Building permit delays concern Whitehorse construction industry

Long backlogs on building permit approval in Whitehorse have drawn the ire of those who build homes for a living as the days of the Yukon’s short building season tick by.

John Vogt, the owner of Vogt Homes, spoke with the News about the impacts delayed permits have had on his business and the building trade across Whitehorse. 

Based on inquiries to the city, Vogt estimated there were still more than 30 unapproved permits ahead of him in line when he says he put in for permits in May. He suggests there are between 150 and 200 permits in the city’s queue and that wait times for permits applied for today could exceed six months. Vogt bases this on regular inquiries to the city and says he’s being told that only about one permit per business day is coming off the queue in front of his. 

Vogt said in previous years, permits could typically be obtained within two or three weeks with occasional delays to four weeks and one taking six weeks last year. He said he is currently on week eight of his wait for permits this year and that he thinks he’s looking ahead to the first week of September for it actually being issued.  

“It is across the board. Everyone is sitting and waiting. I’ve heard of people who’ve had permits in since February who still have not gotten them issued yet,” he said.

Vogt chalks the delays up to greater detail being required from builders before permits are issued. He said builders have heard that the city department responsible for permits is understaffed but calls this a “scapegoat,” compared to the impact of the more detailed plans. 

Following a meeting this spring between numerous builders and the city, that Vogt described as “very hostile,” he said he was one of four representatives from the city’s homebuilders who met with officials in a smaller gathering. While he said that meeting felt productive at the time, with some concessions on when information could be provided offered, he added that the delays have only grown worse.  

He noted that the city is also allowing excavation permits allowing foundations to be dug and forms built, but no concrete actually poured, prior to the issuing of the rest of the permit. Vogt suggested he and his small crew could find themselves out of work in the new year if permits don’t come through. He added that some in the business are considering starting work without permits. 

“Right now, what needs to happen is we need to go back to doing the process that was in place last year. It was under the same building code. At the end of the day, the person who bears responsibility for building to code is the builder. So, re-implement the system that was there and get those permits out the door, because that system worked,” he said. 

The problem of slow permits does not stop at Whitehorse city limits. Calvin Gillings, a Marsh Lake resident seeking permits from the territorial government to shore up a collapsing foundation at his family’s home, said he is encountering a long wait for that permit. He claims that the Yukon government’s permit office is also very short-staffed with only a single inspector working on projects outside Whitehorse. Noting the tight spot the permit wait has put him and his family in, Gillings says he is engaging an engineer in hopes of bypassing the permit office. 

In a July 23 statement, the opposition Yukon Party called on the territorial government to assist Whitehorse with its permit backlog. Specific actions requested are: That the government provide an extension on any build-time requirements that it imposes and waives interest charged on housing lots unable to proceed due to permits being held up. Direct financial or staff support are also discussed in the statement.

The building permit backlog was discussed at the July 8 city council meeting with a request for city administration to deliver a report on the matter in early August tabled. 

At the meeting, the city’s acting development services director, Jason Bradshaw, explained that the city hired two external resources to help with plan reviews and was also engaged in a Canada-wide search for qualified building inspectors. Overtime work and an appeal to the territorial government for assistance were also mentioned. 

Coun. Dan Boyd, who says he has decades of experience in the construction industry, said he has never seen it so difficult to obtain a building permit. He cited the increased detail and complexity being required in the permits as a cause of the delays. 

“We don’t know of any addition, of any city processes themselves that are getting in the way here, you know, and in terms of the service standards, we would definitely love to see the turnaround times vastly improved,” city manager Jeff O’Farrell said. 

He noted that preparing the suggested report might be counterproductive to the timely issuance of permits as it would take up staff time in the departments issuing the permits. Later, he reiterated that city administration is not happy with the present state of things and recognizes the serious impact it has on housing in the community. 

Councillors discussed the views they had heard from the construction industry, suggesting a lack of transparency from the city before voting 4-3 against directing city staff to prepare the report. It was noted that the city was already set to review things in the fall. 

On July 23, the city issued a public notice stating that it is piloting a remote building inspection service using videoconferencing to inspect select projects. It is hoped its use will expand once it is tested over the next few weeks. 

“Introducing remote virtual inspections is one of the steps the city is taking to expedite the permitting process and address staff shortages at land and building services. The city has also contracted external help to review building plans and permit applications, redeployed staff to assist in addressing permit applications, and engaged specialized recruitment consultants to hire more building officials,” the statement reads. 

Vogt said that following discussions in the spring and the city telling builders that it was hiring outside help, the backlog didn’t improve. He was tight-lipped on the content of another meeting with the city in July but says he’s left with the impression that fixes won’t come fast enough. Vogt noted that this meeting had city councillors and senior management in attendance.

“I think that people in the city are finally starting to feel the heat. I think it would be fair to say that, I think there’s some jobs on that may be on the line for them. Which is only fair, because for our industry, all our jobs are on the line,” Vogt said.

Contact Jim Elliot at [email protected]