

Total Number of Reviews

Number of Reviews Completed within 5 Business Days

Average Review Time

Percent of Reviews Completed within 5 Business Days

Total Number of Reviews

Number of Reviews Completed within 15 Business Days

Average Review Time

Percent of Reviews Completed within 15 Business Days

Jan

90

71

3.4

78.8%

111

90

9.5

81.0%

Feb

99

79

3.8

79.8%

97

85

10.0

87.6%

Mar

147

136

2.8

92.5%

94

85

7.8

90.4%

Apr

275

270

2.2

98.1%

113

112

6.7

99.1%

May

167

158

2.6

94.6%

118

117

6.1

99.1%

June

124

122

2.6

98.3%

122

115

6.4

94.2%

July

137

133

2.3

97.0%

134

132

4.9

98.5%

Aug

131

130

2.0

99.2%

128

122

5.7

95.3%

Sept

163

152

2.6

93.2%

186

144

10.1

77.4%

Oct

145

141

2.4

97.2%

167

138

7.3

82.6%

Nov

126

123

2.6

97.6%

247

158

9.9

63.7%

Dec

93

90

2.6

96.7%

254

252

9.1

99.2%

YTD

1,699

1,609

2.6

94.7%

1,777

1,578

7.9

88.8%

 

Permit reports for December are attached.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Top Projects for 2015:

 

Rank

Construction Valuation

Project Description

1

$45,000,000

HERE @ Kansas Mixed Use Building

2

$18,756,680

100 E 9th Mixed Use Building

3

$13,300,000

Wakarusa River Wastewater Treatment Plant Complex

4

$12,538,300

Americare Assisted Living Campus

5

$12,000,000

Pioneer Ridge Independent Living

6

$7,500,000

Wakarusa Conveyance Pump Station No. 10

7

$6,290,534

Hutton Farms West No. 2 Residential Development

8

$3,810,549

LMH 4th Floor Renovation

9

$3,532,842

Deerfield Elementary School Addition/Renovation

10

$2,776,000

116 N Wilderness Way Single-Family Dwelling

11

$2,600,000

Phi Delta Theta Renovation

12

$2,393,251

Schwegler Elementary School Addition/Renovation

13

$2,025,000

Phi Gamma Delta Addition

14

$1,900,000

Kansas River Wastewater Treatment Plant Addition

15

$1,500,000

Iowa EPS Foam Renovation

15

$1,500,000

Raising Cane’s Restaurant

17

$1,450,000

Double Tree Hotel Renovation

18

$1,045,000

Dwayne Peaslee Technical Career Center Renovation

19

$1,000,000

3642 Buck Brush Court Single-Family Dwelling