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Pulling permits for house addition - drawings, etc.?

6869704x4 said:
Every state/county is different. I tried to do the right thing in Santa Rosa county FL. Finally said screw it and just did it.
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That's a real issue in high burden states/areas.

So much that it's about expected.

Without knowing better, I did lots of un permitted stuff that should've been when I was young in CA
 
junkytj said:
It's about land disturbance and runoff going into the water. It's a combination of the industry I'm in and my side hustles that tell me that. EPA figured out that you can't build shit without a permit, so they threatened the local governing agencies with EPA policing storm water to include road runoff if they didn't follow EPA guidance on land disturbance permitting. Anytime you move dirt to make a flat area/ get rid of organic layer to build on, you now need a permit to make sure you aren't allowing any of that disturbed earth to enter the water. It's more nuanced than that, but that's the gist of it. If you want to educate yourself, here is a small primer. I'll forgive you for laughing at me, it is ridiculous but I'm accurate.

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I'm just a designer. Have no desire to become an engineer so excuse my ignorance on the matter. But I honestly thought it was just a State issue. But now I have myself cornered I have to ask... How are so many municipalities exempt from this? I have a property in TN that I can do anything I want without a permit. But tax man commeth around very regular. I built an addition that was on my tax records jokingly before it was even roofed and dried in. I know several counties in TN that doesn't require permits and have no regulations and there's not even any stream buffers, just floodplains and floodways for insurance purposes.

Also why is every municipality way different? Developing in NC, there's a couple of counties that you have to be 110' away from a stream. Then it's 50' the next county down on same stream, then 30' the next county down. And then go further down towards the coast and they have their own set of rules. Even the amount of impervious / additional runoff is examined differently.

And then there's TVA that dictates everything in TN and then NCDWQ in NC. Each with very different standards even from a Commercial development standpoint. Even the stormwater regulations are very different. SC has the Bureau of Water division. VA has a DEQ. And so on.

Being the whole reason I just assumed each state had their own rules / regulations / and state water resource divisions that had nothing to do with EPA. But I can totally understand to a degree. It's just so puzzling how EPA can stick their noses in everyone's business so differently.
 
junkytj said:
It's about land disturbance and runoff going into the water. It's a combination of the industry I'm in and my side hustles that tell me that. EPA figured out that you can't build shit without a permit, so they threatened the local governing agencies with EPA policing storm water to include road runoff if they didn't follow EPA guidance on land disturbance permitting. Anytime you move dirt to make a flat area/ get rid of organic layer to build on, you now need a permit to make sure you aren't allowing any of that disturbed earth to enter the water. It's more nuanced than that, but that's the gist of it. If you want to educate yourself, here is a small primer. I'll forgive you for laughing at me, it is ridiculous but I'm accurate.

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I just had a long conversation with one of the Engineers... So the who EPA / Clean Waters Act is basically being fought out ever since it was implemented in 1972. And is even being challenged in the Supreme Court as late as last year. Basically, EPA is pushing the states and the states are making their own rules and even letting "some" of the municipalities do their own thing if anything at all depending on what they see as critical water. And it's a very complicated but evolving issue by letting the developers and municipalities gather to decide. And it's more political than anything. The state can step in and pick and choose their battles over the municipalities and so can the EPA over the states. There's nothing set in stone across any board besides the state regs themselves. And even that is challenged and changed.

But as for OP grading for an addition onto his existing house, I think we would both have to know lots more information before saying who (if anybody) has anything to do with asking for a grading plan. It could be to figure out what's being built, or it could be to determine how much additional runoff and disturbed area is being added to his property.

Regardless, either a topographic aerial survey or land survey would have to be done to determine the existing grading and again to determine as-built grading after the proposed was accepted for an accurate grading answer. In other words... when a municipality goes to asking for a grading plan one needs to have his shit together before submitting or even taking on an addition project.:beer:
 
It also varies by population density and different regions of the EPA. The removal of the Chevron is a big deal to our individual property rights. People have no idea how much the EPA fucks with them because they hide behind the states and then sue the states to the point they go to negotiations but not a judgement.
 
Just ignore all the codes, move into a trailer in the back yard, get your wife pregnant, have someone on pirate draw you up free house plans with a "dildo closet" clearly labled, watch a bunch of YouTube videos, mix 16 yards of concrete in a hf mixer, dig septic by hand, and build a house on top of everything.

Easy peasy.
 
I'm floored some of you can get away with hand drawing plans. Around here everything needs an engineers stamp and three hundred different approvals before you can move a blade of grass.
 
canadasucks said:
I'm floored some of you can get away with hand drawing plans. Around here everything needs an engineers stamp and three hundred different approvals before you can move a blade of grass.
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LOL. I was building a retaining wall on my property to level a spot for my shop and the county wanted a separate permit for the wall. They wanted me to submit under "other structures" which just required a location drawing and description. I knew there really should be stamped drawings for a retaining wall, but their process didn't show that and I was irritated that they wanted to review my drawings knowing full well they didn't have a PE among them to properly determine if it was drawn right or not so I brought them a location drawing and a spec for the materials as a description. They said they wanted stamped drawings and I was prepared for it. I flipped their list over to the blank back and sketched the cross section out by hand and the lady was really smug and said they would need to be stamped. I pulled my stamp out and stamped it, signed it and dated and said here you go. Ol girl went about two shades of purple past what was healthy but she took those drawings.
 
2big bronco said:
Just ignore all the codes, move into a trailer in the back yard, get your wife pregnant, have someone on pirate draw you up free house plans with a "dildo closet" clearly labled, watch a bunch of YouTube videos, mix 16 yards of concrete in a hf mixer, dig septic by hand, and build a house on top of everything.

Easy peasy.
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I wonder what the air exchange rate would be on a crack den. :flipoff2:

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