LaSalle County committee presses SafeBuilt on plan‑review delays, inspector hours and proposed fee increases

LaSalle County’s Land Use Committee on June 4 discussed continued delays in plan review and a contractor request to raise building‑permit fees, and asked the contractor to return next month to answer questions.

The committee’s building official, identified in the meeting as Brian (county staff), said plan review that had been slowing permits is “on the same page now,” and that plan review turnarounds are improving but remain short of pre‑contract performance. He said one inspector contracted through SafeBuilt, identified in the meeting as Matt, is working fewer days and has asked for additional hours.

The discussion centered on SafeBuilt’s latest fee proposal, which county staff inserted into the draft building permit ordinance for the committee to review. The proposal would add or raise several line items, including a residential plan‑review flat fee (listed in the draft as $1.50) plus a square‑foot levy (22¢ per sq. ft.) and separate minimums for trade reviews such as electrical, plumbing and HVAC. Staff said SafeBuilt proposed a $360 flat fee for commercial plan review on projects under 7,500 square feet and a flat residential solar fee to simplify permits for out‑of‑county installers.

Committee members pressed staff for clarity on what the increases would buy, given that the county has lost some in‑office presence. Brian said Matt is commuting from DeKalb and is in the office roughly three days a week; he described plan‑review workload as improving and said, “I would say that, I think things are getting close to being, close to what they were before.”

Members raised operational concerns: inspection access when the inspector is offsite, the burden on contractors waiting for reinspections and whether SafeBuilt’s reduced on‑site time justifies a fee increase. Brian said the county can schedule in‑office meetings with the inspector but acknowledged coordination is more complex now that the inspector travels to job sites from a neighboring county.

The committee agreed to invite SafeBuilt representatives — including the Midwest regional manager who has engaged with the county by phone — to return to the committee within a month to explain the fee proposal and to report on current turnarounds and staffing. The committee also signaled it will review the SafeBuilt contract once fee changes are finalized.

Actions taken at the meeting were limited to directing staff to invite SafeBuilt back and to continue reviewing the draft fee schedule; no fee change was approved at the meeting.

The committee repeatedly noted a backlog of permit items flagged as pending, particularly solar projects where applicants had been asked to supply additional information. Brian said there are approximately 15–20 permits pending and that most are solar projects awaiting follow‑up.