Contractor presses city on two-week wait for simple deck permit

Jason Dials, a licensed contractor with Dials Construction, told the Ottawa City Commission on April 16 that a basic deck permit he submitted March 31 took about two weeks to process and that the delay costs him work and income.

Dials said the permit was for “a pretty basic porch, 10 by 16. No roof. No nothing,” and that staff member Chris called him April 4 to ask how the porch would be built. He said he picked up the permit Monday and described the timeline as “two weeks for a basic permit.” “If I'm trying to schedule out a job ... I don't understand why it takes so long,” Dials said. “I think the system's broken and we need to fix it.”

Mayor Emily Allen acknowledged the comment and asked what Dials thought would be a fair turnaround. Dials said three calendar days would be reasonable for a simple permit, which he said would allow him to schedule small jobs between larger projects. “So if we turn it in on Friday, by Wednesday of the following week, we should be able to have a permit,” he said. Mayor Allen said staff would look into the process and follow up with him.

No formal action or ordinance was taken at the meeting; the exchange occurred during the public comments portion. City staff verbally committed to investigate the permit-processing timeline and report back to Dials. The commission did not set a deadline for staff follow-up during the meeting.

The contractor provided specific timeline details: permit submitted 03/31; staff phone call April 4; permit ready the following Monday; the contractor characterized the total elapsed time as about two weeks. Dials also noted that small contractors are paid per job and that delays affect scheduling and earnings.

The mayor and commissioners did not dispute the timeline but asked staff to review permit processing procedures and respond to Dials’ concerns.