On Monday, August 12, 2024, the Skagit Board of County Commissioners adopted an ordinance to overhaul Skagit County’s building and land use permit procedures to improve the speed at which the County processes permit applications.
Under the previous regulations, applications were grouped into five “application levels.” Under the new code, applications are grouped into four “review types.” The least complex applications, including building permits, must be processed within 65 days. More complex applications, such as large land divisions, may take up to 170 days. The processing periods exclude any amount of time the Planning and Development Services Department is waiting for a response from the applicant. The regulations introduce new options for applicants to submit all required components of an application simultaneously, for the Planning Director to waive application requirements that are irrelevant for a specific application, and for applicants to obtain a meeting with permit staff if multiple rounds of corrections are required.
The revised application procedures are timed to become effective in advance of the state law January 1, 2025, deadline for revisions to application review time periods, and concurrent with the County’s roll-out of its new permit software system on November 12, 2024. Applications submitted on or after the effective date will be subject to the new procedures.
For more information, see www.skagitcounty.net/Departments/PlanningAndPermit/permitupdate.htm
If you have any questions regarding the new permit procedures, please reach out to the Skagit County Planning and Development Services Department at [email protected] or 360-416-1320.
