Columbia County details plan-review process, 7-10 day turnaround for commercial submittals

Columbia County’s building-standards office laid out the county’s expectations for plan submissions and the internal review process in an informational session hosted by Cassidy Harris, the county’s public relations director. Vicki Gay, the plan-review manager, described which codes reviewers check and how applicants should prepare to avoid delays.

"So our plan review team reviews for building code, structural code, life safety code, electrical, plumbing, and mechanical code," Gay said, noting that state amendments can affect design decisions by out-of-town architects and should be flagged early in the design process. She said the county recommends a preliminary submittal meeting when a project involves a change of occupancy, such as converting a freestanding building into a restaurant, because the health department and environmental compliance may also need to be involved.

Gay emphasized that commercial submissions must be electronic: "All of our submittals are done electronically for the commercial side, either through email or through our portal. We do not accept any paper application or plans for commercial." She added the office uses Bluebeam to share plan files among reviewers and aims to turn around plan-review comments within about 7 to 10 business days: "We do have a 7 to 10 day review time. We do get the plans turned around with the plan review comments out within 10 business days."

The county requires Georgia-registered architects or engineers on certain project types, Gay said, listing educational occupancies, multi-story buildings, single-story buildings exceeding 5,000 square feet, institutional occupancies and assembly occupancies as examples that trigger professional seals and additional documentation on the application.

On fees and checklists, Gay said plan-review fees are typically based on square footage. She noted a cap on fire plan-review fees for larger buildings at about $500 and said the online application includes a checklist to ensure applicants submit required materials and indicate a general contractor when known. If an applicant does not yet have a contractor, the application can list that field as “to be determined,” provided required drawings are sealed when applicable.

Gay also described internal roles and the sign-off process: Amanda Ashley receives and logs submittals and issues notifications to reviewers; Gay performs an overall review and signs off when complete; then the division director, Mr. Scarberry, reviews and signs. The office applies a reviewer stamp to plans to indicate approval or rejection. Gay named Josh Crockett as lead plans examiner for life-safety, structural, building, mechanical and plumbing reviews, and said a residential plans examiner, James, handles residential topics including foundation anchorage, framing under the International Residential Code, and means-of-egress checks.

The session closed with Harris reiterating that plan review is the starting point for ensuring buildings are designed and built to meet state, national and county codes. Gay encouraged applicants to use the county portal for submissions and to request a preliminary meeting for projects that change occupancy or function.

For application details and the county checklist, applicants should use Columbia County’s online portal or contact the building-standards office directly.