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County details substantial‑damage process as permitting continues; reassessment path added for homeowners
Summary
County building staff described how the FEMA estimator tool and a new reassessment workflow are being used to process thousands of inspections and permit requests; staff said most properties are not deemed substantially damaged and multistory condominium buildings were cleared to proceed with permitting.
Pinellas County building staff gave a detailed briefing on Jan. 14 about how the county is carrying out substantial‑damage (SD) determinations, the FEMA estimator tool and a new reassessment pathway for homeowners and contractors.
Kevin McCandrew, director of Building and Development Review Services (BDRS), said the county ran two concurrent recovery paths after the storms: issuing building permits for repairs while performing FEMA estimator‑tool inspections to identify properties needing SD determinations. He said more than 1,900 building permits for storm repair had been issued through BDRS and the county continued “to run concurrent paths.”
“Building permits would not be able to be issued without compliance with substantial improvement, substantial damage considerations,” McCandrew said, explaining that compliance stems from the Florida Building Code and FEMA rules incorporated into county processes.
McCandrew described…
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